# Assassin's Creed: Pirates
**Assassin's Creed: Pirates** is a naval action-adventure video game for smartphones and tablets, developed by Ubisoft Paris and released on 5 December 2013 as a mobile spin-off of *Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag*.[1](https://assassinscreed.fandom.com/wiki/Assassin%27s_Creed%3A_Pirates) It strips away the on-foot free-running and assassination gameplay of the console series and keeps only the ship-based content: sailing, ship-to-ship combat, and ship and crew progression.[2](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review) • [3](https://kotaku.com/there-isnt-much-assassins-creed-in-assassins-creed-p-1477335315/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | 5 December 2013, for smartphones and tablets[1](https://assassinscreed.fandom.com/wiki/Assassin%27s_Creed%3A_Pirates) |
| Developer | Ubisoft Paris, which built an all-new mobile game engine for the title[4](https://www.gamespot.com/articles/mobile-game-assassin-s-creed-pirates-out-today/1100-6416559/) |
| Platforms | Android, iOS, PC, and Windows Phone[5](https://www.gamespot.com/games/assassins-creed-pirates/) |
| Premise | Alonzo Batilla, a young captain, crosses paths with the pirate La Buse and seeks his lost treasure[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) |
| Gameplay scope | No on-foot sections, boarding, or port exploration; entirely ship-based[3](https://kotaku.com/there-isnt-much-assassins-creed-in-assassins-creed-p-1477335315/) |
| Critical reception | Metacritic iOS Metascore of 67 (mixed or average) from 26 critic reviews[7](https://www.metacritic.com/game/assassin-s-creed-pirates/critic-reviews/?platform=ios-iphoneipad) |
## Gameplay
The game adapts the naval combat introduced in *Assassin's Creed III* and made central in *Black Flag* into a standalone mobile format.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) Combat is a two-stage cycle: the player first dodges enemy fire, then returns broadsides, cannonballs, mortar bombs, and swivel-gun shots before the enemy's weapons are ready again.[2](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review) Reviewers described the result as essentially turn-based, with attacks on timers and a defensive phase of moving forward or backward out of cannon range; Kotaku called the attacks easy to dodge and noted that optional timers were added to create tension.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) • [3](https://kotaku.com/there-isnt-much-assassins-creed-in-assassins-creed-p-1477335315/)
**Progression loop.** The basic structure is to enter a region, attack ships, complete missions, gather resources, and spend them on new ships and upgrades before moving to the next region.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) Destroying ships and finishing side missions earns experience points and resources; experience feeds an overall leveling system that unlocks new ships, feats, and maps, while resources buy ship upgrades. Side missions include "Assassin" quests in which the player draws a line across a map to sneak the ship past enemy patrols, races through checkpoints, and collection tasks; some stealth missions are played from a top-down tactical view.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) • [8](https://www.pocketgamer.com/assassins-creed-pirates/hands-on-with-assassins-creed-pirates-sailing-the-seas-on-ios-and-android/)
There is no boarding action and no walking around ports; the character appears only as 2D art, and the menus for hiring crew, upgrading the ship, and equipping perks are as close to land as the game gets.[3](https://kotaku.com/there-isnt-much-assassins-creed-in-assassins-creed-p-1477335315/) Sailing can be viewed from a top-down perspective of the sea, and the presentation includes sea shanties as background music, with the crew shouting "And now we drink!" after an enemy sinks.[8](https://www.pocketgamer.com/assassins-creed-pirates/hands-on-with-assassins-creed-pirates-sailing-the-seas-on-ios-and-android/) • [2](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review)
## Story and setting
An introductory Abstergo cutscene, using the series' framing of a corporation exploring genetic memories, introduces Alonzo Batilla, a young captain whose life intersects with the fearsome pirate La Buse, a historical French pirate described in the game's marketing as both pirate and assassin; the player's goal is to uncover the secrets of La Buse and his lost treasure.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) • [1](https://assassinscreed.fandom.com/wiki/Assassin%27s_Creed%3A_Pirates) Alonzo still meets Templars and Assassins, but only in brief conversations rather than running battles.[2](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review) Reviewers found the story serviceable but thin compared with the console games, and noted that the character is handed his own ship by La Buse early on.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) • [9](https://www.pocketgamer.com/assassins-creed-pirates/review/)
