Customer Reviews

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell

5 star:		(56)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I just can't put into words how awsome this game is; but I'll try. There are so many moves, gadgets, details in every aspect...here goes:

The gameplay: Incredible! This game should easily win game of the year! Why? It's so realistic, so breathtaking, so nerve wracking at times that you really feel that you are Sam Fisher. Here are the basic moves: You can crouch, roll (to move quickly through one area without being seen), jump, double jump (jump off a wall to cling on to a pipe at the top), split jump (where your up against the wall doing the splits. You cant then jump down in surprise and knock out your enemy, or shoot him), cling to pipes (and move around, even hang from it while shooting down a guard). Those are just a few! You can knock people out, put a gun to their head and interrogate them. Use people as human shields, hide against walls, knockout anybody, slide down a wire, etc... So many moves, all so very cool, you'll really feel like a secret agent. Now with these moves, you must make it through dozens of levels to prevent a war from happening. If caught, the U.S. will have nothing to do with u. You're on your own.

Gadgets: Thankfully, with these awsome moves, you have perhaps the coolest gadgets ever thought up. You have gadgets to unlock doors, look under the door, climb walls, shock people to death, etc... So many cool gadgets! You'll need every one of them to get through this war. But that's not all! You later on get cameras that you can shoot into a room to see everything before you enter, giving you time to plan, think, etc... These cameras though (so cool) can also, when pressing the red B button, make a loud whistling sound that will attract guards. When they are close, push the yellow Y button, and a sleeping gas will enter the air, knocking the guards unconscience, and leaving your path clear. These cameras also have night vision, heat vision, and of course, regular vision. So many uses, these cameras may save your life more than once. Use them wisely.

The game: In the game, you must get through different levels, finding out secrets in various ways, and doing whatever is asked of u. U can read e-mails from hacked computers, listen in silently on conversations, hide dead or living bodies (you can either knock them out or put a bullet to their head). Sam is also equipped with heat and night vision goggles. So when you have been spotted, and several guards are coming your way, you can shoot out nearby lights, split jump and watch blind guards come in. Put your night vision goggles on, jump down, put a gun to one's head, and use him as a human shield. Shoot the others, knockout your hostage, hide the bodies, and move on. So many options of doing almost anything during gameplay, you'll be spoiled of how to beat each mission...or come back later and beat it on a harder setting. You can also pick up and throw bottles, coke cans, anything. The whole process of the game is very cool.

The graphics: In case you haven't heard, this game has some of the best graphics ever seen in a game. One of my friend's walked in, sat down, not seeing the controller in my hand. He thought I was watching a movie for a few seconds! That's how good this game looks. The lighting is fantastic. Knock out all the lights, pitch black. Leave a tiny bulb on, a lite glow fills the room. Very cool! Sam even changes. He rolls up his sleeves, breathes in and out, steadies his gun when running so as to not make a clit, clat noise. Etc... So much detail put into everything. Even things like when Sam's hands are busy (like hanging from a pole), he cocks his head up, then down, to get his night or heat vision goggles on. Sooooooooooo realistic!

Depth: Incredible! On the normal setting, you'll be lucky to beat this game in less than 30 hours. And the ability to go back and beat the game on hard later adds even more replay value! This game has it all!

Overall, this game rocked in every aspect. Even sound (perhaps the best ever in a game) is ignored because of how good everything else is. Voice acting is so realistic, as Sam always sounds confident, and yet sometimes doubtful, and even a bit nervous. You can hear how fast you're running, the footsteps of approaching enemies, the true reloading of your gun (which ranges from silencers and snipers, to machine guns at times), and the shells falling to the floor.

This is a classic, a must have, and any gamer should feel left out never playing Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell!

(And oh, later on, you may be able to download new levels from the internet so your PC. So cool!)

Thx!

Needless to say there is a lot of hype surrounding SC. Most of it is well earned. Perhaps what SC does better than any other game is deliver a solid well made experience with a lot of style, polish and oozes atmosphere. In short: there isn't a single element in the game that is lacking. It's hard to think of a single good reason why someone should overlook this game. And for PC gamers the game got even more work to use the newest state of the art graphic effects. The games' lighting and shadows not only look impressive but also is a key to the vast amount of stealth movement used through the single player campaign. For once a game that not only looks good but makes the graphics an integrated part of the gameplay.

