Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell (Xbox, 2002)

Good
1. Gameplay: Superb manifestation of a stealth-action world through:
a) Impressive maneuver and combat techniques
b) Weapons and stealth-related devices
c) An environment that forces the player to think before they act,
through intelligent A.I., and well thought-out scenarios.
2. Sound: Well-suited sound tracks and sound effects
3. Graphics: Great textures, superb lighting and great polygon count
(Note: Polygon Count = Level of "blockiness" of a character
or object)
4. Storyline: Very intriguing plot that keeps the player captivated

Bad
1. Saving: It is in my opinion that in a game like this, you should be able
to save at your own will. Instead the game automatically saves
at strategic points, therefore it is possible that you may have
to replay a bit more than usual in the event you fail a mission.

This game is an awsome 3rd person stealth action game. The NSA commisons Third Echelon to recover information. You play Sam Fisher an ex special ops employee granted the privladge to bypass rules of engaugement and in return the govenment deny's his exsistance. Many missions and hours of fun.

I loved the fact that this game came to me in flawless scratcheless condition like new and it was the original copy and not some second reproduction greatest hits volume.

This is a vintage game and you should own the vintage copy simply put, and to get the vintage game in flawless condition is unheard of and unexpected.

There was nothing that I didnt appreciate about this title it will make me mad to see microsoft drop out of the counsole buisness they have an ace in the hole if they only knew what a crowd they have drawn of followers in console gamming... So what sony releases blu-ray big whup let sony pay for the development of technology of the blu-ray to make it actually affordable. Soon there will be more blue lasers then they know what to do with and prices will plummit on media as well. They never went full out on the DVD itself to begin with so bluray media is just data and lots of extra empty space and will most likely remain that way not to mention all the copy protection crap and thats what it is crap gives consumers no room to apply fair use to there media.

I am disappointed in bluray and hddvd as well for being so expensive and having been around for nearly 2 years you mean to say they still have not figured out ways to cut production costs ? Yeah right just keep recooping R&D until halographic storage makes its way out to market and you will have lost more then you could have possibly made selling more for less.

Anyhow splinter cell gets 2 thumbs up.

I prefer Regular Xbox than 360 since the RRD is appearing in all the 360 consoles.. the only difference between these two consoles is that the 360 has HD besides that RegulAR Xbox does all 360 do, also u can put the 360 interface on a normal xbox...

Ubi Soft's excellent espionage game is the birth of a new franchise and the best title on Xbox this year.

HIGHEST SCORE EVER. 9.6- Official Xbox Magazine...

The only thing better than making fun of a game that doesn't live up to its hype, is playing a game that exceeds lofty expectations. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell is not only the shining new superstar of the novelist's videogame brand, but it's a game that will put the Ubi Soft Montreal development house on the map. Ever since gamers caught a glimpse of the early screenshots back in the spring of 2002, the biggest question about Splinter Cell, right after "Is it really that pretty?" was "Yeah, but is it going to be fun?" Now upon the game's release, the answers to each of those questions are "Hell Yeah" and "Damn Right," respectively.

The key to Splinter Cell's success is that every single element of the game --including the story, graphics, sound and every minor detail in between-- is designed to focus your attention on the gameplay theme of espionage. You are in control of a highly trained operative and you're supposed to think like one. Even with all of the awesome weaponry and gadgetry you'll have at your disposal, your own mind is the most important piece of equipment in Splinter Cell and this is reinforced throughout the game. Few games have been this successful at immersing the player into a such a well designed simulation and maintained this feeling throughout the entire experience.

If Splinter Cell has a weakness it's that, as a single player only videogame, eventually it has to come to an end. But this is the best single player experience you will have had on your Xbox since a little game called Halo launched the system.

Splinter Cell, as the title says, is Stealth Action Redefined. the first time I ever played it was with my PC, and I beat the whole game in a week. then around a year later I got my Xbox and the game a week later. the only drawback with this game is it's single player, although they have added it for the new titles. the graphics are awesome, and the in between level movies are pretty good. get one today, all it costs is $5!

Yeah, yeah, I know Splinter Cell has been out for some time now, but like watching a movie, this is one of those games that I just never got around to til recently. And I have to say it was one of the most frustrating games I've ever played, with the exception of Ninja Gaiden on XBX of course, now that game is too hard, I think there are only 8 people in the world who actually beat it.

Now I'm not complaining that SC is just too hard (which it is), I'd settle for "extremely challenging". I'm just amazed that SC could be so smart and so dense at the same time. I mean, you make the slightest noise...lets say, brush up against some leaves and before you know it everyone is shooting at you, accurately might I add! But at the same time you could abduct one of two guards while in mid conversation, drag him back a few feet, knock him out and finish off the remaining guy in a similar fashion with none the wiser.

But the thing that just made me want to wield my controller like a morning star flail against my XBX was the checkpoints. At one level in the game I didn't see a check point for almost an hours worth of sneaking around, so you can imagine my anger redoing the same sequence's over and over again due to some stupid mistake or A.I. glitch. And again, at the same time you'll be given as many as 3 checkpoints in the span of 5 minutes play. I like checkpoints, they're wonderful back-ups, but in the end I want the ability to save my game at any point I wish.

Something else I would have liked done...how should I put this safely...umm brighter maps! Yes, I understand our man Fisher does his best work at night, gimmicky goggles and all, but I think it would have been fun to have a few "undercover"/ "out in the streets" levels during the day. Plus it kinda sucks to have all this cool scenery just blotted out by a dull green-gray screen all the time, how do any of these terrorists see where they're going, everything is so dimly lit! Maybe it's just me, but using NV gets old after 10+ hours. Okay okay...that's enough of the bad stuff, don't want any Sam Fisher Fanboys up my ass cause I'm just telling it like it is. (*update* someone over at Ubisoft was paying attention, the new Double Agent has lots of bright/outside levels. About time guys!)

Well what can I say really, this game not only looks amazing (shadows, lighting and textures), sounds great (authentic and original sounds) and has spot on controls, but it's just a joy to play because everything was put together extremely well! The story was plausible and the locales were great. So aside from it's small but forgivable flaws it was good enough for me to go out and pick up Pandora Tomorrow (so far I'm liking it...)