Assassin's Creed 4 will launch with a free companion app for tablets, enabling "second screen gameplay" that's so trendy nowadays. And it will be available for all platforms, no SmartGlass required.

The tablet will offer functionality that's typically reserved for Wii U games. For example, you'll be able to see an in-game map on the tablet, zoom in and mark points of interest on the screen. The tablet will communicate in real-time with the game, so by highlighting an objective on the map, you'll see a marker appear immediately on the game screen.

Although Wii U's GamePad and Xbox's SmartGlass may be able to replicate many of these features, Ubisoft believes their companion app will one-up those experiences. In addition to working in tandem with the game, the app will allow you to "continue to play" AC4 in a remote and asynchronous way. Ubisoft didn't detail exactly what kind of gameplay will be offered on the companion app, but suffice it to say, they don't want you to leave the Animus like ever.