Splinter Cell Chaos Theory 3DS Review

 Hello everyone. Today I want to talk about the 2011 port of Splinter Cell Chaos Theory that released for the 3DS. I also want to compare how this version of the game fares compared to the 2005 DS version of Chaos Theory and the PSP game Essentials. Fun fact, I managed to snag this game just before the 3DS EShop went down (not exactly a fun fact now that I think about it). I haven't seen many videos and posts actually look at what this port does differently in detail so I wanted to explore that aspect.

So some quick background. Splinter Cell Chaos Theory 3DS was a launch title for the 3DS. It is a port of the PS2 version of Chaos Theory that released back in 2005. The PS2 version of the game was a fair bit different from the Xbox and PC versions of the game. Many of the alternate routes were cut. Levels were also segmented into sections seperated by loading screens (that do somewhat kill the pacing. Especially in the few missions that require backtracking). But it's still fun as it retains most of the gameplay at least. The 3DS version is also missing the pvp and co-op multiplayer of the PS2 version. Also, funnily, the 3DS version is rated "T" rather than "M" like the PS2 version because the amount of blood it has isn't sufficient for an M rating.

The 3DS version also retroactively incorporates features from later SC games, some of which I do like.

So lets start with the controls. You control Sam Fisher, your super spy for the adventure with the circle pad. Depending on how much you move the circle pad, Sam will move at a corresponding speed and produce a corresponding amount of sound. This is the main way to sneak around guards in the game. And thankfully, the 3DS nails this aspect. The Circle pad is large and thicc enough that I found it quite comfortable to precisely move Sam past enemies. I'd even say it feels better to move Sam with the Circle Pad than with an analogue stick. Past handheld SC games didn't fare as well. Essentials used the Analogue nub of the PSP which was quite small and had a very small range. So you only had like, 2 speeds when sneaking instead of really fine control. And the DS version of Chaos Theory tried to address this issue by removing the need to slowly sneak since Sam would automatically be silent when crouched regardless of speed. Though, you could hold L to make Sam walk for more help in avoiding bumping into guards.

Sadly, everything else about the 3DS controls starts to go downhill.

You can control the camera with the face buttons. Double tapping X also recenters the camera behind Sam. This isn't inherently bad as it allows you to move while controlling the camera at the same time. Something that wasn't possible as easily in Essentials since the default scheme required you to hold O so the analogue nub could then be used for camera control. And in the DS version, you had to use arrows on the touch screen to move the camera. This did technically make it possible to move and control the camera though it was awkward. I preferred to stop when I wanted to move the camera in that game.

Your basic actions are mapped to the D-Pad. Pressing Up makes Sam jump and climb. Left has Sam switch shoulders when aiming. Right makes Sam take cover against a wall and Down makes Sam crouch/stand. If you've played Splinter Cell before, you might be wondering "where is the interact command?" since actions such as opening doors, picking up bodies and in general, interacting with the environment is done via a contextual menu you access with a button. In SCCT3DS, that interact button is a small square on the bottom left of the touch screen.

I can't express how cumbersome and uninuitive this control scheme is. For one, you easily can't perform some of Sam's basic moves when moving. Like, it is rather cumbersome to run and jump or run and roll. But more importantly, it can make grabbing enemies from behind way more difficult than it needs to be. You need to slowly sneak behind an enemy, make sure you don't accidentally bump into them and then tap a really small and missable square on the bottom left of touch screen. Suffice it to say, I had quite a few deaths on guards that were super easy to deal with on the PS2 because I didn't tap exactly where the square was. Oh, and if you want to move the camera while doing this? It makes it far riskier.

The funny thing is that the DS version of Chaos Theory, widely regarded as one of the worst games on the platform and in the series (which I disagree with but I digress), did this much better. It mapped the interact command to Y which also doubled as the "Take cover" command. This worked surprisingly well because when you wanted to take cover, you had to press up against a wall and then press Y. While every other time scenario had it work for interactions.

Back to the 3DS version, start and select both pause the game (which is an odd choice. With so limited buttons, why have these both do the same thing? Have Select activate the Goggles or pull up the map or something different). L is used for non-lethal attacks. And R is used for lethal moves and firing weapons.

Whistling, pulling up the map, switching between weapons, using the goggles are all mapped to specific icons on the touch screen. Most of these are fine candidates to use the touch screen for since they are more contextual and you usually aren't under pressure to perform them. In fact, weapon switching might actually be more convenient on the 3DS version since your 3 main categories of weapons: the pistol, the SC-20k rifle and throwables, can be instantly equipped with a tap and their sub fields cycles through since the icons are really big. In the PS2 version of CT, you can only equip one weapon or item at a time and needed to fiddle through menus to change stuff. The DS version even uses a similar approach although you can use the touch screen to cycle between options. But despite this convenience, I feel it's wasted here. CT isn't a fast paced action game where you need to cycle between weapons quickly. Even in firefights, it's not a huge issue to just pull out whatever you have equipped and use it to get yourself out of a jam or to give yourself some breathing room. Like, I never felt glad I had the extra convenience of weapon switching of the 3DS version.

