‘Splinter Cell: Blacklist’ Lands Official Preview

Splinter Cell: Blacklist has landed a preview after being revealed at PAX East last weekend.

Splinter Cell‘s protagonist Sam Fisher has been placed in charge of his own crew this time, ditching his previous handlers. Ubisoft has also added new features, including a central hub and options to customize the game as you see fit. There is also more freedom to play the game the way you want instead of just sticking to the shadows and playing the stealth game all the time.

Sam Fisher‘s crew members can be found on an upgradeable cargo ship known as the HUB. The ship is a kind of home base where you can acquire new missions or unlock upgrades. Interactions and improved graphic details also give you subtle nuances such as strange looks or disappointment depending on your actions.

Motion capture was used extensively to grab the facial expressions you’ll see throughout the game, so if a crew member has a problem with you, so to speak, you’ll know it.

Splinter Cell: Blacklist puts the Spies vs Mercs Mode back into this game, as well as adding the ability to jump between single-player and multiplayer using the map. You’ll be able to see when your friends sign in and possibly launch a co-op mission on the fly.

Customization plays a bigger role in Splinter Cell: Blacklist, as you’ll be able to choose your weapons, outfits, crew members, etc., before you go to locales such as Benghazi. In the preview, Sam Fisher was seen making his way with stealth through the infamous area.

This time around, you have an easier control scheme, allowing you to move with stealth or just race through and shoot whatever threatens you. However, the second half of the game, set in London, will require the old-fashioned stealth to keep you alive. As the developers put it, “Sam lives and dies by the shadow.”

Stealth will be encouraged, of course, as Splinter Cell: Blacklist rewards you with a kind of in-game money for playing well, much like Perfect Dark rewarded you with weapons and special equipment for finishing a level in a certain amount of time on certain difficulty settings.

Are you excited about the announcement of Splinter Cell: Blacklist?

Enjoyed Conviction but Blacklist sounds like everything I want from Splinter Cell (Jade Raymond’s Splinter Sell mcvuk.com/news/read/jade…)

— James Batchelor (@James_Batchelor) March 28, 2013