Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist: PS3 Review

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist: PS3 Review

Platform: PS3
Released by Ubisoft

Here comes the sixth installment of the Tom Clancy Splinter Cell series.

Sam Fisher's back as the leader of 4th Echelon, an elite counter-terrorism unit, whose job it is to hunt the terrorsts behind the Blacklist, an increasing number of attacks on US interests worldwide.

As ever though, there are a whole heap of people in the way to him and his team completing that mission - and needless to say, you hold the power in your hands to save - or lose - the day. It takes the form of various missions - from springing people from CIA safe houses to sleeper cells in London - as the espionage thriller game goes global.

But it's stealth which you will need plenty of to ensure that you can get through each level; along with gadgets, guns and cunning, the game yields to a player who's in touch with their first person shooter feelings and enjoys the thrill of the chase. For example in one mission, you're faced with insurmountable odds - until you realise that by centring your attack elsewhere, it'll distract the guards and leave you free to go about your business.

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist is exactly what you'd expect from a game like this - and perhaps more. A cinematic feel and some crisp, clear graphics makes the overall product feel like you're watching a combat movie in places, a thriller with edge and if you want to go nuts with the gun (not recommended) you can.

While the single player story mode offers up benefits to the solo gamer, there are co-op missions as well which provide a group of mates the chance to discuss tactics before powering into the level, ensuring that you're able to complete it with a minimum of fuss.

Enemy AI is relatively solid too - normally, in games like this, a momentary throwing off of what the enemy's expected to do can ruin the atmosphere, but thankfully, this is sparse throughout with you feeling like at no point can you let your guard down at all.

All in all, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist represents a real thrill to the spy / espionage thriller genre - despite being six games in, it shows no signs of creatively slowing down - and while some of the elements of the story are all too familiar in this day and age, the gameplay is engrossing, involving and utterly thrilling.

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