So, how would I fix these controls I could?

Well, the first thing I'd do is have the game have options for different control schemes. Yeah, it's weird that there is no option at all in the game to change anything related to the controls.

After that, I feel the game would be better if, at the very least, there were options for different control schemes if full mapping isn't doable.

Control Scheme 1 could be what's already the default but have Interaction also mapped to Left or Right. Taking cover against walls or Shoulder Swapping is so situational that it would be find to double up here (see the DS version). So now you don't need to keep swapping between the camera and the touch screen to interact with objects. Grabbing guards would still be a pain but it's still an overall improvement.

Control Scheme 2 could be to swap the D-Pad and Face Buttons. So now you can't seamlessly control the camera and move at the same time, but you can seamlessly move and perform all actions. I'd personally be using this one.

Control Scheme 3. If we wanted to be wild here, how about a system where L now swaps the D-Pad and Face Buttons on the fly. Your attacks are now non-lethal by default on R to compensate. 

Could be a cool way to allow the player to swap as needed on the fly.

With all that said, lets now talk about some of the other differences between the 3DS version and the PS2 version.

One thing to note is that the PS2 version of CT didn't have a tutorial mission. SC1's first mission was an obstacle course that gave you a quick introduction to every major mechanic in the game. Pandora Tomorrow's first mission was presented like a regular mission but it still acted like a tutorial. But Chaos Theory didn't care. The first mission, Lighthouse, was both presented like, and acted like a proper mission. Yeah, your notes tab did update more often than later mission with some obvious tidbits like "The sound of thunder can mask your sound" since it was the first mission. But aside from that, it was a legit mission. There were no prompts telling you what buttons did what or how do certain actions like lockpicking.

CT did have a series of training videos that walked over many of the mechanics and were narrated by Sam himself. And the manual of the game was quite helpful. But I feel this alone wasn't a good idea since CT is a dense game in terms of mechanics and having a training mode where players could test out the mechanics to see how exactly they work would be better in teaching players than videos or a manual they'd forget about or lack the context.

Like, the first time you can physically hack something is in the 3rd mission. The game gives no tutorial or prompts explaining how to hack stuff. So if you missed the videos, you'd trigger an alarm by failing here.

I remember as a kid, CT PS2 was my first Splinter Cell game. So I had no idea how to lockpick or hack. So I ignored those mechanics. I guess that does speak to CT's strengths that you can still play most of the game without needing to lockpick or hack and still get by (albeit with more alerted enemies).

Plus, even the DS version of CT did still have an optional training mission that introduced all the mechanics. Which was good because otherwise, I'd have no idea you could do stuff like SWAT Turns in that version that aren't in other versions of CT.

Why am I bringing all this up? Well, the 3DS version of CT tries to rectify this. It retroactively adds the "text on wall" feature from Splinter Cell Conviction and Blacklist to CT in addition to tutorial prompts to help explain certain mechanics when they become relevant. Though it does come at the expense of the training videos (the digital manual is still decent at least). For example, the first time you come across an object that can be jammed with the SCP pistol to distract enemies in the Lighthouse level, the game gives you a quick pop up explaining that mechanic and you can safely use it here. The game even provides a save spot nearby in case something goes wrong so you have a save spot to experiment a little. This process is the same for the EEV, using the knife, interrogation, lockpicking, security cameras etc. My favourite part is that the tutorial pop up for the Split Jump comes up halfway through the bank level (the 3rd mission of the game). Kinda confirming how little CT really used the Split Jump. Oh, and you get a tutorial for how to hack as well. So neat.

In addition, the "text on wall" effect is also used to highlight when you're close to primary objectives. For example, when you're in the server room on the Lighthouse mission, the "text on wall" effect highlights that this is the computer you need to interact with for an objective. Or on the Penthouse Mission, it highlights that you need to use the zipline (which I remember as a kid when I played CT, I couldn't find that at first).

I love this feature for a few reasons. Firstly, it doesn't help for Optional or Secondary Objectives. So you need to find those on your own. Secondly, the PS2 version of CT did have a map that showed you where your primary objective was albeit in a very confusing state. In addition to the music also changing when close to objectives. So the 3DS version effectively improves an aspect of the original version here. Plus, I always found it looked quite cool. Though, I am playing this on my 2DS. So I don't even have the cool 3D effect that was a selling point of this feature.

Another change in this port is how the Light and Sound Meter UI work.

