Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.
From the moment I heard those words I just had no hope whatsoever. I have owned most of the Assassin's Creed games (but not all of them) and have found them to be consistently enjoyable, but not making any particularly amazing advancements on the previous titles.
When I saw promotional artwork and read the word 'pirates' I just thought it was going to be a gimmicky spin-off with few redeemable qualities and doing nothing to further the already-stale image that Assassin's Creed was developing for itself. I was so wrong, and it was so right.
I can't remember the last time I put as much time and effort and thought into a video game as I did with Assassin's Creed IV. I pushed myself to do the side-quests, I enjoyed finding the collectibles and upgrades. I reveled in building my ship up to be the scourge of the West-Indies and found great joy when I succeeded in annihilating the four legendary ships in the corners of the map.
It really was a joy to play. The story was involving, the characters were likable (or unlikable for the right reasons, at least), the graphics were astounding, the music was aptly grandiose and theatrical and the gameplay - above all else - was a triumph.
I unabashedly wasted hours sailing the seas and plundering the vessels of fallen enemies. I started learning the words to my favourite shanties. I became invested in my role as Edward Kenway. I, who had been one of the biggest cynics about the games impending release, became one of its biggest advocates (even convincing a workmate to go out and buy it on pay day).
Of course it wasn't just sailing the seas as a pirate that gave me a thrill, but also the refined and expertly-crafted double-life as an assassin as well. I took pleasure in partaking in the Templar Hunts and Assassination Contracts (especially when I found out that the reward were gunblades akin to something out of a Final Fantasy game) and found that ticking these off one by one never felt like a chore, but always a great pleasure.
Flaws? Okay, there are a few. I felt like the passage of time in the game was terrible. At one point I realised six years were supposed to have passed since the beginning of the game and I just shook my head incredulously because it felt like, at most, the story had transpired over a few months. Also the game felt like it ended so suddenly I barely had time to comprehend that my time on the open seas was at an end. After building such an amazing world and developing such a rich gameplay experience, I felt like the developers could have put a little bit more time in rounding off the adventure with a more rewarding ending.
That being said, the whole thing is a triumph. Even the slightly obscure modern-day portions that leave you feeling confused and dazed act as decent punctuation to a consistent and enjoyable overall journey. And what would Assassin's Creed be without a little bit of obscure modern-day sci-fi obscurity? Well, it would still be a damn good pirate adventure, that's what.
Nevertheless, there's not a lot that I can say about Assassin's Creed IV: Black apart from this: It should certainly be lauded as the strongest and most engrossing entry in the series. It was the first game I played in 2014 and I'm almost certain it will make it into my "Best of..." list at the end of the year.
To those who have yet to dive into the depths of the Caribbean Basin, take heed of my words: Give all you've got into yer crew and yer ship and you might find yerself 'avin the best goddamned pirate adventure this side of the seven seas.