We sure have seen a lot from this series over the past two years of its existence. Not only has it brought the stealth/action genre back to life with some new concepts, but two different development teams at Ubisoft have had their go at it and were able to produce great titles every time. Last year's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, handled by Ubisoft's Shanghai team, didn't necessarily introduce new gameplay mechanics in terms of single-player, but it did let us in on a completely new type of multiplayer that we've never seen before. Now Ubisoft's Montreal team has come back from their break after the original Splinter Cell with a new hit that should definitely not be classified as just another sequel. Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory comes back with the dark stealth action that makes this series what it is and raises the bar with new moves, new gameplay modes, and better level design than ever before.
The Story
Once again Sam Fisher makes his return as the middle-aged Third Echelon operative. Playing out much like any story that bares Tom Clancy's name, Chaos Theory tells the story of information warfare which is set to rise tensions between Japan, China and North Korea in the not-so-distant future. Japan's creation of a Information Self-Defense Force (I-SDF) causes some tension between the countries as it's seen as a violation of international law. To respond to threats and blockades from China and North Korea, Japan asks for U.S. assistance in the matter. Obviously there's something else under all the politics that has caught the attention of Third Echelon, and Sam Fisher is sent in to clarify the issue.
The story is mainly unraveled through cutscenes which take place between missions. However, even more information is revealed after the cutscenes through paragraphs of information which is read off to you by the rest of your team. It gets a little boring just sitting there listening to them ramble on, but it is helpful information which may just help you understand this rather confusing storyline better. Once again your team is made up of Colonel Irving Lambert, director of operations; Anna Grimsdottir, intelligence technician; and William Redding, who is Fisher's new field runner. Some other characters do make random appearances such as Captain Arthur Partridge, who is the commander of the USS Clarence E. Walsh (U.S. information warfare flagship); and Douglas Shetland, who is CEO of Displace International (a private military company). Each of these characters provide some detailed information pertaining to your mission objectives.
Once you're done being briefed on your upcoming mission you're then introduced to a new screen in the Splinter Cell series. It should be said that it has always been the goal of the developers, in this series, to allow the player to have the choice of either taking a stealthy approach or a more direct approach when accomplishing a mission. This becomes even more apparent from the loadout screen. Here you can choose what type of equipment to take on a mission from three main choices. These choices include stealth, assault, and Redding's own recommendation. Choosing stealth means that you'll receive little ammo, but more special gadgets such as sticky shockers, gas grenades, flash grenades, ring airfoils, and more. Taking the assault approach will certainly offer some more challenging gameplay if you're deciding on running through the levels just gunning down all of your opponents. But if you do decide to go this route, you'll receive much more ammo and less of the cool silent gadgets. Redding's recommendation is obviously what Redding thinks you should take on your new mission. This normally ends up being a strong mix between stealth and assault equipment.
Weaponry
Either way you choose, you'll still end up with some nice toys to play with. Sam's trusty SC-20K assault rifle is back with some new attachments to boot. Of course the regular attachments are still here such as the sniper attachment for some long-range action. However there's a completely new attachment for those of you who just love the assault style of gameplay. This is where the new shotgun attachment comes in handy. Obviously not ideal for a very stealthy approach, but the shotgun attachment can get you out of some tight spots. Another attachment is the fore-grip which can be enabled for Sam to have greater precision when firing. The launcher attachment is also here with the same gadgets that you could expect such as sticky shockers, ring airfoils, grenades and sticky cameras. Although a slight modification has been made with the cameras. You can kind of setup your own sticky camera network by firing off multiple cameras and randomly viewing each one at the touch of a button. The cameras can also be reused so long as you don't shoot the poisonous gas out.
Another new attachment that makes an appearance here doesn't attach to the assault rifle. Instead, it's a small device directly on Sam's pistol. The Optically Channeled Potentiator (OCP) is a handy little tool that's used to disable electrical devices. This especially comes in handy when you want to take out a light without causing the sound of a bullet knocking the light out. Instead, the OCP will simply emit an electrical charge at the light for only a few seconds which will take the light out. This can actually be used on all electrical devices including computers and televisions which is a great way to silently distract guards. One last new piece of equipment in Sam's arsenal is the Electrically Enhanced Vision (EEV). The EEV basically acts like some high-tech binoculars. It allows you to scout and scan areas with its zoom and vision mode capabilites. It even allows you to hack computers wirelessly from a distance.
