Released On: Xbox 360
When you are faced with crafting the next instalment of a much-loved and positively venerable franchise for an increasingly impatient and fickle audience, how do you go about keeping things fresh? Well, after many years of hard graft and effort Ubisoft have decided to solve this dilemma by bringing things back to the drawing board for the most refined and colourful instalment in this illustrious series yet. Boiling the series back to it’s roots (defined by the three holy tenants of light and shadow, white-knuckle stealth not to mention deadly action) and rebuilding the whole lot from the ground up in an impressive attempt to re-energise the franchise for a new age, this latest effort re-defines exactly what a covert shooter could - and should - be. The end result is a most definitely sharper, more cultured and classy experience than ever before, and there is absolutely no doubt that the new Splinter Cell would give Casino Royale’s Bond a pretty good run for his money.
To be fair, you could be forgiven if you actually mistook this for a Bourne or 007 adaptation at first glance, for the whole system has been altered significantly since we were here last; abandoning heart-pounding finesse and creeping, gritty tension, we’re now subject to lightning fast action and bombast instead. Believe me, it’s worth a look; not only are the fist-fights quick, furious and grippingly satisfying, the gun play is also as brilliantly slick and brutal as you could ask for with a great selection of weapons, upgrades and kits to unlock and upgrade as you go. All the usual suspects are here - flash bang grenades, EMP charges, remote mines, sticky cameras and the like - but the new ‘sonar goggles’ (giving you a clear view through walls and other objects in your immediate vicinity and allowing you to plan strategies on the fly as you fight for an upper hand against hordes and hordes of well-armed foes) are by far and away the best of the lot.
Sam now has an all new ‘execution’ system at his disposal too, allowing you to mark up and then take down a number of foes with a simple click of the button as soon as you’ve racked up enough ‘points’ with secretive hand-to-hand takedowns; while this vital for clearing a path through heavily populated areas, keeping your presence undetected when keeping mum is the word and pre-planning your assaults, it can also save your neck in the midst of an otherwise impossible battle where the chips are thoroughly stacked against you. In Ubisoft’s own words, it “evens the odds”, and proves to be a fantastic addition to the formula. So much so that you’ll come to wonder how you ever coped without it.
However (as admirable and exciting as it happens to be), this new approach is, in fact, a bit of a double-edged sword in disguise; despite the fact that it has transformed the game into a superb and respectable action title while we’ve been gone, it has also sacrificed a lot that made the series so special in the first place to do so (including many of the stealthier elements of the title, such as the ability to cover your tracks and hide the bodies of those you have disposed of, among others). To pour salt onto this stinging, painful wound, it’ll soon become all too clear that Conviction has been dumbed down for a somewhat more casual audience in the interim as well; the increased focus on action, decreased covert aspects, a shorter campaign… hell, there’s even a modern-warfare style level set within the Middle-East that not only strips you of your major capabilities and tech so you have no choice but to go in guns blazing, but practically screams out “Call of Duty” as it does so, an obvious and barely veiled hook to a more casual Modern Warfare 2 player who may be getting bored of the soft-core cloak and dagger stuff by this stage.
To put it another way, Sam Fisher - our eponymous Splinter Cell - is undoubtedly playing for a different crowd this time around, and I’m not entirely sure I’m buying it.
This isn’t exactly helped by a hugely fiddly control system and an at-times irritating slew of context sensitive actions to boot; indeed, despite being aggravated enough due to an almost unexplainably overcomplicated button layout, your temper will be pushed to a very real breaking point if you want to climb/crawl/other out of danger but repeatedly find that you fail spectacularly because you had to hit the exact and anally correct ‘sweet spot’ to succeed (especially when you’re in an uncomfortable situation with a rather unwelcome guest and his equally unwelcome pump action shotgun staring right up your trumpet). Moreover, the cover system can be little better when things start to get busy; with our hero attaching to the wrong pieces of cover like some drunken lout in the middle of a firefight, patience will be frayed and tested to the limits during Conviction’s hairier moments, and - to be honest - simply hammers home the fact that some much needed polish and tweaking would have been wildly welcome in Sam’s latest adventure.
