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Assassins Creed 4: Black Flag |OT| Not Based on a DisneyLand Ride

H

hateradio

The Most Dangerous Yes Man
I got 91% complete . . . I probably spent 50 hours or more on it.

There's no way I was going to bother with the underwater crap or fetching items on random strips of land they call islands. That's just too far.

:(

Most of the side missions were crap. This game didn't evolved on the previous ones at all in that respect.
 
V

velociraptor

Junior Member
Ashtar said:
This is one complaint I just don't understand.... side missions are optional so why get mad that there's "so many of them" collectibles also are optional the only one that help with progress are the schematics but I don't think that you're prevented from progressing bc you didn't unlock the final mortar.
Unless of course the two sentences aren't directly related and you're stating the game is awful and then also saying the side missions and collectibles annoy you.
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I've never understood it when people throw around the 'it's optional' rebuttal. Better to serve a lean product rather than one bloated with fat and junk. Yes, a game which tries to artificially extend it's lifespan with meaningless and repetitive content is a bad game.

I'm pretty far in the story mode. I've stopped caring about side missions; game is more enjoyable this way. But my god it's repetitive. Even the story missions are lacking imagination. The game is practically the same from start to finish, story mission OR side mission!

I enjoyed Assassin's Creed III much more. AC3 was more varied both in terms of gameplay and locations. However, the story of Assassin's Creed IV seems to be more intriguing. We'll see how the game fares in the end though.

Templar missions are great though. Now that is a side mission done right.
 
G

golem

Member
Although Im finding this to be one of the more enjoyable Assassin's Creed I still cant believe how much jank there is in the basic gameplay... just traversing the world on foot still doesnt work well. This is like the 10th game in the series! Stealth is somewhat improved but still kind of lame, I hope Unity borrows some mechanics from Watch Dogs.
 
K

Katori

Member
Anyone played this on Wii U? It's on sale on the eShop and I'm tempted to get it because dat Off-TV Play. I don't care about multiplayer or DLC (I'll peep Freedom Cry on Steam if I like the main game), should I get it or is there some horrible bug/performance issue or anything like that?
 
K

krameriffic

Member
Why do game developers still put missions in with arbitrary auto-fail conditions? I just did the first stealth mission with the old bullshit of "detected = desync" and it made me want to close the game, uninstall, throw my computer out the window and kill myself. Fuck these missions. Fuck these developers who still put these missions in games.
 
K

Klocker

Member
krameriffic said:
Why do game developers still put missions in with arbitrary auto-fail conditions? I just did the first stealth mission with the old bullshit of "detected = desync" and it made me want to close the game, uninstall, throw my computer out the window and kill myself. Fuck these missions. Fuck these developers who still put these missions in games.
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Yea the unity devs said they were making a point to stop that shit... now you will have options.. but yes it's an old tired mecahnic
 
SJRB

SJRB

Gold Member
krameriffic said:
Why do game developers still put missions in with arbitrary auto-fail conditions? I just did the first stealth mission with the old bullshit of "detected = desync" and it made me want to close the game, uninstall, throw my computer out the window and kill myself. Fuck these missions. Fuck these developers who still put these missions in games.
Click to expand...

AC games are a masterclass in bad game design. Black Flag is filled with terrible stealth missions with absurd failstates.
 
N

NullPointer

Member
krameriffic said:
Why do game developers still put missions in with arbitrary auto-fail conditions? I just did the first stealth mission with the old bullshit of "detected = desync" and it made me want to close the game, uninstall, throw my computer out the window and kill myself. Fuck these missions. Fuck these developers who still put these missions in games.
Click to expand...
Its so artificial, as if you couldn't take down the target's bazillion body guards and a private army on the side, given all the tricks at your disposal, as well as a Godlike counter-attack. So the auto-fail state lets them try to create some tension out of thin air.

Its only more hilarious when most of those insta-fail stealth missions end with forced open conflict against a dozen dudes anyway, because action games.
 
