'Splinter Cell' sequel spreads the spy fun



The multiplayer mode is the real star of the latest version.
By JUSTIN HOEGER
SACRAMENTO BEE
Sam Fisher is back, but his enemies won't see him coming. An elite covert operative, Fisher works alone and unseen in missions for Third Echelon, a top-secret espionage unit. This time around, he's out to stop an Indonesian terrorist group from unleashing a biological weapon.
The video game "Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow" is Fisher's second mission, following his excellent 2002 debut. As before, Fisher must be invisible in hostile territory, silently gathering information and slipping undetected past security devices and personnel. He also has an impressive bag of tricks and gadgets to do it.
But the star of this adventure is the new online multiplayer mode -- more on that later.
The grizzled Fisher is in peak physical condition despite his age. He can move almost silently and has a large selection of sneaky maneuvers -- some new, most old. He still has access to all his old hardware, such as night- and heat-vision goggles, sticky cameras for remote espionage, enemy-stunning sticky shockers and a handful of other toys, including a new camera jammer. Fisher can also grab or knock out unsuspecting foes.
The game play is almost identical to the original; each level has a set of objectives to complete, some of which are assigned midmission. Some missions will fail if Fisher is seen; others have escalating alarms as he is spotted; still others stipulate that Fisher kill nobody.
Most missions involve some trial and error, which can be irritating, but the game play is so solid and the ways Fisher can dispatch or avoid his foes so varied that it's worth it to keep trying.
"Pandora Tomorrow" looks a bit better than the original, but not much; that's no bad thing, since the first looked great. The sounds are crisp and the music is good but unobtrusive. The voice acting is excellent, especially Michael Ironside's turn as Fisher, who is as menacing as good guys get.
Multiplayer mode
But as good as Fisher's mission is, "Pandora Tomorrow's" trump card is its online multiplayer mode. Far more than a simple transplant of the single-player game to an online setting, the multiplayer mode puts teams of players on opposing -- and very different -- sides.
On one side are the Shadownet spies, a branch of Third Echelon charged with gathering and neutralizing biological agents. Like Fisher, they are masters of stealth and invisibility.
On the other side are the Argus Corp. mercenaries, soldiers employed to protect the viral containers that Shadownet is after. More than simple hired muscle, the mercs are heavily armed and equipped with devices to detect unwanted visitors.
Up to four players can play in a match, which take place in one of several smallish facilities, each with several areas that contain a couple of viral containers. The spies try to neutralize these units, by hand or with a special wall-mounted modem, or steal them, depending on the game type, and are controlled from a third-person viewpoint. The mercs try to defend the capsules and find and eliminate the spies, and are controlled from a first-person viewpoint.
Spies
Spies share Fisher's move set, and can go many places mercs cannot, but must hack switches or find ways to go around doors that mercs can pass through at will. Their weapons are nonlethal, consisting of flash-bang, chaff and gas grenades; sticky shockers, which can also be used to disable surveillance equipment; spy cameras, which can release a debilitating gas cloud; merc-distracting noisemakers; and spy bullets, which mark mercs on the radar and let spies listen in on opposing players' communications.
In a clever twist, a spy can talk to a captured merc through the Xbox Live headset, if desired. The Argus mercs can mark spies with phosphorescent paint, track their whereabouts with spy traps and the facilities' security systems, and use vision modes that track movement and highlight electronics in use -- such as a spy's night-vision goggles.
The balance between the two sides is exquisite. The low player count makes every enemy encounter meaningful, and tense chases through dimly lit corridors are just as thrilling as chaotic firefights.
X"Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow," for Microsoft Xbox and PC, with an alternate version on Game Boy Advance, is by Ubisoft and is rated T for teens.

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