I started with Chaos Theory, loved the hell out of that, didn't think Double Agent was that great, really, really enjoyed Conviction and I think this looks totally fine. It looks like a more refined Conviction, and I'm okay with that.

No one reasonable is going to call you dumb for not liking something like that. I thought Conviction was a ton of fun, and appropriately unforgiving if you cranked it up enough. The co-op was also a really great experience, and I still, to this day, hold the ending of the co-op campaign up as one of my favorite multiplayer experiences ever.

If you don't like it, don't play it. If you want to talk about it, go ahead. You raise some good points in your argument. I'm sure there's another super-hardcore stealth game that would tickle your fancy out there now.

@CornBREDX: I understand that they're trying to sell the game to more people. But there are ways to innovate and broaden your audience. See: AC3, Bioshock Infinite, Hitman: Absolution, Far Cry 3, etc.

Instead, Ubi chose to just make a 3rd person CoD and call it a day.

It's too bad you feel that way, because Blacklist look pretty cool to me. I've played all of the Splinter Cell games, too, and I really found Conviction, while radically different, fun in the end. Things change, and if you don't like that, well, in my opinion, you end up missing out on some good gaming experiences. Yes, it's unfortunate that things must change, but to keep up with the times, they often must. Also, you never know about that new VA , he may end up doing a fine job as Sam!

You're thinking about this too hard. I said the same thing to Jace earlier- they're no longer aimed at us. There is nothing you can do about it other then not play it.

I played all the originals too, and I rented Conviction, hated it, returned it. It's not for me, and it's clearly not being made for me. Just have to move on.

I am not surprised Michael Ironside isn't in the game, he almost wasn't in the last one (or something... his acting seemed like he didn't want to be). I agree they should've gone a different route, but its not my game to make. I just wont be buying it. My problem is solved- no need to get mad.

Things change, life goes on, other games are made.

Edit: Also, you don't remember the first Splinter Cell to well. It had a heavy reliance on action sequences. The stealth focus was more prevalent in PT and CT (little bit in Double Agent too, but meh that game has other problems)

As much as some of us want another Chaos Theory, there's no real reason to be upset anymore. It was obvious after Conviction that the old Splinter Cell was gone (at least for now).

I do still want to check out Conviction, though. It may not look like an SC game, but it did look like a fun game.

Why is there so much hurt in your butt duder?

@wemibelec90: You make a very valid point. I honestly think they should have stopped the series after Chaos Theory, but that's just me. And if they had continued the series as another protagonist, I wouldn't be so angry about the voice change (since obviously it'd be a new character!)

@Vinny_Says: Because hurt butt is all I know, duder. Especially for changing around one of my favorite game franchises!

Get ready for 100 posts calling you whiny for your criticism. If you don't like dust&brown generic middle east shooters, you have no taste.

@TentPole said:

@Angre_Leperkan439 said:

@TentPole said:

I thought it looked pretty good.

I'm sorry, but I must ask: Did you play the original games at all, before Double Agent?

All of them at the time of there release except conviction which I never finished. Went through Chaos Theory again last year and don't care for what you are implying.

I didn't intend offense. I was merely wondering if you had been a fan before Conviction, as many fans now were not fans of the original (such as Jeff Gerstmann). I hope you enjoy it as much as you may have the original games and/or Conviction. I personally do not think I will.

@NTM: I'd just like to state I played the crap out of Splinter Cell Conviction. Beat the campaign on the hardest difficulty, beat all the hunter maps (or whatever they were called), played most of the campaign (my friend backed out halfway through and we never ended up finishing it), and finished the grand majority of the challenges and unlocks (I'm no completionist, but I unlocked everything for my character). I realize you're saying you're sick of those type of people, I just want to point out I'm not one of them; I most certainly gave Conviction a chance, and while I enjoyed it enough, it was not a Splinter Cell game in my mind.

Why is there so much hurt in your butt duder?

For everyone saying no Michael Ironside ruins the game for them, you are crazy. He was absolutely awful at points in the last game and it is time for someone else to step up. However, I do believe that the only person who should voice Sam Fisher is Michael Ironside. The best way this could have gone (and the way they SHOULD have done it) is to just change the protagonist to someone else. These games don't need Sam Fisher that badly and it would have prevented pissing people off about the change.

Of course, the game looks very mediocre on top of all this, so I'm going to have to wait and see how it goes. I haven't really hated a Splinter Cell game yet so I'll make sure to at least keep an open mind.

