Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced sells over 5 times more copies than AC Shadows on Steam

It looks like people grew tired of the new RPG-style Assassin's Creed games, as the new Black Flag Resynced has garnered extraordinary interest since its announcement. The game is not even officially out yet, and Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced already looks to be tracking well ahead of Assassin's Creed Shadows on Steam before launch, according to new estimates from games analytics firm Alinea Analytics.

The data shows Resynced had sold roughly 300,000 copies on Steam two days before its July 9 launch, worth close to $14 million in gross revenue. That's about 5.39x as many Steam copies as Shadows had sold at the same pre-release point last year, per Alinea's tracking.

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Mind you, these figures do not represent total sales for Resynced and Shadows, but rather the sales made in the specific pre-sale period. For context, Shadows has gone on to sell 5.7 million copies globally, split roughly 53.6% on PS5, 23.8% on Steam, and the rest on Xbox, with Steam lifetime sales landing around 1.3 million. Black Flag Resynced is off to a strong start, but it will be some time before it catches up to those figures.

Part of this interest probably comes down to nostalgia. Black Flag is still widely considered the high point of the franchise. Ubisoft has claimed that they built Resynced from the ground up on the Anvil engine rather than reusing old code, with directors calling it closer to a new mainline entry than a simple remaster. Therefore, the new Resynced game is probably the best way to experience Black Flag for both old and new fans of the franchise.

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It also seems like fan appetite for pre-RPG Assassin's Creed never really went away. Shadows drew plenty of criticism over the years for its pricing, animations, and gameplay choices, and the wider shift toward Odyssey and Valhalla-style RPG mechanics has left a chunk of the community wanting the tighter, more stealth-focused formula of the older games back.

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That may also help explain why Resynced walking back some of those RPG trappings, like removing leveling and upgrade elements while leaning into social stealth, seems to be landing well so far, at least based on early buzz. We also covered the leaked first 30 minutes of the game last week, which suggested a fairly faithful remake with some added content on top.

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Frequently Asked Questions

TweakBot answers common questions about this news using TweakTown's own coverage from this page and related content from our archive. Tap a question to reveal the answer, or type your own below.

Question #1

How do Resynced’s pre-launch Steam sales compare to Shadows’ overall Steam lifetime sales?

Resynced’s pre-launch Steam sales were roughly 300,000 copies, about 5.39 times as many as Shadows had sold on Steam at the same pre-release point. Shadows’ overall Steam lifetime sales are around 1.3 million, so Resynced’s pre-launch figure is about 0.3 of Shadows’ Steam lifetime sales.

Answered

Question #2

Which platforms contributed most to Shadows’ 5.7 million lifetime sales and how might that predict Resynced’s platform split?

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Question #3

What specific RPG mechanics were removed in Resynced that could impact long-term player retention?

Resynced removes leveling and upgrade elements used in the more recent RPG-style Assassin Creed games, reverting toward pre-RPG mechanics and leaning into social stealth. (Related article: Ubisoft confirms Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is not an RPG.)

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Question #4

How might Resynced’s focus on social stealth versus hidden blades affect multiplayer or modding communities on Steam?

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Ubisoft has priced Resynced at $59.99, a notch below the $70+ ceiling that many AAA games now sit at, which could further widen its audience. It's still early, and pre-launch Steam numbers don't guarantee lifetime performance, but this looks like a genuinely promising start for a publisher that badly needs one.