However I did not find it to be the game to end all games. Much of the campaign is scripted. Meaning some things will not happen with out the player triggering it first. This makes the game rather linear and requires some irritating trial-and error before you can pull off a perfect mission. There is also no type of multiplayer or other features to explore (would co-op be too much to ask for these days?). After you have played it once there isn't anything more to do but play it again and again, taking the same linear path to complete the objectives.

Splinter Cell however focuses on doing one thing right rather than try to do too much. Certainly it delivers a just plain cool game well worth every penny.

I've finished five of the missions in Splinter Cell, that's the larger half of the game, so I feel I can review the game from an informed perspective.

1. First; what I liked about the game-
The great graphics
The excellent attention to detail in the visual environments,
such as reflections off framed pictures, texture depth, character modeling etc...
It looks like a convincing world that you'd like to explore.

2. Second; what I dislike about the game-

The third person user interface, I'm sure this would be a much more immersive game if a first person option had been included, but they tell you that going in, so it's not a surprise.

The irritating voice-overs. The same ... lines delivered over and over in phony accents. This becomes truly annoying when your temporarily stymied at a tough part of a mission. I wonder if the game makers were confused on this game- is it supposed to be funny -(Like NOLF), or serious -(Like Ghost Recon). It isn't really either, and it should have been.

The worst combat I've ever seen outside of a turn-based role playing game. The enemy characters just stand still and Bang.. Bang.. Bang.. Bang.. Bang.. Bang.. Bang.. Bang.. until they run out of ammo or die. Interspersed with bad voice-overs. Truly ... combat AI.

The lack of simple things - like a knife, a decent map, a flshlight, binoculars, a first-aid kit, or a compass; it's really nice to have a compass when your controller says things like "go east"; EAST? It's really nice to have a knife in what is being sold as a "Stealth Action Redefined".
Duh. You're Sam Fisher, top covert field operative- too clueless to pack a knife, a pair of binoculars, a first-aid kit, or a compass. The lack of expected tools is overly contrived, senseless, and constantly irritating.
This guy is supposed to be a field spook- where's his gear? What spec-ops guys go on a mission without a knife, or a compass?
I pack better to go camping.

Then again you wont really need a compass, because you'll have all the mobility of a cow in a cattle chute. Theres no way to deviate from what the game designers intend for you to do. It might look like you can "Explore your world", but that's just a quickly dispelled illusion.

It's an overly scripted environment that forces you to do exactly what the programmers decided, in preciely the manner they wnat it done. No room for improvisation in this game.
About the only decision you actually get to make is whether you knock someone out, or simply shoot him.
Many times you wont have that choice either, since ammunition is apparently to expensive to waste on a mere National Security mission. What soldier goes into the field with no knife and little ammo?

The phoniness of Sam's vaunted moves. Sure he can climb up a pipe, but only if the programmers want you to climb that particular pipe. Other pipes, that appear identical, are NOT climable. The same holds true for ledges, railings, overhangs,etc.. It also holds true for other special Sam moves, like rappeling- be assured your rope will change lengths to keep you to the straight and narrow path decreed by the programmers.
Get down that chute Bossy!

You're Sam Fisher- off to save the world! Here's an inaccurate .22 caliber pistol and 20 rounds of ammunition- get down that chute Bossy!

If you like console games here's one on a PC.
It reminds me of an elaborate 3D scroller.

