The Xbox version of Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory was playable for the first time at the recent Game Stars show and main man Sam Fisher is set to deliver his trademark stealth and death with some panache. Here's a sequence of shots demonstrating the most recently revealed new move.
The short demo had Sam rooting around inside what appeared to be a sports hall complex. We stalked our way through toilets, showers and locker rooms until we came to an entrance sealed off with tarpaulin. Enter Sam's new cutting move, which makes a slit in the material so we can creep through. Granted, it's not a startling new move and not as satisfying as the new inverted neck snap but it presents level designers with new options and gamers with something else to fiddle about with.
The game itself is the Splinter Cell you know and love, which is no surprise as Ubisoft are unlikely to tamper with an obviously winning formula of such class. It looks gorgeous, plays as smooth as ever and, simply put, we just felt so at home getting back into the stealth groove.
However, we hope that it will address our one nag regarding the series. We're adamant that the necessity to use Sam's well-crafted stealth should be hiked up a tad, especially the likes of the wall jump and splits. The unfortunate fact is that in the original Splinter Cell and its sequel Pandora Tomorrow, you rarely had to use those special moves in order to progress or circumnavigate problems. It seems a missed opportunity to have such cool moves but to not provide gamers with the genuine need to employ them.
The series oozes quality and we've no doubt Chaos Theory will build upon that tradition. We just want more of Fisher doing what he does best.
Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory is scheduled for release on Xbox and PC around Christmas
