Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Becomes Unplayable During Ubisoft Connect Outage, Contradicting Earlier Assurances

The debate around DRM, particularly the types that require a constant internet connection to play games, can seem a bit abstract in our increasingly connected world. While this issue is particularly frustrating for those in rural areas or countries with limited internet access, for many gamers, it often feels more like a theoretical concern than a real barrier. That is, until the internet connection falters. Over the weekend, when Ubisoft Connect on PC experienced downtime, players found themselves unable to access their newly purchased Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced, along with any other Ubisoft titles.

Starting early on Saturday, July 11, players flocked to the Steam discussions for Black Flag to report that they couldn’t launch the game. It appeared that Connect was temporarily offline, blocking access to their games. Ironically, those who had pirated the game and bypassed the Connect requirement were still able to play without interruption during the hour-long outage.

One user highlighted a significant issue: the FAQ for Black Flag Resynced states, “Can I play Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced offline?” with the answer being, “Yes. A one-time internet connection is required to download the game. Once downloaded, the full main campaign of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced is fully playable offline. However, an online connection will be needed to play live content linked to the Animus Hub (Store, Anomalies, Projects, Vault).”

Although this outage was brief and occurred before most players in the U.S. were awake, a Reddit thread discussing the problem still garnered over 15,000 upvotes. This situation highlights the immediate challenges posed by such online requirements, as well as the broader concern about what will happen in the future if Ubisoft no longer supports Connect or its servers.

Ubisoft’s stubborn enforcement of Connect, even for games purchased through Steam, has been a source of frustration for players for years, dating back to when it was known as UPlay. I reported on a similar situation back in 2012 during the launch of Far Cry 3, making it frustrating that this issue persists with nearly every Ubisoft release. We’ve reached out to Ubisoft for clarification on why the game was inaccessible despite the FAQ claims and will provide updates if they respond.