While Ubisoft confirmed that they were creating a brand new Assassin's Creed game for the upcoming fiscal year (April 1 2013-March 31 2014), they would only state that the next installment in the series would feature a new protagonist and a new setting. However, a tipster has sent Kotaku a image for what is being called Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag.
While the image does not reveal much forthright, much can be inferred from the photo. It appears the next game will have a naval-heavy theme, judging by the Assassin standing tall, surrounded by pirates and a black flag. It is unknown if the assassins are fighting for or against the pirates at this point, but considering that the assassins seen here has a pistol pointed at a pirate's head, it wouldn't be a stretch to to think that he is solidly anti-pirate.
Piracy reached it's peak during the early seventeen hundreds, so it is possible that the story for the new game and Assassin's Creed 3 could intersect directly. But this is still just an image, and Ubisoft has yet to confirm anything, so this may or may not be a hoax. But the setting would be interesting, and Assassin's Creed 3 did has several missions which took place on ships. It is also a question of what system the new game would be on. If the PS4 is released during the holidays in 2013, as is predicted, then this new game could end up on that platform. Until then, this image will continue to excite fans so soon after the release of Assassins Creed 3.