Ok, so the last time I played a Splinter Cell game was the month that the first game came out, at a friends house and I really wasn't very good at it..However, that was 13 years ago, and I've progressed enough in the stealth genre to to complete MGS2 HD. Having been Interested in what I saw in the Blacklist QL, I was wondering where the best place in the franchise was to jump in, at least for a PS3 owner.

Chaos theory, Pandora tomorrow

Ok cool, any reason in particular or are they simply more refined?

Blacklist is the '' Batman: Arkham Asylym/City '' of the Splinter Cell games. Which means, any approach is most likely going to work, and your character is very potent and nimble. Although the control scheme is complicated during the first hour, you'll become a real ninja quite soon.

Gameplay-wise, it's also the most '' Splinter Cell-ish'' of Splinter Cells since Chaos Theory, which is a good thing. You can totally ghost levels, which means being non-lethal, and there's a lot of incentives for you to retry levels and aim at different styles of play. When in a stealth game will you be encouraged to play loudly and non-stealthily? This game does it by breaking its scoring system in three categories, each filling a different '' medal '' for completitionists.

The AI is actually potent this time around; guards will remember not being alone on their patrols, and will deviate to search for their missing comrades that you killed/incapacitated. They'll react if a door is left open, and if you walk too fast, even when crouched, they'll hear you. They also walk and turn their head around, making them much less predictable. Also, the guard patrol setups will be randomized each time you play a level.

Considering most Splinter Cell games were... bad, to be honest, only Chaos Theory was worth mentioning. The original SC had cool shadows, but was way too linear and relied too much on trial-and-error. Pandora Tomorrow sucked, and lasted about 4 hours. Chaos Theory was great, and opened up the gameplay a lot more, but I'm not sure its design aged that well. Double Agent was terrible, and Conviction was pretty much like the tv show, 24, which was a hit or miss for a lot of people. Luckily for you, Blacklist resembles Chaos Theory a lot.

I'd say Blacklist is a very good first game to begin with, if you're new to the series. The older games have a lot of odd problems, like enemies knowing your exact location in pitch-black darkness as soon as one of them spots/hear you. The gunplay was also insanely imprecise ( in the original ), making the most immobile of light bulbs a real challenge to break. Fortunately, Blacklist is much more friendlier in its approach, and guards will take a second or two before reacting and calling out an alert if you miss your shot, allowing you to rectify your move.

Some naysayers will say that this game is trash, since it's lacking Ironside has Sam, but it's really a good, balls-deep stealth game in the vein of the recent Hitman, Dishonored and Mark of the Ninja.

I've only played the last four. I don't even know how many games there are before Chaos Theory, but I do know one of them has the word 'pandora' in the title.

I think Chaos Theory is considered to be the epitome and zenith of both the SC franchise and stealth game design, so that's my answer. That game blew my mind, the gameplay is something to behold.

Double Agent was a little meh, and the last two, well, Conviction is amazing but it's streamlined and actiony, and Blacklist is brand new.

I've heard some good things about the new one. Haven't played it yet though. I think Conviction was a solid game but my favorite is still Chaos Theory, and it does still hold up, the only issue being that the levels definitely feel small, but they are still very well designed with great choices to be made moment to moment in them about how to tackle things.

I think Chaos Theory is still a great choice to play.

I think you can start with Chaos Theory. The first couple games are alright, but they have this super annoying feature where your objective reminder will pop up literally every two seconds when you stop moving. Move, it disappears, stop, it pops up; repeat constantly and un-turn-offably. Super annoying.

Ok, so it looks like Chaos Theory or Blacklist....maybe I'll flip a coin. Any thoughts on why people don't like Double agent?

@panelhopper said:

Go chaos theory, super stealth. New one seems to mainstream. The old ones were stealthy as fuck when playing like a splinter cell game.

It's a buggy mess, especially on PC and it's just a boring, very stale game. It's clear that they wanted to initially try something new with the series, but it didn't pan out. The "next-gen" version's plot progression is also dark in a very bad way and Sam Fisher is only slightly less a complete caricature than in Conviction.

Yeah play Chaos Theory first. If you like it maybe play the older games. I personally think they still hold up, but this might be because of nostalgia, for example I don't remember the thing Rorie talked about.

