Wait! I was meant to say Assassin's of the Caribbean: Blackbeard Nag... never mind. Welcome to my latest blog and one of which many of you have been waiting a long time and maybe believed I was never going to write such a thing. Well today's the day for change where I will for once talk about the latest game in the huge hit by Ubisoft only known as Assassin's Creed which has passed it's 2012 storyline in Assassin's Creed 3 and thus the big hype over the final Desmond game is over while we wait for a completely new turn for the series. Many of which will love to see, jump off the bandwagon or simply just buy the game only for multiplayer (if you do, you'll be disappointed... unless this will be your first game) or something. Originally I didn't intend on writing a blog about AC4 (avoids the shocking gasps) but instead focus on my 2 Halloween blogs. Technically three blogs. A bit of my story of my horror franchise for the MyIGN console can be suited as a Halloween blog right? This isn't even counting a Halloween party blog. Make that 4 blogs!!!
However some latest news about the local Canadian company has caused me to remember many things about what I think AC4 will include and where people's hopeful speculations... may be cut short and the fact that AC4 is only days away and I've had 8 months (my friend showed me the AC4 trailer 2 days early) and 2 extra days in advance means that I have to scribble down this blog fast! Before I perform my worst drawing ever, what is this news many fans' favourite developers? It will be answered shortly but I must warn you that it could cause wide spread panic so you've been warned from pressing on upon what has happened to Ubisoft. Well
Watch Dogs is cancelled!!! However that is not all... The Crew is also cancelled! Games that I won't intend myself to buy anytime soon but how important they are towards the developers and the fans that have been talking about them ever since their big announcements. So prepare yourselves for a bit of a lesson about Ubisoft.
Watch Dogs. A new and at the time, completely next gen with our eyes set on something futuristic and what had never have been done before after it's announcement at E3. A dynamic urban-based environment that seemed to add yet another selection of games interested in buying whole swarms for open world gamers AKA the time when video game choices are made tougher than ever and with a world that seemed to change as you moved around in a more Infamous "control the city" style where even the comic books you read on your phone are comprimised rather than shooting random people in Grand Theft Auto, it seemed like there was a line of fellow MyIGNers waiting to follow this game right away... unless the trailer was just made in fact for show or shown on the PC. 
However this delay, no matter the small timeline of only a few months, in video game timeline, that's enough for gamers to go off games completely and buy substitutes, especially at the fact that many people would be waiting to get this game for free at Christmas and for the developers... it's a new type of pressure... the 2014 Spring delay one!
Now Ubisoft is made up of many divisions around the world. This is because the company has existed for many millenia and has thus able to expand itself with the millions of dollars made on many of their games.
So like Naughty Dog has done where they have split in to 2 companies focusing on separate games, Ubisoft has expanded globally (if not universal) with 26 different studios in 19 countries (you know not each) and many of these divisions can make their own games, ports for other consoles and devices and chip in many of their popular franchises like (you guessed it!) Assassin's Creed and Watch Dogs. However with The Crew, it's slightly different. Ubisoft acquired the Reflections company who were already specialized in the driving genre which means a majority of the work is developed by them and it's not a huge problem since it's not really near any holidays so to speak (unless you include mikeerik day) but what I think is problematic is that people will be likely buy other racing games such as Driveclub and the newest installment of the Forza series since I've heard many people talking about those games non-stop which except for one is more than just dusky settings, they are pretty much the same thing but haven't heard a thing about The Crew and what I think is special about The Crew is that it will for gamers of all types, whether realistic or not yet full of modes just like Driver and a massive world, full of a ridiculous amount of missions with a much more connected social Crew to keep updated on. Hence the name.
Both of these games represent Ubisoft's intention of creating brand new franchises while mixing in some of it's old creations... but for many, they will hope it's worth the wait before they get the trigger to buy the first game they see on the shelves. Although if it was to go wrong, it would kinda remind me of Insomniac Games. They were going in a decently hopeful direction with their new IP, Overstrike, full of the humour and crazy weapons that seemed to defy every law of physics but it wouldn't last long with EA around and they lost much support with the transference to Fuse but at the end of the day, they can always count on the Ratchet and Clank series to help push them in the right direction again.