In the PS2 version of CT. You had a meter that indicated how visible Sam was based on how lit up the environment was. If it was all the way to the left Sam was completely invisible to nearby guards and camera (unless they had night vision or something). If it was all the way to the right, Sam was "lit up like a Dutch Brothel" (according to Lambert) and guards would instantly shoot Sam on sight. In between, there would be ranges where Sam would either be sorta visible so if a guard were to see him, he'd be a bit sus. Or more visible where a guard would be quite sus but not start shooting.

This is the major gameplay feature of Splinter Cell as you can interact with light sources, such as by switching them off or shooting light bulbs to create more areas of darkness. With different methods creating different amounts of suspicion among guards. Like a light bulb getting shot out would probably affect guards differently to seeing a light seemingly just flicker out like there was a problem with the wiring.

In addition, CT also introduced a sound meter. In Past SC games, you made sound based on your actions and context but it wasn't clear exactly how much sound you were making. CT improves that with a sound meter that tracks how much sound you are making and how loud the environment is. This was a great addition. Like, if you were walk on hollow wooden floors vs a thicc carpet, you now know exactly how much more sound you are making on the former and how much you need to slow down by to avoid being detected. What's more is that the sound of the environment could mask your sounds, allowing you to be louder than normal. For example, when a thunderstorm happens, creates so much ambient noise (as your meter shows) that you can start firing your guns and still be undetected. Plus, you can sometimes "create your own environmental sound" to your advantage. Such as by using the jammer on a computer so it starts flickering and making a static sound. So a guard is not only more distracted by the fact his computer is malfunctioning but the added sound also masks your own.

The only downside of this approach was that it wasn't exactly clear on the meter when you were no longer visible/inaudible. Especially in areas with sparse darkness and inconsistent ambient noise. So there would be some occasional guesswork. The game after Chaos Theory, Double Agent, introduced a new system. In that game, the light on Sam's gear would be green if the player was hidden, yellow if visible and red if detected and getting shot at. But it removed the light meter entirely. This created the issue where even though you had information on your current status, you didn't know how much wiggle room you had. There would be times when slightly moving would cause the light to go from green to yellow without it exactly being clear there is a difference. If there was a light meter, at least you could use that to see that the meter is increasing or decreasing.

The 3DS version of CT effectively combines these 2 systems. Now, if you are hidden, the meter will also be blue. If you are sorta visible/audible, it becomes yellow. And if you are really visible and audible (like enemies will instantly start shooting you now if they were to see or hear you), the meter becomes red. These meters work independently so the light meter could be blue but the sound meter red to show you are invisible but audible. This effectively combines the best of both these systems and always makes it clear how hidden you are with how much wiggle room you have. My one nitpick is that the light on Sam's suit doesn't change like it does in Double Agent. Your only indication is the UI. Would have been cool if this was also included. Especially given that the game before CT, Pandora Tomorrow, had a system where the light on Sam's suit would start blinking if he was carrying a body, letting the player know it was safe to hide the body here. I love when games manage to replicate aspects of the UI into the world as a way to complement the UI.

Also, now when guards become sus, there is a slight orange flash on the screen. And when they become alerted, it is a red flash. I like it. It's some extra feedback in addition to the game already changing the music when this happens. What's more is that there more subtitles when you interrogate enemies which helps me finally understand what some of the enemies exactly said though they do sometimes refuse to show up.

Another major difference between the 3DS version and the PS2 version is the way Sam's goggles work. In the PS2 version, Sam had 3 vision settings on his goggles. There was night vision which allowed Sam to see in the dark but became overwhelmed in even sorta bright environments. So you'd use these in pitch black environment since you couldn't see anything anyway and avoid using them in areas with some amount of light. There was Thermal vision which made everything a blue filter and was impossible to properly navigate with. But allowed heat sources to show up as red/green/yellow colours. This can include both guards but also aspects of the environment. So a guard could end up masked if they were in a hot environment. Thermal Vision was more situational but it allowed you to see through certain thin doors and curtains and mist, and highlight certain electronic equipment and see lasers. The 3rd vision was Electromagnetic Vision. This was the most situational of all. It covered the screen in grey static and was even harder to use to navigate than Thermal Vision but highlighted any electronic objects. This was useful in seeing which objects you could use the Jammer on, or for seeing any tech objects that Thermal wouldn't be a good option for.

I feel the way the 3 different visions worked was decent enough. Though, I do remember like 80% of my first playthrough of the PS2 version being in Night Vision lol.

The 3DS version replaces all that with the "Fusion Goggles". A single vision mode that sorta lets you see slightly better in the dark and can get somewhat overwhelmed in light, and highlights all humans and electronic objects.  Basically, the Fusion Goggles operate more like Batman's Detective Vision in Arkham Asylum than as sorta realistic vision modes the PS2 version was going for. I kinda had to stop myself overrelying on these when I played the 3DS version since I did want to look at the environments in normal vision. Especially as the default brightness of the game is actually slightly higher so you don't need Night Vision as much.