Honestly, as much as Chaos Theory did wonders for the franchise, Blacklist revamps that with more fluid gameplay and improved matchmaking for Spies vs Mercs.

Double Agent was disappointing, they reused the same levels over and over again, and it was in broad daylight alot so focused more on action then stealth, however the Shanghai level was beautiful to play through.

I think Rorie is right, the first two are dated but Chaos Theory still holds up. There is predatory, shadow skulking through raging thunderstorms, watching Sam's body tense up as he closes in on his victim, and beautifully realised, quiet and carpeted government buildings to infiltrate.

I'd probably start at Chaos Theory. The current storyline doesn't really start until Double Agents, the repercussions of that game are still playing out in recent games.

Chaos Theory is a great game and I would start there. It has the bonus of excellent coop and versus MP as well, if you've got someone to play with.

Like with any series, the best place to start at is the beginning. Although if you just want to play the best one, play Chaos Theory. The problem with that is all the other games after that play like shit in comparison (except for Blacklist because I haven't had time to evaluate it yet).

I'd just play the first two because if you start any later, going back is hard. You don't have the knife and it's easy to become dependent on it.

@klei: Guards still don't look up when on patrol in Blacklist. I've gotten past several encounters with no fear of getting caught by just hanging on the ceiling pipes.

Chaos Theory is pure bliss. I just listened to a podcast that discusses the whole series and goes in-depth on CT in particular. Check it out if you're curious: http://caneandrinse.com/splinter-cell-chaos-theory-cane-rinse-95/

Clint Hocking, the creative director of CT, even wrote a response to the podcast on his blog:

Anyway, if you’re a Splinter Cell fan, or a Chaos Theory fan, or if you’re curious about why this game in particular is so often called out as the benchmark for the franchise, I think this podcast does a pretty good job of illuminating where that perspective comes from. My interpretation of the main point they make in this regard is that the game is respectful of the player.

They seem to be saying that they felt the game gave them the freedom and the capability to decide how they wanted to play without forcing them to jump through arbitrary hoops, and without hand-holding them through every little challenge. To this end, they extensively praise the level design – talking at length about what makes missions such as the Lighthouse and the Bank so strong, and exploring also, to some extent, the mixed success we had with some other levels – such parts of Seoul or the Bathhouse. They specifically praise the high density of meaningful interaction and the richness and broad applicability of the player tools – which in my mind (and with the benefit of hindsight) – are the main factors that made the game both highly appealing to a very specific set of players, and somewhat intimidating and inaccessible for a much broader audience. In this sense, I feel that Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory was very much a game of its era.

http://www.clicknothing.com/click_nothing/2013/08/respect.html

I started at Conviction, so my opinion probably doesn't matter. But I remember barely playing the first one a while ago and sort of being into it.

But I've loved Conviction and Blacklist. They seem quite different from the rest.

As far as I know, Chaos Theory is considered the best, and Double Agent is not so great, at least in comparison. First two probably show their age, if I had to guess.

Chaos Theory and the last generation version of Double Agent are the best.

There is also a Rebel FM Game Club Podcast on Chaos Theory that would be great fun to listen to if you're playing through it for the first time. That was a good series.

http://www.eat-sleep-game.com/news/2010/03/24/rebel-fm-game-club-splinter-cell-chaos-theory-episode-one/

You should try the first one again. I played it last year and it was pretty good.

You should try the first one again. I played it last year and it was pretty good.

Does Chaos Theory work fine on win7 or does it need some work to get it going?

1,2,3 brother.

They're all pretty fun. I think the series has kind of turned into something else at this point though.

Just play the first 3 and call it a day. Double Agent is okay and Conviction is too but the first 3 are where all the meat is.

Chaos Theory, in that the rules for failing a missions are not complete bullshit. Also, it looks the best out of the first three. Bump mapping wet surfaces, son.

People really like Chaos Theory, and this new one is the closest the series has been to that in a long time.

'ts too bad that they never released that (assumedly) better version of Double Agent for newer systems. Would've liked to give it a go.

But yeah, Chaos Theory all the way! Looks great, plays great and sounds great! Of course it also follows the SC tradition of not having a good/interesting story, but it's still fun to play.

So, Chaos Theory it is then! I'll hit up PSN once I've finished Sleeping Dogs. Might take a gamble with Blacklist as well if I get on well.