Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction

After three years and many revisions, Ubisoft Montreal finally decided the proper facial hair for rogue agent Sam Fisher’s fifth outing.

There are two things that stand out about this entry: presentation and pacing. The presentation is outstanding in every aspect. As you traverse European locales, you will see mission objectives and information projected onto the walls. It’s a novel effect that immerses and sets a great noir tone. The game also has brilliantly directed cutscenes with great camera framing and visual effects — not that these save the mediocre story and performances.

Fans of the franchise will most likely feel ambivalent toward the gameplay changes in this entry. On one hand, the game feeds the player enough information visually to make it easier to play a master spy. On the other hand, the game’s scenarios and level design encourage the player to play like a common burglar, shooting everything that moves when spotted. There is even a level that takes place in the Middle East that plays (and controls) like a 5th rate Gears of War — why?

Even in the other levels, the game often gives mixed signals to the player, setting up enemy traps that encourage a firefight. It ties everything to Fisher’s rogue agent state-of-mind, but it doesn’t make for a good stealth or action game. The co-op, on the other hand, places this conflict on your partner which, surprisingly, makes it enjoyable. Rather than facing the conflict of stealth/firefight yourself, your incompetent partner will force you into the later. Unlike the game developers, you’ll be able to scream at him for his errors.