T

Tunesmith

formerly "chigiri"
krameriffic said:
Why do game developers still put missions in with arbitrary auto-fail conditions? I just did the first stealth mission with the old bullshit of "detected = desync" and it made me want to close the game, uninstall, throw my computer out the window and kill myself. Fuck these missions. Fuck these developers who still put these missions in games.
Click to expand...

Thankfully, in AC:Unity they're moving away from this game mechanic. Absolute fail states are apparently a thing of the past. A failed tail mission will turn into a chase mission which can in turn end in various ways like a combat scenario or interrogation.

There's hope.
 
T

teruterubozu

Member
Tunesmith said:
Thankfully, in AC:Unity they're moving away from this game mechanic. Absolute fail states are apparently a thing of the past. A failed tail mission will turn into a chase mission which can in turn end in various ways like a combat scenario or interrogation.

There's hope.
Click to expand...

But then it'll be something frustrating like "70% Memory Sync." Frustration Quit. Restart mission. Stealth will always be the highest reward in AC and there'll be some kind of negation for blowing it.
 
T

Tunesmith

formerly "chigiri"
teruterubozu said:
But then it'll be something frustrating like "70% Memory Sync." Frustration Quit. Restart mission. Stealth will always be the highest reward in AC and there'll be some kind of negation for blowing it.
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The way the devs spoke at E3 is sounded like you would be able to get full sync via alternate methods, that they were doing away with penalizing in that sense.
 
L

LogicStep

Member
I started this last night, I beat AC2 and Bro but skipped Rev and played part of AC3 but I jumped ship pretty quick on that one. I bit the bullet on the last day of the sales man am I enjoying this one. When I was cruising on the ship I seriously felt so excited. All I have to say is... I'M A FUCKING PIRATE!
 
SJRB

SJRB

Gold Member
Tunesmith said:
The way the devs spoke at E3 is sounded like you would be able to get full sync via alternate methods, that they were doing away with penalizing in that sense.
Click to expand...

If you think about it, it's pretty insane how a terrible mechanic like "full sync" was introduced several games back, and instead of just discarding it they now have to think of solutions to work around a thoroughly broken and player-punishing mechanic to make it actually useful and fun.

I mean, they introduced it, just take that shit out.
 
P

Pickman

Member
For anyone just getting this game, I'll tell you now that you can skip pirate shanties like a old-timey seafarin' MP3 player. There's a few in particular that will grate on your nerves pretty quickly.

If you ever find yourself on calm seas with the full moon against your sails, queue up Lowlands Away, get misty eyed, and watch for the gaily flittering dance of the dolphins before your bow. You're in the calm eye of the storm that is a pirate's life.
 
S

Sporad

Neo Member
Is it possible to get rid of the objective text on the screen in the Wii U version? I cannot find a way and is really annoying!
 
P

Pimpn Drop Bear

Neo Member
Really enjoyed this game but extremely annoyed that ubisoft havent fixed a bugged optional objective (Damage the Royal African Pearl with an upgraded ram attack). It is a known bug, my ship is fully upgraded and it just does not unlock. Really disappointing after the amount of time put into getting 100% sync.
 
D

disappeared

Banned
So, not going to lie, I've hated the AC series since II. It just seems to offer me no incentive to keep going.

That being said, I've been in an extremely nautical-themed mood lately, and the idea of sailing around on a ship is something that's been intriguing me with AC4.

How does the game fare for somebody who just wants to say fuck the story/sidequests/etc and just sail around on the seas?
 
SJRB

SJRB

Gold Member
disappeared said:
So, not going to lie, I've hated the AC series since II. It just seems to offer me no incentive to keep going.

That being said, I've been in an extremely nautical-themed mood lately, and the idea of sailing around on a ship is something that's been intriguing me with AC4.

How does the game fare for somebody who just wants to say fuck the story/sidequests/etc and just sail around on the seas?
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Fairly impossible. It takes some time before you even get your own ship, and even then the upgrades unlock as the story progresses. You won't be able to randomly freeroam AND hold your own until quite a bit into the story.
 
