Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Ubisoft Author: Alex Petraglia (Anubis)

Just when you thought the shadows were safe…

Everyone’s favorite gray-haired, leather-clad super secret agent is back. That’s right, Third Echelon’s chief operative Sam Fisher is back in the field and looking for action, or rather, action seems to be looking for him. Apparently there’s a new kooky political dissident in town by the name of Suhadi Sadono. And we all know that Sam doesn’t think kindly of political dissidents. He’ll travel from Paris to Indonesia to Los Angeles to hunt down Sadono and his goons, and stop them from unleashing deadly smallpox. Not only does Pandora Tomorrow, the sequel to the acclaimed original Splinter Cell have an engaging single player, Ubi has billed the game as “the first-ever multiplayer stealth game.” As far as I can tell, this is the truth (unless, of course, you count the Thief inspired Unreal Tournament mod, ThieveryUT). But let’s see just how well the game fares, shall we?

The man, the myth, is back

Like the original, creative news briefs keep you updated and
advance the plot (the dashing gent on the screen is Sadono)

Pandora Tomorrow opens with an exciting cut scene in which a terrorist group assaults and overruns the US embassy in Jakarta. Sam makes his grand appearance by first escaping a pair of handcuffs, and then is briefed by his liaison, Lambert. The first mission (which acts as a training) is to get inside the embassy and find out what exactly is going down.

The handcuff escape showcases what the engine is capable of; sadly, things don't stay that pretty

The story, like the original, is merely decent. It’s pretty standard fare, terrorist organization, blah blah blah, without any real twists. If you’re paying any attention to what’s going on, you’ll notice some anomalies and plot holes, but nothing that really ruins the game.

Ooo! A mysterious box with a timer! What could that be?

The gameplay is fairly varied. You'll get to use all of Sam's moves at one time or another. Some levels require you to be especially stealthy, and any alarms whatsoever will result in a mission failure. However, several levels allow you to go commando, and call for some more gunning. But again, the focus as always is on silence and invisibility; the key to any great spy's survival.

Sticking to the shadows means survival

Ahh, the power of Fifth Freedom

The graphics have been a point of contempt for many. While they aren't bad, with titles like Far Cry pushing the envelope visually, we want everything to be up to that standard. Sam looks alright, and his body animations are fluid, but there are too many repeat NPC's, and texture quality is usually low (thanks, BOXX!). Lighting effects play a huge role in the game, and are executed nicely. However, due in part to the lighting and the highly modified Unreal Engine on which the game is based, antialiasing will not work in the game. Now, it maybe that I'm so use to seeing games running in 4x AA, but some sections (mostly when night vision is on), look especially jagged. You'll need to rely on boosting the resolution up, but anything above 1280x1024 began to slow down on my system. There's also not much in the options menu to tweak settings. Most of the typical sound options are there, but in the graphics department, there's only brightness, contrast, resolution, and a three choice "Image Quality" setting. It really is a pity.

Most missions will require you to make contact with someone, recover a piece of data, infiltrate a locale, or capture someone. Again, things are balanced enough (and the game is short enough; about 14 hours), so that things don't get monotonous.

All great action games need at least one elevator scene

Sam's arsenal of gizmos and gadgets has had some upgrades. First, there's the trusty standard issue pistol; perfect for shooting out lights or delivering a crushing blow upon the head of an unwary henchman. Then, there's the SC-20K, what has been best described as a "Swiss army gun." Not only can it be used in single shot rate of fire with a scope for long distance sniping, or in burst fire to be used as an assault rifle, the gun can be used to fire off another six accessories. The first is the diversion camera, which can be used as a regular remote camera, or, when either the fire or alternate fire buttons are pressed, it will either make a sound to attract the attention of a guard, or release an incapacitating cloud of gas. There's also the regular gas grenade, the ring airfoil rounds, and the sticky shocker, all of which will take care of guards in a non-lethal manner.