I'm a little mixed here. On the one hand, it does dilute that "realistic spy feel" the PS2 version was going for. Like in the Bath House level, you actually had to use Thermal Vision a fair bit because they could see through the steam (wait, is that actually realistic tho?) while Night Vision couldn't. But Thermal Vision still made it harder to navigate properly. So you actually had to be somewhat smart about using the vision modes. That isn't as much a factor in the 3DS version. It even entirely removes steam in the Bathhouse Mission. Then again, given the limited buttons of the 3DS version and how finicky it would be to use the touch screen to swap vision modes, this does streamline the process.

Another difference is how hacking works in the 2 versions. In the PS2 version, the hacking minigame required you to lock certain numbers and select the correct sequence. Requiring some patience and timing. It was kinda complicated at first. But once you got the hang of it, it becomes really easy. Like, it's often faster and easier to hack stuff than it is to find the correct code or "properly" use it. The 3DS version changes that. Now the hacking minigame is this puzzle where you are shown a cube with a portion of it cut out. You then need to scroll through 6 shapes and select the one that would properly fit it. And I found this minigame surprisingly challenging. Especially later on when you have larger and more complicated shapes. You can rotate the shapes but not the source cube so it can be hard to access the shapes. I guess this does properly balance the hacking minigame as I ended up growing sick of it and was often glad when I could bypass it by using the correct codes or forcing guards to use the retinal scanners. At least the puzzles themselves aren't randomized so if you are stuck on one, you can keep retrying until you get it.

Another difference is how saving works. In the PS2 version, the game would autosave whenever you entered a new area or crossed a loading screen. You could also drop manual saves whenever but those took forever to save and load (gotta love those PS2 loading times). The 3DS version autosaves the same way but there are no more manual saves whenever. Instead you can only manual save at designated save spots scattered throughout areas. I really dislike this. In the PS2 version, yeah, it would take forever to manual save and load it, but you could at least use it to help you at a tough situation. The Bath House section comes to mind. You could drop a manual save to prevent needing to play through a huge chunk of the level. Or if you trying a Ghost Run. The way the 3DS version has it, you either need to replay a chunk of a level if you need to reload, or you need to keep running back and forth and saving if you plan on doing a ghost run. If you don't care about alarms or guards being alerted, then I guess it isn't as much of an an issue since it wouldn't take much time to continue on from that but still. I suspect part of this is due to saves being buggy. If you keep reloading saves and then re-do the hacking minigames several times, the game is very likely to crash. I could almost predict when it would happen. Perhaps having full manual saves would have exacerbated this issue. I guess that's the issue with launch titles. They can't be delayed as easily to fix stuff like that.

Another difference is how mission progression works. In the PS2 version, when you start a mission, you get a quick briefing from Sam's team on what the next mission entails. Then you can choose which loadout to bring for the mission. You have a choice of 3 loadouts. Stealth: which gives you less bullets and lethal equipment in exchange for more non-lethal and stealthy gadgets. Assault, which does the opposite. And Redding's Recommendation. Which is a mix between the two. In missions where you aren't allowed to kill anyone, the Assault Loadout is unavailable. In the early missions, there isn't too much difference between the 3 loadouts aside from the number of bullets and secondary gear. Later missions change that with Stealth getting way more non-lethal equipment than before, and both Assault and Redding's Recommendation including the Shotgun and/or sniper attachments.

Once you complete a mission, you get scored on your performance. You start at 100% score and points are deducted for each objective missed, and any kills and alerts. You don't lose points for knocking out guards tho. 

I love the rating system since it encourages a more stealthy playstyle. It can be really satisfying to get 100% on a mission and 0s for kills, alerts and KOs. Though, I am not fond that you need to complete every optional objective to get the credit for it. There are no partial marks if you get, say 5/6 objectives. In addition, some of the secondary objectives are really cryptic to complete and impossible to also Ghost. In addition, the game has Bonus Objectives in certain levels but doesn't tell you about them. I wish they operated slightly differently where they gave enough points so you could get over 100% on a mission. Especially if you could use that to maybe kill an enemy or miss a few optional objectives and still get 100%.

I am not very fond of the loadout system tho. Like, I guess if you are a player that wants to get into more shootouts and try out the weapons it is there as an option. I remember as a kid playing the PS2 version and doing "assault only runs" where I would try and shoot my way through the entire level. It was fun at the time so it does add some variety.

But from a game design perspective, I don't feel it complements the game the way it is currently designed. Shouldn't the game want people to be sneaking around more? Why have there even be an option for a loadout that gives you extra firepower? Especially when Sam is so frail and slow in firefights so they aren't that fun and it docks marks from you from the scoring screen. It made sense in Blacklist since in that game, the game was upfront that there were 3 different playstyles which you could level up and unlock gear for by engaging in that playstyle. So if the player wanted to play the game like a shooter, the game had the gameplay and progression to oblige and make that fun. It also had the means to accommodate stealthy players as well.

