Comparing the Two Versions of Splinter Cell: Double Agent

   Last January I posted an article ranking all the Splinter Cell games. And I was an idiot. At the time I didn't know that there were differences between the 6^th and 7^th generation versions of Double Agent (2006), the game I ranked as the worst of the series. Having played only the Xbox 360 version of the game, I was unimpressed with its gameplay and level design. It wasn't until a few weeks after writing the article that I learned the generation 6 version of the game is very different, with the G6 version designed by Ubisoft Montreal and the G7 version made by Ubisoft Shanghai. I've now finally gotten around to playing that version of the game (on Xbox original) and I've got to say I prefer it over the generation 7 version. However, it's not a complete improvement. So let's take some time to discuss which version of the game does Splinter Cell best.

   Let's begin with a video game's most important aspect: gameplay. The G6 version looks and feels almost exactly the same as the previous game, Chaos Theory. Since Chaos Theory was the best game in the series, this is a welcome trait. Generation 6's version retains CT's user interface, HUD, opsat, weapons, gadgets, and controls. The only differences are that the G6 version has noticeably worse graphics, save states (which are pointless because you can still quicksave whenever you want), and a different hacking minigame (which I suck at). The in-game-engine cutscenes here are laughable, like something from a Nintendo 64 game. The G6 version of the game also has no stealth score/success rating at the end of each mission which decreases the game's replay value and destroys the incentive to play perfectly stealthily.

   The generation 7 version on the other hand does have a stealth score, but it sucks. The score you'll get for any mission in particular will be a total crapshoot; it's unpredictable and unfairly harsh so it almost doesn't matter that the ratings are included. The G7 version of Double Agent seems to share only animations and in-game dialogue with Chaos Theory. The graphics, UI, opsat, and much of the gadgets are brand new. The game does away with the HUD, replacing it with regenerating health and a green-yellow-red system (for light exposure). As for masking your noise, you're on your own. There's no indicator for that! There's also no hacking minigame; hacking is now done automatically with gadgets. Also, Sam Fisher doesn't wear his ops suit very much in the G7 version which is lame. Oh yeah, and the dang thing is fairly buggy too.

   As I mentioned in the rankings article, the levels in the G7 version suck. There's four levels that take place at the JBA headquarters in New York City and they mostly consist of doing mundane tasks (often involving minigames) on a time limit. The only good thing about them is that you get to see the characters more and hear some decent dialogue. Really there's only two missions that are remarkable enough to make you want to replay: the cruise ship at Cozumel and the hotel skyscraper in Shanghai. The levels in the Generation 6 version are retooled and sometimes completely different. In the G6 version, there is no Shanghai level, there's only two JBA HQ missions (and they play more like traditional Splinter Cell levels, no undercover stuff), and the Kinshasa level is much more bearable this time. There's now a level where Sam Fisher robs a money train, and the last level takes place across the NYC cityscape. Also, the JBAs headquarters are now in New Orleans.

   Now on to the plot, and this is where I think things start to even out a bit between the two versions. The plot of each game is basically the same: Sam Fisher poses as a member of a terrorist group in order to stop it from bombing major US cities. Along the way he is forced to make choices that will either end up harming people or risk blowing his cover. These decisions that the player must make were marketed as being a big part of Double Agent, but unfortunately only one version of the game did them right. Each game uses the “trust meter” to illustrate how much your actions impact your standing with the NSA and the JBA. In the 6^th generation version, there is only one trust meter which has both of the two organizations on either side. So basically the trust is a zero-sum game in the G6 version since pleasing one group will automatically displease the other. This makes no sense because half the things you do for the NSA are done in secret! The JBA gets mad at you for no reason! But you know, this pretty much doesn't matter because if your trust meter goes too far in one direction you'll be given a “go here before the time runs out” task which isn't too difficult to accomplish. Not exactly punishing. What's worse is that the decisions the player makes have no real bearing on the plot; the G6 version has the same ending no matter what (assuming you disarmed all the bombs, and why wouldn't you do that?). It just doesn't feel like there's consequences for the choices you make.

