You don't have to sail the seas alone thanks to the Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag Companion app for iPad and Android tablets

It appears that the must-have 'accessory' for triple-A console games nowadays is a companion app for tablets.

So, imagine our surprise to learn that Ubisoft's upcoming piratical stab-'em-up Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag has a companion app for Android tablets and iPad called Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag Companion.

With this new companion app, you can connect to your console game and immerse yourself further into the Caribbean world in which the latest entry into the franchise is set.

There's a real-time world map that enables you to set waypoints in-game and keep track of the objectives and other points of interest you might be visiting.

And you can control your fleet from your tablet, sending them on missions and helping your friends to secure their own routes.

With the Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag Companion app up your virtual sleeve, you can also track your progress, see treasure maps, and read all of the Animus database entries that you've collected in the game.

Obviously, you'll need a copy of Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag to get the most out of the app. Oh, and a Uplay account, too.

The Assassin's Creed IV Black Flag Companion application is live on the App Store [download] and the Google Play Store [download] right now, and it won't cost you a penny to download.