Naughty Dog apologises for using AC Black Flag art in trailer
Uncharted 4 slot used concept art as background painting
Naughty Dog has been forced to issue a slightly humiliating apology after an eagle-eyed Ubisoft dev noticed that the developer had utilised some concept art from Assassin's Creed: Black Flag in its newest trailer for Uncharted 4.
The inadvertent theft was spotted by Azaïzia Aymar, head of content for Assassin's Creed, who took a fairly light-hearted stance on the incident.
The trailer, shown below, has now been edited to remove the art, which was featured as a painting on the wall which triggers a day dream for series star Nathan Drake. Naughty Dog has since apologised for the slip in an official blog post.
"In our eagerness to get the story trailer out we made a regrettable mistake and didn't thoroughly vet the art work used for an in game painting. We've already updated the trailer. We hold all artistry in high regard and take full responsibility for having allowed this to happen.
"We want to sincerely apologise to everyone at Ubisoft, the Assassin's Creed team, the original artist, and our fans."
Interestingly, it's not the first time that Naughty Dog has slipped up in this way. Previously, the studio was forced to apologise to a cartographer after using a copyrighted map in The Last of Us. The outfit also faced strong criticism from actress Ellen Page, who believes that Naughty Dog "ripped off" her likeness for the character of Ellie in The Last of Us. Others have suggested that both Helen Mirren and Jason Statham were strong influences on the design of two British characters in Uncharted 3.
