After the success of Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow and Chaos Theory’s multiplayer modes, Ubisoft decided to go in a slightly different direction with it for the next game in the series; Splinter Cell Double Agent.

While the spies and mercenaries in the previous games looked like their real life present day counterparts, that has been traded away for a more futuristic look this time around. The gameplay is simple, the Upsilon mercenaries are guarding a given location the spies have to infiltrate and accomplish a mission. The mission changes depending on the different gameplay modes. There's even an offline mode where you can practice against mercenary bots, which I think is a nice touch. You can play this mode with your friends to perfect your teamwork and tactics before going online with your game. The game also features several ratings, to make sure that when you go online, you get a challenge suited to your skill level.

What makes this game so balanced and intense are the different roles that you play. With the mercenaries, you get the standard FPS view like Quake, CS, or Unreal. The mercenaries are basically fighting fortresses, armed to the teeth with sensors, weapons and flashlights. Their disadvantage is of course, their lack of mobility. They can't reach higher places unless there's a ladder. However, the developers have the mercenaries a rope to rappel down if the situation demands it. Each mercenary comes standard with automatic weapons and grenades. This can be both a blessing and a curse. The problem with having so many sensors and inputs is that you'll be getting so much information that you'll have no idea where everything is coming from. As a mercenary, you can do a “fliparound” move if you suspect a spy is creeping up behind you, which will cause the spy a rather untimely death. I always thought this move unbalanced the game, considering the spy’s main angle of approach is from behind, but the developers have decided to keep it in anyway.

As a spy, the game plays out from the standard third person view we all know and love from the Splinter Cell games. You play a highly agile skilled operator, who may not be Sam Fisher, but kicks ass never the less. You have all the flipping, jumping, and wall climbing acrobatics of the single player. The spies also come equipped with night vision and heat vision. The problem is, since you're a walking technological showcase, the EMF vision that the mercenaries have will be able to spot you. EMF basically scans for electronic activity and relays this into a night vision like mode. If you want to stay as stealthy as your bodysuit seems, you've got to stay in the shadows with no vision modes running. As for weapons, all you have are your fists. You can jump on top of mercenaries to disable them, break their necks, throw them off high railings; the choices are endless and they're all yours.

With Splinter Cell: Double Agent, comes of course the awesome single player, but this time the game isn't exactly as shadow oriented as it has been previously. You're now tasked with being a double agent and infiltrating a terrorist group known as the John Brown’s Army. Once inside, you'll find yourself with dual objectives; separate objectives that each side wants you to complete. Complete objectives for the terrorists and you'll get in deeper with them, but lose trust with the NSA and vice versa. The game promises open ended gameplay like never before, and even has multiple endings. Sam's moves have also been upgraded and he has several new ones. This mission takes you on locations ranging from a prison to a skyscraper in Shanghai, so it will be fun to see what Ubisoft have managed to come up with this time around.