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Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Chaos Theory (PS2)
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5/5 |
A great stealth game
(February 10, 2007) |
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Like in the previous games, you play as Sam Fisher, an elite field operative for the American government's Third Echelon program. After a series of events, the US and North Korea are on the brink of war. You must infiltrate several locations all over the world- from blacked out New York to the war torn South Korean capital- and find out who is really behind it all.
As it's not a good idea to be sneaking around unprepared, Fisher has several gadgets he can utilise in the field. For starters, he has his night vision and heat vision, as well as an EMF vision to allow him to see what electrical devices can be hacked or destroyed. Concerning weaponry, you are armed with your reliable silenced pistol and SC-20k rifle, which can be equipped with one of four attachments. The fore-grip attachment gives you better precision and there are powerful, but loud sniper and shotgun attachments. The launcher attachment is, in my mind the best attachment as it allows you to launch different non-lethal devices as a secondary fire. The sticky shockers and ring airfoils for example, can knock out an enemy without killing them. There are also sticky cameras, which are used for surveillance purposes mainly and allow you to take the camera's perspective to get a better look around. You also have a variety of grenades to use during missions, which include smoke and flash grenades that enable you to get past foes, and frag grenades in case you want to kill your enemies.
However, this is most certainly a stealth game, with frag grenades and bullets unnecessary if you wish to achieve the 100% mission rating at the end of each level. Completing optional and secondary objectives will boost your rating, but being spotted, triggering alarms or killing your foes will result in a lower score. Although it is very hard to complete a level perfectly, it is possible -you have to creep through the levels, avoiding detection and knocking out enemies not killing them. If you are a fan of `gun and run' games, then this is not the game for you as all-out firefights are best avoided and it takes patience and thought to complete. The AI itself is accurate, with enemies lighting flares or using torches to search for you in the dark shadows.
The levels are lengthy, with most taking around an hour to complete fully. The interesting locations in the game include a bank in nighttime Panama, a well-guarded bathhouse in Japan, offices and apartments in blacked out New York, and many more. Each level has many primary, secondary and optional objectives for you to complete and these vary from assassination to sabotage to data retrieval.
Overall I think this is an excellent instalment in the Splinter Cell series. Not only are the graphics great, but also it is realistic and a must for stealth game fans, but does take patience and a bit of thought to play successfully.
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5/5 |
BRILLIANT!!
(September 04, 2006) |
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First of all I just need to get this out of the way:
Please ignore anyone that said that this game was rubbish and it was dark so you can't see anything. What a load of rubbish, there are some levels where it is a bit gloomy but you have night vision so I don't no what he is complaining about.
Anyway, this game is by far the best in the Splinter Cell series. The game play, the graphics, and the whole game is a work of art.
This game is a very good one. A must buy, and you havent lived until you've played this game. |
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1/5 |
Splinter in the finger!
(August 24, 2006) |
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I found this game utter rubbish. Yes the graphics are good and it looks real but the gameplay is ... Everything is Dark so you can't see. save your money and buy The first two! Unless you like them |
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5/5 |
Superb, realistic stealth adventure
(August 20, 2006) |
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Welcome to 2007 and the end of the world. It is truly a frightening place where unseen tech terrorists are sending the US and North Korea headlong into WW3. Its a typically epic Clancy premise and best of all it plays out like a dark dream.
It wasn't always like this; when Pandora Tomorrow hit the shelves gamers felt more like victims of some great practical joke than omnipotent covert agents. There were high points; the jungles were cool and the online versus battles between spys and mercs were easily the best thing about the game, but otherwise the frustrations were too much for even the most avid gamer to persist. The checkpoint system was awful and combined with unforgiving pacing of crucial events led to spirit crushing replays of almost entire levels. The eye-wateringly miserly three strikes and your out set up made the situation worse, not helped by the frankly unrealistic discovery of any bodies left in anything other than total darkness. Then there was the problem of close combat; for a highly disciplined covert agent, living in and dispensing death from the shadows Fisher was surprisingly cack-handed when it came to close combat. Give him the element of surprise and a bag of flash bangs and he had a fighting chance. Surprise him and this honed and toned killing machine would perform the hand-to-hand ballet of death with all the finesse and focus of a headless chicken.
I suppose your wondering why i've bothered listing all the old Cell's flaws. Simple; because Chaos Theory has successfully addressed every one of these infuriating issues. Save points are now under your contol and the three strikes rule has been binned entirely. Also for the first time in the series how you go about your mission is entirely up to you with multiple routes through most levels.
