Ubisoft has announced a real-life Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced treasure hunt with a $500,000 prize, buried somewhere in the Caribbean.
The hoard is made up of specially-minted solid gold coins (collectively worth $350,000) and a rock crystal skull adorned with a red opal jewel (valued at a further $150,000) — a nod to Black Flag's mysterious macguffin.
This prize has been dubbed "The Lost Treasure of Edward Kenway", referring to Black Flag's pirate-turned-Assassin hero, and will be available to claim to anyone who solves an elaborate treasure hunt with 15 elaborate riddles. While the puzzles will be Black Flag themed, however, no prior knowledge of the game will actually be necessary.
The whole scheme is a collaboration with Unsolved Hunts, a real-world treasure hunt company that already offers a similar set of puzzles that lead to a €250,000 replica of King Arthur's sword Excalibur. You do have to pay to access the clues, with copies of the game available in packs from £31 (around $41) and up. Paying more will get you a physical version of the clues and other trinkets, all the way up to a £177 (roughly $240) Pirate Lord Pack edition.
If you're worried about missing out on Black Flag Remastered itself while you storm off to the Caribbean, shovel in hand, do not fear — while you can pre-order the treasure hunt now, full access won't begin until November 9. And if you're worried about this interfering with your GTA 6 time in November, you can still rest easy — this is designed to be a complex experience, with puzzles expected to take players between "two and five years" to fully solve.
Working in teams is encouraged, according to a Q&A section on the treasure hunt's website, though you will need to nominate an individual to ultimately receive the prize (who can then choose to share it accordingly… or not). All the puzzles are designed to be solved remotely (so hold off on those Bermuda plane tickets), though the actual treasure will really be located somewhere in the Caribbean — meaning you will need to check your passport is still in date.
After years of leaks, Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced is now just a few months from launch. The long-awaited remake is currently set to arrive on July 9 for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, with a $200 Collector's Edition also available — including the same Edward Kenway statue that popped up on Vinted earlier this year.
Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
