Splinter Cell : Chaos Theory

Chaos Theory has broken the mould and brought us three very different game types into one game. Usually its single player and a multi player, but Ubisoft have brought us both of these but also treated us to some co-op action. We take a look at all three m

Single Player

If I'm honest I've found the single-player mode very disappointing. Ubisoft have gone to great lengths to make the game more accessible to everyone, which for me works. I didn't get on with the first two Splinter Cell games. There was too much stealth, too much back tracking and severe punishments for mistakes. But Ubisoft promised us this will change for SC:CT, so I was really looking forward to getting my teeth into this one. But for me it has two main problems. Firstly its far too easy - you now have the option to play it two ways "stealth" or "assault" meaning you can sneak about in the dark doing the Sam Fisher thing and when you get spotted you just pull out your gun and shoot the bad guys making the game no real challenge at all. After finishing the first four levels on normal mode I reset the game on hard mode and did the first six (of 10) levels in an evening, leading me to believe the game is too easy and possibly too short.

The introduction of the quick save is a godsend though. It now means you're not strung up by the balls and forced to start over when you make a mistake. Quick save usually makes games too easy and goes some way to do that in this game, but with the previous two being very unforgiving it was essential to put it in.

The next thing that got on my tits, and I mean this really got on my tits, was the fact the game is plagued with adverts. They have tried to make them subtle but failed miserably. Go to a PC and it will have a Nokia screensaver on it. When I pay my money for a game I expect to get what I pay for, not to be treated like an idiot and have to sit there and play something which is part of some lame-ass company's marketing campaign. I'd sooner have a door-to-door salesmen knock every 15 minutes for the rest of my life rather than sit through games full of adverts.

To say the graphics are beautiful is like saying Wayne Rooney is God's gift to women. They are way more than beautiful - words can't describe how good this game looks. If I compared it to Jennifer Garner's arse and a sunset over the Caribbean in the height of summer we would be half way there. It really does look that good! Ubisoft have always given us excellent sounds when it comes to the Tom Clancy games and SC:CT is no exception to that rule. The sound stage here has to be one of the best ever. The ambient sounds surround Sam right through to the noise your interactions make with the surroundings really make you feel like your in the locations of the game. Voice acting is superb too. Constant digs at other games and a story driven by the voice overs will keep you immersed right to the very end.

Co-op

This is what Xbox Live! was made for! You can play this split-screen or via system link but we played it via Xbox Live! and to say we were impressed would be a complete understatement. This mode basically gives you a short story campaign spanning four missions, but they can only be played with two players as you need to help each other out with the cool co-op moves essential to completing the mission. We have played many co-op games before like the Rainbow 6 series and more recently Full Spectrum Warrior, but this is the first time a game with such great depth in this feature.

The co-op game feels very complete but it isn't without its problems. When the two characters are close together frame rate can drop drastically making the game feel very sluggish, which isn't good when you're fighting bad guys. Although very annoying it doesn't spoil the game too much. The cool thing about the co-op is that the puzzles and mission are not as spoon fed as the single player, leaving you to think more and solve the puzzles together. On the other hand it isn't always clear what direction you're meant to be heading next, so your both stumped and not sure what to do next.

To be able to complete each mission you will have to work as a team, whether it be having to each cut wires of the same bomb or one of you will be in a control room moving a crane out of view whilst your team mate will be in the other room giving him direction - not really the most original of ideas but it's a step in the right direction as far as I'm concerned. Some of the co-op only moves include the human wall where one guy can dangle from a ledge and his team mate can climb up him right through to the amazing tomoe nage where your team mate will launch you over his head so you can reach far away ledges with your jump. All of these moves are excellent and appear in the vs mode to a certain degree but it's this co-op mode where they are essential to completing the game.

Co-op works. It really is an amazing experience but only four short levels mean it isn't going to last very long. Sure you can go back on a harder level but you will know all the answers to the puzzles, so it takes out a lot of the suspense you get playing it first time round.

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