Game: Splinter Cell Conviction

Platform: Xbox 360

Game length: Single player is 5-6 hours. Co-op story is roughly 3, and the other modes will last as long as you find them fun.

Completed? Shawn beat single player on normal and realistic, and beat hunter mode on realistic. Charis beat single player on easy. Both beat co-op story on realistic.

Lead Reviewer: Shawn

Stealth gameplay isn’t always the most entertaining of endeavors to take part in. Sure, the Metal Gear Solid series and previous Splinter Cell games have used it with large success, but Ubisoft has taken the route that to gain a bigger audience, you need to create a balance. That is, if someone wants to play less quietly and with more shooting, that should be an option. To say they’ve done it well would be an understatement. You can truly play Splinter Cell Conviction in any way you see fit, whether it’s with stealth only, or with explosions galore… and it works great both ways. Neither of us had previously spent much time with a Splinter Cell game, but we both wanted to go back and give them a shot after playing Conviction.

Shawn: My expectations for Splinter Cell Conviction have been completely up and down. At the last E3, they were through the roof. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it and watched every single preview I could find. Then, I played the co-op demo at PAX East and lost all of that excitement. Weirdly enough, the game hooked me almost immediately, probably because my expectations had become so low. Luckily, Splinter Cell Conviction does a lot of things right. First, the story is engaging enough to make you want to keep playing. Having never legitimately played an entry in the series before, I was a bit lost, but the game does a decent job at catching you up to speed. It’s been a bit of time since Sam Fisher’s daughter was killed, and he wants revenge. After being contacted by an old friend, he sets out on this mission and you discover a lot of lies and deceit from the story in previous games, as well as a few twists that aren’t completely surprising, but they are well acted. The story sets up an outstanding pacing of stealth and action, although the abrupt ending may be a bit shocking when you reach the finale.

Charis: The finale does come pretty quick due to how short the game is. The single player can be beaten in one sitting, even if you move quietly and stealthily (I can only imagine how short it would be if you were to run through with explosives). This would also depend on the level of difficulty, ranging from rookie to realistic. In the easier mode, you are almost invisible constantly unless an enemy shines a flashlight on Sam, but as the difficulty progresses, simply being in his line of sight will lead you into trouble. Another thing that will have an effect on the length of play is the controls. During the PAX demo, I put my controller down out of frustration. Having to push in the left stick to reload bothers me to no end, and using the left bumper to crouch probably got me caught more often than not. Once I sat down with the full game, it was pretty easy to get used to, but in times of need my instinct would take over and mess me up. This led to my death plenty of times, but by the end I had a good grasp on it.

Showing you where to go; Now what do I hit him against next?

Shawn: I’ll give you that reloading with the left stick makes absolutely no sense, but you do get used to the controls. You should never have to really “get used to” controls in a game, but that is the case here, as it usually is with Tom Clancy games. After playing through the game multiple times, I can verify that realistic mode is the way it should be played. This makes your stealth mechanics take over and you have no choice but to do your best not to get caught. It made the game much more enjoyable and I recommend everybody switches to it once you get used to the game mechanics and controls. Speaking of game mechanics, Splinter Cell Conviction uses a few of them that are simple in idea, but genius in execution. The most important one has to do with when you can and can’t be seen. When you are in the light the game looks as it should; normal and with color. In the dark, however, the game goes into black and white. It sounds basic, but I can assure you that the entire game is built off of it, which is nothing but a positive. Considering you can shoot out lights, you can use the dark for a variety of executions and to remain silent at almost all times. It has its hiccups sometimes, but it works almost flawlessly and excels the gameplay past the boring moments you may have experienced in past titles.

Another main mechanic has to do with the direction you are given. Instead of giving you an arrow, or something like it, big white letters appear on buildings, walls, etc. While it may seem like too much hand-holding on paper, it never blatantly reminds you where to go. It really just tells you your mission, but it’s great for people like me who don’t like to wander around wondering what to do. I like when it’s presented in a way that still gives me the ability to play the game how I want, and that’s exactly what this does. The last large gameplay addition comes in the form of the “Mark and Execute” ability. When you can get close enough to someone, you can perform takedowns that give you execution points that allow you to mark and execute your targets. Each weapon has a different amount of marks, and you can press the right bumper to target enemies within your vision. With the press of a button, you will automatically shoot and kill these enemies. I will admit that this sounds like a game-breaker without actually experiencing it, because it seems to take all of the difficulty away from the player. This isn’t true. Executing an enemy is not always an easy task, so your chances to use it will be less than you expect.

Out the window you go!; Stealth at it best.

Charis: Other game mechanics also propel the game forward quite a bit. I can’t express to you how fun it is to throw a remote mine and watch your unsuspecting targets get close and then blow up. Sticky cams allow for the same concept, but they include a camera and the ability to play sounds to cause enemies to investigate, leading to more destruction. EMP grenades will temporarily stun them, as well as kill the lights, and your regular frag grenades take care of every other job. I know Shawn mentioned takedowns before, but the different ways you can perform them are awesome. Some of the best takedowns can be done by falling from ceilings and pulling people out of windows, so get creative! There are also many scenes in the game where you interrogate people. When interrogating these characters, you can move around the room and find things to smash their heads against. This bothered me a little bit in the beginning, but then you will find yourself trying to find the best objects in the room to make them feel pain against. The variety in Splinter Cell Conviction deserves a lot of praise.

Shawn: The funny part is that describing these mechanics is almost as long as the game itself. To add to the overall length, a ton of co-op modes were introduced to keep you going. The co-op story is the biggest draw of these, and will last you just a bit less time than the single player will. There is also the “Hunter” mode, which puts 10 enemies on a map, and you must get rid of them quickly and quietly. If you do get caught that number will double as they call for reinforcements. Hunter mode manages to be more fun than the story, but that will end up being up to the player. There is also a “Last Stand” mode, which is Ubisoft’s take on horde mode. You have to stop waves of enemies from destroying an EMP bomb, trying to keep it above certain levels of damage so that you’ll get the healing bonuses. It’s somewhat fun, but would be much better if it allowed for four players. As is, it’s fairly boring, but I’m sure with the right partner and some dedication it can be a blast. I just never felt that way about it. Speaking of partners, make sure you go into the game with someone who understands how to play it (unlike Charis). Playing with someone who isn’t great can be one of the more frustrating experiences you’ll ever have with gaming. Just make sure you either have a lot of patience, or play with someone who understands stealth!

Conclusion?
Splinter Cell Conviction may have had some trouble getting its legs early in development and hitting release dates, but it doesn’t miss hitting the ball out of the park with the final product. What we have here is a game with new, well-executed ideas, and a ton of polish. If you’ve been someone who usually avoids stealth games, I’d recommend giving this one a shot. It has a perfect balance of action and sneaking around, and you can completely make it go one way or the other if you wish to do so. The extra modes included have a vast amount of replayability, and the lack of real loading screens will likely have you not wanting to put the controller down. While it may be short, it doesn’t mean it’s not worth a purchase. Length should never be a deciding factor on purchasing a game. The deciding factor should be how much fun the game is, and Splinter Cell Conviction is one of the better Xbox 360 games to hit the market in quite some time. Consider the hype lived-up to.

Score

9.0

(9′s are excellent games that exceed almost all expectations. They bring new ideas to life, feel polished, and the good largely outweighs the bad. It may still have a few issues, but they are minuscule when compared to the bigger picture. A must buy.)