Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced, the remake of Edward Kenway's pirate adventure, is preparing to launch on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC The game will be released on July 9th. Ubisoft has been gradually revealing what changes and what remains the same compared to the 2013 title, and one of the points that has generated the most debate among the community is the new role of the hidden blade.
In various Q&A sessions and in the presentation gameplay, the developers have clarified that The iconic Assassin's Creed weapon will no longer function as it did in the original game.It will still be key for silent assassinations, but its role in the combat system will be very different, which has sparked both curiosity and complaints among veteran players in Spain and the rest of Europe.
The hidden blade ceases to be an equippable weapon
The most striking change is that The hidden sheet can no longer be selected from the radial menu of weapons. In Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, it was possible to fight using only the hidden blades, allowing Edward to show off with spectacular melee animations. In Resynced, however, that option to equip it as a primary tool in open combat disappears.
As Ubisoft explained on Reddit, the Dual blades will now be Edward Kenway's primary weapons During combat, the hidden blade becomes a special attack that appears contextually, integrated into the flow of blows without the player needing to manually select it at any point.
The remake's creators insist that this decision aims to make the combat feel real. more fluid and intuitive for new playersThis eliminates the need to constantly pause the action to switch weapons. However, for those who enjoyed mastering the hidden blade as their primary tool, the loss of that playstyle represents a significant sacrifice.
Much of the criticism gathered in forums and social networks, including among Spanish players, points precisely to this: It is perceived as a reduction of possibilities. compared to the original, where the protagonist seemed capable of taking down anyone with whatever he had at hand, including the hidden blade in the middle of combat.
From primary weapon to "last resort" and lethal parry
In Resynced, the hidden sheet then functions as a finishing and counterattacking resourceThe developers explain that it will become a "last resort" that comes into play when Edward breaks the enemy's guard or executes a perfect parry. At that moment, the character will unleash a brutal animation with the hidden blade to wear down or eliminate the opponent.
The idea, according to Ubisoft, is that The hidden blade is integrated into combat as a central part of the defense systemAnd not just as another weapon in the inventory. Every time the player makes a good counterattack, they'll see Edward use the dual blades as a lethal response, with bloodier animations than in 2013, though not to the extreme of dismemberment.
This means we won't see Kenway chaining together full combos exclusively with the hidden blade like before, but His presence on screen will be constant during the matchesThe Brotherhood's signature weapon thus ceases to be an alternative option and becomes the visual finishing touch associated with the player's best defenses.
Some fans see the change as a way of give more prominence to the parry mechanicsThis is similar to what happens in other recent action games where counterattacks become the core of the combat system. Others, however, believe that part of the original essence of Black Flag is lost, in which each weapon offered a clearly differentiated fighting style.
In any case, for Ubisoft this new approach turns the hidden blade into an essential piece of combat at all timesand not in a weapon that many players barely used outside of stealth in the 2013 campaign.
The stealth remains true to the original Black Flag.
Where there will be few changes is in the use of the hidden blade outside of direct combat. Ubisoft has confirmed that, For stealth assassinations, everything will continue to work virtually the same. than in the original Black Flag. That is, the dual blades will continue to be Edward's best asset when it comes to eliminating targets from behind or from advantageous positions without raising suspicion.
Classic silent executions, attacks from high places, and ambushes in crowds will be retained, so The stealth-focused gameplay style will hardly be alteredThe change is limited to the moment when the player decides to engage in open combat and the hidden blade ceases to be an equippable option, becoming a contextual attack.
This balance between continuity and novelty aims to please both those who enjoyed the traditional role of shadow assassin as well as those looking for a more modern fighting system. However, reactions remain divided: many veterans believe that the series' stealth DNA is respected, but point out that in combat the character loses one of his most distinctive tools.
One idea is repeated in the community discussions: The hidden blade ceases to be just another strategic option to become an automatic result of a specific action. In the eyes of some players, this removes layers of tactical decision-making compared to the original game.
New animations, more blood, and more polished combat
Beyond the role of the hidden blade, Ubisoft has detailed that Resynced's combat system will feature New animations for both melee and firearmsThe goal is to make the confrontations more visually striking and clear, with better visual feedback when blows are chained together, guns are fired, or counterattacks are executed.
The study talks about a more intuitive use of firearmsThese should be better integrated into melee combos instead of feeling like an awkward addition. Meanwhile, finishers with the hidden blade and other weapons will be more brutal: gory details have been increased, although the developers have set a limit and ruled out introducing dismemberment.
