Assassin's Creed: Pirates, originally only available as a mobile game, is now available as a free-to-play browser game. While Microsoft is urging people to play the game on Internet Explorer 11 (particularly with touch friendly devices), the game works on other browsers as well.

Divya Kumar, Senior Product Marketing Manager of Internet Explorer, announced, "Today, we're excited to announce a new partnership with Ubisoft to launch the first ever Assassin's Creed title on the modern web with HTML 5, 3D WebGL graphics, and JavaScript. The Assassin's Creed Pirates web-based experience is available today for free play in five languages worldwide.

"New gameplay based on the popular iOS Assassin's Creed Pirates game allows you to step into the shoes of Alonzo Batilla, a young captain, racing his ship through the Caribbean seas, evading mines and other hurdles, amidst searching for treasure."

He continued, "Unfurl the sails and with a swipe of your finger on the virtual wheel, steer the ship through the deep blue Caribbean. Race your ship through an obstacle course and compete with pirates around the world to obtain the highest score. Each time the game is launched, a variation of the original scene is delivered -- with changes in the weather, time of day and location -- giving you a new experience each race.

"Now, pin the game to your Start screen, and have it handy for those few minutes you have to spare. With split-screen browsing, you can group Skype your friends and race your ship, simultaneously."