Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced’s DLC Packs “Entirely Optional,” Says Ubisoft After Backlash

Even when Ubisoft scores a win, as evidenced by how well Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced has been critically received, it seemingly can’t stop getting in its way. Despite becoming the biggest launch for the series on Steam, it received “Mixed” (now “Mostly Positive”) user reviews due to the Character and Naval Packs.

While two of these – the Master Assassin Character and Naval Packs – are included in the Deluxe Edition, you have to purchase the other six (alongside the Map Pack) separately. Given that the latter comes to around $65 for those who already spent $70 (or $85 for those who bought the Standard Edition), it doesn’t leave the best taste.

Multiple users called this out, but one review in particular received hundreds of awards and likes. “Come on Ubisoft, you just couldn’t hold yourself, huh?! Releasing a €70 game and on the DAY of the release you slap us with €85 worth of DLC packs that are just not cosmetic but give you a gameplay advantage!”

Surprisingly, Ubisoft responded to this. “We’ve seen your feedback since launch, and we’re reading all of it. Thank you for caring this much about Black Flag Resynced. We want to be clear on one point: the Standard Edition is the full, complete experience.

“Every mission, every island, the full story and the complete world are all there, with nothing held back. The additional packs are entirely optional extras for players who want them, never a requirement to enjoy or complete the game. We’ll keep listening as you play!”

While technically correct, it still doesn’t help the publisher’s overall image, especially for the remake of a 2013 title that’s commanding triple-A prices. The fact that it added the packs at launch and didn’t reveal them beforehand doesn’t help either. Of course, given the number of studios that have worked on Resynced, Ubisoft probably feels that it’s justified (and it’s not technically wrong – these are optional).

We’ll see which side the commercial response falls on in the coming months, but per estimates, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is off to a strong start. It reportedly sold over 300,000 copies on Steam before launch, generating nearly $14 million in revenue. Ubisoft has yet to comment on sales, so stay tuned for updates in the meantime.