Ok so enough talk about the grim situation of Ubisoft and I shjould probably re-name my my 4 Halloween blogs to 5 instead, it's time to find out whether AC4 seems in a good condition to satisfy many gamers.
Story
So without creating a whole bunch of spoilers (my lips are sealed!), it seems that we must wave goodbye to Desmond after a very wacky ending but also the newest assassin, Connor who was brought in to the series like a last minute character. I do believe that AC3 should of had a new main character or even multiple settings across the timeline. I mean, there was so much emphasis on Altair and Ezio that maybe there should have been many characters with much smaller timelines but each of them have something awesome that they're keeping secret or even the modern day characters would be just looking for one single character?
Honestly though, I think that if there was a new historical character, it should have started the character's story right at the end like Uncharted where there are flashbacks. Think about it. We just had Altair starting his story right within the order with an unknown past and foreshadowing future and Ezio where we saw his life from start to finish so maybe with Connor, they could have done the opposite and had a much older character. Afterall, we did just have a game based on Old Snake... I mean Ezio. It would kinda make the story feel more comfortable and consistent if it just made us see more of his later life. A new story beginning on the final out of the 5 Desmond games just kinda felt odd.
I'm seriously getting ahead of myself and you could see me leaping off a little too far if I'm considering making this an Assassin's Creed 3 blog too but it will also be useful to compare the previous games and their storylines with what we have with the next game.
So what do we know about this new character for AC4? (spoilers for AC4 start here!) His name is Edward Kenway. A character born in Swansea, Wales (I won't bring up anything which will lead to a blog about a football team) who seemed to have an adventurous life even whilst he was married which began to distance himself in becoming a privateer (which is kind of a pirate) and an inevitable fate, a fellow pirate who may have come in to contact a few times on his journeys with Captain Jack Sparrow which would certainly explain a lot. 
However his induction in to the fabled hoodie assassin order was due to a different particular reason. The exposure to the Assassin-Templar war via finding some form of Piece of Eden. (Spoilers finish!) This is where we have no idea what will happen and it's easy to believe that he will be all in it for himself to gain his own power and I could imagine many of the pirates he came to ally himself with being betrayed such as BlackBeard and fighting one final battle against him in some sort of explosive British firefight destroying the very ship that they're on.
Although, will this new object be any different from the previous Piece of Edens? Well throughout the main games, we have always had been given the fact that it has the potential to control all of Human kind but it's easy to see in the comics and secret e-mails that there could be various ones out there from healing to controlling time itself. Maybe since this is a Kenway story, show Edward many visions of his future and maybe the fate of Those Who Came Before (other than the First Civilization, we still don't really have a name to call them) which could deter his actions while the player progresses through the game. I mean he can't just be looking at the shiny diamond in the the brink of night... unless he's estimating it's value for some more plundering.
Ultimately, this Kenway story could always lead through the player to the life of his daughter, his father, his grandchildren or even Haytham in another game. It would nice to see if father got along... if they got along. Could it also be possible that you can play as all the Kenways in some way? I mean all 20 of them? Maybe Connor could be seeing this all through a POE himself. I mean how else did he know about his grandfather in Tyranny of King Washington and why would they cast Aveline with her own missions... and a HD collection... and her main weapons in the main storyline without Connor on the scene? It can only mean one thing! He has become a housewife... or has followed in his footsteps of his grandfather. You know the one. This is unless we just have some more sequels like Ezio did... and Altair didn't...
However don't let the trailers foul you! It seems like Ubisoft were very secretive about the AC3 storyline and no doubt will they be hiding secrets about this game and many other of their franchises.