Personally, I feel it would have been better if there was also the option to make your own loadout. So for example, you could choose to forgo bullets altogether in exchange for more sticky cams or something. Or if you wanted to be mostly stealthy but still pack the Sniper to take out Drones in Seoul, you could do that. I feel this would be really good for challenge runs. Imagine if there was an option to actually forgo all of your equipment and have to use what few resources are in levels or something.

The 3DS version handles this a bit differently. For one, there is no scoring screen in the end. Once you complete a mission, the game just shows you which objectives you completed. There is no mention of how many enemies you killed, alerts you did etc. Which really kills some of the incentive to go back and replay missions since you don't even know if you'll be rewarded for it.

In addition, there is no loadout system in the 3DS version. You just get given whatever the mission thinks you should have. But the game also tries to have something of a progression system? Like when you complete a mission it will say "upgrade unlocked: +10 pistol ammo" or "Sticky Cams unlocked". Which I guess gives completing missions feel like you're progressing but honestly, I could take it or leave it. It does mean you do have more resources in general than in the PS2 version but that includes having multiple attachments so you have access both the launcher, foregrip, shotgun and sniper attachments at once rather than just 2 per mission. The one issue I do have is that it means you do have less equipment on earlier missions. Like, I originally wanted to use the Sticky Cams on the Penthouse Mission only to realize I couldn't since I haven't "unlocked them yet".

The final difference I could find is the way the Optic Cable works. In the PS2 version, you could use it to see on the other side of doors. It worked well enough. But the 3DS version ties to the system's accelerometer and I found it to be so overly sensitive that I never used the Optic Cable. What's wrong with just using traditional controls here? It's a shame because I am usually a huge proponent of motion and gyro aiming. Especially on handhelds as I feel they can help compensate for the lack of decent analogue sticks. If this game had the options to tone down the Gyro Aim sensitivity and use it when aiming, I'd be using it a lot more.

So yeah, that covers the main differences between the 3DS version and the PS2 version. How would I rate them though? Well, if the Xbox version is around an A-, the PS2 version is around a B- and the 3DS version is around a C-. I still really love the gameplay of the 3DS version since its the same as the decent PS2 version. And I love some of the improvements to the UI. But the controls really drag it down. I would not recommend this be your first experience to Chaos Theory. 

As for the game itself, well like I said the PS2 version is still decent. But is really outclassed by the Xbox version. I remember as a kid playing the PS2 version to death and hearing everyone praise Chaos Theory as the best stealth game ever and thinking "Guys, the game is really good but it's not the best stealth game ever material" until I played the PS3 collection and felt like the guy from Plato's Cave. The levels are so much more dense in alternate pathways that doing Ghost Runs is much more varied. It's that good.

The PS2 version is much more linear which hurts the replayability. The levels being segmented does also hurt the pacing. But with all that said, you still have the excellent stealth mechanics. The level design is still decent. Plus, CT also does a much better job in giving the player options for completing objectives. In SC1 and Pandora Tomorrow, there were times if when you knocked out certain enemies or missed a timing, it would result in an instant failure. In CT during the Lighthouse Mission, if you knock out the radio operator, you can then look through the filing cabinets to get the same info. In the Displace Mission, you can scan the briefcase the politician is carrying around to get the codes without them noticing. But you can still knock them out and scan it right there and then. And if you miss them, you can still hack a computer in a different area to get the codes. CT is far less frustrating to play compared to its predecessors as a result.

In addition, Sam is a lot more fun to move and control through levels compared to its predecessors. His walk and sneaking stances change when he's near enemies. He jumps and clings to objects better now. He can KO or Kill enemies from any direction instead of relying on a lacklustre elbow strike. He can use his knife to cut through some obstacles. He can use more acrobatic moves like hanging from pipes and the Split jump to get the jump on enemies.

 

The Enemy AI is pretty decent and much improved from its predecessors.  If you whistle, instead of them blindly walking to where you whistled from and stand there allowing you to KO them, they can actually slowly walk up and investigate first and even use flares and torchlights to scout out the area first. If they are already sus or alerted, they won't fall for easy traps or be pulled from their positions as easily. They also won't go down to a lower stage of awareness if alerted. Alarms cause them to prep by wearing body armour and taking fortified positions. It's quite good.

I also like the escalating difficulty, progression and variety of the levels in CT. Like, back in SC1, the first main mission had a 3 alarms limit. Many of the early missions had inconsistent requirements for not being detected or killing enemies. But in CT, this flows a lot better. The first mission, Lighthouse, has no overarching alarms or security system to worry about and is mostly straightforward. Even the optional objectives are generally on the route to your main objectives. So you can get a sense of how the game normally plays. 

