The Black Flag Remake worries me.

It sure does feel weird to bear witness to a “Ubisoft W” after all this time. The new trailer for their upcoming remake of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag has been outright well-received, and I can definitely understand why. Within the franchise, Black Flag is in the unique position of being just old enough to justify updating in this way, while still being accessible enough on modern hardware at somewhat low prices to the point where most fans of the franchise have had a chance to play it. Most importantly, however, it is arguably the last universally beloved title in the series. Remember, Ubisoft tried to sell an entire game based on its naval combat and multiplayer. Keeping all that in mind, the decision to remake Black Flag specifically is nothing short of the safest possible choice they could have made. Amid numerous cancellations during a corporate restructuring effort, Black Flag likely survived as a project based on that alone. The company needs an easy win and now they might just have it.

Ultimately, that is what worries me the most. After many self-induced setbacks and poorly received products, Ubisoft is not taking any further creative risks until they’re stable again. Of course, they were not exactly known for taking huge creative risks before, but Assassin’s Creed in particular had some interesting concepts lined up. The complexities of historical organizations and events such as the KKK and the witch hunts are great, but risky ideas to explore further, since they require both direct condemnation and acknowledging issues and attitudes that may persist to this day. As evidenced by the cancellation of an AC game with the KKK as antagonists, the company is unwilling to do so right now. I can only hope Codename Hexe, their already announced game set during the witch hunts, does not suffer a similar fate or, even worse, has its premise watered down significantly. It’s just occurring to me now, too, that this might be why the “Freedom Cry”- DLC from Black Flag won’t be remastered alongside the main game.

When I came across rumors of a Black Flag-remake last year, I was already fairly certain I would not buy it. I did not exactly see the point in remaking a game so widely available instead of the first Assassin’s Creed or Sands of Time, a remake which has since been canceled as well. As mentioned previously, I understand the point now and I am still not interested. To me, this is neither the right direction for the franchise nor an appealing product on its own. Here’s hoping for less.. sanitized material in the future.