Back for round two are Sam's signature multipurpose goggles. Just a quick run through: the first is the night vision, which provides for viewing in low light conditions (you'll be using this one a lot), and the second is the heat-vision, excellent for seeking out traps or guards in situations where using night vision wouldn't be possible. Sam, once again gets his optical cable, used to see what's behind closed doors. Instead of it being part of the inventory, like in the original, it will come up as a menu option when you walk up to a door; a nice little tweak. Lock picks, camera jammers, and a laser mic round out the inventory.

When spying, one must always maintain a sense of professionalism (hehe, he's peeing)

This old dog really hasn’t learned any new tricks. While almost every one of Sam’s moves from the original are included, one of my favorites, the wall jump (where Sam would jump upward and push off a nearby wall with his leg to reach a higher point), isn’t there. Included is the new half-split jump, which is good for getting above a foe when in a smaller area of space. Sam can now jump to a higher ledge when in the split jump position, a move which I used maybe twice in the game.

The only real new distinct move Sam does get is a SWAT turn. When peering around a corner, say, of a doorway, pressing the Action key will make Sam do a quick turn across the opening and hide at the other side.

A cleverly designed moment where Sam can use the SWAT turn

Other than that, Sam will run at variable speeds, crouch and move while crouching, peer around corners and shoot or throw from that position, mantle onto boxes or small walls, climb pipes and ladders and fences, shimmy along ledges, climb hand-over-hand along wires and shoot while suspended, speed along zip lines, split jump and shoot from the split jump position, drop onto enemies from a higher location (and knocking them out if done correctly), land quietly from a jump, rappel on walls and shoot while rappelling, move bodies, grab characters, and then use them as a human shield, interrogate them, or force them to use an object (such as a keypad or retinal scanner) that Sam wouldn't be able to access; all the necessary moves any man of espionage would need in his repertoire.

Apparently the single player is quite a fitting sequel to the original. But you get what feels like an entirely second game with your purchase. How does the multiplayer stack up to other titles?

OMG! OMG! OMG! Multiplayer!!!

Quite well, in fact. There are two teams, with two members per-team. You read that right: the game allows for a maximum of four players at a time. No crowded bloodbaths in this one, and the way things are set up, it really does make sense.

You'll need to play through a brief tutorial on both sides before starting the multiplayer

So, two spies on the Shadownet team (spies), and two mercenaries on team ARGUS (mercenaries), with a focus on teamwork on both sides. Like the single player, the spies will play in third-person viewpoint, and have all the moves Sam does plus a very cool backflip-off-wall, which can be quite advantageous when trying to escape from a mercenary. Their mission, depending on the gameplay mode, is to neutralize, recover, extract, or sabotage the ND133's, which are the viral containers found in single-player (that's why I recommend giving SP a run through first). Motion sensors, computer panel controlled doors, and laser tripwires make life difficult for invading spies. The spies are armed with one weapon and one weapon alone, a P190 that fires sticky shockers as a primary fire mode. It's not only unnecessary for a spy to kill a merc, it's impossible: non-lethal attacks only.

The mercenaries, who play in first-person, must defend the ND133's from the spies. While they aren't as agile as their opponents, they are armed to the teeth with a whopping M160 Assault Rifle, frag grenades, and a taser. Mercenaries can slam their rifles into an attacking spy, knocking him for a loop. It's a good move in close range. Another special feature is pupil adaptation. Just like in real life, when entering a dark room, it's generally difficult to see. After being in there for several minutes however, the ambient lighting will slowly increase, allowing you to make out shapes and maybe even a wandering spy.

Shadownet members get the same nightvision/thermal vision goggles Sam does, as well as a pair of binoculars. Six different gadgets can be fired using alternate fire from the spies' weapons. The spy bullet will attach itself to and tag an enemy, showing their position on the radar, and allowing the spy to pick up on that players conversation. Sticky cameras can not only spy on enemy players, but will emit gas that can incapacitate them. Noise emitters, flashbangs, and smoke grenades are all self explanatory, but the chaff grenade is an interesting addition. Upon explosion, the chaff grenade will emit electromagnetic particles that will interrupt the functions of any electronic device, such as enemy (or friendly) vision, surveillance cameras, and motion sensors. These are great ways of not only providing cover, but throwing off an attacking mercenary.

