Splinter Cell: Conviction

The voice acting in this game especially sam's is trash

As a long-time fan of the Splinter Cell franchise since its launch on the original Xbox, I've had a love-hate relationship with the series. I remember being awestruck by the groundbreaking lighting mechanics and stealth gameplay, but I also had my share of frustrations with clunky tank controls and lackluster storytelling. After giving up on the series post-Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, it took me a while to warm up to giving it another shot-especially when Splinter Cell Conviction was released.

Initially, I brushed off Conviction based on early impressions and reviews. It wasn't that it looked terrible; I just found myself hesitant to invest in a game that seemed short, particularly when my budget was tight. However, curiosity got the better of me, and when it dropped in price, I figured, why not? And boy, am I glad I did.

Splinter Cell Conviction might just be the best installment in the entire series. While it is indeed short, it more than makes up for it with a captivating story, tension-filled gameplay, excellent level design, and a much simpler, user-friendly control scheme. The game draws clear inspiration from the pulse-pounding narratives of shows like *24* and the *Bourne* films, effectively immersing players in a world where every decision counts, and stakes are immensely high.

The plot revolves around former agent Sam Fisher, who finds himself entangled in a conspiracy surrounding his daughter's death. This leads him to uncover treachery within his former agency, Third Echelon. As a now-renegade operative, Fisher races against time to stop a looming terrorist threat that puts countless lives at risk. The focus on a personal vendetta elevates the story and keeps players invested in Fisher's journey.

Gameplay is primarily about sneaking through darkened environments and eliminating mercenaries one by one, a method that plays nicely into the game's overall pacing. There are moments when you can accumulate bonus points to make more spectacular moves against multiple enemies, which was quite popular for its time, but the game encourages moderation to maintain your stealthy edge.

Visually, Conviction holds up well, primarily because its dark aesthetic lends itself to the era's graphical capabilities. Animations are smooth, and the streamlined stealth mechanics make it easy to maneuver through the shadows. Notably, Conviction introduces the Center Axis Relock system for weapon handling, which, while flashy and cinematic, feels less relevant in real-life application but works well within the game's context.

The sound design excels, with realistic sound effects that enhance the military stealth experience. Michael Ironside's voice work as Sam Fisher is standout, reinforcing his iconic status, and even years later, it's hard to imagine anyone else taking on that role.

In conclusion, Splinter Cell Conviction is an entertaining experience that can be completed in a couple of days, making it a solid choice for anyone seeking an engaging stealth-action title. It's refreshing to see a franchise reinvent itself while retaining its core elements. I'd rate it an 8/10 - a must-play for franchise veterans and newcomers alike.

10 out of 10 - A Ruthless, Fast-Paced Evolution for Sam Fisher

The Fugitive Has Arrived

Splinter Cell: Conviction is the raw nerve of the franchise. It's not about cold missions or surgical strikes anymore-this is personal. After the death of his daughter and betrayal from within, Sam Fisher goes rogue. He's not sneaking around to follow orders. He's hunting for the truth. And when Sam's off the leash, the game becomes something entirely different: faster, meaner, more emotionally charged-and absolutely unforgettable.

Gameplay: Brutal Efficiency with Style

Conviction trades in the slow, methodical pacing of earlier entries for a more aggressive, fluid stealth system that still demands intelligence but rewards decisiveness. You're no longer a shadow in the dark-you are the darkness, moving fast, hitting harder, and leaving no trace.

Key innovations: Mark & Execute: Tag multiple enemies and drop them in one cinematic motion. It's smooth, satisfying, and deadly.

Last Known Position: A genius mechanic that shows where enemies think you are, giving you room to flank and outsmart them.

Interrogations: Brutal, immersive, and unflinching. Sam uses the environment as his weapon, slamming heads into mirrors, car doors, or pipes to extract intel-and these aren't cutscenes; you're in full control.

Every moment feels like a Jason Bourne fever dream filtered through Sam Fisher's calculated fury.

Tone & Story: Personal, Ruthless, and Raw

This is Sam at his most dangerous and most human. He's not saving the world-he's chasing down lies, ghosts, and betrayal. He's mourning, he's angry, and he's out of patience.

The story blurs the line between spy thriller and revenge tale. There's conspiracy, corruption, and high-stakes deception-but what drives it all is Sam's grief and rage. You're not just playing a super-spy; you're playing a man who's lost everything and is now hellbent on making the truth bleed.

Visuals & Presentation: Sharp, Cinematic, and Clean

The UI bleeds into the environment: objectives are projected onto walls, flashbacks spill across scenery, and interrogations are messy, real-time explosions of violence. The presentation style is bold and unique-you're not just playing a game, you're watching it unfold like a high-stakes thriller without ever losing control.

Multiplayer: Deniable Ops & Co-op Mode

Conviction also introduced a strong side package with Deniable Ops-focused stealth scenarios-and a Co-op campaign with Archer and Kestrel, two agents from opposing agencies. It's not filler-it's some of the best co-op stealth gameplay ever designed.