Setting
The work of a naval filled game isn't something new for Ubisoft. In fact with the upcoming AC3 on the way, they decided to slow down the pace of a pirate game and just used it as a small feature in AC3. Possibly because they were worried about the response they would get after den Defense in ACR. The opposite happened and people flung their arms around Ubisoft in praise. This raises a question? Could this new game have been the start of a brand new franchise? One without the use of hoodies? Could AC3 have originally meant to be involved around a Native American Pirate... assassin?!
To be honest, I was actually really enthusiastic about a pirate setting. Back in the days when I barely played any of the AC games (yes there was a time), I was getting exited for Pirates of the Caribbean: Armada of the Damned where it was pretty much like many RPGs. You could run around and make choices where people will see you as a hero... or give you one more enemy to fight. Unfortunately... it got cancelled and so one of my hopes and dreams of actually playing an open world pirate game seemed down the drain... until now where we have a best-selling franchise moving with this theme and I was looking forward ever since I began playing the side missions of Captain Kidd with all the treasure and lore of the series from the cold eastern Canadian coast to the night time creepy mansion in Jamaica, it really seemed like they'll be doing exactly the same thing with the next game... but it's the way the game is handed out and presented that makes me think it feels very silly setting it within the Assassin's Creed franchise and it's one fundamental thing that seems to have been broken. The fact that assassins are meant to be scraping everything away of their existence. I mean why are assassins all of a sudden taking every territory they find in sight? Shouldn't someone of written some of this bit of history down? Does that mean that the assassins were secretly in charge of the solar disaster? I mean one of the most ruthless pirates there has ever been looks like he's pretty much the sidekick of this new character. Then again, he has another sidekick, one of which I am very looking forward to meeting (once I buy the game) Adewale with connections to the slave trade at it's birth in America... looks like I'll have to buy the complete edition.
I do believe that it will be awesome to explore all the treasures, coastal cities and the Mayan temples. I guess that ever since they swapped the Assassin's Creed 2 setting for the Italian Renaissance, they've been wanting to include something with these ancient people's ever since. I really can't blame them since I love ancient civilizations.
Although the way the pirate setting is being handled sorta feels a little rushed which leads on to the next parts...
Gameplay
The main component we've been waiting for and it really seems that despite people complaining that the AC series is going with too fast with their annualization plans... the game has taken over 2 years in development and since the developers have a final ending for the series (yes, it could very well be true) planned maybe at the end of the next gen or by 2100 or something, it means that they can set out the different games they have planned for many more years to come without it leading to repetitive territory. However AC4 was originally planned for release for 2015 which would make sense in order to start a sequel series with a new main modern day character. Instead, ever they rushed AC4 because no one really liked Connor (apart from the cool people) or they just slapped on the IV in Assassin's Creed for their next game. I mean it is still set in the Colonial setting afterall.
However much to what it seems, it looks pretty impressive with the underwater and beautiful island exploration clearly taking inspiration from one of their other games, Far Cry 3 and the whole bunch of missions and 70 hours of gameplay it would take to complete the whole game means that they learned something from the medicore missions of AC3 including... delivering a letter... hunting a bear by pressing X and square 3 times and last but not least trading... which ultimately fails in people stealing all my timber wood.
Although I must stress the fact that the assassin seems to be just be shooting up the place. We've heard that we can go stealthy to brutal fighting if we wish but that's what they said about AC3 and there were many sections where we just seemed forced in to both. It seems to be also diving in to RPG style territory. Now people may call it an RPG and the developers may deny but overall, it's an open world, action-adventure, exploration... stealth game but like many games over the years, has incorporated RPG elements which would be great if you was based on creating secret hideouts, weapons and outfits but pirate ships and a pirate army? It's like the developers have forgotten that assassins shouldn't just run in to battle where there will be many witnesses.
