Chaos Theory is the best one. It has the bank mission, the Amon Tobin soundtrack, and a just-about-perfect mixture of stealth and aggression. But Pandora Tomorrow has that section on the train, and that shocking moment during the Jerusalem level (no spoilers). There's also the original, with the CIA infiltration, and Double Agent, which plays more directly with the push and pull of Sam's loyalty. What I'm saying is that the classic Splinter Cell games are all good. I'm not so keen on Conviction and Blacklist – they're too slick, and skim over the murky morality of espionage and warfare – but after 12 years, I'd welcome the stealth game's return. Turns out, that might be on the horizon. Based on a mysterious new post from Ubisoft, the long-whispered Splinter Cell remake could be about to break cover.
Although Sam Fisher appears in the revived Ghost Recon games, his last full outing was in 2013. As for Ubisoft, it's had some rough times lately with the cool reception to Skull and Bones and the death of Xdefiant. But Assassin's Creed Shadows seems to have buoyed the company's prospects a little. The Division 3 is also apparently in the works and Rainbow Six Siege X is coming soon. If it wants to keep up the good will campaign, bringing back its beloved Splinter Cell remake might not be as far away as we imagined.
Summer Game Fest begins a week from now, on Friday June 6. Keeping that in mind, Ubisoft has just posted an image of Sam Fisher, with the simple hashtag 'Splinter Cell.'
"Close-up of Sam Fisher from Splinter Cell Chaos Theory," the post's alt text says, "showing a stern expression with focused eyes, short dark hair, and a rugged beard, set against a blurred high-tech background. He's locked in."
So, on the one hand, we have Ubisoft posting something Splinter Cell related a week before one of the biggest videogaming conventions of the year. On the other hand, Ubisoft does not appear on the list of SGF partners. That doesn't necessarily mean that it won't have some kind of presence at the show, or could even announce something separate to SGF entirely, but it's certainly worth noting if we want to keep anticipation in check.
Similarly, Ubisoft has not announced plans for one of its own Ubisoft Forward events for 2025. But the Splinter Cell remake did supposedly begin development all the way back in 2021, and is still listed on the homepage for Ubisoft Toronto, alongside some concept art. It feels like a reveal is about due, so we'll have to see.
In the meantime, if you're a fan of the original Splinter Cell series, you might also enjoy some of the best single-player games available on PC.
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