For many players, these adjustments make combat feel more like... current standards, But the controversy over the loss of the hidden blade as a selectable weapon This often relegates other improvements to the background in discussions on social media and specialized forums.
For now, the general impression is that Resynced is looking for a middle ground between Maintain the identity of the 2013 game and adapt it to an audience that may not have played the original.This involves making decisions that don't always align with what the most die-hard fans of the saga would have preferred, especially those who had internalized a very specific style of combat with the hidden blade.
It remains to be seen, when the title reaches Spanish and European bookstores, whether the new system It feels so satisfying with the controller in your hand as it sounds on paper or if, on the contrary, it reaffirms the reservations of those who considered the hidden blade an essential weapon for close combat.
Returning classic content and notable absences
Beyond the iconic weapon, the team has confirmed that many of the secondary activities that made Black Flag famous They will return in Resynced. Diving, whaling, animal hunting, minigames like checkers, and traditional tavern games, which helped bring port cities to life, are all back.
It also recovers Kenway FleetThe system for capturing ships and sending vessels on trade missions will be fully integrated into the game itself, through specific locations, without the need for external mobile applications as was the case in 2013.
In terms of customization, Ubisoft has guaranteed that all of Edward Kenway's suits and outfits They will be available in Resynced. For many fans, this is a minor detail, but others appreciate being able to reuse their favorite outfits and adapt them to their next-gen games without having to give up any of them.
Not everything that was present in the original will return. The company has reiterated that There will be no multiplayer mode. In this remake, the experience will be exclusively for one player. Instead, the focus is on expanding the narrative content and reinforcing the main campaign with more missions and additional stories.
Another striking absence is the inability to equip the hidden blade as a melee weaponAlthough it technically appears in combat as a bloody finisher and parry, the developers insist that it will not be a weapon that the player can select at will, something that many veterans of the franchise do not readily accept.
Map, interface, and navigation changes
Regarding the game world, Ubisoft has indicated that the The map will maintain the same dimensions as the original.with an area of ​​16 km by 16 km. However, the space will be better utilized by incorporating new islands and additional zones within some cities, which should offer more points of interest without altering the overall scale.
The developers have even hinted at the existence of some unpublished secret hidden in these new locationsThis relates to a mysterious nod to coconuts and bowling mentioned during the Q&A session. They haven't gone into details, but the comment has piqued the community's curiosity.
As for the interface, one of the most visible new features will be the Minimap disappearance in navigation and naval combatInstead, the screen will display a compass, forcing players to focus more on the environment and elements of the world than on a corner of the HUD, theoretically enhancing immersion at sea.
Some users have admitted that, in the original Black Flag, they spent more time looking at the minimap than at the ocean itself, so this change could help to better enjoy the Caribbean landscapes and the battles between shipsOthers, however, fear that the lack of a minimap will complicate the tracking of objectives or enemies in the midst of a naval skirmish.
On the other hand, the classic memory corridor The menus that appeared during certain game loading screens will return, retaining that abstract feel linked to the Animus. The same cannot be said for the old menus based on DNA sequences, which will not return in their classic form, in line with the series' recent trend of reducing the prominence of the present-day narrative within the interface.
Missions, narrative, and a revamped soundtrack
To compensate for the absence of modes like multiplayer, Ubisoft assures that Resynced will incorporate New narrative content and more missions which will expand the story of Edward Kenway and the supporting characters. The map may be the same size, but it will be filled with more islands, more objectives, and more situations that were not present in 2013.
The crew of the Jackdaw will continue to play an important role, and now All your actions will be carried out within the game itself.Without external support on mobile devices. Activities such as convoys and naval combat are maintained, which were one of the hallmarks of the original and which, in much of Europe, remain among the most remembered elements by fans.
In terms of sound, Ubisoft has confirmed that the soundtrack has been Updated with new compositionsThese tracks will coexist with the most iconic themes from the 2013 title. The intention is to respect the atmosphere that so many players associate with Black Flag, while adapting the musical production to current standards.
This "more and better" approach aims to ensure that the remake is not perceived merely as a technical faceliftbut rather as a more complete version of one of the franchise's most beloved installments. However, the community remains very attentive to every detail related to combat, as that's where the most subtle changes have been made, starting with the hidden blade.
With the launch set for July 9th and pre-orders already open at Spanish stores like GAME, the coming months will serve to... New and veteran players decide how important the use of the hidden blade is to them. When it comes to giving Resynced a chance, between its faithfulness to the original, technical improvements, and controversial decisions, this remake is shaping up to be one of the most talked-about releases of the summer.