C

conman

Member
disappeared said:
How does the game fare for somebody who just wants to say fuck the story/sidequests/etc and just sail around on the seas?
Click to expand...
I'd say not well. The game still gets bogged down in its AC-ness from time to time (the towns were a real bore after the first one), and outside of that, the game is nothing but sidequests. As awesome as it is to sail around, that's just one small piece in a giant toy box filled with gewgaws.
 
D

disappeared

Banned
SJRB said:
Fairly impossible. It takes some time before you even get your own ship, and even then the upgrades unlock as the story progresses. You won't be able to randomly freeroam AND hold your own until quite a bit into the story.
Click to expand...


conman said:
I'd say not well. The game still gets bogged down in its AC-ness from time to time (the towns were a real bore after the first one), and outside of that, the game is nothing but sidequests. As awesome as it is to sail around, that's just one small piece in a giant toy box filled with gewgaws.
Click to expand...

Thank you both. It was as I'd feared.
 
L

LyleLanley

Banned
Finally got around to beating this today. Fun game but I have absolutely no idea what the hell is going on in the series storyline anymore.
 
M

Mogwai

Member
Can someone explain to me why I get the message that "fast travel is unlocked" as soon as I find a new island?

As I understand, I need to climb the viewpoints before fast travel is unlocked?

I'm a bit confused about these messages...
 
M

Mogwai

Member
PC version:

Has anyone experienced that during sailing, the screen freezes expect for the mini map? I can still enter the menu and go back, but the picture freezes in some odd way.
 
B

BigWeather

Member
My daughter went to play today and she says all of her progress was lost. We use cloud saving and our PS+ lapsed for a few days a couple of months ago -- that wouldn't lead to them being lost, would it? Anyone else see this? Maybe a PSN hiccup?
 
F

firebricks3

Member
Just finished this 100% (missed a few multiplayer achievements but whatevs) and there is so much to like and dislike in this game that I can't help but feel this will be last AC game. Anytime the game lets you play the way you want to, whether it be exploring the world in your boat, battling other ships or being OP and killing a bunch of bad guys, its pretty fantastic. The pirate theme in general is great, the shanties are fun and the game looks good. On the flipside, it is stunning how similar this game is to AC3. It basically is "Checklist: The Game". There's plenty to do, but very little in the way of rewards. Also, Kenway is a walking nightmare and the combat system easily allows you to kill everyone in the British army. Unfortunately, many of the missions take away choice and force you to complete them stealthily, something the AC games have never done well. "Tailing the target while not being seen and then assassinating them anyways" missions (of which there are far too many) are an exercise in frustration when I know I could easily off the target as soon as they come into view. I guess it's lucky that the game is pirate themed because if it wasn't, it would've been called AC3-2.
 
S

strafer

member
Hell yeah...playthrough number four using the captain morgan outfit....


yaaar now I feel like a real pirate.

God I love this game
 
J

Jetman

Member
As a heads up, to anyone who hasn't finished the multiplayer trophies - Double Exp is on this weekend. Hit about 10 levels in 3 hours on Wolfpack so far. (Fucking amazes me that some people Still don't understand how to play Pack. "Let me sprint into a group of enemies and see what happens!")
 
T

TheSeks

Blinded by the luminous glory that is David Bowie's physical manifestation.
Jetman said:
As a heads up, to anyone who hasn't finished the multiplayer trophies - Double Exp is on this weekend. Hit about 10 levels in 3 hours on Wolfpack so far. (Fucking amazes me that some people Still don't understand how to play Pack. "Let me sprint into a group of enemies and see what happens!")
Click to expand...

That always drives me insane and since the PC version is nearly dead I gave up on ranking up to craft my skills. I already hit 50 so... no point in worrying.

Started the singleplayer yesterday and going in Abstergo's perspective of the animus is kinda interesting.
 
O

opticalmace

Member
Finished this game over the weekend. My first AC game, and it was damn fun! I couldn't care less about the animus fragments or whatever, and I thought the "IRL" stuff was stupid, but the piracy was most excellent.

I was a bit sad there wasn't more to the Kenway's Fleet stuff. By the time I had a great collection of ships I had already completed all the missions.
 
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