Ubisoft has confirmed a key gameplay component in its Splinter Cell remake that is sure to please die-hard stealth fans. The Splinter Cell series is one of the staples of the stealth genre, with the first game providing innovative light-based gameplay on the original Xbox's hardware that allowed players to create their own shadows by shooting out lights in order to move through levels undetected. This mechanic was arguably perfected in 2005's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, which is widely considered the franchise's high point.
After almost a year with very little official news surrounding the Splinter Cell remake since its confirmation, Ubisoft recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of the original game (which is currently available for free on Ubisoft Connect for PC players) and brought together past and present developers to discuss the series' origins, future, and legacy. As reported by GamesRadar+ (via TheGamer), the Splinter Cell remake's senior game designer, Andy Schmoll, reiterated that the series' stealth mechanics - and improving upon them - were "extremely important" to the team, and revealed that players can now do pacifist runs in the remake, enabling them to beat the title without a single kill. Although players could complete the majority of the original title without killing, they were required to perform at least three kills over Splinter Cell's story. It looks like the remake will eschew this, however, by incorporating new mechanics that will also allow players to "de-escalate" situations.
Splinter Cell: Conviction & Blacklist Focused On Sam Fisher's Lethal Methods
Fans were also treated to a first look at the Splinter Cell remake through new concept art that showed off the title's redesigned levels. Together with the news that it will bring back non-lethal playthroughs, it looks as though the remake is staying true to the franchise's original concept. Although both were well-received, later entries like Splinter Cell: Conviction and Splinter Cell: Blacklist focused on Sam Fisher's lethal tactics more than his non-lethal ones. (Conviction didn't include non-lethal options at all, and even though Blacklist did, its focus on knife gameplay incentivized lethal playthroughs.)
The concept art also showed Sam Fisher with a knife, a tool that was introduced in 2005's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory as an optional lethal method of dispatching foes in close quarters, and wasn't present in the original game or 2004's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, where Sam would knock out enemies instead. Both the console and PC version of Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory is often referred to as the best title of the franchise to date, and this new concept - along with the focus on traditional stealth - indicates that Ubisoft is aware of which developments and titles were better received as the series on. It may also show that the studio could be taking gameplay features from across the entire series with its remake, rather than just those present in the 2002 classic.
When Ubisoft announced the Splinter Cell remake in 2021, fans were curious to see how the studio would bring Splinter Cell to modern audiences after the series laid dormant for almost a decade, with the character only appearing in cameo roles in Ubisoft's other Tom Clancy series such as Rainbow Six or Ghost Recon. There was some concern when a scriptwriter job listing indicated that changes would be made to update Splinter Cell's story in the remake, however, the new announcements from the team seem to suggest that it'll be honoring the original in more ways than one.
Sources: Ubisoft, GamesRadar+ (via TheGamer)