Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow

Added April 2nd, 2004 by Sallizar

Introduction:

Everyone’s favorite Third Echelon agent is back. Yes, I’m talking about Anna Grimsdottir, the sultry voiced computer whiz. What? You thought I was going to say Sam Fisher, didn’t you? Alright, if that’s who you really want, I guess I’ll talk about him. Sam’s back in Ubisoft’s latest Splinter Cell offering, but how do you make one of the best Xbox games ever any better? You could start by giving Sam some new moves to help him through his covert high jinx. And while you’re at it, go ahead and upgrade the graphics engine a bit. Then there’s this Xbox Live thing all the cool kids are playing, so let’s add multiplayer to Splinter Cell too. It all sounds like a great package, but can it match or exceed the glory of the original?

Gameplay:

If you played the original Splinter Cell, then you’ll be pretty familiar with the mechanics of Pandora Tomorrow. Playing as Sam Fisher, your goal will be to infiltrate various areas around the world to perform Third Echelon’s dirty work. Sam brings back his various moves from the first game, like the split jump and pipe crawling, and adds a few new ones to his repertoire. First thing you’ll get to try is the half split jump. Useful in spaces too cramped for the normal split jump, the half split also let’s Sam boost of a wall to a higher point. This can be helpful for getting to those out of reach balconies in dark allies. Another new move is the SWAT turn. Sam can start at once side of a doorway and quickly do a 360 spin to the other side without being spotted. Along with the new moves Sam sports, he also gets a little musically inclined. He can now whistle to try to get a guards attention. It’s perfect for luring a guard right into your clutches. Nevertheless, besides these few changes, playing Pandora Tomorrow isn’t much different than playing the original Splinter Cell.

While the single player sticks to the tried and true, Ubisoft delves into the previously unknown by adding a multiplayer component to Pandora. Basically, it’s a game of two spies versus two mercenaries. Four players may seem like an odd cap for a multiplayer game but in action it works perfectly. Game goals vary, but typically the mercs will be guarding something whilst the spies attempt to disable it.

The spies control almost identically to Sam in the single player and have his night vision and thermal vision. That’s not all though. Spies also get a wide array of gadgets. Shooting a merc with a spy bullet paints them on the spy’s radar, making it easier to not get caught. Chaff grenades can be used to disrupt non-human detection systems. Spies can also grab mercs from behind and knock them senseless for a bit or break their neck to end their humiliation.

First person view is used for playing as a mercenary. The mercs biggest advantage is his BFG (big freaking gun). It’s hard to aim in the dark though, and the multiplayer levels are all pretty dim, so mercs get their own vision modes. EMF vision allows mercs to see electromagnetic fields, so if a spy attempts to sneak by with either of his vision modes active he’ll be lit up like a Christmas tree. Motion vision lets mercs pick up any motion in the area. If a spy gets a little sloppy and dashes across an area you’re watching, you’ll make swiss cheese out of him in no time. Mines, grenades, a flashlight and a few other toys round out the mercs arsenal.

Graphics:

Pandora Tommorow doesn’t bring a whole lot of anything new to the Splinter Cell series in the graphics department. I’m not saying it’s not dead sexy though. It basically takes the original game and adds a bunch of cosmetics to pretty things up a bit. Character models, especially Sam and the multiplayer models, look much better than the original. Areas in the game are larger, more intricate, and better textured than the first. The most important thing for a game in which playerrs need to stay in the dark is lighting, and once again it’s pulled off perfectly. I’ve noticed some jaggies here and there, and a touch of slowdown in areas with extremely complex light maps, but no major graphical hitches to speak of. There’s not a whole lot else to say besides “Wow, that’s a pretty game.”

Audio:

I’ve already revealed my love for Grimsdottir’s voice, but Sam and the rest of the crew also sound great. The only shoddy voice work is the occasional repeated phrases from a guard here and there. Pandora Tomorrow’s sound effects are perfect. All sorts of ambient sounds converge and suck you right into your role as Third Echelon’s most elite agent. Musically, there’s not much to speak of besides the urgent “oh, no I’ve been seen” music that plays when a guard picks up your trail. There are various other pieces here and there, but nothing major. By far the neatest audio trick is in multiplayer. If you have the Xbox Live headset get ready for some good times as a spy. Mercs can chat it up with their buddy, as can the spies, but the spies get a nifty gadget that lets them listen into the mercs if they can tag one with it. Also, when you grab a merc from behind as a spy you can whisper sweet nothings into their ear piece before you knock them out cold. I’m still working on my catch phrase for those kills. I think I’ll go with “I’d rather kiss a Wookie!” Nah.

Controls:

Controls have changed a bit from the original Splinter Cell. Back to wall has been moved white to left thumbstick click and inventory has been moved form black to white. There are a couple other changes as well, but those two took me the longest to get used to. After a few minutes you’ll have Sam sneaking around perfectly. Now where’s the button to speed dial Grimsdottir’s flat?

Left Thumbstick – Move
Left Thumbstick Click – Back to Wall
Right Thumbstick - Camera
Right Thumbstick Click – Binoculars
Back – OPSAT
Start – Menu
A – Interact/Reload
B – Crouch/Roll
X – Draw Weapon
Y – Jump
White – Inventory
Black – Whistle
Right Trigger – Primary Fire/Knock
Left Trigger – Secondary Fire
Dpad Left – Night Vision
Dpad Right – Thermal Vision
Dpad Up or Down – Select Item

Replay:

Two words: Xbox Live. Had you told me when the first Splinter Cell released that the sequel would have multiplayer I would have just looked at you quizzically trying to figure out how on earth you would make Splinter Cell multiplayer. Thankfully, I wasn’t in charge of designing it, because I never could have come up with the mercs versus spies game play. If you have Xbox Live this is the best game you’ll find for it until Halo 2. Gamers should get a ton of time out of the various maps and modes they’ll find in multiplayer. If you don’t have Xbox Live your mileage will vary. The single player is pretty much identical to the first when it comes to game play. Once you beat it there’s not any real good reason to go back and play it again. If you’ve been on the fence about Live, Pandora Tomorrow is the game that should knock you firmly over into Live territory.

Summary:

Ubisoft made a wonderful decision by adding multiplayer to Splinter Cell. Had they only released the single player portion of the game, I would have ranked Pandora Tomorrow a good bit lower. Don’t get me wrong, the single player is great, but it has a “been there, done that” type feel most of the way through. I find it a lot more interesting to try to sneak past living breathing human beings than computer controlled AI any day. Pandora Tomorrow is an excellent game overall with a solid single player experience combined with and extraordinary multiplayer. I highly recommend it to fans of the stealth action genre and casual gamers alike.