Just Finished: Splinter Cell 1

dpodblood

Diamond Member
May 20, 2010
4,020
1
81
Just finished the 1st Splinter Cell game which I picked up as park of a pack on Steam a few weeks ago. I have to say it was really enjoyable. It was really refreshing to me to play a game that does more than just funnel you from point A to B and force you to do a bunch of silly quick time events. Great to play a game that has actual objectives as well, other than make it to the end of the level alive. Also great to play a game that doesn't have stupid regenerating health. That system worked for Halo, but I don't know why it's been forced into so many other games where it makes no sense whatsoever.

It's a game, that for me really takes a lot of trial and error. There were a few sections I had to re-do several times before I got it just right. Now I will admit I'm not the greatest at stealth games, but the game was quite challenging (in a good way). Particularly the CIA level where you aren't able to shoot at anyone; you need to rely completely on stealth.

Some parts of the game can be very challenging, particularly when there are several guards patrolling a single area, but when you finally pull it off it's so satisfying. One part in particular there were three guards patrolling a room. The moment they were all facing different directions I grabbed one, and dragged him to a dark corner. When the 2nd guy came to investigate I quietly pulled out my pistol while holding the 1st guy as cover, and when he got close enough pulled off a head-shot. Then quickly knocked out the guy I was holding and stashed them both in the corner. This just left one guy remaining. No need to kill him, just sneaked by and made my way down the elevator.

Unlike most of today's games this game does not hold your hand. There are no flashing arrows telling you where to go, and no repeat tutorials throughout the game reminding you what buttons to press; *thank god*. The only time this became an issue was when I got stuck wandering around for a while before I realized you can rappel from rooftops. It was probably covered in the original tutorial and I just forgot. There were a few other times I got stuck as well (even though the game is linear) because the exit to the room was not immediately apparent. A ladder hidden in a corner behind a shelf, a hatch in the floor, or hole in a fence that I didn't notice right away.

The AI is decent, but not great. At times they will not notice you even when they are practically standing right on top of you, while other times you will be seen when in complete darkness when you should be a "ghosts shadow." For the most part though the AI works pretty well, and the few odd moments don't ruin the game at all.

One of the few frustrating moments of the game would be when they force you to to use combat. The game is built primarily around stealth, and so the combat doesn't feel that great and doesn't work all that well. Fortunately though these sections are few and far between, and it works well enough to get by.

The controls for the most part are tight. I particularly like how they implemented the scroll wheel as a way of changing Sam's walking speed. I really like the way they used context menus instead of a simple "use" key. This makes is so that you are always performing the action you want. For instance if an enemy drops a satchel by a door, you can make sure to pick up the satchel rather than opening the door by accident. The only trouble I had with the controls were with wall jumps where several times I would fly awkwardly off in the wrong direction, a few times leading to my unfortunate death.

The sound design is great. Not just the sound effects themselves, but the way sound is worked into the gameplay. The way you can listen to guards conversations to predict their behavior, or listen for footsteps before you go around a corner. I actually ended up turning the music way down so I could hear more of what was going on in the game.

The graphics hold up surprisingly well for a game which was originally released on the first XBOX. Textures are pretty sharp, and the lighting effects look pretty awesome. Particularly shadows, which of course play a huge role, and volumetric lighting. Of course the facial animations are laughably bad, but I wouldn't expect much more for a game of it's age, and cut-scenes play a very minor role in the game.

Overall I was impressed by the game, and will continue to play others in the series. :) :thumbsup:

8/10
 

busydude

Diamond Member
Feb 5, 2010
8,793
5
76
Agreed; I still remember this game vividly..even though I played it more that 5 years ago. Freaking awesome game.

Word of advise... Do not play the last two games in this series..they absolutely ruined the things which made the first 3 work. First 3 games are one of the best stealth games I have ever played.
 

queequeg99

Senior member
Oct 17, 2001
571
5
81
Cool. I bought the same Splinter Cell pack earlier this year (joining a ton of other unplayed games). I might have to move this one to the front of the pack.
 

Sulaco

Diamond Member
Mar 28, 2003
3,860
44
91
This game actually was a big part of why I got an Xbox back in 2001, and each one was a first day purchase, long before they came out on the PC.

Superb series, Tom Clancy games at their best. The series went steep downhill after Chaos Theory, but the old ones are still classics.
 

AFurryReptile

Golden Member
Nov 5, 2006
1,998
1
76
Just wait until Chaos Theory. I can't count on both hands how many times I replayed that game.

Don't bother with the last two, like busydude said. Consolized and garbage; it even sort of ruins the memory of the first ones.
 

Absolution75

Senior member
Dec 3, 2007
983
3
81
I as well really enjoyed the first SC. Just as a suggestion though, if you liked SC, consider taking a look at Metro 2033. For some reason it really reminded me of SC - walking around in the shadows, shooting all the lights out, etc.

There is a bunch more combat though - you can play the game without ever having to use any sort of stealth.
 

Mike Gayner

Diamond Member
Jan 5, 2007
6,175
3
0
Loved the first one, disliked the second one, loved Chaos Theory, hated that last two.
 

SuPrEIVIE

Platinum Member
Aug 21, 2003
2,538
0
0
it seems very popular for people to dislike double agent and conviction, i enjoyed all 5 with conviction being the least as it just strayed off a bit too much.
 

gorcorps

aka Brandon
Jul 18, 2004
30,736
447
126
I like Conviction, but it's better to go into it without thinking it's SC. Its a fine game if a little too easy.