Although Sam may have some high-tech gear, there's one new tool in his arsenal that a little more primitive. The introduction of a conventional knife allows you to perform some great moves in Chaos Theory. You can actually have Sam use the knife to cut through certain fabric, such as the side of a tent, which effectively creates a new path for you to travel. Besides a move such as that one, Sam can also use his knife to simply scare the crap out of his enemies. When grabbing a character from behind, Sam no longer points his gun at their head. Instead, he holds his knife up to their neck. Even though this is a mature rated game you can't actually slit their throats. However you can quickly run up to them and stab them from behind for a nice silent kill.
Sam's new knife really gives him an edge when it comes to close quarters combat. In fact, the developers seem to have made it so that you feel more rewarded by engaging your enemies at close instead of sniping or taking them out from a distance. To further influence players to get closer to their targets, Sam has even more moves at his disposal. One such new move is the inverted neck snap. Basically Sam can just hang from a pipe on the ceiling, and when a guard walks under him he can than pull the guard up and snap his neck. This is a great move and guarantees that you won't just be sitting there waiting for the guard to pass by like in previous Splinter Cell games. Another new move that can be performed is pulling an enemy over a railing. This can be initiated when Sam is hanging from the ledge of a high walkway. When a guard walks over to where Sam is hanging, Sam can then quickly pull himself up, grab the guard, and toss the guard to the ground below. It's not necessarily a quiet move, but it sure is quick and effective. Some other moves include simply punching out enemies in the back of the head or right in the face. This means you're definitely a major threat up close.
Gameplay
Most of the moves that we just mentioned have two various ways that they can be performed. For example, when performing the inverted neck snap, you can either completely break your enemy's neck (which will kill him), or you can slightly snap their neck which will just leave them unconscious. The same thing goes with regular punches or holding an enemy hostage for interrogation. You can either kill them or simply knock them out. Having these choices within the gameplay really adds to the overall idea that you can either take a more stealthy approach or a guns blazing assault approach. This is further emphasized by more actions where you can either stealthily open doors or bash them open, and it's seen even more within the game's levels themselves. The levels in Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory are all designed with nonlinear gameplay in mind. This is certainly a big step within the Splinter Cell series where past games had a rather linear leaning. The levels in Chaos Theory are all setup so that you can take different approaches when playing the game. It certainly does raise the replay value of the game, and it's added to even more by secondary and optional objectives (which don't need to be completed), but they force you to explore the level more and give you even more choices.
Chaos Theory's 10 hour single-player campaign takes a little while to actually get boring. It may seem somewhat short, but it's replay value greatly adds to the overall enjoyment of the game. Although if you do start to get bored with the single-player portion, then Chaos Theory's multiplayer is sure to cheer you up. Making a comeback is the 'versus' multiplayer mode, which first appeared in Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow. It returns here with some new levels, old levels and plenty of bug fixes to make it one smooth running multiplayer experience. The multiplayer consists of two teams with two players on each side. One side is occupied by mercenaries while the other is controlled by spies. Both sides play out very differently. As a mercenary, you play the game from a first-person perspective and carry equipment that aids you in finding spies as well as helpful traps that can be set up. Being a spy means that you play the game basically just like the single-player campaign. Although both sides play out differently, neither side is more powerful than the other. Both sides have their share of strengths and weaknesses that evenly level out the fast paced gameplay.
Some new gadgets have also been included in this mode including the spy's new cloaking suit. Basically a spy can become near-completely invisible for 10 seconds and then has to wait for the suit to recharge. It's a great device to have and can get you out of the tightest situations. Certain co-op moves have also been included for the spies allowing them to boost each other to otherwise unreachable areas.
