San Diego Comic-Con 2013: Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag Panel
Edited by Julie Barman

The Assassin's Creed series is revered for its historical tourism and the stark conflict between the Assassins and the Templars throughout the ages. This entry brings us into the Golden Age of Piracy, a short span of History where Privateers, Pirates and many ships roamed the seas of the world. Pirates offered a very different style of life from the inconsistency of the British Navy. Any man with enough ambition could make money on the high seas and but likely live a very short life. It is in this time where a strong willed man could make a name for himself and become a legend. This era offers something unique: it was a Pre-Revolutionary Revolutionary War. Just a few decades later you find the events of “Assassin's Creed III” will be beginning. Many pirates did consider themselves to be part of a democracy. Any time spent reviewing the surviving doctrines from Pirate ships shows the voting used to determine the heading but also compensation for loss of limbs or life. It is in this time frame we find Edward Kenway, a son of Wales seeking to climb the social ladder and find Fame and Glory.

Present at the panel you had McDevitt, the lead writer of Assassin's Creed IV, Todd McFarlin, Matt Ryan, the Voice of Edward Kenway, and Dresden Fletcher, the writer of the new Assassin's Creed Comic: “Brahman”.

McDevitt started talking how the game needed to offer something. He was very quick to refer to both AC IV and AC III as part of the “Kenway Saga”. This gives the impression that we have yet to see all the members of this family that we will. He was very happy to be talking about the game as well as the era that it is taking place in. Much of the introduction was based on what he said as it formed a good bit of the basis of the era's major conflict.

Dresden took the stage just after him. He talked some about how “Chains”, one of the recent Assassin's Creed comic lines had featured Daniel Cross, an Antagonist in “Assassin's Creed III”. It was here that he announced, and revealed, the new Assassin's Creed Comic: “Brahman”. This was to focus on an Indian Assassin: Arbras Mirl. Not much is known now about this new Assassin or his life, but it does offer something that shows the willingness to take this to the global scale that the struggle of Assassins and Templars would demand.

Matt Ryan talked next about taking on the role of “Edward Kenway”. He knew that he was working in a demanding position. Still, this time he talked about his interest in the character itself. Edward was a conflicted character. He had assassin training but had not joined them properly. He was looking, for a time into being a Templar. It is this struggle that we will get to see play out over the course of the game. He did not give any hints as to how the struggle went and instead talked about his preparation for the role: going and studying some ships to get a feel for what was where. He also did research into the life of the mariners at the time. He was very impressed by the amount they could drink and still be able to climb the ropes and rigging so well. Matt was also amused by the traits that Edward showed. While he was very brash, impulsive and fierce, he was also very intelligent (when he stopped to think) and incredibly charismatic. He was also a very self-driven man. As stated earlier, he wanted money, fame and glory. “First and foremost, this man is a Pirate” Matt had said. A demo of the game was run where Edward was following a Templar Spy and the audience could see Edward flirting with the women nearby him and striking up conversation while blending. He would also speak his mind frequently (like admitting he was planning to pick someone's pocket).

There was a brief break in talking about the game for Todd McFarlane to talk some. He spoke about the various action figures that were being released with the game and before it. Unlike any others he had done, these were to include DLC that would impact the game in some fashion. Most would just have a treasure map to an unlockable area. The rest had specific features that could be redeemed through the Uplay store. Haytham offered a costume that would reminiscent to the colors that he wore in AC III. The Connor figurine offered some unique sails for the ship to sport. The Edward Kenway figurine would offer the Kenway Family Sword. This would be more powerful than the starting sword, but still not be the most powerful sword in the game. He also announced, and displayed a prototype, of a 15' Edward Kenway statue. It offered a rotational base so it could be turned to face any direction with ease. While the prototype was not colored it still showed a lot of detail.

After McFarlane had finished talking about the figurine then the panel was turned over to a “Q&A” section. The first question was just getting the world of the game to fit with the history of the world. McDevitt talked about how everyone contributed a massive amount of research, a few months worth, and from there they began a review. He talked about how, in reality, most sailors wore very similar shirt. When this was reviewed, they agreed this would make combat very confusing as you would have no marker to work from to distinguish your crew from another in the heat of combat. Historical accuracy remains an important factor, but history can bow a bit to game play seemed to be a prominent philosophy in the development of this game.

The next question was about the Land to sea ratio in the mission that would be completed over the course of the game. Another related question was how they were handling the sea travel portions of the game. It was revealed that it would be an approximate 60/40 split. Most of the missions would remain on land, but there would still be plenty to see on the seas. They also talked about how they felt it was important to have things appear as you sailed to keep the world interesting. Most of that games that had incorporated sailing as a central component faced the problem of dragging things when there was a need to travel a long ways. McDevitt talked about how there would usual be something every 30 seconds to a minute that would appear on screen while you were traveling the ocean. This does mean that there are numerous small locations that you can look to find both assassination contracts and discover treasure or dive wrecks.

There were a few questions about where the Assassin's Creed Story would be going next. While the team talked about the various locations and era, they were clear on one thing. Any time or culture they would be placing a game in would be researched and treated carefully. They were very tight-lipped if there was to more with Edward Kenway or not. No mention of anything like a season of DLC, even something like the Alternative History we saw with Conner Kenway.

One final note is this the shift in the frame of the game. You are now working for Abstergo Industries Entertainment Division. On the surface it seems like a dream job but there remains the undercurrents of Templar influence. You will see Avalen and potentially some other Assassins as games, presented as marketable IP's. It is simply a matter of the memories being sellable to the public market. Another big question is just what the Animus looks like. Glimpses of the new Abstergo model were to be found in Liberation though they were more designs than a display. It is clear you will be able to explore the office in your down time around testing the memories of Edward Kenway. There is just as much to be found in the memories as there is to be found in the real world this round.

Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag is the second chapter in what is dubbed “The Kenway Saga”. Thankfully, this has already broken away from the trend of the “Ezio Saga” that had preceded it. Just what the future holds for this great franchise remains to be seen but it offers history and something that will leave the gamers clamoring for more.