Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction Preview

By Tom Bramwell Published 29 May, 2007

Be seeing you.

The instruction booklet for Splinter Cell: Double Agent describes 29 different actions Sam Fisher can perform. There are individual sub-sections later on dealing with hacking, safe-cracking, mine assembly, email decryption, and bomb-defusal. Overall, the game uses every single button on the Xbox 360 pad several times over.

Splinter Cell: Conviction apparently uses three.

One's for Aggression, one's for Stealth, one's for Interaction. The idea is that these three functions can account for a range of actions as broad as any other game in the Splinter Cell series. Producer Mathieu Ferland argues that far from constraining you, the new approach "opens more possibilities". The example he gives is that if your instinct is to strike an enemy, using the Aggression button, Sam might not simply whack him but could reach for an object nearby and use it to batter him senseless. "It's not exactly what you wanted to do as a movement," he says, "but is exactly what you expected as a result." There isn't even a crouch button, and you certainly won't be doing any split-jumps.

It's not just you - we could do with some more convincing ourselves. "We realised it was possible to make things more contextual," says Ferland. The team - one big team this time, in Montreal, rather than a pair of teams working separately on single and multiplayer components - envisaged a concept analogous to a sports game in terms of its philosophy. Conviction would be a game of "scripted situations with unscripted solutions". "If you're in a café in front of a table, you can press the Aggression button to flip it over; if you press the Interaction button you grab the table and pick it up; if you press the Stealth button you hide underneath it," he says.

Leaving that aside for a minute, surely by "café" he means "terrorist-controlled Georgian oil refinery" or "high-tech weapons facility hidden on the Thai/Laos border" or "arms bazaar atop the cliffs overhanging the Andaman Sea in the south of Myanmar". But he doesn't. He means café. It's a café in Washington Park, as it goes. In broad daylight. Because, as our cunning build-up masks with all the effectiveness of a bright green headset in a dark alley, Conviction watches the series' distinctive light-and-shadow gameplay follow half the button assignments out of the door.

'Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction' Screenshot 1

Falling into step with people in a crowd allows you to evade detection. The cops are looking for a loner, after all.

What's happened is that Sam's been betrayed. Drawn back to Third Echelon after a couple of years minding his own business, he becomes the victim of some sort of conspiracy that leaves him a fugitive, unsupported by his former crutches. Everyone he ever worked with is now after him. He has to source his weapons and tools from the black market. He's no longer in a catsuit and the iconic night-vision headset's gone too. Instead he's wearing a hoodie, with a ragged beard and longer hair, and the section we're shown, along with the meat of the game, is about uncovering the truth without falling into the hands of law enforcement.

Quite why he doesn't just continue to creep about at night isn't explained (perhaps replacement night-vision kit isn't something the black market specialises in), but never mind that, Conviction's alternative is hiding in plain sight, using a mass of non-player characters to mask his actions and achieve his objectives, which typically include pinching documents, hacking things and following leads into protected areas. Crowds of people are the new shadows. Needing to get into a section of the Park guarded by a policeman, Sam can go up to a woman milling around outside, grab her laptop and toss it on the ground. People around him react with confusion and alarm. It's not chaos, but it's enough to attract the cop's attention, allowing Sam to circle the crowd and move into previously inaccessible territory.

There are other possibilities. You could walk past the cop, who might recognise and follow you. As you circle a pond, falling out of sight of the crowd, you can turn and slam your enemy's head into the wall, incapacitating him. As long as nobody spots you doing this, it's as if it hasn't happened.

Indeed, confrontation has become essential (and Ubisoft's planning to flesh out combat mechanics soon, with a range of finishing moves mooted). Previously, of course, detection was so frustrating a lot of players opted simply to reload from a save-file. But this is a game about avoiding capture rather than detection, says Ferland, and the latter can be harnessed to solve problems. In effect Sam's and the player's roles have been reversed - now he's the one in a relentlessly precarious situation. For you, "there's no right or wrong way to play it".

