Name: Splinter Cell
ESRB: Teen
Console: Xbox
Genre: Stealth
Average Rating: 9.3
Developer: Ubi Soft
Publisher: Ubi Soft

Two CIA agents, operating in Georgia, have been missing for several days. You have been pulled out of retirement to sniff around and find out what happened to them.

Agents Blaustein and Madison have been killed. Something is going on in the Georgian government. Something violent. Georgia has been slaughtering the people of a small neighboring country.

And now they've declared war on the United States.

You are Sam Fisher, an elite black-ops operative working for the NSA. If you are captured or killed in the line of duty, the government will deny your existence. You are a Splinter Cell. You have the power of the fifth freedom; the freedom to protect the USA using whatever means necessary. Get to work.

~Linus

Linus - Rating: 10

Splinter Cell is the most awesome game for the three modern consoles so far.

We'll start off with the stealth factor. This is no Metal Gear Solid. In this game you must be far sneakier, and half of the time you're not even allowed to kill anybody.
Shadows play a big part in the gameplay of Splinter Cell, with all the hiding you'll be doing. In the dark alleys of a Georgian neighborhood, you could duck into a dark alcove and the enemy will never see you. He could walk right past while you sneak up behind him and knock him out with a quick hit to the head.

The huge amount of places to hide and ways to take down enemies adds some good replay value in itself, but the levels are also very large, with several directions to go, and even hidden areas with goodies.

The lack of firepower (a handgun for the first half, plus an assault rifle in the second half) and ammunition heavily encourages the stealth approach with no shootouts. Plus it's pretty hard to aim and the guns take a long time to become accurate after repeated firing. The guns are mainly used to take out lights, but there are some parts in the game where you have to shoot your way out, but even then you don't have to kill anyone.

There are several gadgets and such that you start out with or can pick up, such as ring airfoil rounds (knock people out,) sticky cameras (shoot 'em at a wall or the ceiling and get a bird's-eye view of everything, plus if you hit someone in the head with one, it's lights out for them, and they're reusable,) lockpick, disposable lockpicks (instantly unlock locked locks, say that three times fast,) and a bunch of others.

Splinter Cell is extremely realistic. You fall too far, you get hurt. You can't survive very many bullets. The enemies aren't stupid. Well, a little bit, but at least they can see you down the hall.... COUGHCOUGHMETALGEARCOUGHCOUGH.

Overall, Splinter Cell is a very good game, but definitely not for the impatient type.

Snoopy - Rating: 10

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Woodstock - Rating: 8

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Marcie - Rating: N/A

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