The second mission: Cargo Ship introduces alarms (and you don't get a game over for 3 alarms) and still allows you to use the different entrances and stairs of the ship to move around and bypass obstacles. The optional objectives do require you explore more of the ship.

 The third mission: Bank introduces security cameras, lasers, hacking and both the primary and optional objectives are more spread out. 

The 4th mission: Penthouse introduces a "no kill rule" for the first half of the mission and the later half introduces Night Vision Cameras. Plus the whole section with Dvorak is novel.

 The 5th mission: Displace has an entire "No kill rule" and uses more claustrophobic hallways and office buildings which require you to be more careful. 

The 6th mission: Hokkaido resets back to a low tech environment like Lighthouse, but with more natural lighting that can't be jammed. 

The 7th mission: Battery returns to a typical setup with alarms. But has a set piece that uses a timer to stop a missile launch (which does hurt more on the PS2/3DS version given you now need to backtrack through loading zones. Sidenote: this is the first mission I didn't really like. I found the visuals and aesthetic quite bland).

 Mission 8: Seoul has Sam sneaking through a warzone so there are no alarms but enemies are more alert by default and helped by UAVs that can see in the dark. It is also the only mission that's segmented into 2 parts via cutscene and has an optional "moral choice" for Sam. 

Mission 9: Bathhouse has Sam sneaking through a Japanese Bathhouse that has ties to the Yakuza. The first half of the mission is solid with the new gimmick of steam from the baths blocking both regular and night vision for both you and the guards so you have to use Thermal Vision (except in the 3DS version where the steam is removed). The second of the mission is cool on paper but not as fun to play through given you have to deal with guards equipped with thermal vision that can see you if they have line of sight regardless of the dark and you have no way of easily getting the drop on them and they usually have good cover and places to approach from. You also need to disarm bombs in a very tight set of corridors so you have very few options for counterplay. I found myself constantly dying in this section. Most people I know that normally play this section resort to using wall mines. Even as a kid when I was playing CT PS2, this was the one and only section of the entire game where I felt the best option was to kill enemies rather ghost past them or try to KO them. I wish there were either more pathways or vents or ways to cause a diversion or some way to use the enemy's thermal vision to your advantage. Such as using your own thermal vision to see if there were any hot objects nearby and sticking to them so your own heat signature was masked. Or even have it that enemies have night vision instead of thermal vision so you can hide by staying in the light instead as a nice twist on the gameplay. The way the mission currently is really hurts an otherwise solid mission.

The final mission, Mission 10: Kokubo Sosho is a nice final level for the game. You once again have a "no kill rule" for most of the mission. There are way more night vision cameras (no guards with Thermal Vision. That's a relief). The latter half of the mission introduces a timer and requires using an explosive charge which brings a lot of attention. There's also a section in the first half where if enemies detect Sam, instead of shooting him with regular bullets, they will shoot him non-lethal rounds, capture him and try to interrogate him. Leading to an entire little section where Sam is tied up without his gear and needs to escape. This is a really cool idea.

I do have some criticisms here. The "Sam getting captured" section is really cool but even then, you can escape and get your gear back in a few minutes tops. Lambert even points this out saying "They couldn't have had much time to interrogate you. You were only gone for a few minutes". It technically even puts you closer to the servers you need to hack. I wish there was more to this section. Maybe the section was lengthened so Sam to sneak through at least some rooms and areas with almost 0 gear and have to use whatever he finds along the way. And to add to it, maybe there would be reason for a player to want to get themselves caught here since it bypasses a lot of night vision cameras and difficult sneaking areas. So players who want a challenge can do the section "legit". And players who get caught have to play a more limited but technically easier game since they get to bypass most of the challenge for a while before both get synched near the War Room or something. It would add to the feeling of this being the final mission. Perhaps as a bonus, if you get caught, you can then kill enemies and not get a mission failure since Sam isn't being monitored by Lambert (in the 3DS version, you can kill guards even in this state and Lambert chimes in to tell you the mission is over even though there is no way for him to).

Also, my favourite little thing in CT is that if 2 or more guards are talking and you sneak up behind one and grab them and move back into the shadows, his friend will at first become a little sus and be like "I lost contact" or "where did you go?". He will then investigate for a while before then going "Must have been the wind" and then going back to whatever he was doing earlier like patrolling or working on a computer. It's always hilarious when this happens. Imagine you're a poor guard chatting with who you think is your friend. But some American Spy grabs you and takes you into the shadows. Your friend begins to look for you..... but then gives up and acts like you never existed.

 

My biggest criticism with the mechanics of CT is how it deals with KOs vs kills. In missions like Displace and Sosho, Sam laments how much easier things would be if he could kill the guards. But that's not really the case in gameplay. A Knocked out Guard is as incapacitated as a dead guard. If a guard comes across an unconscious body, he will revive him but since you seldom backtrack to an area, if you knock out every enemy in an area, you don't have to worry about them.

