To celebrate the launch of Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced later this year, Ubisoft has teamed up with Unsolved Hunts to give players a chance at winning $500,000.
Together, Ubisoft and Unsolved Hunts have created a real-world treasure hunt called “Gold & Crystal – The Lost Treasure of Edward Kenway.” The hunt is said to span multiple years, involve solving over a dozen riddles, and require traveling to the middle of the Caribbean Sea to uncover real buried treasure—a chest containing gold coins and a crystal skull with an opal. In total, the chest is said to be worth roughly $500k, with $350k of that being gold and the remaining $150k for the crystal skull.
To find the treasure, you have to solve a series of 15 riddles that are centered around the golden age of piracy to uncover a specific location in the Caribbean Sea. The first person to correctly guess that location will be flown out there to dig up their buried treasure.
While this treasure hunt is being thrown to celebrate the release of Black Flag Resynced, participants don’t need to have any knowledge of the game or the Assassin’s Creed franchise to play. However, participants who have played Black Flag will notice a number of references to the game, Edward Kenway, and other characters.
You don’t need to purchase Black Flag Resynced to enter the treasure hunt, but you will have to spend some money to start uncovering the treasure. On the Gold & Crystal website, you can pre-order one of seven “Packs” that give you access to the entire experience, which is completely remote.
The starter pack, which is all you need to play, costs $35 and comes with access to the digital interface for the treasure hunt. However, you can spend $60 and up to also receive a physical copy of the game, containing maps, a bottle, letters, and everything else you need to solve all 15 riddles. There are additional packs for up to $230 that come with additional investigative games, real-world collectibles, and some Black Flag memorabilia.
The Gold & Crystal treasure hunt doesn’t officially begin until Nov. 9, 2026, but pre-ordering one of the packs will let you access a sneak peek of what to expect and a clue to solving the first riddle. If you do pre-order, you can technically solve the first riddle before the treasure hunt even gets underway, but don’t expect the riddles to be simple whatsoever.
While the clue will certainly help whoever decides to embark on the treasure hunt, Gold & Crystal states that the hunt will last between two and five years.