Part of this is out of a desire to make the game "more accessible", says Ferland, who rues the fact that many of his friends simply found the game too hard to play in previous iterations.

To aid them, and you, Conviction also offers a greater degree of interactivity. You can distract enemies by shoving people in the crowd, or lure and then attack them, but avoiding capture through distraction is often about manipulating objects. Work your way into an office and you can barricade the door to secure time to rifle through desks. You can scatter papers to confuse pursuers. You can grab walkie-talkies from downed guards to listen in on the progress of their search for you. You can even replace objects that have been knocked over in a fight, returning a room to its previous state. If somebody spots a printer lying broken on the floor, they might search the area thoroughly, but if they see nothing amiss at a glance, they won't.

'Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction' Screenshot 2

Is there a reward for information leading to Sam's capture? Because we've wanted to do a 'Fisher price' joke for 7 years.

In service to this is level of physics programming that exceeds everything Ubisoft has done before, and a new animation system that helps Sam latch onto objects believably no matter how they've fallen. If a chair is lying on its side, Sam will grab it by the back and leg, whereas a printer's heft means it needs to be supported from underneath. The effect appears consistent, even at this stage, on pre-alpha code. The rest of the engine, built from the ground up, we're told, hopes to benefit from the game's "exclusivity" to PC and Xbox 360. New effects include - ironically - some of the series' most convincing shadows to date. The frame-rate is almost as unkempt as Sam's beard (one "big" distraction is an exploding propane canister, which the game clearly doesn't like yet), but there's still a way to go.

But the question is whether the path they're finding is actually one that players want. We ask Ferland if he's worried about fans reacting badly. "We've been working very closely with the fans from the beginning," he insists. "Their first reaction was, 'What's going on? Where's Sam?' And then they discovered these new possibilities, this new mechanic and they said, 'That looks awesome. I want to play it.'" Right. "To us, it's a nice way to expand the brand because Ubisoft is a nice company and you can push it hard with innovation, especially in Splinter Cell, and sometimes when you want to push innovation you need to adapt your creative direction to fit the kind of gameplay you want to provide." He's definitely in love with the newly contextual stealth action, and tells us so, even if he acknowledges the risk. He also says he believes the controls and gameplay ramifications will feed into an intriguing multiplayer element - something nobody's talked about yet.

'Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction' Screenshot 3

Being spotted is no longer bad news. Sometimes, it's essential.

But what if it all goes wrong? Will they stick to it for another instalment, or retreat back to the comfort of the shadows? "It's not a one-way direction," says Ferland. "You can always go back and do different things, having Sam in a new position, or a different character to explore light-and-shadow gameplay." For now then, we'll just have to wait and see whether Ubisoft's bold decision to ditch most of what made Splinter Cell such a success was a wise one or not. A bit like Sam, the present public reaction suggests it'll be guilty until proven innocent.

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction is due out on PC and Xbox 360 this year.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (74) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • space_ace #1 5 years ago

    .º.

  • JayeM #2 5 years ago

    I think it looks amazing. :)

  • NthSimulachum #3 5 years ago

    Yay! More freedom in stealth games, rather than a linear bunch of puzzles. Also hopefully a less stupid story than last time.

  • afghan_jones #4 5 years ago

    sounds excellent. kicking ass jason bourne style rather than squatting in the dark in a 'by the numbers' underground military base.

  • SomaticSense #5 5 years ago

    Christ, this sounds GOOD. Different to the other games, but still brilliant.

    Are you listening lazy devs? This is how you reinvigorate a franchise.

  • crazyhorse174 #6 5 years ago

    All credit to them for trying something a bit different. Couldve been so easy for them to just fire out another game in the same vein as the previous four.

    Good luck to them says I!

  • morriss #7 5 years ago

    Can't wait for this.

  • TripSkyway #8 5 years ago

    Sounds ace, impressed by the brave and exciting new direction.

  • MoGamer2006 #9 5 years ago

    I just don't 'get' the Splinter Cell games. I played - or tried to play - the first two and found them dull, tedious and unfairly hard... have they genuinely improved much since then?

  • dudefella #10 5 years ago

    I'm with the yay crowd - Double Agent was awfully stale and the disappointment of the year for me. Conversely, Rainbow Six Vegas - another Ubi game that shook up the formula of the series - was one of my favorites in a long time.

  • BadBoyBonner #11 5 years ago

    Thank god says I.

    The lack of interaction with parts of the game world, that looked identical to the one ya had just done was crushing for me.

    I.e. climb this bit of fence but not that, crawl/slide along this wire, but not that one - that would take you where you want to go. Ya get the idea.

  • AcidSnake #12 5 years ago

    I was disappointed when I read about the 'just 3 buttons' dealy, but man those screenshots show definite possibility...It sounds really good...

  • oerhoert #13 5 years ago

    This sounds awesome so far, the question remains whether or not they're up to it.

    Splinter Cell's gone Assassin's Creed on us! :)

  • Killerbee #14 5 years ago

    Sounds pretty good actually. I think inevitably it'll be one I'll wait for a review of, but I'm actually a lot more interested in this than I have been in any Splinter Cell game since the first one.

  • Rirekon #15 5 years ago

    Certainly sounds a hell of a lot better than the previous "now you see me"*crouch*"now you don't" bullshit that happens in the rest of the games.
    I look forward to seeing how much of this promise ever makes it to release.

  • kangarootoo #16 5 years ago

    @MoGamer2006

    Things did get better after the first couple of versions (the ludicrous sudden failure states were mostly removed, thank christ).

    I stopped playing the SC games a few years back but this version, based on what we have seen so far, has got me interested again.

  • SuperBas #17 5 years ago

    Double Agent sucked, so I hope this one will be great. It could go either way from here.

  • Der_tolle_Emil #18 5 years ago

    I just hope all that context sensitive stuff does not end up in a purely scripted run-through. Double Agent was my first Splinter Cell and the more open levels allowed quite a lot of freedom I think. Hopefully the changes don't require you to use certain objects just because you can.

    If I want to stun an enemy right here and right now I want being able to do so, even if it makes the game maybe a bit harder but I definetly don't want it to be a point of no return just because a few steps forward the same button would grab me a pipe and knock the enemy out more efficiently.

    It's nice when I can use objects found lying around but often games nearly force you to use such options without leaving you much choice.

  • zuljin #19 5 years ago

    I can't make up my mind about this... I loved Pandora Tomorrow, Conviction sounds like they're trying to go more Assassins Creed... Not a bad thing if it pulls it off tho... That is if Assassins Creed pulls off its promises!

  • Machiavel #20 5 years ago

    Splinter Cell: Hitman (with hair)

  • asphaltcowboy #21 5 years ago

    Looks brilliant. Loved the way they evolved the series for Splinter Cell: Double Agent, and can't wait for it to take a new, even more interesting turn! As SomaticSense put it so eloquently, "This is how you reinvigorate a franchise"

  • faux_carnation #22 5 years ago

    I am not a number!! I AM A FREE MAN
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/07 @ 15:06

  • space_ace #23 5 years ago

    also, it's funny how our hero looks exactly like a terrorist in d.c., and still hopes to hide from the police!

  • Kiigan #24 5 years ago

    Sounds awful. All the context-sensitive stuff sounds very unsatisfying from a play perspective. It sounds as though Ubisoft are more in love with their plot ideas than actually making something that plays well.

  • The-Bodybuilder #25 5 years ago

    I say innocent until proven guilty.
    As someone who fell out of love with the series, this change is not only for the better, but innovative in itself.

  • octo #26 5 years ago

    Honestly Ubisoft. Do you want people to not buy your game? I know, let's take away their interaction with the character so that when they press their controller they have no idea what will happen! That will make the game infinitely better!!

  • MikeP #27 5 years ago

    Not sure I agree Manic - I'm a fan of the existing games, thought Double Agent was excellent.

    However, they all share the flaw that it's hard to play them reactively. Make a mistake and in most circumstances you're toast. This looks like it could be a lot more fluid in style.

    From my perspective I think this'll be a breath of fresh air.

  • The-Bodybuilder #28 5 years ago

    @ octo

    Are you one of those people that pass judgment on a game they haven't playe yet?

  • Fyzzu #29 5 years ago

    This actually sounds a lot like how Hitman should be, and how - in terms of AI, and stuff like that, if not controls and idea - Deus Ex 2 was meant to be, back in the early previews. Looks good to me.

  • AcidSnake #30 5 years ago

    no idea what will happen
    Yes you do...If you choose aggressive for instance...
    You know it'll be aggressive...Easy I'd say...

    That's the way I see it...
    Like waiting for an enemy to venture near a telephone,
    Aggressive would smack the phone over his head
    Stealthy would strangle him with the phone cord
    And Smart would tap him on the shoulder and you'd say "it's for you"....

  • IAmBatman #31 5 years ago

    > Are you one of those people that pass judgment on a
    > game they haven't playe yet?

    Nice high-horse, looks a bit unstable though - better watch yourself up th...

    > this change is not only for the better

    Ooooh, that looked like a nasty fall. Nothing more than a few bruises I hope.

  • Batfink #32 5 years ago

    I haven't bought a splinter cell since pandora tomorrow, and I only ever managed to finish the first one. But I'll be getting this - sounds awesome.

  • zuljin #33 5 years ago

    @The Bodybuilder
    "I say innocent until proven guilty."

    Yea! Its shit till it proves itself as a good game!

    That is what you meant right?

  • Joppers #34 5 years ago

    Maybe they felt the series needed a change after five iterations?

    Seriously though, I find it odd that people are assuming there will be less functionality just because they're using less buttons.

    Lots of games are going the 'context sensitive' route as they think it will increase their potential market.

    IMHO, what'll make or break the game is whether you get the right context sensitve response!

  • hulahoops #35 5 years ago

    Context sensitive is the way forward.

    I would imagine that 90% of the time he does exactly what you would expect him to do, the other 10% of the time he'll do something interesting, while still finishing with the same result.

    So long as they player feels they instigated the action, they're generally happy, in my experience.

    Take Prince of Persia's wall running. You just had to hold the jump button (I think) while you were in contact with the wall. Pushing the joystick, then the jump button, then having to remember which button was the wall running button wouldn't have worked nearly as well.

    Every control system worth its salt uses context sensitivity as much as possible. The only difference here is that instead of the game telling you to push A when you want to, say, put the guy in a headlock from behind, A when you want to punch them in the face, B when you want to swing over a railing and hold onto it from below and B when you want to duck into the shadows, it'll tell you to push A when you want to do something offensive and B when you want to do something stealthy.

    So basically, this is just another way of phrasing "we've made sure the controls are as sensible as possible". I'm almost certain we'll prefer that over wondering which one was the rail swing button in the heat of the moment.

    I wouldn't be at all surprised if other developers follow this lead.
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/07 @ 17:04

  • Der_tolle_Emil #36 5 years ago

    Take Prince of Persia's wall running. You just had to hold the jump button (I think) while you were in contact with the wall. Pushing the joystick, then the jump button, then having to remember which button was the wall running button wouldn't have worked nearly as well.

    There's a huge difference between simplifying controls or mapping lots of different actions to a button.

    I recently played the Condemned demo, you can pick up stuff like pipes, wooden boards etc. and then interact with them. Sounds to me at least a bit more convincing than pressing one button and have my character randomly grab something just to hit a guy.

    I am always very, very sceptical of scripted events. It all started with people falling down from rooftops or balconies every single time, regardless how and where you hit them. I don't really feel in control of my character anymore if too much of this stuff is going on. Especially because I felt more in control than in many other games with Double Agent.

  • lambtron #37 5 years ago

    "also, it's funny how our hero looks exactly like a terrorist in d.c., and still hopes to hide from the police!"

    Are we extending stereotypical Terrorist appearance to "anyone with a beard" now?
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/07 @ 17:22

  • PearOfAnguish #38 5 years ago

    This actually makes a Splinter Cell game sound fun.

  • zuljin #39 5 years ago

    @BlankOBlank!
    I agree to a certain extent with the good aspects of context sensitive buttons. I just think that it is a very difficult thing to get right. Especially because a designer might view the game world completely different to me or you.

    Take for example a telly on a table. Is an agressive move to pick up the telly and throw it at an enemy, or is it to just flip the table at him? This is where context sensitive buttons can easily fail, its where you expect something to happen, but instead you get aggrevated at the occurence of something more obvious to the game designer.

  • crazyhorse174 #40 5 years ago

    "also, it's funny how our hero looks exactly like a terrorist in d.c., and still hopes to hide from the police!"

    Are we extending stereotypical Terrorist appearance to "anyone with a beard" now?

    < Reaches for the razor... >
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/07 @ 17:45

  • James173 #41 5 years ago

    If they screw up optimization for the PC version again I'm going to commit suicide.

  • TheStranger #42 5 years ago

    When the game The Outsider becomes more common knowledge, people will say it has heavily drawn off this game. I've only seen mention of that game on Gamespot ages ago.

    Basically, the premise of The Outsider is you are a CIA agent who is accused of killing the president, and you go from there and play whatever way you want. Take revenge on those who pinned the blame on you or try and join them and pin it on someone else.

    Anyway, as for this game, i'll wait for the EG review. Sounds like it could be pretty good, and may even make me want to get it. Though, it would be the first Splinter Cell game i've played :\

  • Fatnick #43 5 years ago

    Glad to see more developers taking a cue from IO..even if the Hitman series never quite gets the respect it deserves.

  • SBfistfun #44 5 years ago

    Meh

  • octo #45 5 years ago

    @TheBodyBuilder :-)

    I'm able to take information and assemble it into an opinion. It's a skill. For example, I've never wanked off a pig, but having read about a minor celebrity who did I have no compunction to try it.

    This game sounds shit. If you take decision making and character reactions away from the player, your game is going to be less fun IMHO. See every game featuring context sensitive controls ever made for reference.

  • jachap #46 5 years ago

    Gamers, casual gamers, everybody are going to look at Sam Fisher and say, "That's a beardy guy! I understand him. I understand that, like all beardy guys, he's going to linger around parks in a sinister fashion, do his best to avoid identification by the police and drink copious amounts of cider from a bottle wrapped in brown paper. He looks like a real beardy guy."

    What Ubisoft could have done is made the beardy guy controllable by you. Have him so you could press a button and he could attack. That would have been the easy thing to do. But no. They've been brave about this and given you no control over the beardy guy. Beardy guys don't press a button when they drink cider in public places. They just go out and do their thing. They know if the police don't like it they damn well distract the police before they do it.

    Ubisoft give you no control over the beardy guy. Just think about that for a second. No control over the beardy guy. There's no beardy guy button.

    A lot of people would say, "That's just mad, man. You know - I feel - How could I be engaged with a beardy guy unless I specifically choose to get him drunk and swear-y?"

    What they've said is: you control the beardy guy by playing the game.
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/07 @ 18:35

  • TheStranger #47 5 years ago

    jachap, that is hilarious. Best post i've seen ever. I wonder if anyone will miss what you were pointing at.

  • Scimarad #48 5 years ago

    Sounds excellent but, then again, so did the last one.

    I really like the idea of context sensitive buttons. One of my biggest gripes about the last one was that I kept getting tangled up in the controls.

    Oh, and don't screw up the PS3 version this time.

  • kangarootoo #49 5 years ago

    @octo

    "See every game featuring context sensitive controls ever made for reference."

    What like all the previous Splinter Cell games? Or maybe you mean the Hitman series? Or perhaps PoP with its context sensitive jump button? Ah, maybe you mean Tekken?

    I played Thief 2 the other day. It sucked ass. Sometimes the use button opened a door, at other times it picked up a body, once it even made the floor move. You should have seen the look on my face.

    This is confusing stuff. I can see how a player would be bamboozled.

  • Downside #50 5 years ago

    You had to be a real geek to play Splinter Cell, too fiddly.

    This version sounds like it might appeal with a more creative element - still offering stealth-'em up fun but with the added dimension of real npc's to use and abuse a-la GTA.

    Good move IMHO.

  • Obsequious #51 5 years ago

    "Oh, and don't screw up the PS3 version this time."

    Kinda hard to, seeing as how there won't be one.

  • TheStranger #52 5 years ago

    "Kinda hard to, seeing as how there won't be one."

    Indeed, they have opted to "Play it safe".
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/07 @ 21:57

  • The-Bodybuilder #53 5 years ago

    >"That is what you meant right?"

    Not quite.
    more like "promising until proven otherwise".

    And @ IamBatman, It is a legitimate question.
    So now I must be on a high horse to ask whether another person should pass judgement on a game they haven't even seen in action?
    Edited by 1 at 29/05/07 @ 22:59

  • The-Bodybuilder #54 5 years ago

    >"See every game featuring context sensitive controls ever made for reference"

    Shenmue uses QTE, which are context sensitive (I think).

    Oh, and you're a liar. That lady (something loo) is NOT a celebrity.

  • cyber_nicco #55 5 years ago

    I won't say this context-sensitive stuff will necessarily blow, but I am skeptical of the concept in general. I appreciate that it could add some nice variety to certain actions and scenes, but I also think it will have to be implemented almost perfectly to not drive me nuts in actual practice...

  • mingster #56 5 years ago

    Context sensitive does not mean QTE.. bodyduilder no.

  • IAmBatman #57 5 years ago

    > So now I must be on a high horse to ask whether
    > another person should pass judgement on a game
    > they haven't even seen in action?

    You really don't get it do you? You did the same thing yourself!

  • The-Bodybuilder #58 5 years ago

    >"Context sensitive does not mean QTE.. bodyduilder no."

    Who said it did?
    I was commenting that quick-time events are context-sensitive, I think.
    Either way, I need any excuse to mention how great shenme is.

  • kangarootoo #59 5 years ago

    @The Bodybuilder

    I think what IAmBatman is saying (so very covertly) is that you put a positive slant on a game without seeing the final result, whereas octo did essentially the same thing but put applied a negative bias.

    I suppose in a way they are the same thing, one being optimistic and the other being pessimistic. I find cynisism quite tiring (except when its me being cynical obviously), so if I was taking sides I would proably say optimism > pessimism, but I can see where IAmBatman is coming from (though if he just said what he meant instead of dancing around a big pile of horse fall related jokes...).

  • The-Bodybuilder #60 5 years ago

    >"You really don't get it do you? You did the same thing yourself! "

    I said "innocent until proven guilty" and I explained it later as in "promising until proven otherwise" (I didn't say "great until proven otherwise";). I'm optimistic about the game, it's better than saying the game is "sh*t" based on a text-based preview of an alpha code.

    But I guess I should be pessemistic like most people on this site.

  • zuljin #61 5 years ago

    @The Bodybuilder
    "Not quite.
    more like "promising until proven otherwise"."

    I knew that was what you meant, but I was along the lines of IAmBatman and KangarooToo here, in that I think positive thinking on a game we pretty much know nothing about is on a par with negative thinking of a game we know nothing about.

    "it's better than saying the game is "sh*t" based on a text-based preview of an alpha code."
    Why?

  • mingster #62 5 years ago

    I still don't get why you think QTE are context sensitive.
    QTE are pressing buttons in time with the corresponding versions showing on the screen.
    Context sensitive means one button the performs different actions based on the environment or area which it was pressed.
    So in essence QTE is not the same at all.

  • kangarootoo #63 5 years ago

    @zuljin

    Hey, I didn't say that being negative was "on a par" with being positive about these things. In fact I said if I had to choose optimism > pessimism. So I underatdn what IAmBatman was saying, but I don't necessarily agree with the sentiment.

  • kangarootoo #64 5 years ago

    @mingster

    Unless pressing buttons during a QTE sequence results in the same action every time, they ARE context sensitive for the reason you gave.

    Here is a metaphor to mull over that I think is relevant.

    All chickens are birds, but not all birds are chickens.

    So thats that cleared up then.

  • kangarootoo #65 5 years ago

    Actually, that metaphor doesn't quite apply completely here. But its a good metaphor all the same, don't let me poor handling colour you against it.

  • mike_mgoblue #66 5 years ago

    I have always LOVED all of the Tom Clancy games from Ubisoft!!!

    Ubisoft did such a great job with Rainbow Six: Vegas on the Xbox 360, it was absolutely amazing!!!

    Splinter Cell: Conviction looks absolutely amazing! This game seriously has the best graphics of anything I have ever seen! I can definitely see why Ubisoft said they would not be able to bring Splinter Cell: Conviction to the Playstation 3, since the PS3 doesn't have the graphic power for a game like this.

    Heck, Ubisoft still hasn't been able to release Rainbow Six: Vegas for the Playstation 3, because the PS3 doesn't have the ability to do graphics like that. Plus, the PS3 has a much more difficult time with the Unreal 3.0 engine than the PC and Xbox 360 do.

    Splinter Cell: Conviction is absolutely amazing, and I can't wait to play it on my Xbox 360! I think it would be cool if Splinter Cell: Conviction was part of the Games for Windows program so PC owners and Xbox 360 owners can play against each other, like Shadowrun, which is being released today, along with Forza Motorsport 2!!!!!! Both of those games have been rated super high!!!!!!!!

    Splinter Cell: Conviction isn't just some sort of "theater" experience...it looks like REAL LIFE!!!!!!!
    Edited by 2 at 30/05/07 @ 12:47

  • IAmBatman #67 5 years ago

    > the PS3 doesn't have the graphic power

    Just when you thought the thread couldn't go any further into the toilet.

  • Kami #68 5 years ago

    The problem with reinventing a franchise is the same as any other series - if you succeed in making it more accessible to players, the hardcore will bitch and whine and moan. If you don't reinvent, then yes - your core fanbase is happy but what good will that do you if the fanbase isn't large enough? Especially when there are lots of people (like me) who don't get the series or it's mechanics much at all. So, a company gets caught between playing it safe or taking a gamble.

    Stealthy action has been a bit of an oddity to me - MGS, Splinter Cell, Tenchu et al, I just don't get it. It's always to me seemed choppy, inconsistant, and whilst I enjoy a post-apocalyptic script as much as the next person, especially in Splinter Cells case there is a whiff of the 24 about it. You just end up thinking, "Give the guy a break! Sheesh!" And yes, it's nice to be rewarded for staying out of sight and doing it right as the developers intended - but how can someone enjoy being brutally punished for being 0.001% of an inch out of line on their first attempt, getting six guards and getting shot to pieces? I can understand some of the hardcore may get a kick out of it - but I'm not a hardcore fan and it's more likely to make me grab the CD, put it in it's box and go get something that doesn't act like a jerk. If I wanted that, I'd call up a few of my mates. They're £20 cheaper.