I feel the game would have been much more intense if there was a difference between ghosting, KOs and kills. Maybe this could have been tied to the game's difficulty options. As it currently is, the only real difference between Normal and Expert difficulties is how much health Sam has. Which rarely comes into play if you are avoiding detection. Perhaps on Normal difficulty, the game works as it currently is. But on Hard, if you knock out a guard, they wake up some time later and become permanently sus. And on Expert mode, if you knock out a guard, they wake up some time later and then trigger an alarm. So now you have to consciously weigh up your options. You can either ghost past enemies, which doesn't hurt your score but enemies are now present everywhere. You can kill enemies which permanently removes them but it hurts your score and cannot be done in certain missions. Or you can Knock out enemies which temporarily incapacitates them but now you're on a timer to hurry up and complete the objective (or find some way of "disguising" the enemy by placing them on a desk so it appears they fell asleep or something. Essentially, what the Metal Gear Solid Games at this time had already been doing for a few years).

 

This extends to the new melee system. In CT, if you're close enough to an enemy and press L, you will instantly KO them with a punch or kick (depending on the context). Pressing R will instantly kill them with a knife attack. While the system is cool, I do feel this is a bit too OP. In CT's predecessors, you had a melee attack in the form of an elbow strike. If you did from behind an enemy, they would be instantly knocked out. But if you did it from the side or front, it would only stun the enemy and you'd need to do another one to actually KO them. And if they were alerted and firing at you, you'd still need to melee them twice but they wouldn't be stunned. So the melee strike was more of a desperate "last resort" move where if the situation was bad enough, wouldn't actually save you. But in CT, you can 1 hit KO any enemy from any direction regardless of their state. Which I feel kinda makes this an easy "get out of jail free card". There were times in CT3DS when I messed up sneaking on enemy and they get alerted and were about to start firing at me. But I could easily press L to KO them and it would be like I never made that mistake.

What are some ways the game could have addressed this? Well, maybe have non-lethal melee attacks work like how they do in older SC games but leave the lethal knife attacks the same. So if a player just wants to take the easy option and kill an enemy, they can with no issue. But if they want to KO an enemy, it takes a bit more effort and exposes Sam to some risk (hey, this also addresses Sam's point from earlier that killing is easier than being non lethal). I'd even go one step further and say that KO-ing an enemy using melee should be one of the loudest actions Sam does. He's literally punching or kneeing a dude in the face so hard he instantly goes unconscious. The dude even sometimes grunts loudly in pain when this happens. That should probably not be as quiet as a whisper. It also makes the "grab from behind" move more useful as a way to KO an enemy silently. To recap, I feel the system here would be better if lethal knife attacks remained unchanged since that gives an easy but not ideal way to deal with enemies. Non-lethal melee attacks were harder to pull off and had some trade offs (such as requiring the player to be positioned correctly and have alerted enemies be harder to melee as well as making more sound). Which leaves the grab move as the only way to KO enemies silently as your reward for sneaking up right behind a guard and grabbing them.

Achievements:

One thing I liked about the PS3 version of CT was that it added some achievements to the game such as completing the game without using any healing or under a certain amount of alerts. And one of the things I like about the Metal Gear Solid and Hitman games is that you can do replays of missions to complete certain playstyle challenges like using the knife on every enemy or using a specific approach the whole time. It's a shame this version of CT doesn't add that to missions and also removes the score screen. It really hurts the replayability.

The Story:

Like its predecessors, CT tells a similar story of a worldwide conspiracy between countries and information warfare. The actual plot isn't particularly interesting but the presentation and how it's used as a backdrop is done well. A major aspect of the first 3 Splinter Cell games is that their stories are presented in a sort of "realistic way". Like, this stuff could happen in real life (kinda reminds of how Call of Duty Modern Warfare 1 2007 did it). You have news broadcasts that give you a civilian's POV on what's going on, in addition to cutscenes from 3rd Echelon's perspective so you see what's going on behind the scenes. I always really liked this approach. It kinda allows the story to not necessarily have to interfere too much with the gameplay while still allowing the missions to have some more context and overall stakes. As well as reinforcing how secretive and "spy-like" the adventure is.

Like, an aspect of Sam's job is that since he doesn't officially exist (because 3rd Echelon's mere existence is a constitutional violation), he doesn't get recognized for his actions. In SC1's ending, the President gives a medal to some random soldier for resolving the conflict and Sam chuckles at this since he knows what really happened and that's just part of his job.

Chaos Theory doesn't break new ground here but it does improve the presentation. Its predecessors often jumped erratically between news broadcasts and sequences in the cutscenes making the story and context rather hard to follow. Chaos Theory does a better job in being cohesive between its news broadcasts and Sam cutscenes so it's much more clear what's going on and why Sam's missions matter.

