Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell sets the new standard for intricate gameplay. As the gaming industry evolves, emerging game genres have found themselves on the shelves of game retailers and on the desks of gamers. The most impressive of these neophytes is the stealth genre – a style of gaming where the player relies on secrecy rather than firepower.
Throughout my entire gaming career (that is to say, my whole life – I mastered the art of Doom before I learned how to walk), I have believed in the supremacy of the rocket launcher, or any automatic weapon capable of making Swiss cheese – until now. After playing Ubi Soft’s Splinter Cell, I have developed a new respect for those gamers out there who don’t enjoy the adrenaline rush of dismembering an opponent with a shotgun. At this point, it should be noted that this game is totally antithetical to those games where the objective is to blow something up, and the secondary objective is to blow it up two more times.
In Splinter Cell, you play the role of Sam Fisher, a veteran of the field called back to duty in response to a new wave of terror. Fisher works for an egregiously secretive branch of the National Security Association, called Third Echelon. As such, Fisher has very little knowledge of the missions he undergoes. The story line unfolds through ill-crafted cut scenes, but the bulk of the plot is revealed through interrogation of enemies.
The game, or combat-simulation-software, takes you through nine worlds, all of which are based on the Tom Clancy universe, and offers 15+ hours of clandestine fun. Unfortunately for you NRA members, the arsenal is very limited in Splinter Cell – consisting of a pistol, multipurpose assault rifle, and grenades. However, the game offers plenty for gizmo enthusiasts – including portable cameras, high-voltage grenades, lock picks, and optical cables.
The highlight of this game is present in its unique gameplay. Unlike other action games, your enemies are more responsive to environmental changes. This requires players to restrain their Rambo personalities, and find other creative methods to accomplish objectives. This involves knocking people out, gassing them, or finding a way around altogether.
Moreover, Splinter Cell is a game where the player can maximize his interaction with the environment. The player can scale walls, shimmy walls, rappel chimneys, zip lines, and execute a wealth of other acrobatics that are sure to make Russian gymnasts envious for years.
Besides working with the environment, the game allows you to work with other characters in the game. For example, you can place enemies in choke holds for interrogation, use them as human shields, or put a gun to their head to make them open a door for you. The only downside to all this, is that it makes missions difficult at times, because there are so many factors to consider. Namely, you have to be prudent in hiding dead bodies, as well as where you walk, since different surfaces make different sounds. Ultimately, however, it only augments the real-world authenticity of the game.
Graphics-wise, Splinter Cell is nothing short of what is expected for a game of its caliber. Some of the lighting effects and shadow rendering made me want to build my own sun dial, and just glancing at the foliage in the game made me feel as if I was in the Amazon Rainforest. However, I feel that the artists could have spent more time on perfecting the textures, especially refining those on the characters. Also, the game engine’s graphics demand fairly powerful machines to run on. The game will run about you about 50$, and you can pick it up at any local computer/software store.
Recommended Configuration: 1000 MHz Pentium III or AMD Athlon or better 256 MBytes RAM or better DirectX 8.1 64 MBytes video card * DirectX 8.1 compatible sound card with surround system