If you played Tom Clancy's previous games, you'll know that most of them were first-person tactical shooters. The Tom Clancy name takes a different approach with Splinter Cell and allows you to play a game heavier on story and arcade action. If you ever played titles such as Hitman or Metal Gear Solid, you already know exactly how the game works. If that's the type of game you enjoy, I definitely recommend you pick up Splinter Cell because it's one of the best games in that particular genre. I've never really been a big fan of those types of games so I found the game average but I'm in the minority as a lot of gamers enjoy these titles. If you're the type of gamer that usually only enjoys fast-paced action games, you probably won't enjoy Splinter Cell as much as others. This game requires stealth and slow methodical operations instead of fast hand-eye coordination. I also didn't enjoy the story that much but I can see why many people would. If you love Tom Clancy novels, in particular the ones with John Kelly, the ex-special operations soldier turned into a CIA operative, this game is for you. For me, Splinter Cell was an average game, but that's just my two cents, many people love this game and it was so popular, the designers are already working on a sequel. This game was released on all gaming platforms and that might be one reason why I don't enjoy it as much. The controls and inteface seems more suited for a console gamepad and anytime you create a game with weapons and soldiers on the PC, you have to compete with all the great first-person shooters on the market. It also lacks any type of online options. For games like these that have quality stand-alone (not online) stories and missions but no online multiplayer or significant mod community, I usually wait until the price drops because they don't last as long as other titles, but only you know what type of gamer you are and what price is acceptable for you.

Splinter Cell is not a bad game, but it's not the great game that everyone seems to be making it out to be. The game's tagline is "Stealth Action Redefined." To make sure the player gets the idea that the emphasis is on "stealth," the "action" is severely handicapped. Once your character has his gun out he's able to move only at a snail's pace, making shootouts awkward at best. Nonetheless the player is faced with multiple scenarios in which shootouts against multiple opponents are unavoidable. I like the stealth focus, but I'd also like to be able to engage the enemy when called for. Splinter Cell would be a stronger game if players had more of a choice between stealth and action. That choice should be driven by in-game consequences, not by game control limitations.

Environments are good looking, though not varied enough (too many nondescript office). They're also so dark that you'll wind up viewing most of the game through grainy, washed-out, black-and-white nightvision, which is too bad. The player avatar looks and moves great, but other figures are stiff and some of their texture maps (particularly business suits) are poor.

Game logic/AI is weak and fluky. Guards will notice if you've switched the lights off in a nearby office, but they won't notice a missing sentry (even if it was just the two of them stationed in the room before one turned his back for a moment). You can move a dead/unconscious guard, but you can't move a downed guard dog. Don't worry about bloodstains on the floor: there are none. Nor will anyone notice the bullet-holes in the wall, or the hat fallen off your victim's head, which (like the dog) you are powerless to pick up. You can't take out a guard as he's climbing a ladder or getting out of bed; not until he's finished his action and is standing once again on solid ground. Etcetera. Like I said: fluky.

Mission details are scanty. You'd think an NSA super-agent would have access to building schematics or at least a detailed mission briefing, or even a freakin' compass to tell you which direction to head. Not so, but not to worry: this game's severe linearity means that you're pretty much funneled to your objective. In almost every case there's only one way to reach the target, one way to gain entry, one way to complete the mission objective. Replay value, therefore, is essentially nil, unless you want to try to make it through already familiar levels without saving your game or some similar sort of navel-gazing.

There are some nice gadgets that add to gameplay: camera projectiles you can use to scout ahead, and a stun gun round that causes victims to quiver and stutter entertainingly. Sound design is good, voice acting is in general quite good (though why is it foreign soldiers always have to speak English with an accent, rather than their own language?). Music is excellent and really adds to the atmosphere without being intrusive.

All in all, Splinter Cell is a fairly enjoyable diversion for the few days it will take you to complete it before putting it away forever. But it's too flawed and too unchallenging to deserve the accolades it's been receiving. I'd have scored it 2 stars for gameplay, but it gained another star for good looks and atmosphere.

A far superior stealth action game is Hitman: Silent Assassin. Action in that game is also sluggish, but nonetheless more responsive than Splinter Cell. Settings are more varied and atmospheric. And best of all there are multiple ways to approach the target and complete the objective for each level. You're not led by the nose: you have to explore, watch, and think. More of that sort of "action" would have been welcome in Splinter Cell, too.

After hearing much about the Game Splinter Cell I felt obliged to buy it after playing through the entire game heres my opinion on the game.