Both the mercenaries and the spies have something called Enhanced Reality. Points of interest, like far-off ND133's will show up on screen, along with how far away they are and what percentage of the ND133 has been taken (it takes several seconds for a spy to hack a system or use a computer or steal an ND133). Merc's don't get the same goggles that the spies do. Instead, they're equipped with motion sensing, which will pick up on any movement, and EMF vision, which will sense frequency given off by electronic devices (a cool effect worth mentioning: to a mercenary, motion sensing will appear in red, while EMF is blue. Their goggles will also outwardly appear this color, so a spy can see what a merc is using based on this). EMF will pick up on computers, sensors, and most importantly, any special vision a spy is using. Spies can avoid being seen by this by turning off night/thermal vision. Mercenaries get phosphorescent grenades, which emit particles that will stick onto spies, who can then be tracked using the EMF vision.

Enhanced Reality

Hacking away as a spy

Motion tracking

EMF tracking

The graphics in multiplayer don't seem overly unique as compared to that of SP at first glance, but after a while, you will notice some differences. When in night vision, things seem a bit smoother than some of the obvious jaggies that appear in Sam's domain. Thermal vision seems a bit different too; more detailed colors will appear on the body, mainly red. With nothing to base a comparison on, the mercs' special visions are very cool. In motion sensing, the screen will appear as red static, until motion is detected, and a gray box will highlight the area.

Any damage or effects done to a merc are handled quite nicely. A flashbang will give a blinding imprint of the last thing the merc saw, and when they are grabbed from behind by a spy, the camera will begin to shake and fill with static. Like UT2004, the microphone headset flourishes here, for communicating to a team member, or, as many players (spies) seem to be making a habit of, whispering a sweet adieu to a mercenary right before they snap their neck.

AND THEN MY HEAD ASPLODE!!!

Flashbangs are really quite blinding

Late on the day of release, there weren't too many servers to play on. By the next week, they were more numerous, but tons of bugs made playing quite difficult. From PunkBuster warnings (the game relies on this anti-cheat method), to disconnects, and a worthless game search in the lobby, diehard fans were furious that the game they had waited so long for didn't work. I myself had to resort to finding three friends to come play over LAN so that I could test the game for the sake of this review. Things were much smoother over the network, and the teamwork aspect seems quite fitting for a LAN Party. This one might become a classic in that sense.

A few days after the game had been out a week, Ubisoft did release a patch (available to download at their site), which fixed most of the problems. Some minor troubles linger, but the game is playable, and quite enjoyable, over the internet. Kudos to Ubi for heeding the cry, and quickly appeasing their audience.

So, let's break this down. Ubi has provided an enjoyable single player experience that is worthy of bearing the Splinter Cell name. However, there really isn't a whole hell of a lot of new stuff there aside from a few new missions. If it weren't for that other aspect of the game, you might think this is just an expansion.

Multiplayer is nothing short of revolutionary. First, a maximum of four players per match is unheard of in a day and age of cramming 20 some-odd people onto a server to frag away in UT. Some unique gadgets, levels, and gameplay designs will surely keep things interesting for any stealth gaming fan.

Tread carefully in the shadows; you never know who can be waiting there for you…

Pro’s:
-All the espionage you loved from the first one
-Good sound effects, voice acting, ambient music
-Sam Fisher has earned his place in the record books of cool gaming heroes
-Multiplayer possibilities alone are worth the price of admission

Con’s:
-You realize how spoiled you are going from 4x AA to nothing
-Not too many movement or gadget upgrades
-Some kinks still need to be worked out in multiplayer and some learning curve
-Sparse options menu

Graphics: 17/20
Gameplay: 28/30
Sound: 15/15
Lasting appeal: 15/15
Originality: 13/15
Interface/Stability: 3/5
Total: 91/100


Primotech’s Rating: 91%

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