Screenshots & trailers
How this score was computed
The VGC Score is a weighted blend on a press-comparable 0-100 quality scale. Steam approval rates are first calibrated (95% positive on Steam ≈ 89.5 quality, since Steam approval skews high). Press and tracked creator reviews each count ~2x a player review and share one cap against player evidence (creator buy/skip calls pool into an approval rate, calibrated like Steam approval); all-time sentiment is capped and halved (it's context, not verdict); reviews of the current build carry the most weight when a fresh patch anchors the window; and a 'typical game' prior keeps small samples from pegging the scale. Because press reviews and Metacritic user aggregates describe the launch build, their weight decays as the game ages (3-year half-life after a 1-year grace). That's how a game that launched rough can outgrow its old reception once updates win players over. Reviews under 2h playtime (the refund window), non-Steam activations, and free copies are downweighted.
| Component | Positive | Quality (0-100) | Weight (pseudo-reviews) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Press reviews (Metacritic) | – | 88 | 20 |
| All-time Steam reviews | – | – | 0 |
| Metacritic user ratings | – | 88 | 750 |
| Xbox store ratings | – | 74 | 750 |
| Post-patch Steam reviews (trust-weighted) | – | – | 0 |
| Calibration prior (typical game) | – | 72 | 50 |
Scoring window: last 30 days (no significant patch detected) · 0 reviews sampled · 0 total reviews in window · weighted 0 up / 0 down · computed 2h ago · full methodology →
Press & Creators reviews (37)
Individual verdicts from outlets we track: scored reviews first, most trusted outlets first among them. The small badge is each outlet's trust score: how well its scoring history aligns with players.
- 90
“Black Flag is quite possibly the closest to a real sandbox we have seen in this saga by Ubisoft. Even though its main innovations revolve around the sea navigation and naval combat, this new installment still possesses enough good qualities as to give this saga our vote one more year.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Black Flag lacks the spit and polish of prize plunder, but it certainly doesn’t deserve to be cast back into the ocean. This is as much an enjoyable on water excursion as it as an exceptional stealth game, and while not every mission in its protracted campaign will leave you as buoyant as the Jolly Roger, you’ll find more than enough riches here to keep you coming back for more.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag is simultaneously one of the best and worst Assassin's Creed games I've ever played.”
read full review ↗ - 100
“While Black Flag feels very much like an Assassin's Creed game, its gameplay reminds me more of Sid Meier's Pirates! wrought in glorious 3D. As in that classic game, you are free to sail wherever your heart desires, and be as dastardly or as benign as you like. Embodying Edward Kenway and living through his adventures on the seas, while also experiencing his struggle with Assassins and Templars alike, is pure escapist delight.”
read full review ↗ - 90
“The developers have worked around the series' foibles brilliantly. ”
read full review ↗ - 90
“It has taken the gameplay of the previous games, refined it, and combined it with a huge open world that is packed with enough content to literally last for days. If you have ever wanted a proper pirate game, this is as good as it gets.”
read full review ↗ - 93
“The greatest compliment I can afford Black Flag, though, is that I wanted more at the end of my time with it. With such an expansive map to explore and so many alluring distractions on offer, this is the kind of game a player could easily lose scores of hours exploring.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag is the best of the series since the Assassin’s Creed II without any shadow of a doubt. The experience is broken a little by some current gen restrictions, but not enough to ruin the overall experience.”
read full review ↗ - 100
- 90
“While some franchises are merely pumping out the same stuff every year with simply a new coat of paint, Black Flag is a welcome and well-done reinvention that adds new large-scale elements to an already solid base.”
read full review ↗ - 80
“The seafaring aspect of Black Flag is where much of the fun lies, but things feel a little too familiar every time Kenway sets foot on land. Climb buildings, collect items, infiltrate fortresses, assassinate targets. If you've grown weary of this formula, you'll count the minutes until you're back out at sea, plundering ships, harpooning sharks and diving for sunken treasure.”
read full review ↗ - 85
“We didn't like going out of the animus, the mission structure gets repetitive real fast and the framerate isn't always as solid as it should be. Nevertheless, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag offers a great and varied experience, mostly thanks to the expertly designed world you get to explore.”
read full review ↗
Push Square
Worth Playing
The Escapist
Eurogamer
TheSixthAxis
AusGamers
Gamestyle
TotalBiscuit, The Cynical Brit
Toronto Sun…and 25 more tracked reviews.