When a game older than a decade outscores its own franchise’s recent flagship release, that’s not a fluke — it’s a signal. That’s exactly what happened with Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced: the remake landed 84 points on OpenCritic, beating Assassin’s Creed Shadows’ 81, and became the best-reviewed entry in the series since the original 2013 release.
For Ubisoft, this isn’t just good news — it’s reason enough to rethink how the company builds games going forward. During the Q1 FY2027 earnings call, CFO Frédérick Duguet said the quiet part out loud: remakes can be more profitable than building brand-new AAA titles from scratch.
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Why Remakes Are More Profitable Than New Games
Ubisoft’s logic isn’t unique to the company — it’s an industry-wide truth finally being said out loud. A remake leans on existing assets, mechanics, and design work instead of building a world, characters, and gameplay from zero. On top of that, marketing costs shrink dramatically: a recognizable title and built-in nostalgia sell the game on their own.
The numbers back it up. In its first two weeks on the market, Black Flag Resynced sold 3.5 million copies, already surpassing Ubisoft’s own full-year sales projection. Given the company’s rocky financial footing over the past couple of years, a result like this looks less like a bonus and more like a lifeline.
What’s Next: Ubisoft Doubles Down on Classic Remakes
Reports suggest another remake is already in development — most likely an updated version of the very first Assassin’s Creed. That tracks with earlier comments from CEO Yves Guillemot, who talked about alternating original entries with reimagined versions of classic titles to speed up the series’ release cadence.
The approach echoes what Nintendo has done for years: instead of chasing bigger and more expensive open-world blockbusters nonstop, lean on beloved back-catalog titles. The difference is that for Ubisoft, this isn’t a creative choice so much as a financial necessity — new AAA games keep getting pricier, while remakes come with a built-in audience that doesn’t need to be won over from scratch.
What this means for players:
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More chances to see updated versions of beloved Assassin’s Creed entries, not just new numbered releases
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A possible slowdown in fully original entries for the series
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A risk that cost-cutting on remakes eventually spills over into cutting corners on innovation, too
For now, the strategy is paying off. One successful relaunch doesn’t make a system — but if the next remake matches Black Flag’s performance, Ubisoft will have a genuinely workable business model on its hands for years to come. The real question is whether it becomes the only one.