The game contains only nine levels plus training, at first I thought the game was going to be extremely short but after playing it I realized each level was around two or even three levels in a normal game. It came on three CDs so that should have been a clue to. (88%)

The graphics in this game put all third person video and computer games to shame. Not just the crispness and the sharpness of the graphics but also their attention to details. If you stand next to a chain linked fence your shadow is disrupted by the chains, something I never seen the programmers take time to do. In thermal vision if you kill someone you will see their body heat drain from their body. If you walk in some mud then into a building you will see footprints with the tiny details that you would expect to see in real life. (97%)

The sound effects are quite necessary to the game being based on stealth. You will learn to listen for the buzz of the camera, the mechanical sound of a gun turret, the footsteps of an approaching enemy, and the hum of a computer. All these have a distinct sound and let you identify the situation of the next room before even entering. Since this is based on stealth you will not hear any music unless your cover is blown, when the music is playing thought its quite enjoyable. (90%)

-Game Play-
I will break this into three sections Moves Weapons and Gadgets and Level Design

The game features so many different moves that I have isolated this segment. The game features few keys meaning that most moves are key combinations, easier to remember but harder to perform. You can crouch, roll, climb, jump, walk, and run like in most other games but heres a list of new ones: use people as human shields, interrogate, force cooperation, grab, move unconscious or dead bodies, split wall jump (use a wall as extra leverage for your jump), split jump (in a narrow hall way you can do a split wall jump than extend your legs before you hit the ground and then knock out people from above), rappel (tie a rope around a chimney or some sticking out object and climb down the side of the building with rope), back to wall (lowers your visibility), and quiet landing. These additional moves make the game more enjoyable but the split wall jump is really hard to control the direction of your jump, making it frustrating at times. (90%)

The weapons are not only unique but they also aide the stealth and spy aspect of the game. You have an SC Pistol that fires a 5.75 mm round that is fully flash suppressed and silenced, in some missions you will be equipped with a laser microphone that attaches to your pistol, this allows you to hear and record your enemys conversation (two missions this will be required for you to continue on to the next mission). You get an M.A.W.S which stands for a Modular Assault Weapon System, this is your basic all purpose rifle. Using regular bullets (5.65 mm) the weapon can interchange from a sniper rifle (its silenced and also equipped with a scope) a rifle (it can change rate of fire from single shot (more accurate) to fully automatic) and finally to an assault rifle. This is just the beginning the rifle can also shoot a zero projection round (airfoil ring) which incapacities rather than kills (certain missions call for zero fatalities), a sticky shocker which sticks on the enemy and shocks (knocks out), a gas grenade that emits smoke (if the enemy remains stationary and within vicinity it will knock them out), a sticky camera when fired allows you to zoom in and out plus has thermal and night vision modes (thermal detects heat while night vision aids you in the dark) this feature is good for scouting out a corner, and a diversion camera which emits a noise to draw the enemy near and releases a gas that will knock them out (you cannot zoom in and out or change vision modes with the diversion camera). Two vision modes (Thermal and night) allow you to move through low visibility conditions. An optic cable (Night vision mode only) allows you to see under doors. A frag grenade and a wall mine allow you to blow away a bunch people. A camera jammer jams the camera electromagnetic frequencies allowing you to go undetected. Two types of flares (chemical, and standard) allow you to distract your enemies. Notice how there are not a lot of guns especially loud machine guns, thats because this games based on stealth and thats also incorporated in the weapon selection. (96%)

The level design when you get past the graphics, the moves, the weapons, and the stealth feature is mediocre at best. The game play is very mediocre due to the linear game play; you cannot help but go in the right direction. If theres a door that they want you to access after you accomplished another task, the door will come up as jammed which can be neither picked, nor opened. The story line is quite good with its natural twists and kept you going throughout the mission. Though the linear game play was fine while playing it the first time it totally decreased the replay value since there is only one way to complete the missions. This game could have been one of the best to be ever released in gaming worlds but the linearity decreases it to just a good/excellent game. (80%)

Total for game play= (89%)

Game play (two weights) = (89%)

Graphics (single weight) = (97%)
Sound and Music (single weight) = (90%)
Length (single weight) = (88%)

Total = A- (90%)

Synopsis-
Could have been legendary if not for the linear style game play.