Fortunately, the odds are still distinctly in your favour due to some hideously stupid A.I, though; I’ve frequently been able to down foes right under their friend’s noses without their awareness, and they repeatedly fail to keep up with the blistering pace of events. Even when setting up patrols to hunt you down, they’re still of very little threat as they’re so easy to evade. Some of the ideas on display here are great, yes - intelligently using flashlights to break your thick cover of darkness and trying to outflank and outmanoeuvre you during a firefight (if they do catch you, you’re finished) - but it couldn’t be clearer that the tech just isn’t behind them. In essence, they’re mere cattle to fill with lead at your leisure, and this takes a lot from the fun that is to be had from the entire piece.
Nonetheless, other in-game elements such as stealth - well, whatever’s left of it, anyway - are good and solid additions that go some way into saving the day, and while proceedings never quite reach the much vaunted highs of previous Splinter Cell titles they’ll still manage to push most of the right buttons for fans and newcomers alike; the light and shadow system on display here, for instance, is superb. Say goodbye to the days of impossibly dark, shadowy levels with an awkward detection system: welcome in a nice and flash monochrome finish that covers the screen when you’re in the shadows and out of sight, with the screen resuming it’s usually pigment and colour if someone spots you or you move into the light.
This is brilliant for many reasons; while admirably comprehensive, elegant and wonderfully simple, it also means that your eyes are kept resolutely on the action instead of on a small HUD meter in one or more corners of the screen, allowing you to concentrate on what really matters while you play. To tell the truth, the only real problem I had with this whole malarkey is that you’ll spend the majority of your time in sepia mode rather than enjoying the largely pretty environs and characters parading around you.
Nevertheless, by far-and-away the best part about Conviction is the fabulous co-op mode. A great selection of varied levels, missions and objectives give team-work and tactics an opportunity to truly shine, and with all the best portions from the single player (including upgrades for your weapons and tech) being served up to you on a silver platter of fun, you’ll get more than your money’s worth if you want to play with a friend; there’s so much to do, and it’s a lot of fun doing it. With the bog-standard co-op story, Hunter mode (a fairly traditional elimination simulator), Last Stand (waves of enemies try to destroy your objective and you must protect it), Face Off (player-on-player action with added henchman to get in the way) and Infiltration (eliminate all enemies without being detected), events are - all in all - nicely balanced and pleasantly engaging. Yep, I’ll admit that the issues from the single player are also present here too (boo), but the positives of this portion largely outweigh the minus’. If you’re looking for a decent co-op or split screen title and you’ve exhausted the likes of Left 4 Dead or Gears of War, then have no doubt that this is the game to go for this summer.
Still, there’s one thing about Conviction that convinced me more than anything else, co-op, bravado and all, and that was Ubisoft’s mightily impressive presentation bursting the seams and giving the game as slick, cultured and exciting a feel as a true blockbuster deserves. My favourite aspect would have to be the uncluttered, largely HUD-less screen where objectives and certain in-game cutscenes (detailing important events while you’re on the move) are projected onto a nearby building or object for ease of access and uninterrupted gameplay; not only is this both smooth and largely unique, it’s really very visually impressive with the gritty exhibition helping to draw you into the dark atmosphere and mythos the title as a whole, entrenching your attentions upon Sam’s adventures as long as they play.
Much like Conviction itself, it can be a tad hit or miss here and there but on the whole is very much a striking beast for all the right reasons.
The Bottom Line
If you’re a long-time fan of Splinter Cell then Conviction may come as a real shock to the system, but stick at it; there’s plenty enough here to get excited about despite the myriad alterations, and while the tech and A.I could do with a good and old fashioned kick up the arse, it is - by and large - a decent and enjoyable experience that deserves a look in at the very least. The action is great, the pacing is brilliant and the combat is fabulous, and even if stealth takes a somewhat subdued back-seat there’s still enough on offer to give a huge depth and pleasure to the game; just bear in mind that this is now an action title rather than one of an undeniable stealth pedigree.
Rating: 76%
(Good)
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