Preview By:  Nick Arvites
Developer:	Ubi Soft Montreal
Publisher:	Ubi Soft
Genre:	3rd person stealth
Est. Release:	Fall 2002
Date Posted:	5-15-02

When it comes to covert operations and militaristic games and novels, few do it better than Tom Clancy. The greatest glaring examples are the successful Rainbow 6 series on PC and consoles as well as the game Ghost Recon. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell takes us from the team based realistic FPS style seen in the Rainbow 6 series to a 3^rd person espionage game similar to Metal Gear Solid, and the results thus far look fantastic.

In Splinter Cell, players assume control of NSA black-ops agent Sam Fisher. The game has missions that involve secretly and silently infiltrating enemy bases, gathering intelligence, destroying data and taking out enemies. The interesting part is the lack of guns-a-blazing that plagues most other 3rd person action games. This game is a thinking-person’s action game, relying heavily on stealth and realistic tactics.  Sam will also be able to do a number of things Snake never could, such as wedging himself in the air between two narrow walls.

Graphically, Splinter Cell looks better than the PS2’s espionage hit MGS2. The screenshots speak for themselves.  Of course, this graphical splendor might have a little something to do with Splinter Cell being developed on the "next generation Unreal Engine."

Since this is a Tom Clancy game, it's a sure bet that the environment will be an eerily realistic one that will haunt the back of your mind. Rainbow 6 was so great because of the realistic situations and environments, and this game looks set to repeat that trend.

Overall Splinter Cell looks like it can give Metal Gear a run for its money. Xbox and PC owners should be happy since it hits those two platforms later this year, while everyone else has to wait until 2003. This game is just what the Xbox needs in its lineup to compete with the PS2’s stronger titles, and this game could very well be the Xbox's answer to MGS2.

Look for more info on Splinter Cell at E3, where it is sure to generate quite a stir.

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