Ugh, I'm done listening to people moan over the changes in the series. I kind of imagine those that disliked Conviction, didn't find much reason to play into it enough, and so therefore didn't spend the time the game needed for you to get into it. Personally, I loved the original three, Double Agent was pretty meh, and at first, Conviction had me wondering why it was an action game, but my second play through with the game around the time of its release really hooked me, I forgave its differences and embraced what the series could bring next in vain of what Conviction brought. I thought this looked great for the most part, and I'm very excited for it. If they have some stuff that is brought over from the original Splinter Cell's, then that's fine, but by now, I really don't want them to go back to how the first four played.

@Angre_Leperkan439 said:

@TentPole said:

I thought it looked pretty good.

I'm sorry, but I must ask: Did you play the original games at all, before Double Agent?

All of them at the time of there release except conviction which I never finished. Went through Chaos Theory again last year and don't care for what you are implying.

I don't know, this series hasn't been great since Double Agent, so it's kinda hard to be disappointed at this point.

@TentPole said:

I thought it looked pretty good.

I'm sorry, but I must ask: Did you play the original games at all, before Double Agent?

I thought it looked pretty good.

@kermoosh: I have no reason to believe so. There was no night vision in Conviction, so I doubt they will bring it back. But you do make a valid point, that sentence was based mostly on my prediction.

from the demo they played it was a day mission with the sun out. so there probably is still night vision on darker levels

I'm truly feeling sad right now.

I just watched the gameplay demo of Splinter Cell: Blacklist on gamespot's website. I went in expecting disappointment. However, the level of sadness I have at the moment was unexpected.

I had bought every single Splinter Cell since the first (except for Pandora Tomorrow, which I rented and beat), and I loved the original three immensely. Double Agent for XBOX was also good, but the 360 version, other than the multiplayer (which I enjoyed), didn't interest me. I ended up not finishing the game, partly due to a bad frame rate drop.

I also bought Conviction at release. At the time, I was very disappointed. What I played in that game was not a Splinter Cell Game. They had taken what the original three (as well as Double Agent, to a degree) had done, and streamlined it to be more action-oriented. It ended up being like a modern-day Assassin's Creed. To me, while the game wasn't terrible, and the story was pretty good at wrapping up the Sam Fisher story, it didn't feel like a Splinter Cell game at all. It definitely wasn't the same feel as the original three games.

So, first off, the new Splinter Cell has a new voice actor for Sam Fisher. They replaced the always-amazing veteran actor Michael Ironside with this doucher, Eric Johnson. That, to me, is essentially blasphemy. Michael Ironside is, and forever will be, the voice of Sam Fisher, at least in my mind. The new guy doesn't sound the same, and he will never be able to fulfill the role the way Michael Ironside has since 2002.

Second off, they stuck to the exact formula they had established in Splinter Cell: Conviction. The entire... experience of Splinter Cell in Conviction had been changed. The old HUD was removed in Conviction and remains removed in Blacklist, which means no real sneaking elements (they removed the sound and light meters, with the only indication of stealth a flashing warning that appears when you've been noticed). The old game's shooting has been completely removed in favor of dumb QTEs that allow you to aimbot/autokill small groups of enemies in one go (probably to compensate for lack of reliable aiming mechanics), and the slower-paced gameplay of earlier games, where you studied enemy patrols and snuck in to remove enemies one by one (to usually hide in such strange places as broom closets and under arctic ice), has been moved to the sideline (it's still there, technically, but the action gets an emphasis).

Thirdly, no night vision! You can't take those out. Period. They removed them in Conviction. They removed them in Blacklist. Yet they have them appear on the cover. Fuck sonar goggles. I want some frakking Night Vision Goggles. EDIT: It has been pointed out there is no proof of night vision, and I agree. However, I strongly believe it will not be in this game, based on Conviction. Even if I'm wrong, my other points strongly state my intentions here.

Finally, and I think this is the saddest point for me, there is a distinct feeling of selling out that I have not shaken in the several years since Conviction was released. They completely reworked Conviction in order to appeal to a broader audience. This was a success, but it was a success at the cost of older fans such as myself. And when a series compromises its old fans by radically changing gameplay in order to appeal to a new audience, that's beyond wrong to me.

In conclusion, Splinter Cell: Blacklist is looking awful. And I'm very sad, because they took a game I've cherished since original Xbox times, perverted it, and completely changed it. And finally, they have lost another fan, because I will not be buying this new installment after what I saw today.

EDIT: I expect to get two different types of responses to this: The "I totally agree, this is not like the original games at all, they changed it", and then the "Shut up, this game is great, so was Conviction, Splinter Cell is just evolving into a more appealing game". I will tell you right now, I'm definitely a part of the former group. I don't discourage argument, but I'm warning you, I will definitely strongly object to any who might say something like aforementioned second group.