User blog comment:Master Sima Yi/Assassinews 10-07-'13 — Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag pirate gameplay naval exploration/@comment-5180558-20130712233327/@comment-5546424-20130713041737

About AC3 and ACR, I personally put AC3 above, but that's purely from a gameplay perspective. Describe ACR in the most simple way and you get Brotherhood in a new city, a hookblade, and a tower defense mechanic. The other changes weren't that noteworthy, for me anyway. Do the same for AC3 and you'll see that it's hardly the same as either game because it added an entirely new setting, new weapons, and new features for both stealth and combat.

Basically I'm just saying I noticed more changes in the franchise from AC3 than I did from ACR. But that's just my opinion :\ I personally see willingness to change as a good thing.