Speaking of co-op, Chaos Theory has that too. It's not too often that we see a co-op mode being included in a PC game since they don't tend to work out well. Chaos Theory's co-op is actually handled quite well here, where two spies must take on four different levels against AI-controlled guards. It just feels like you're playing the single-player campaign with a friend. These four levels, however, are actually tied into the story of the single-player game. So by playing co-op you get some 'behind the scenes' information on the story of Chaos Theory. Of course since this is a co-op mode, there are plenty of different co-op moves to perform such as using each other as human ladders, boosting each other up, using a rope to lower one another down, and more. It's really neat to see how you can use each other to complete your objectives, and it's a must that you work together in order to win. This is also made easier via Chaos Theory's internal voice communication so you can talk with your teammate. It all sounds good, but only if you can get it working right. We've run into many problems with disconnection errors, not being able to connect at all, and some major lag. Which means the new co-op mode feels very buggy, and hopefully a patch will be released for it soon.
Sound and Graphics
The sound effects in Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory are once again highly detailed. The environments sound great and you can notice the sound transition when going from an outside environment to an indoor area. Also, Michael Ironside still does an amazing job at doing the voiceover for Sam Fisher which is a nice plus for the main character.
Chaos Theory's visuals are probably its strongest point and largest improvement in the series. The game looks absolutely beautiful and runs so smooth making it seem like it was made just for the PC instead of being an Xbox port. The graphics also use the latest effects including SmartShader 3.0 and High Dynamic Range lighting (HDR). The HDR adds some nice details to the lighting effects even though the characters may take on a slight plastic look at times. The weather effects are also greatly detailed with the lightning making Sam more visible and the thunder providing more ambient sound so Sam can be heard less, as is shown on his new sound meter. You can even see the wetness of his suit as he enters into the rain.
The AI in Chaos Theory is both a strong and weak point of the game. The AI is actually very smart in noticing opened doors, turned off lights, broken locks, hacked keypads, and even your own reflection in mirrors. However they can seem very dumb at times as they can occasionally not notice the most obvious things, which really makes them seem just like the AI in previous Splinter Cell games. Although it is a cool effect that they can hear you if you talk too loudly to your partner during the co-op mode.
Conclusion
Overall, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory is definitely the best in the series. This new installment in the stealth genre has come in with new upgrades all around and well designed levels that, not only offer high replay value, but promote both stealth and action gameplay. It's made even more realistic thanks to a great ragdoll and soft physics engine, and adds even more gameplay thanks to it being like three games in one with its single-player, multiplayer, and co-op modes. Chaos Theory is certainly one game that no stealth fan should be without.
The Story
Once again Sam Fisher makes his return as the middle-aged Third Echelon operative. Playing out much like any story that bares Tom Clancy's name, Chaos Theory tells the story of information warfare which is set to rise tensions between Japan, China and North Korea in the not-so-distant future. Japan's creation of a Information Self-Defense Force (I-SDF) causes some tension between the countries as it's seen as a violation of international law. To respond to threats and blockades from China and North Korea, Japan asks for U.S. assistance in the matter. Obviously there's something else under all the politics that has caught the attention of Third Echelon, and Sam Fisher is sent in to clarify the issue.
The story is mainly unraveled through cutscenes which take place between missions. However, even more information is revealed after the cutscenes through paragraphs of information which is read off to you by the rest of your team. It gets a little boring just sitting there listening to them ramble on, but it is helpful information which may just help you understand this rather confusing storyline better. Once again your team is made up of Colonel Irving Lambert, director of operations; Anna Grimsdottir, intelligence technician; and William Redding, who is Fisher's new field runner. Some other characters do make random appearances such as Captain Arthur Partridge, who is the commander of the USS Clarence E. Walsh (U.S. information warfare flagship); and Douglas Shetland, who is CEO of Displace International (a private military company). Each of these characters provide some detailed information pertaining to your mission objectives.
Once you're done being briefed on your upcoming mission you're then introduced to a new screen in the Splinter Cell series. It should be said that it has always been the goal of the developers, in this series, to allow the player to have the choice of either taking a stealthy approach or a more direct approach when accomplishing a mission. This becomes even more apparent from the loadout screen. Here you can choose what type of equipment to take on a mission from three main choices. These choices include stealth, assault, and Redding's own recommendation. Choosing stealth means that you'll receive little ammo, but more special gadgets such as sticky shockers, gas grenades, flash grenades, ring airfoils, and more. Taking the assault approach will certainly offer some more challenging gameplay if you're deciding on running through the levels just gunning down all of your opponents. But if you do decide to go this route, you'll receive much more ammo and less of the cool silent gadgets. Redding's recommendation is obviously what Redding thinks you should take on your new mission. This normally ends up being a strong mix between stealth and assault equipment.
