Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag Sells 10 Million

Assassin’s Creed will always be a top seller. It’s simple-to-play basis and its constant location and cast refreshes mean that only those that stray beyond the 10 hour story manage to get entirely bored. As a result, the latest in the franchise, Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag, has hit a milestone: it’s sold over 10 million units. It took a little while longer than its predecessor, but those that felt the series would find itself face down in the hay after Assassin’s Creed III were definitely wrong.

This is especially impressive as Black Flag seemingly bombed to begin with. Next-gen consoles meant that sales were far, far lower on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 than had been originally expected, but that seems to have changed. In the investor call from which this announcement comes, Yves Guillemot suggested that customers have been buying copies more in 2014 than they had with Assassin’s Creed III in 2013, suggesting that more people waited until they picked up a PlayStation 4 or an Xbox One before taking to the high seas.

The franchise as a whole hit a pretty big milestone as well. 72 million units have been sold across the entire series, putting it ahead of Gran Turismo, The Legend of Zelda and Battlefield and just a little behind everything under the Tom Clancy banner (something that’s likely to change in the next year).