In addition, before every mission, you can listen to optional briefing tapes from Sam's crew and allies which provide some additional context and add to that "you're a spy going on a secret mission" feel. Though, I never found these briefings ever actually that useful. Even if there were important info in them, you get a summary during the mission anyway. I feel it would have been cool if this fed into the "custom loadout" suggestion I had earlier. What if Redding for example, gave you a rough idea of what kind of obstacles you'd be up against and you could use that to plan your custom loadout. Like, if he mentions you'll be up against drones and camera in the Seoul mission and says "you can use the sniper to destroy them at the cost of making a lot of sound", and you could use that info to select a Sniper attachment in that mission. Or telling you that there's not much technology in the Lighthouse or Hokkaido so you feel it would be better to leave the SCP Pistol behind in exchange for other gear. Would have been cool.

The character interactions during missions are still gold. Sam's dry wit when interrogating enemies or bantering with his crew are great.

I do have some criticisms.

For one, the game after Chaos Theory is Double Agent. The game where Sam's daughter Sarah is killed which sends Sam into a depressive episode. Prior to Double Agent, Sarah gets like 5 seconds of screentime in SC1, gets only a mention in Pandora Tomorrow and is non-existent in Chaos Theory (she is more present in the tie in novels at least). Even in Double Agent, she is shown on screen for like, 3 seconds?

It's odd for Chaos Theory to not use Sarah more in the game. Both as a way to ground Sam and show his human side and to set up for the next game. Recall that during the development of the first Splinter Cell, Sam was originally a very cut and dry character but his voice actor, Micheal Ironside, worked with the writing team and insisted Sam get fleshed out more and have more dimensions to his character, relationships and backstory. This was a great idea but it's a shame the games barely touched on this.

 

I understand cutscenes where Sam chills with Sarah may not have been a good idea as they might have killed the pacing. But I feel there could have been ways to accommodate this aspect. One idea could have been to have Sam chat with Sarah on the phone every now and again like in SC1. Showing us how she's coping with the Blackout and how Sam is worried for her. This would again, humanize Sam and give him more motivation to succeed. Another idea could be that during those briefing tapes before missions, the game could give the excuse that Sam told Sarah to send him voice memos or audio logs or something on a sort of frequent basis so Sam can stay in touch during his "long business trips". I know this sounds cheesy but I feel it would have been a nice contrast to the game. Imagine if during the Lighthouse mission, you have the usual briefings from Lambert, Grim and Redding telling you the usual dangerous spy stuff. But then you also have a voice memo from Sarah just talking about her day and her plans to go on a trip to New York with her friends. Maybe you could go one step further and have her be aware of Sam's real job and have her be coy and try and "predict" what assignment her dad is really on or something. And in the Penthouse mission, you have the briefing where the crew is prepping Sam for the mission and mention they will be looking out for Sarah and for him to focus on the mission. And the voice memo from Sarah is of her being afraid of the blackout in New York. I feel these few optional minute long audio logs would have added so much to the story and really made Double Agent's story hit even harder.

My other criticism is more of a nitpick. One of the things I liked in SC1 and Pandora Tomorrow was that sometimes, Sam would use his dry wit to call BS with the way the missions were conducted and to voice is grievances. For example in SC1, when Sam finds out that the CIA would already have known the agents died, he responds with "nice of them to share". Another example in Pandora Tomorrow is when Lambert says "We don't know if the target is an American Agent or a terrorist" to which Sam responds "Those things aren't mutually exclusive you know?". These moments were great because they added to Sam's character. They showed he wasn't some blank slate that was just a mindless weapon. It showed that Sam didn't blindly accept what he was told and had some agency of his own. That's absent in Chaos Theory. There's no real example I could recall of Sam calling BS on the US government or 3rd Echelon.

In closing, despite all of my criticisms and flaws, I feel the worst thing about the 3DS version of CT is that it's essentially the "only one of its kind". There aren't many games like CT so even the further compromised port on the 3DS is still some of the best stealth gameplay around. I wish Double Agent PS2 got a port on the 3DS with improved controls. Hell, I also wish Chaos Theory PC, both versions of Double Agent and Blacklist got ports to the PS4/5 and Switch.

The 3DS version of CT isn't the best way to play CT. The improvements and additions in this port are overshadowed by the uncomfortable controls and lack of scoring system and quicksaves. It's shame because these could have been fixed relatively easily. The original PS2 version has better controls and that scoring system and even a slow manual save system. The original Xbox version has much better levels. And the PS3 version only adds on with better graphics, faster load times and achievements.

But seeing as this is still a worse version of CT PS2, I did enjoy my time with the game and wished there was more of it.

Next up for me is probably the reviews on the DS Spider-Man games. See you then.