Graphically this is a triple A title and no mistake. The quality and visual coherance will have sucked you in long before you bag your first terrorist. Even through the green of your nvgs the game looks shraper, more believable. Ambient lighting is beautiful and the effect on you suit's embedded light meter makes sense adding to your confidence in you tools of the trade.
In fact confidence in your tech is a gratifying theme that runs, quietly, throughout the game. The OCP device from the previous game that fritzed out cameras temporarily is now a much more accessible alternate function of the standard silenced pistol. Whats more it can now disrupt any electrical circuitry from lights to computers and laser beams. Combined with the new EEC equiped goggles that detect any elctrical cirtuits even those embedded in walls, the OCP pistol reveals a whole new layer of obstacles beyond the visible spectrum.
Sound now plays a key role with the addition of a sound meter similar to the light sensor. Keep Fisher's footfalls quieter than the ambient noise and you're ok. Similarly try snapping the shotgun module onto your amazingly adaptable SC-20K assault rifle in a darkened room and you may as well have flicked on the lights and started playing the banjo.
Thankfully controlling Fisher is a joy and it feels very much like the man more than the equipment that has evolved. For example the door move which makes sensible use of the controllers analogue sticks to ease open doors for a stealthy entry, and the alternate ability to boot the door open, knocking any guards on the other side flying. Add to this a new and exclusive to PS2 yank move which frees same to hang from ledges or hide in pools and pull unsuspecting goons to their death. The AI feels plausibly sharp without ever seeming unfair and whilst they do have more kit to detect you, you do always have the equipment to stay one step ahead. However whether you have the intelligence, ability and sheer cajones to use Fisher's gadgets correctly, quickly and appropriately is another matter and it's this evolving challenge that cranks the game into the stealth premier league.
Undeniably the most useful new piece of kit is the knife, which can be used to interrogate guards or to break locks on doors, or even better to react with speed and aggression to any guards who may suprise you.
The online spys v mercs battles are still present and have been beefed up with new maps to battle on. And thats not the end of Chaos Theory's multiplayer abilities. The brand new co-op mode is superb fun and the 18 or so missions blend wonderfully with the main storyline.
However when all is said and done there is only one thing you need to know - is Chaos Theory better than Metal Gear. You know what no it isn't but not for the reason you may think. Play the two games and you'll discover that they both do sneaking brilliantly but each brings totally different vibes to the silent snuffing party. If you want gargantuan, epic and slightly barking mad then Solid Snake is your man. However if you want you sneaking realistic, brutal and with a side order of cold, hard political intrigue, then Sam Fisher is where the juice is. Really if you love your games then you should really own both and as far as any stealth game goes there is no greater compliment than that.
Graphics: 9 - Totally immersive, beautifull
Sound: 9 - Fantastic score and intelligent use of ambient noise
Gamepaly: 10 - Gripping, tense and often surprising
Lifespan: 10 - Mulitple routes, excellent co-op mode and you'll never tire of the online mode
Overall: 10/10 - A darker, more realistic experience than MGS3, Chaos Theory is everything that was good about the previous Splinter Cell plus so much more. |
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5/5 |
This game is phenomenal
(April 07, 2006) |
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Splinter cell chaos theory. I purchased this game only about a week ago and I think it's one of the best games I have ever been on. There is so much you can do, I mean when you are near someone without them knowing you can either grab them, interrogate them, stab them, push them or just shoot them in the head. It's so good that when it actually comes to killing someone it takes me ages to decide what I should do to them and then I think I will interrogate him then knee him in the spine. Anyway more about the game start to finish it's great, the graphics are superb, the sound is superb the whole game is superb I mean i'm struggling to think of anything bad about it. This game has taken games to a whole new level. I recently purchased black I thought that I was going to be on black all the time and never splinter cell but that was not the case splinter cell still battled on. The multiplayer is better on the xbox than the ps2 because on the ps2 you do the levels in small parts, whereas on the xbox you do the levels in one big go. There is a lot of loading to sit through but it's worth it. The multiplayer consists of 5 levels, they are all good fun but they could be longer. God knows what double agent will be like if it's better than chaos theory, I think it stands a mighty chance of being game of the year. Get splinter cell chaos theory because if you don't there is something seriously wrong with you (in my opinion.) |
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