## Development and relation to Black Flag
Ubisoft Paris created an all-new mobile game engine for the title, which the company promoted for its water and island visuals on mobile hardware.[4](https://www.gamespot.com/articles/mobile-game-assassin-s-creed-pirates-out-today/1100-6416559/) The game was spun off from the success of *Black Flag*'s naval combat, which critics had received as a highlight of that console release.[2](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review) At launch it was priced at $4.99 on Android and iOS, with the iOS version listed at £2.99 in the United Kingdom.[3](https://kotaku.com/there-isnt-much-assassins-creed-in-assassins-creed-p-1477335315/) • [2](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review) The app's store listing later claimed more than 10 million players and more than 200 million naval battles fought.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/)
## Reception
The iOS version holds a Metascore of 67 on Metacritic, classified as mixed or average, with 9 positive, 16 mixed, and 1 negative review out of 26.[7](https://www.metacritic.com/game/assassin-s-creed-pirates/critic-reviews/?platform=ios-iphoneipad) MobyGames records a critic average of 70 percent based on 7 ratings, ranging from 95 percent (Arcade Sushi) to 55 percent (IGN).[10](https://www.mobygames.com/game/64649/assassins-creed-pirates/)
Reviewers agreed on a consistent pattern of strengths and weaknesses. The visuals drew praise, with TouchArcade calling the engine impressive on current-generation iOS hardware, and the ship navigation and upgrade system were seen as the parts closest to the console experience.[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) The criticisms were repetition and shallow combat: TouchArcade found the gameplay formulaic and the combat boring given how much time it occupies, Kotaku judged the game passable as a pirate game but lacking the personal, on-foot elements of the series, and Metacritic's summary line described "a sharp-looking collection of pirate-themed activities that never quite becomes more than the sum of its parts".[6](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/) • [3](https://kotaku.com/there-isnt-much-assassins-creed-in-assassins-creed-p-1477335315/) • [7](https://www.metacritic.com/game/assassin-s-creed-pirates/critic-reviews/?platform=ios-iphoneipad) The Guardian called it "a pleasant little diversion".[2](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review)
## Availability
The game was later delisted from app stores.
## References
1. [Assassin's Creed: Pirates, Assassin's Creed Wiki (Fandom)](https://assassinscreed.fandom.com/wiki/Assassin%27s_Creed%3A_Pirates)
2. [Assassin's Creed: Pirates review, The Guardian (21 December 2013)](https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2013/dec/21/assassins-creed-pirates-review)
3. [There Isn't Much Assassin's Creed In Assassin's Creed Pirates, Kotaku (5 December 2013)](https://kotaku.com/there-isnt-much-assassins-creed-in-assassins-creed-p-1477335315/)
4. [Mobile game Assassin's Creed Pirates out today, GameSpot](https://www.gamespot.com/articles/mobile-game-assassin-s-creed-pirates-out-today/1100-6416559/)
5. [Assassin's Creed: Pirates, GameSpot game page](https://www.gamespot.com/games/assassins-creed-pirates/)
6. ['Assassin's Creed Pirates' Review – A Little Light on the Booty, TouchArcade (13 December 2013)](https://toucharcade.com/2013/12/13/assassins-creed-pirates-review-a-little-light-on-the-booty/)
7. [Assassin's Creed: Pirates critic reviews, Metacritic (iOS)](https://www.metacritic.com/game/assassin-s-creed-pirates/critic-reviews/?platform=ios-iphoneipad)
8. [Hands-on with Assassin's Creed Pirates, Pocket Gamer](https://www.pocketgamer.com/assassins-creed-pirates/hands-on-with-assassins-creed-pirates-sailing-the-seas-on-ios-and-android/)
9. [Assassin's Creed Pirates Review, Pocket Gamer](https://www.pocketgamer.com/assassins-creed-pirates/review/)
10. [Assassin's Creed: Pirates (2013), MobyGames](https://www.mobygames.com/game/64649/assassins-creed-pirates/)
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