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Splinter Cell: Blacklist Offers Shock And Awe, Rewards Stealth
Ubisoft is taking a Pavlovian approach with Splinter Cell Blacklist. The upcoming action series installment will condition players to guide Sam Fisher with more discretion when playing rather than storm in, guns blazing, to every mission.
“The toughest part with almost any Tom Clancy games is that they’re tactical games,” says Maxime Béland, creative director. “Tactics mean that you think before you act. You observe, you prepare, you get into a good position, and you wait for a good moment. But not all players are willing to spend that time in the shadows looking at patrols.”
The three approaches are known as ghost, assault and panther. A ghost player will navigate through a level with calculated approach, drawing no attention to the player and causing as few firefights or other noisy conflict as possible.
Panther is the middle approach— not quite as strategic as the ghost method, but not as insane as the assault approach.
Assault players barrel onto the scene with no sense of decorum at all, drawing weapons immediately and opening firefights for a more fast-paced experience.
All three methods are valid, but the ghost experience is the most rewarding— literally. The in-game points system will reward points for kills. But it will reward even more for stealth kills that don’t draw attention. And more points still for takedowns rather than kills.
This aspect combined with the difficulty settings can make for multiple, varied playthroughs. In particular, the Perfectionist difficulty level is for players looking for a challenge or have exhausted all their in-game options.
If Splinter Cell Blacklist's August 20, 2013 release date is too far away, tide yourself over with details on our preview. Blacklist has been announced for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii U and PC with no word yet on next-gen release for a later date.
Ghost, assault and panther- which method is your poison? Let us know in the comments.
[Source: UbiBlog]
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