Surprised-announced today in an official post on the Ubisoft blog, Ubisoft Toronto has now begun work on a remake of the first Splinter Cell game. First released back in 2002 for the original Xbox, Splinter Cell was born from Metal Gear Solid’s foundation as a comparatively more grounded stealth action game. Splinter Cell’s hardcore dedication to stealth made it unique at the time, in tandem with its innovative usage of light and sound as gameplay mechanics. It may not have aged well when viewed through a modern lens, but at the time, Splinter Cell was innovative. To bring Splinter Cell back with a remake could be the best decision for the franchise right now.
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Splinter Cell: A Very Different Ubisoft in 2021
Rumors of a new Splinter Cell entry have been fluctuating within the games industry for several years now. As far back as 2016, a new Splinter Cell game was reportedly in development, with Michael Ironside rumored to reprise his role as Fisher after he was unfavorably replaced by Eric Johnson in Splinter Cell Blacklist. These rumors were exciting to fans for a while, but as the years passed by with no official news or announcements, hope was dwindling for a new entry.
Fast forward to 2021, and more recent Splinter Cell rumors are no longer exciting fans because of the current state of Ubisoft, both as a developer and publisher. As mentioned by prominent leaker Tom Henderson, an “open world of sorts” Splinter Cell game is reportedly in development, which would be a first for the series. However, many fans were quick to judge this leak as disappointing, considering the series has thrived with excellent linear gameplay design. Mention of “open world” brought on inevitable comparisons to Far Cry and Assassin’s Creed, eliciting a negative reaction from fans who want to play a modern but traditional Splinter Cell game.
Of course, this is also without even including the state of Ubisoft as a publisher currently, which isn’t exactly making a great impression on fans at the moment. Reports of a toxic work culture, sexual harassment in the workplace, and misconduct/ambivalence among executives have not painted Ubisoft’s management in the most positive light. Even outside of the existing corporate controversy surrounding Ubisoft, the publisher continues to make highly controversial decisions.
First, it was comments from the publisher’s 2021 annual fiscal report that Ubisoft would be focusing on “even greater integration of live services” in existing and future games, a statement that saw mixed reaction from fans. Then it was the largely derided inclusion of NFT skins in Ghost Recon Breakpoint, a previously published Ubisoft title that has its own fair share of controversy due to its largely negative reception. Splinter Cell fans who have been keeping up with news regarding Ubisoft are rightfully justified in being cautious over a new Splinter Cell announcement.
A Splinter Cell Remake is the Perfect Way to Bring the Series Back
In all fairness, the announcement of the Splinter Cell remake seems to contradict the public-facing Ubisoft fans have witnessed in the last year. While it was a bit strange that a remake of 2003’s Splinter Cell was revealed in a simple blog post with little fanfare from the publisher itself, the post itself was quite candid. The game’s creative director (Chris Auty), producer (Matt West), and technical producer (Peter Handrinos) all showed a distinct reverence for the original Splinter Cell while emphasizing how the remake would remain faithful to its origins. West even made it clear that the remake would remain “linear like the original games, not make it open world.”
Remaking the first Splinter Cell game really is the ideal way to bring back the franchise after such a long period of dormancy. Ubisoft Toronto can balance the desires of fans to bring back Splinter Cell in a traditional form, without potentially compromising the series by straying too far away from its roots. By design, excellent linear mission design was what made games like Splinter Cell Chaos Theory and Pandora Tomorrow so successful and revered by fans. Coming back after eight years with an entirely new entry in the Splinter Cell series would be risky, but a faithful remake of the original game gives a chance to celebrate and modernize Splinter Cell in a big way.
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Ubisoft Toronto’s Enthusiasm Inspires Confidence
Overall, there’s a degree of cautious optimism to be had with the announcement of a Splinter Cell remake. The most important factor is that the Ubisoft Toronto developers working on the project have expressed an excitement over developing and iterating on the traditional Splinter Cell stealth experience. While Splinter Cell Blacklist was a return to form in some capacity, it still iterated on the contentious action-oriented changes that Splinter Cell Conviction made to the franchise. Compared to earlier Splinter Cell games, the degree of stealth gameplay complexity was pared down in favor of freedom in playstyle, taking a “jack of all trades” approach that limited options in stealth.
Eight years later, plenty of the hardcore Splinter Cell fans yearn for the more traditional stealth experience that the series was founded on. Ubisoft Toronto is seemingly aiming to recapture that magic with the Splinter Cell remake, which does inspire some optimism. The enthusiasm shared by the developers, many of whom already have experience with the franchise previously, will theoretically bode well for this Splinter Cell remake. That being said, there are enough problematic factors surrounding Ubisoft currently that may conversely not instill confidence. Time will tell how Splinter Cell’s return will fare once the remake is revealed and released.
A Splinter Cell remake is in development.
MORE: What Happened To Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow?
Source: Ubisoft