Also, how can you people call the new ones "consolized" when the first splinter cell came out on xbox first? It came out a decent ways before hand and was actually ported to the PC. Being on consoles had nothing to do with how shitty Double Agent is. That game was a disappointment to console gamers too ya know... Since they had the same first 3 games the PC has. It's actually worth nothing that Chaos Theory had that messed up DRM that bricked some DVD drives. Not sure if it was patched out.
 
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dpodblood

Diamond Member
May 20, 2010
4,020
1
81
I as well really enjoyed the first SC. Just as a suggestion though, if you liked SC, consider taking a look at Metro 2033. For some reason it really reminded me of SC - walking around in the shadows, shooting all the lights out, etc.

There is a bunch more combat though - you can play the game without ever having to use any sort of stealth.

I actually did play through Metro 2033 a while ago and thought it was good. Not great, but good. My main problem with the game was with the Human AI which could be dumb as a bag of hammers at times, and with the stealth system which I didn't really find worked at all. The game did drip with atmosphere though, and was well worth the $5 I paid. Looking forward to playing the 2nd game whenever it's released.

As for the other Splinter Cell games, I plan on playing all of them. I've heard as many of you pointed out that Double Agent, and Conviction aren't as good, but they are at least worth a try.
 

dust

Golden Member
Oct 13, 2008
1,339
2
71
Good job OP! Now I have to look for the cd somewhere. And since I never played the first without starting the Pandorra and Chaos after, you just made my schedule for the next two weeks :p
 

flyboy84

Golden Member
Jul 21, 2004
1,731
0
76
I would rate them in order of best to worst:

Chaos Theory
Splinter Cell
Conviction
Double Agent
Pandora Tomorrow

As was said previously, Conviction really isn't all that bad, it's just different from the rest of the series. Double Agent wasn't great, and I hated Pandora Tomorrow for some reason.
 

Dankk

Diamond Member
Jul 7, 2008
5,558
25
91
I would rate them in order of best to worst:

Chaos Theory
Splinter Cell
Conviction
Double Agent
Pandora Tomorrow

As was said previously, Conviction really isn't all that bad, it's just different from the rest of the series. Double Agent wasn't great, and I hated Pandora Tomorrow for some reason.

Interesting. I haven't played Double Agent, but I HAVE played Pandora Tomorrow, and based off of what other people say Double Agent is probably the worst, with PT coming in third-worst (Conviction being second just because of how different it is (in a bad way)). Pandora Tomorrow isn't great but I still enjoyed it.

I also played Chaos Theory (best one of course) and Conviction. Interestingly enough, I haven't played the original Splinter Cell. I probably should do that. I remember years ago watching my friends play it on Xbox.
 

fatpat268

Diamond Member
Jan 14, 2006
5,853
0
71
I like Conviction, but it's better to go into it without thinking it's SC. Its a fine game if a little too easy.

Also, how can you people call the new ones "consolized" when the first splinter cell came out on xbox first? It came out a decent ways before hand and was actually ported to the PC. Being on consoles had nothing to do with how shitty Double Agent is. That game was a disappointment to console gamers too ya know... Since they had the same first 3 games the PC has. It's actually worth nothing that Chaos Theory had that messed up DRM that bricked some DVD drives. Not sure if it was patched out.

Yea. Take SC Conviction and slap a different Tom Clancy universe on it, and it would've been much better received. It's not a bad game by any means, but because it holds the Splinter Cell name, it's held up to the gameplay standards of the previous game.

Also, sure you're right. Consolized isn't quite the word that fits here. But it is a disturbing trend how so many games that featured "choice" have become ultimately linear. Just look back at the old Splinter Cells and Hitman games... those are honestly the pinnacle of gameplay to me for the last generation of consoles. There hasn't been many games (if any) that come close to the gameplay since.

Although, the new Deus Ex game looks like it's on the right path. :)

Also, on a side note: There's two versions of Double Agent. There's the "next-gen" version (the one on the 360 and PC), and the previous gen version (the one on the XBOX1). The version on the 360 and PC is godawful, however the one on the original Xbox is actually fairly decent. The XBOX1 version will play on the 360 if you have one. And while they share some similarities, they're actually two separate games.
 
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flyboy84

Golden Member
Jul 21, 2004
1,731
0
76
Interesting. I haven't played Double Agent, but I HAVE played Pandora Tomorrow, and based off of what other people say Double Agent is probably the worst, with PT coming in third-worst (Conviction being second just because of how different it is (in a bad way)). Pandora Tomorrow isn't great but I still enjoyed it.

I also played Chaos Theory (best one of course) and Conviction. Interestingly enough, I haven't played the original Splinter Cell. I probably should do that. I remember years ago watching my friends play it on Xbox.

Maybe I'm being too hard on Pandora Tomorrow, but it really bugged me that all of the enemies had American accents. Seemed like a total cop-out in terms of production quality and it killed the immersion.

I don't even remember the story line that well, but stupid things stuck out to me. The most glaring is when you have to go into the terrorist chem/bio weapon lab with the help of that female Israeli spy. As you are going down the elevator and she waits outside, Lambert yells into your earpiece that she is going to double cross you, and to take her out. Big WTF moment...seemed random.