Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag

[W8taminute]

Been playing this one on my PS4 for the past week and a half and I must say I'm totally engrossed by it.  It is very atmospheric and probably in my opinion the best Assassin's Creed game I've played.  Even if you're not familiar with the franchise this title is a good one to start with.  I say that because of all of the side activities you can do in addition to the great story missions. 

The missions vary from ship to ship duels to stealth infiltration assignments.  The controls are very easy to master, especially if you're a veteran of the series.  But for me the biggest hook of this game is the ambiance and atmosphere.  Ubisoft has done a great job capturing the era of buccaneering.  When I play the game I totally forget what time period I'm from and really feel like I'm in the Caribbean circa 1700 A.D.   I know there are not a lot of fans of this genre here but you're missing out on a great game imho.  If you like Skyrim type adventures you might like this game as well. 

One final thought.  The sea shanties your crewman bust out singing whilst you handle the wheel of your ship on the open seas brings tears of joy to my eyes at how the spectacle of it sweeps me to another time period.

[Gusington]

I've got this on the PC...will be playing it very soon. JH also said he loved this game on PC. Sorry for the sorta OT but I don't own a console.

Does the ship to ship combat come into the fray relatively quickly or do you have to put in some long hours to get there?

[W8taminute]

No worries on the OT thing.  I'm just glad to talk about the game itself, not the platform one plays it on.

Anyway to answer your question.  You're given access to your ship at the conclusion of Memory Sequence 2, so yes fairly early in the game unlike how it was in ACIII.  In ACIII you had to wait until the end of Sequence 5 or 6 IIRC.

[Gusington]

How open does the world feel in ACIV? Can you sail wherever you want and worry about getting your ass kicked when you get there?

[W8taminute]

^The world is fairly open actually.  Once you've progressed at least until the end of sequence three you can pretty much sail the seas looking for booty and plunder in the form of piracy or treasure hunts.  You can also storm forts to take them over and use them as repair stations.  Once your wanted level goes up to a certain point be on the lookout for pirate hunters in addition to the nations navies that you pissed off. 

There is a lot of time you can waste away just exploring on your own and being a pirate in general.  I just completed sequence 7 today even though I've been fooling around exploring.  The story isn't as captivating as some other games I've played but the main protagonists personality is compelling.  You kind of want to see what happens to him next in the story.

Don't get the game at full price though.  Wait for a sale.  The new game is supposedly coming out this fall so hopefully you'll see more sales on this game if you missed the Steam sale. 

EDIT:  Forgot to mention that while you can sail anywhere you want there are certain regions of the sea both fixed and random that can be dangerous at times.  Sometimes you must navigate your way through fierce storms and sometimes you must sneak past narrow straits that are protected by fortresses.  Then there are standard patrols you must face on occasion.  You always have the option of fighting, fleeing, or just sneaking your way past these obstacles.  Well maybe you can't sneak past a storm but you get the idea.