Assassin’s Creed (AC) Black Flag Resynced is already a massive hit for Ubisoft. Essentially, it is a remake of the beloved 2013 game. Developers rebuilt the title inside the Anvil Engine. Therefore, it features an impressive visual overhaul. It also includes reworked parkour, combat, and stealth systems, alongside fresh content. However, things took a negative turn for PC players this past weekend.
Black Flag Resynced Marred by Connectivity Issues
The new game fully integrates with Ubisoft Connect. This service acts as a DRM layer for PC players. Generally, players expect to connect to the internet just once to authenticate the game. Furthermore, Ubisoft Connect offers a dedicated offline mode. Yet, that offline track record can be hit or miss.
This past weekend, the Ubisoft Connect servers suddenly went offline. Consequently, the hour-long outage completely locked PC players out of the game. Instead of letting players continue playing, the server failure rendered the title totally unplayable on PC. Naturally, this incident caused a surge of frustrated posts online. It even triggered a sudden review bombing campaign on Steam. Since then, the Steam reviews have reversed back to normal. As of now, Ubisoft has not addressed the incident. Therefore, players still do not know if this lockout was a technical hiccup or intended PC behavior.
Unfortunately, this weekend’s event reignited deep frustrations regarding mandatory online connections. The debate over single-player games demanding internet access remains a hot-button issue. In fact, gamers recently launched the Stop Killing Games movement over a similar issue. That movement started after Ubisoft shut down and delisted the popular open-world racing title, The Crew. Clearly, the gaming community and publishers still clash over what true offline play actually means.
Microtransactions & Free Community Rewards
Meanwhile, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced faced another controversy right at launch. The game released with $85 in cosmetic microtransactions. These purchases cover characters, the Jackdaw ship, and more. Fans quickly grew upset about this paywall. Consequently, Ubisoft issued a response confirming that these items are strictly optional extra content.
Fortunately, Ubisoft is also offering free downloadable extras as a thank you to the community. Players who want to avoid spending extra money can easily claim these items. Specifically, Ubisoft is giving away free Crimson Storm sails for the Jackdaw. Additionally, players receive 1,500 Animus Keys to spend in the in-game Exchange store. Finally, players get a free monkey that rides around as a shipmate companion on the open ocean.