   This is where the 7^th generation version of Double Agent succeeds. The decisions you make have real consequences on the plot. For example, if the player chooses to prevent the detonation of the bomb aboard the cruise ship, Emile Dufraisne kills Enrica Villablanca, a JBA member that the player has the option to romance. Compare this to the G6 version, in which the same choice will result in a cutscene where Emile just beats Sam and Enrica up and threatens them. Not as powerful a reaction, eh? Not only that, but if you choose to blow up the cruise ship in the G6 version, nothing happens! In the G7 version you are rewarded with a cutscene of the ship blowing up and the JBA dudes congratulating you. There's more the G7 version offers: more decisions, a bonus end level (if you do everything right), and even multiple endings! Sure, the endings aren't exceptionally great, but this is what I want to see in a game that promises to give the player agency regarding the plot. Additionally, the 7^th generation version of this game has two trust meters instead of one. There's one bar for each organization, making it easier to please both; it's not a zero-sum situation like in the G6 version.

   As for the actual story being told in these games, they each have their ups and downs. The G6 version has what's probably the better ending – which fits in better with the beginning of the next game in the series, Conviction – even if it's one you have no control over. (Just for the record though, Sam choosing to shoot Lambert in the G7 version ended up becoming official canon.) Still, it doesn't make any sense how the JBA found out Sam was a government agent. One minute Emile is praising Sam saying that none of this would have been possible without him and then the next minute he's barking orders to kill Sam Fisher on sight. The 7^th generation version's story and characters are generally more interesting (partially because the player can manipulate them more than in the G6 version of the game). Each character is given more screen time and backstory, thus giving them more personality. The G7 versions of Carson Moss and Jamie Washington stand out more since we get to see them at work and during their free time. You'll get to know people better in Double Agent's G7 version.

   I think it's also worth mentioning that the generation 6 version has a strange framing device. Each level begins with a sort-of cutscene (hidden load screen) in which Fisher is being interrogated by some guy named Williams (I think he's supposed to be the assistant director of Third Echelon, but it's never made clear). These scenes – which presumably take place after the game's events – simply recap the previous level's events and set up the next one. But these cutscenes are pure bullcrap. Williams is played as a one-dimensional angry boss character and he's always mad at you regardless of the decisions you made. If you blow up the cruise ship, he's mad at you. If you don't blow up the cruise ship, he's mad at you. At the game's end, Fisher blames Williams for Enrica's death and vows revenge. Williams promises that 3^rd Echelon will find him first. Umm... you guys are aware that you're in the same room, right? Presumably this means that Sam has already been captured, so... This is stupid.

   But the G7 version's biggest success against the G6 version is in its ability to really bring the undercover experience to life. As much as I dislike playing G7's JBA HQ missions, I have to admit that they do add a lot to the feeling of being somewhere you're not supposed to be, of tiptoeing amongst wolves who at any moment could discover that you're not one of them. This is where a lot of the non-player character development comes from as well. While the JBA HQ missions in the 6^th generation are more playable, they reduce the undercover element of the plot to just a handful of choice moments and communiques which don't end up amounting to much. These HQ missions have you doing only 3^rd Echelon stuff (no JBA stuff), so it comes across as just another level that could've been in any other Splinter Cell game.

   Does this mean that the 7^th generation version of the game is comparable to the 6^th generation version? No way! Although it has the slightly inferior story and it fails in the “undercover” department, the G6 version of Double Agent is far more enjoyable to play. When it comes to video games the most important thing is playability, and that's why the G6 version wins. If I were to update my rankings list from a year ago, I'd probably list it as the 4^th (or possibly 3^rd) best Splinter Cell game after Chaos Theory, Black List, and the 2002 original. But when looking back and writing this article, it seems that maybe the G7 version of Double Agent isn't as bad as I once gave it credit for... but it's still quite low on the rankings list. Tough luck, bub.