Having read most of the reviews here I can see various points.
There have been high hopes for Splinter Cell and I think, generally, Ubi Soft have delivered. The graphics are spectacular, the sound is intense and the various movements and controls of Sam Fisher or intuitive and very easy to execute, for PC gamers anyway! However, this is not the in depth experience I was hoping to get into. A reviewer earlier talks about the whole thing being a stage and you the actor that tries to get the performance right. To be honest, that's not an unfair assessment, if a little harsh. Indeed, the point this reviewer is probably making is the fact that when HQ tell you to follow someone/get somewhere/defuse bomb etc. really quickly, their words are quite hollow. To explain this I will detail one of the levels. You are on an oil rig swinging from pipe to pipe to get to the main platform. Your CO shouts on the intercom that you must get to a certain point quickly before the whole thing blows. Well, I hung around for about 5 mins deciding where to go and then when I finally got there the whole thing did blow in what I can only describe as a pre-scripted marker. Unfortunately, this theme runs throughout the game. The CO says it's urgent, you run like a headless chicken to solve problem and get blasted. You quick save then load and take a bit longer. You then discover that it doesn't matter how long you take to reach a certain point, the action will only happen when you get there. This is an extremely weak point in the game and really dissolves any sense of tension. Games like Thief and Hitman 2 in particular do not contain any of this pre-srcipted scene setting and (not to sound too much like a snob) PC gamers will notice this very early on. Compared to many games out there Splinter is a class above in terms of graphics, sound and character control, but sadly the story, which is loosely influenced by the current political climate, is boring and the scenarios quite predictable and at times monotonous. The problem with Splinter is that it has suffered from excessive hype and has revealed itself as being a very good game, not a brilliant game.

As a fan of stealth games like the Thief series, I thought Splinter Cell would be fun, but its not. In Splinter Cell you have absolutely no freedom. All the great moves and gadgets the game claims to offer never really come into play. You cant just up and repel of a wall if you want to. You can only do it as part of a heavily scripted sequence, and only at the designated wall in the designated location. Kinda takes the fun out of it. Also when you sneak up behind someone, you have to get close enough for some bizzare antiquated menu to drop down, and then you select the appropriate action. I should not need to go through all that nonsense just to hit someone. The game was boring. It was simplistic and required no thought or strategy.

If you want stealth action check out any of the Thief offerings, Splinter Cell was a major let down, in my oppinion.

This game beats Metal Gear to the ground. After being rather disappointed by MGS2, I began to look for another stealth based game. I found this in Splinter Cell. In this game, Sam Fisher may interact with anything that could prove useful to his mission. You can actually throw a glass bottle, creating a distraction. The stealth meter is something that MGS could really have used, instead of that Soliton Radar. The gameplay has an extended learning curve, but it is still enjoyable. In MGS, you can run to the next area, escaping guards, but in Splinter Cell if you are spotted, many times you are ... If you are patient and enjoyed Metal Gear, I'd recommend this, but understand: This is far from a MGS2 copy (No annoying story, that seems to go on endlessly). Also, the graphics are something you have to see to believe.

When I first started playing Splinter Cell I didn't really like it but after a while I came around and I couldn't get splinter cell pandora tomorrow in my comp fast enough :P

I thought it was very linear and I felt confined by the whole "one way through" thing. Eventually, I began to feel like it was part of the plot because i figured most "secure" locations would have very few weaknesses.

In the begining I was also a little dissapointed with the whole "don't kill anyone but the target thing". I was used to just fragging everything that moved and now I'm surrounded by all these nice little potential targets and i'm not supposed to kill ANY of them??!!?? Now i'm completely bored with the games that only requre a finger permenantly attached to the fire button to win. Mass murder is good and all but it's definatly better to savor your kills and interrogate and force them to co-operate. And it's good to be able to use a little strategy.

I liked the story a lot too. It was very captivating compared to most of the games i've played recently. The movies gave the game the sence of urgency and importance that make your missions seem worth while and rewarding.