Verdict: A Bold Reinvention That Pays Off

Some longtime fans missed the old, ultra-stealthy feel. But make no mistake: Splinter Cell: Conviction wasn't a betrayal of the formula-it was an evolution. A raw, emotional, high-speed version of Sam Fisher that still demanded brains but added fire and fury.

10 out of 10 - A cinematic, aggressive, and unforgettable experience that put the world on notice: Sam Fisher is still the king of stealth, even when he's on the warpath.

Yes, there is a lot of bland cover based shooting and not enough sneaking, but it did not bother me too much. The single-player story is like a typical action movie - sweeping soundtrack, big scripted set pieces, fancy cinematics, implausible but gripping plot, and a bit too short. It was a bit confusing and difficult to follow, but that's no big deal.

Gameplay is solid but a bit formulaic, with tight linear levels lacking multiple approaches, and dumb AI that would do well to eat more carrots (they can't see in the dark). The stealth mechanics based around shadows and "last known position" work fairly well, but are a bit too arcade for my tastes. Multiplayer matchmaking is dead, which is sad as co-op missions seem like fun.

As for those who keep saying this is much worse than the old games like Chaos theory, I slightly disagree, its not significantly better or worse. I am OK with the slightly more streamlined and faster paced direction they have taken, the difference is not as big as many make it out to be.

As a console port, this is fairly good. There is sadly a checkpoint save system, but it is not as bad as in many other games. Otherwise, there are enough settings, no mouse acceleration and skippable cutscenes. On a geeky side note: the unreal engine used here is excellent as usual (allowing me to sleep my pc while fullscreen and later resume right back into the game in 1 sec).

Worth getting in a sale.

Having made the decision to get off the conveyor belt (for a while!) and not buy Call of Duty: Black Ops, I used my gaming habit to catch up on some really great games that I had missed thanks to borrowing from friends and buying used. Unlike many here this game represented my first Splinter Cell game so, in a way, I am free from the trap of criticising it of not being what I expected in regards the previous games (a common complaint here). Starting the game as a COD player was difficult. In COD multiplayer I learnt that you just keep rushing and shooting and respawning as a tactic whereas early on I realised that a fire-fight is really the last thing I wanted since the NPC characters were not awful and could kill me if there was 3 of them versus me. So the first challenge for me was to get into the swing of trying to stealth everyone first – which I'm told is generally the point of the SC games.

I got into this OK and quickly moved through the game on the normal setting. I quite enjoyed it as a game and liked the way it played even if it is rather irritating in some ways and not as good as it could have been in others. The story is maybe secondary to most gamers but matters to me. Here it is no more than "ok". It builds too quickly into something too big and personally I find the "flashback telling" device to be a bit lazy. As a basic structure though, it does the job and perhaps if I had played previous games it would have hooked me more. Anyway, to the gameplay.

The playing of the game is a bit clumsy. The stealth aspect is rewarding and challenging but the action/FPS style aspects don't really work. They feel tacked on and unnatural while at the same also being useful. In too many levels I alerted the enemy (because of not being that good!) but way was able to blast my way out using a silenced SMG with a scope; it didn't feel skillful to me and it felt a little bit like I had cheaply completed a level – but yet the game more than allows me to do it. I came to understand those who had an issue with the gun-fighting aspect of the game because it did feel too easy to just blast and grenade my way out of a room or to mark everyone having gotten one decent hand-to-hand kill. I liked it, but I would have liked it better if the kills had not come as easy as it did.

This also made the game way too easy. Normal didn't take me too long but once I finished it I started it again on "realistic" and found that I ripped through it – the only difference seeming to be that it took fewer shots to kill me. Changing the subject, I liked the controls despite not liking the lack of control over character speed (no sprint button?). The cut scenes were lazy in their structure but mostly they were good aside from the surprisingly poor lip-synching in some of them. The voice acting helps it as well, Ironside particularly being a welcome and impacting presence in the lead. The music is also great – not only what it is but how it is used (like a movie, it increases in intensity during action sequences or when you have alerted guards and they hunt for you).

The game itself is expanded by the Deniable Ops, multiplayer and co-op. Of these I only did the Deniable Ops. I found the Hunter missions to be great fun as the focus was on stealth, but the ones where you defend the bomb seemed to just be a matter of hiding near the EMP and shooting repeatedly from cover with a silenced weapon (speaking of which, why are their guns without silencers? What is the point of them – surely nobody uses them unless they want constant action?).

Anyway, SP:C is a solid game. It has a solid story, good missions and provided more of a challenge that just the usual run and gun action that I have become used to with other franchises. However it is also a bit lazy in the telling and the mix of stealth and action doesn't really work as well as it should. I enjoyed when it worked but I felt that it cheapened itself by often letting me just blunder my way though when I didn't deserve it – even on the hardest setting. Good game – but not a great game.