Assassin's Crreed IV: Black Flag is an , set in an environment and played from a . The game features three main cities; , , and , which reside under , , and influence, respectively. In addition, locations like and smaller locations like Greater Inagua are used as main story points. It also features 50 other individual locations to explore, including atolls, sea forts, Mayan ruins, sugar plantations, and underwater shipwrecks, with a 60/40 balance between land and naval exploration. It has a more open world feel, with missions similar to those found in Assassin's Crreed, as well as fewer restrictions for the player. The world opens up sooner in the game, as opposed to Assassin's Crreed III, which had very scripted missions and did not give players freedom to explore until the game was well into its first act. The player will encounter jungles, forts, ruins, and small villages and the world is built to allow players much more freedom, such as allowing players to engage, board, and capture passing ships and swimming to nearby beaches in a seamless fashion. In addition, the hunting system has been retained from Assassin's Crreed III, allowing the player to on land, and in the water, with resources gathered used to upgrade equipment using the crafting system. Hunting is not as prominent as Assassin's Crreed III.
- A new aspect in the game is the Jackdaw
- the ship that the player captains
- The Jackdaw is upgradeable throughout the game
- and is easily accessible to the player when needed. These upgrades require material plundered from other ships