Weaponry
Either way you choose, you'll still end up with some nice toys to play with. Sam's trusty SC-20K assault rifle is back with some new attachments to boot. Of course the regular attachments are still here such as the sniper attachment for some long-range action. However there's a completely new attachment for those of you who just love the assault style of gameplay. This is where the new shotgun attachment comes in handy. Obviously not ideal for a very stealthy approach, but the shotgun attachment can get you out of some tight spots. Another attachment is the fore-grip which can be enabled for Sam to have greater precision when firing. The launcher attachment is also here with the same gadgets that you could expect such as sticky shockers, ring airfoils, grenades and sticky cameras. Although a slight modification has been made with the cameras. You can kind of setup your own sticky camera network by firing off multiple cameras and randomly viewing each one at the touch of a button. The cameras can also be reused so long as you don't shoot the poisonous gas out.
Another new attachment that makes an appearance here doesn't attach to the assault rifle. Instead, it's a small device directly on Sam's pistol. The Optically Channeled Potentiator (OCP) is a handy little tool that's used to disable electrical devices. This especially comes in handy when you want to take out a light without causing the sound of a bullet knocking the light out. Instead, the OCP will simply emit an electrical charge at the light for only a few seconds which will take the light out. This can actually be used on all electrical devices including computers and televisions which is a great way to silently distract guards. One last new piece of equipment in Sam's arsenal is the Electrically Enhanced Vision (EEV). The EEV basically acts like some high-tech binoculars. It allows you to scout and scan areas with its zoom and vision mode capabilites. It even allows you to hack computers wirelessly from a distance.
Although Sam may have some high-tech gear, there's one new tool in his arsenal that a little more primitive. The introduction of a conventional knife allows you to perform some great moves in Chaos Theory. You can actually have Sam use the knife to cut through certain fabric, such as the side of a tent, which effectively creates a new path for you to travel. Besides a move such as that one, Sam can also use his knife to simply scare the crap out of his enemies. When grabbing a character from behind, Sam no longer points his gun at their head. Instead, he holds his knife up to their neck. Even though this is a mature rated game you can't actually slit their throats. However you can quickly run up to them and stab them from behind for a nice silent kill.
Sam's new knife really gives him an edge when it comes to close quarters combat. In fact, the developers seem to have made it so that you feel more rewarded by engaging your enemies at close instead of sniping or taking them out from a distance. To further influence players to get closer to their targets, Sam has even more moves at his disposal. One such new move is the inverted neck snap. Basically Sam can just hang from a pipe on the ceiling, and when a guard walks under him he can than pull the guard up and snap his neck. This is a great move and guarantees that you won't just be sitting there waiting for the guard to pass by like in previous Splinter Cell games. Another new move that can be performed is pulling an enemy over a railing. This can be initiated when Sam is hanging from the ledge of a high walkway. When a guard walks over to where Sam is hanging, Sam can then quickly pull himself up, grab the guard, and toss the guard to the ground below. It's not necessarily a quiet move, but it sure is quick and effective. Some other moves include simply punching out enemies in the back of the head or right in the face. This means you're definitely a major threat up close.
Gameplay
Most of the moves that we just mentioned have two various ways that they can be performed. For example, when performing the inverted neck snap, you can either completely break your enemy's neck (which will kill him), or you can slightly snap their neck which will just leave them unconscious. The same thing goes with regular punches or holding an enemy hostage for interrogation. You can either kill them or simply knock them out. Having these choices within the gameplay really adds to the overall idea that you can either take a more stealthy approach or a guns blazing assault approach. This is further emphasized by more actions where you can either stealthily open doors or bash them open, and it's seen even more within the game's levels themselves. The levels in Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory are all designed with nonlinear gameplay in mind. This is certainly a big step within the Splinter Cell series where past games had a rather linear leaning. The levels in Chaos Theory are all setup so that you can take different approaches when playing the game. It certainly does raise the replay value of the game, and it's added to even more by secondary and optional objectives (which don't need to be completed), but they force you to explore the level more and give you even more choices.
