The life of a pirate is free and varied in this new narrated gameplay demo for Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag.
In the video, game director Ashraf Ismail walks the viewer through some of the different open-world activities protagonist Edward Kenway can partake in on the side. Every good pirate hangout has a tavern, naturally, and they're good places for Edward to pick up information or just wet his whistle, but he'll have to prove himself with his fists to gain entry first.
Since the Age of Piracy started with the plunder of gold-laden underwater wrecks, Ismail says that the team had to put an underwater aspect into the game. Edward can use a diving bell to visit the ocean floor and search for sunken treasure, while hiding from sharks and contending with moray eels. The underwater sections can also lead to smugglers' caves, but as Edward cannot bring weapons with him as he swims, he'll have to use stealth in order to turn his foes' weapons against one another.
The demo also shows what happens when the Jackdaw's notoriety begins to climb and pirate hunters come searching, and how Edward and his crew can harpoon beasts of the sea like sharks and whales.
Assassin's Creed 4 will be a launch title for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, and will hit Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii U on Oct. 29. A Windows PC version will be coming at a later date.