Do I hate the naval combat? Nope. I thoroughly enjoyed the sections out to see since it seemed like no one would find them in a storm and I have always enjoyed the severe weather mechanic within games and the whole version of effects looks like the game will be stunning no matter if you buy for this gen or the next or the one after depending if you buy the ultimate collection in 2 decades! However I know many people won't enjoy it and I can see that they tried to address those issues by including the ability to board the vessels but ultimately, many people don't want to command a ship in an Assassin's Creed game and ever want to fight or go stealthy... or climb... or go for a swim. The engine itself would make all these scenarios feel like AC3 but I think with the next gen and many elements added to the game, I'm not so sure people will think it's so much like AC3 with the combat aside... then again we have yet another character to remind us of another predecessor.
Modern day
A section of the game which in my opinion wouldn't feel like an Assassin's Creed game but with the fact that it is no longer a game scheduled for 2015... it's optional. That's right! You play as... yourself if you were an Abstergo employee where you can walk around, chit chat and play Abstergo pin ball games but what I don't understand is why people are taking this seriously. I'm not sure what it will be like but I think that it will likely have no story but you'll hear from items such as flatscreen TVs which give you information about what's going in the Assassin's Creed world and therefore add lore to the series. Maybe something like the multiplayer storyline in the Revelations where they make their strike towards the assassin order... and maybe another menace.
Overall, maybe it could add in some puzzles like in AC2 and ACB but with the fact that the modern day is optional and lasts about 5 hours to complete, I would say, don't get your hopes up on a main story. I think it's just gonna set up the events for the mysterious game in 2015 possibly. I mean there's a whole modern day fanbase so this is a chance to add something new with RPG elements of just walking around, doing your own thing in cool futuristic environments in the Ubisoft city of Montreal. 
So I believe in 2015, there will be a brand new character added to the series and hopefully, the world will be very different... but I have a feeling they won't go down that path. Just have to wait and see.
Main character and multiplayer
So what can we make of Eddie so far? He's a womanizer, loves to humiliate his enemies... this is Ezio!!! Seriously this character certainly has a different story, different motives but overall it will be like playing as Ezio again and for me, I see I huge flaw in this. It will get a load of support, yes but that's the problem. It's like Ubisoft doesn't want to try out new personalities for different characters and just focus on one which is the safest route. Why not a light hearted assassin that puts himself before others in the face of danger or an assassin forced to cut all ties and live alone... and also assassinate too where it will effect how the story progresses. However, it's kinda like we might as well call the series, the Ezio series... mixed in with a little bit of Connor combat.
Now the multiplayer... it has never been something that's thrilled me. I used to play it all the time with my friends and loved so much of it. I would abuse the power of stealth, mess around and get a cool kill/ death ratio by running from 4 people at once... where the most points for escaping multiple enemies is 3. 
However Revelations provided lots of modes such as corruption and artifact assault but me and many other people have always had in our minds that it's a pretty broken multiplayer at times. AC3 destroyed the whole component. All the cool modes were taken away and focused on deathmatch which no one really played but was included so that it would be more mainstream for people like Call of Duty fans. Spoiler alert (not really) There are no hidden rifles! Not only was I always thrown off but some random things would just make it go crazy like where hackers can easily drop in at any time.
In fact, the multiplayer isn't even made by the same division as the single player. Ubisoft Annency is in charge yet for it's new modes, it probably won't offer me enough to bring me back.
Overall, there are some areas that I am surprised with Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag. Both good and bad but Ubisoft continues to surprise us with their stories that have nothing to do with the trailers and it certainly represents the future of how expansive worlds can be even if they're just based way back in the piratering days of Captain Jack Sparrow. Although this isn't a game I will buy straight away. I was considering of getting it for Christmas but I think I could wait about 3 years for both AC4 and Watch Dogs so a delay is of no real concern for me... unless it's delayed for 3 years that is!
So there you have it! Those are pretty much my thoughts and for many, a long awaited blog to see. So I would like to ask you, what are your thoughts on this game? Will you be buying it release? Any thoughts about the situation Ubisoft are in at the moment?
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed.