Splinter Cell: Blacklist Trailer Blows Stuff Up

[Andy Chalk]

Splinter Cell: Blacklist Trailer Blows Stuff Up

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The Splinter Cell: Blacklist trailer is chock full o' loud noises, explosions and some guy who doesn't sound nearly as dangerous as Sam Fisher.

It's been awhile since the last time I played a Splinter Cell [http://www.amazon.com/Tom-Clancys-Splinter-Cell-Xbox/dp/B00006JZQZ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1348603293&sr=8-1&keywords=Splinter+Cell+1] game, but I very distinctly remember - in a good way - that much of my time was spent skulking around in the shadows while some guy kept telling me not to kill anyone. There was a spot of unpleasantness in the Chinese embassy and I'd have to bust some fingers or maybe ventilate a dude now and then, but by and large I'd come and go unseen and unheard, like a true professional.

Today's trailer for the upcoming Splinter Cell: Blacklist doesn't look to be quite that kind of experience, however. Sam Fisher, or at least some guy dressed like him, gets the green light to kill everything he sees from the President herself, after which he goes about doing just that. He stabs guys, strangles guys and shoots guys - lots of guys - much of it while running around in the open, exchanging gunfire in broad daylight.

Perhaps even worse is that the "Fifth Freedom," which as far as I can tell is what the British have been letting their Double-O guys do since at least the early 60s, is explained to us by some guy who tries, and entirely fails, to sound like the most menacing man on the planet. It's not that he does a particularly bad job of it, but compared to Michael "Tell Me Something Useful And I Won't Stuff Your Corpse Inside One Of These Crates" Ironside, it falls completely flat. It's unfortunate for the voice actor who got the job, and perhaps even unfair, but when it comes to the voice of Sam Fisher, there can be only one.

On the other hand, if this video is indicative of the actual gameplay experience, I'd say the Splinter Cell of yore is long gone anyway. Pity - but hey, explosions, right? Splinter Cell: Blacklist [http://www.amazon.com/Clancys-Splinter-Cell-Blacklist-Xbox-360/dp/B0086V5V9A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1348603115&sr=8-1&keywords=Splinter+Cell%3A+Blacklist] is currently targeted for a spring 2013 release for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC.



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[hazabaza1]

"hurble glurble terrorists am evul"
I also just wanted to pop in and say that I found the E3 thing for this game really funny because they had a big "omgsamfisher" reveal, but the only recognizable things about him is his voice and goggles, his face is so generic it's kinda funny. I don't think half the room realized what was going on until he got the goggles on.

 

[Hero in a half shell]

Ok, standard Dubstep soundtrack, Sam not only sounds different but looks completely different. He looks like he's in his early 30s, isn't he supposed to be like 60 now or something?!? Or was his father Benjamin Button?
Hilary Clinton's doppelgänger turns up 30 seconds into it, the Fifth Freedom seems completely redundant, as it's exactly what we've been doing in every previous Splinter Cell.

I was stoked with the whole getting more stealthy, but this trailer is ass. The worrying thing is that it appears they really are primarily designing this game to be played like a COD/Battlefield FPS, and not a stealth shooter, and while everything else in this trailer can be handwaved as nitpicking, that is a real worry for me.

Not a day one purchase, but I will keep my ear to the ground to see if it can measure up to Chaos Theory. I hope it can.

 

[anian]

It seems this game thinks "stealth" is when you blow everything up around you so there's nobody there to see you. You know, like "if a tree falls in the forest..." type of concept.



p.s. I still think that changing the actor under the excuse that this actor can also jump around in motion tracking suit is a big pile of smelly stuff.

 

[Krantos]

Before people start screaming about losing stealth, I'm going to post this:

Spoiler

For those not wanting to watcher the whole video, let me recap:

Things returning to the series:

-non-lethal takedowns (not shown in the video because the animations aren't done yet, but they are confirmed)
-Movable bodies
-Enemies will track things like doors being open when they shouldn't, etc.

While still not the stealth game we had with Chaos Theory, it's a sizeable move forward from Conviction.

The trailer in the OP and the E3 demo are basically in place to garner the attention of the action junkies. They're trying to get the attention of the COD crowd by saying "Whoo! Look, explosions, action, and airstrikes OH MY!"

However, despite this, "Ghost" fans are actually getting some love this time around as well. That's a step in the right direction as far as I'm concerned. I have no problem with the action being in there as long as it's not mandatory like it was in conviction.


Finally, yes, it's sad that Ironside is no longer voicing Sam. Yes, I think they should have just introduced a new character. However, even if the gameplay is nothing more than Conviction's with more stealthy options, I can get over the bad choice regarding voice actor.

Edit: Btw, the Fifth Freedom was introduced in the very first game. In fact when you load the game it's literally the first thing you see.

 

[CardinalPiggles]

Did he just arse slide across a car bonnet while shooting a dude in slow motion?

I thought this was Splinter Cell not Max Payne!

Not sure about this. I've heard good things about the stealth, but it seems like action will play a major part too, perhaps an unavoidable part.

I don't mind playing third person shooters, but this seems too generic.

 

[tmande2nd]

This is like Ork level stealth boyz.

"NO ONE CAN SEE ME IF DEY ALL ESPLODED! HA!"

 

[Drummie666]

Yeah, that stealth variant of the E3 demo is the only thing so far that tells me that this game might not suck... At least, from a gameplay perspective.
One, We know the fifth freedom. It's been in every game. Sure, you can reiterate this for the new fans that Ubi is obviously trying to bring in, but you only need to state it the same way it's always been stated. The right to do anything to protect the other four, when they are threatened. That's the four freedoms that Franklin D. Roosevelt spoke of, if don't know.
Second, I didn't see the detail on Sam's face until now, he's WAAAAAAAAAAAY too young Again. Why, oh dear lord WHY didn't they just retire Sam from field duty? HE'S IN HIS 60s BY NOW. Retire him, maybe leave him as handler or something, with Grim in charge of Third Echelon. Make Sarah the new protagonist, that'd be interesting. It could set up an intriguing character, especially with all the shit that she's been through in canon.

And lastly. Yeah, this guy is one of the least intimidating morons I've ever heard.
Oh, and this is most definitely not Sam Fisher, even from a character perspective. He told that guy he was rescuing, THAT HE DIDN'T KNOW about the new Fourth Echelon initiative. HE DIDN'T EVEN TELL HIS ONE OF HIS BEST FRIENDS WHO HE WAS WORKING FOR IN PANDORA TOMORROW.

 

[NinjaDeathSlap]

Oh dear. -_-

I really hope they weren't kidding when they said that you could still play this game largely like old Splinter Cell if you wanted. I have nothing against killing dudes in my games (I killed plenty in old SC for that matter) but I already have enough games where I can just run and gun everything. I want my sneaky times back. Even the Tom Clancy games already have Ghost Recon for exactly this sort of thing, why homogenise?

That said, even if this trailer is just selecting the few really shooty bits for hype purposes (which is stupid, because nobody who actually wants more Splinter Cell wants to see this), the purist in me still isn't sure if he could handle the departure of Michael Ironside. Needless to say, this game is going to need every other SC fan I know licking it's arse hole before I'll give it a chance.

 

[GameMaNiAC]

Not a day one purchase, but I will keep my ear to the ground to see if it can measure up to Chaos Theory. I hope it can.

Let me spoil it for you, it can't.

No Splinter Cell game will ever be able to measure up to Chaos Theory. That is already obvious from the trailers.

It already sucks. It's just a question of how bad it is going to suck now. Here's hoping that it won't suck too much, and then maybe I play it and even have fun with it.

Although the lack of Sam Fisher is a big minus for me so far.

And no, that's not Sam Fisher. Nothing you say can convince me otherwise.

 

[Andy Chalk]

I hold out hope for this game, if only because I hold out hope for every new game. But this trailer is shockingly anti-Splinter Cell. Which is okay, as long as you're not trying to bill it as "another" Splinter Cell game. Someone suggested earlier that what we need is a new Splinter Cell - let Sam Fisher retire and bring on a new guy, with a new voice and a new style. Like moving from Pierce Brosnan to Daniel Craig. That'd be fine. But this insistence on character continuity, while the terms of the game (and, my god, that voice actor) continue to change, does nothing but harm the property.

 

[T'Generalissimo]

Erm...well it's been a long time since I've played a Splinter Cell game, but I don't quite remember it being like that.

 

[AJax_21]

Before people start screaming about losing stealth, I'm going to post this:

Spoiler

For those not wanting to watcher the whole video, let me recap:

Things returning to the series:

-non-lethal takedowns (not shown in the video because the animations aren't done yet, but they are confirmed)
-Movable bodies
-Enemies will track things like doors being open when they shouldn't, etc.

While still not the stealth game we had with Chaos Theory, it's a sizeable move forward from Conviction.

The trailer in the OP and the E3 demo are basically in place to garner the attention of the action junkies. They're trying to get the attention of the COD crowd by saying "Whoo! Look, explosions, action, and airstrikes OH MY!"

However, despite this, "Ghost" fans are actually getting some love this time around as well. That's a step in the right direction as far as I'm concerned. I have no problem with the action being in there as long as it's not mandatory like it was in conviction.


Finally, yes, it's sad that Ironside is no longer voicing Sam. Yes, I think they should have just introduced a new character. However, even if the gameplay is nothing more than Conviction's with more stealthy options, I can get over the bad choice regarding voice actor.

Edit: Btw, the Fifth Freedom was introduced in the very first game. In fact when you load the game it's literally the first thing you see.

Sure, it's a step forward from Conviction. I'll give them that but they're still not doing anything particularly interesting when it comes to innovating the stealth aspect of the gameplay. At least, everything they've shown so far seems to suggest so. It's basically Conviction 2.0, which is a cool thing but not the style of gameplay that I love in a Splinter Cell game. Whelp, it's Dishonored and Hitman Absolution for me I guess.

 

[Phoenix8541]

I take it this way, outside of the Title bias that i naturally have to originals. If at the end of playing this game I have the smug sense of accomplishment, the controls didn't want to make me eat the D-pad, and it didn't feel so unrealistic that it will make expendables2 shake their heads, than I can enjoy it and call it a good "game". Yet as far as SC titles go the old proverb still applies "If it isn't broke...don't fix it"

 

[dakkster]

I could live with Conviction because the story/narrative really grabbed me. It was Sam's personal vengeance story. This time the story seems to be another "meh" kind of deal. No dice. And all the shooting and explosives and SAM FISHER CALLING DOWN FREAKING AIRSTRIKES makes this a no buy for me. I might get this a year or two down the line from the used bin. Pity.