Chaos Theory's 10 hour single-player campaign takes a little while to actually get boring. It may seem somewhat short, but it's replay value greatly adds to the overall enjoyment of the game. Although if you do start to get bored with the single-player portion, then Chaos Theory's multiplayer is sure to cheer you up. Making a comeback is the 'versus' multiplayer mode, which first appeared in Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow. It returns here with some new levels, old levels and plenty of bug fixes to make it one smooth running multiplayer experience. The multiplayer consists of two teams with two players on each side. One side is occupied by mercenaries while the other is controlled by spies. Both sides play out very differently. As a mercenary, you play the game from a first-person perspective and carry equipment that aids you in finding spies as well as helpful traps that can be set up. Being a spy means that you play the game basically just like the single-player campaign. Although both sides play out differently, neither side is more powerful than the other. Both sides have their share of strengths and weaknesses that evenly level out the fast paced gameplay.
Some new gadgets have also been included in this mode including the spy's new cloaking suit. Basically a spy can become near-completely invisible for 10 seconds and then has to wait for the suit to recharge. It's a great device to have and can get you out of the tightest situations. Certain co-op moves have also been included for the spies allowing them to boost each other to otherwise unreachable areas.
Speaking of co-op, Chaos Theory has that too. It's not too often that we see a co-op mode being included in a PC game since they don't tend to work out well. Chaos Theory's co-op is actually handled quite well here, where two spies must take on four different levels against AI-controlled guards. It just feels like you're playing the single-player campaign with a friend. These four levels, however, are actually tied into the story of the single-player game. So by playing co-op you get some 'behind the scenes' information on the story of Chaos Theory. Of course since this is a co-op mode, there are plenty of different co-op moves to perform such as using each other as human ladders, boosting each other up, using a rope to lower one another down, and more. It's really neat to see how you can use each other to complete your objectives, and it's a must that you work together in order to win. This is also made easier via Chaos Theory's internal voice communication so you can talk with your teammate. It all sounds good, but only if you can get it working right. We've run into many problems with disconnection errors, not being able to connect at all, and some major lag. Which means the new co-op mode feels very buggy, and hopefully a patch will be released for it soon.
Sound and Graphics
The sound effects in Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory are once again highly detailed. The environments sound great and you can notice the sound transition when going from an outside environment to an indoor area. Also, Michael Ironside still does an amazing job at doing the voiceover for Sam Fisher which is a nice plus for the main character.
Chaos Theory's visuals are probably its strongest point and largest improvement in the series. The game looks absolutely beautiful and runs so smooth making it seem like it was made just for the PC instead of being an Xbox port. The graphics also use the latest effects including SmartShader 3.0 and High Dynamic Range lighting (HDR). The HDR adds some nice details to the lighting effects even though the characters may take on a slight plastic look at times. The weather effects are also greatly detailed with the lightning making Sam more visible and the thunder providing more ambient sound so Sam can be heard less, as is shown on his new sound meter. You can even see the wetness of his suit as he enters into the rain.
The AI in Chaos Theory is both a strong and weak point of the game. The AI is actually very smart in noticing opened doors, turned off lights, broken locks, hacked keypads, and even your own reflection in mirrors. However they can seem very dumb at times as they can occasionally not notice the most obvious things, which really makes them seem just like the AI in previous Splinter Cell games. Although it is a cool effect that they can hear you if you talk too loudly to your partner during the co-op mode.
Conclusion
Overall, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory is definitely the best in the series. This new installment in the stealth genre has come in with new upgrades all around and well designed levels that, not only offer high replay value, but promote both stealth and action gameplay. It's made even more realistic thanks to a great ragdoll and soft physics engine, and adds even more gameplay thanks to it being like three games in one with its single-player, multiplayer, and co-op modes. Chaos Theory is certainly one game that no stealth fan should be without.