    That's not to say I haven't enjoyed stealthy action games. On the contrary, I quite enjoy them as a change from my usual diet of RPG, Horror and Adventure. I just do think in some cases, the concept has gone a little bit too far, overcomplicating things when they shouldn't be. I understand there are some hard-nuts out there who enjoy this brutality in their games, but I think this generation the demographic has changed slightly.

    Will it work? I'm not sure. However, this does sound very very tempting as it stands, it's different and I'm not as hooked into the series to care much how the world has changed. It would, however, be nice if the more hardened SC fan had challenges within the title to get to grips with as well.

    We'll see, however. As it stands, my attention is peaked...

  • Les #69 5 years ago

    “This game sounds shit. If you take decision making and character reactions away from the player, your game is going to be less fun IMHO. See every game featuring context sensitive controls ever made for reference.”

    I like the idea of a simplified and context sensitive control scheme TBH, although it won’t work for all games (e.g. fighters). It’s quite hard to pull off properly but that doesn’t mean the method itself is wrong. As the Wii shows, simple and intuitive controls can extend the audience of videogames. Next step is to make those simple controls work without dumbing down the games so that the more traditional video gamer keeps interest as well.

    In many cases, the number of potential responses to any given in-game situation is limited. By understanding that and limiting the player’s options based on the situation, the control scheme can be kept simple and you can avoid people doing things in the heat of the moment that don’t make sense, just because they hit a wrong button. E.g. if in an action game a pillar of fire is on collision course with the player character, logical responses could be to jump to the side or run away. Crouching or jumping up would not make sense as they would not result in the player character avoiding the pillar of fire. Removing options from players that don’t make sense in the first place doesn’t necessarily means a game is dumbed down nor should it mean the game is less challenging. In the hands of a capable developer (of which there are very few, I realise) context sensitive controls could really evolve gaming.

    But back to Conviction. What worries me a bit about this game though is that it looks to go the way of Assassins Creed, with its hiding-in-the-crowd gameplay.

    Oh and look, everybody’s favourite viral marketeer is back… I’m not really in favour of censorship in general, but in cases like this where it’s quite obvious the guy is either a complete moron or part of the MS viral marketing campaign, a ban would not be so bad an option...
    Edited by 1 at 30/05/07 @ 17:15

  • Dangher #70 5 years ago

    Is it just me or does it really seem like they are sacrificing an old franchise for a new concept? I'm talkin Assassin's Creed. It just feels like they have foregone everything that they have created in the past years for a new You... Erm. I mean A new Sam. Not good. they should not bow to Joe Public. Sam is Sam. He should not be brawling in the streets. Sam is a ghost. And Altair is Altair (think Thief). Nuff said. I think 'Conviction' is going to be the worst of the series.

  • Dangher #71 5 years ago

    Quoting Kami Snip - / - snip


    In response - you have a veritable pile of games available to you that do NOT have this kind of mechanics. Do not judge hardcore or not, because you have no idea. I think people playing Diablo are hardcore, you think me liking SC is hardcore - all subjective. This is no reason to break a perfectly viable game into pieces and lower it into the brainless button-fest territory. Everything is in the eye of the beholder. No one is forcing it down your throat. I think this move on the part of Ubi will be the end of the franchise. But then again - subjective.
    Edited by 2 at 30/05/07 @ 23:01

  • kangarootoo #72 5 years ago

    @Les

    "either a complete moron or part of the MS viral marketing campaign"

    The two are not mutually exclusive you know, though in this case I have to believe it is only the former (as MS simply aren't that bad at marketing).

  • Les #73 5 years ago

    “The two are not mutually exclusive you know, though in this case I have to believe it is only the former (as MS simply aren't that bad at marketing).”

    You’ve got a point there. ;-) But on the other hand, it might be that, to make it more believable, they write it like the average internet poster would. But maybe I’m just too suspicious…

  • kangarootoo #74 5 years ago

    "Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to convince everyone you are a cock."

  • superdelphinus #75 3 years ago

    sounds great despite the slightly sneary preview