Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow (GameCube) Preview

Even though the first Splinter Cell was a sure fire hit, it was not perfect in every way possible, but gameplay wise there was little that needed any sort of improvement along with the amazing lighting effects, also making the graphics harder to take further. However Pandora Tomorrow looks as if it could quite easily outdo itself what with even greater AI, all new moves and in-depth environments.

In the original, the enemies were applauded for their incredible intelligence responding to the slightest bit of noise or commotion. Now there are three levels of intelligence, the first where causing an alarm will make more guards take point, the second involves the guards wearing Flak Jackets, and finally the third time they will wear Kevlar helmets, so head shots soon become difficult. This should then force players to avoid making noise at all costs, for with only a pistol, guards in full armour will be near impossible keeping your life intact.

Of course if the enemies become smarter, Sam too has to improve and in Pandora Tomorrow there are several new moves for players to make use of. Some are only available Online, like the wall jump, unlike Mario though this is simply a somersault off it, rather than a gravity-defying leap. Also is Preying Mantis, where Sam warps his legs around a pipe and hangs there with his gun waiting to fire and in the single player game there is the new half-split jump, for when there are two close walls that Sam can lean either side of, the trap door peek, which as its name suggests means opening a trap door only slightly to see what is above it and the swat turn used to quickly rotate past a gap without being seen. All these moves allow the player to reach new areas, and the previous inability to link moves together has been removed. And as well as all this, the moves in the previous game are all returning. But these moves can only be made use off, if there is a smoother control system. Which there is.

While in original the constant knowledge of staying in the dark and not being seen was the only thing keeping you alive meant that extremely tense and on the edge gameplay was ensured. In Pandora Tomorrow this is restored along with even more features to have your nerves shot. A new sensory system has been added, so that whenever you are approaching something like a booby trap, the controller will rumble, though instant reaction to this is required to stay alive. Although you will not get warnings of nearby birds and get to close to them and they will fly off and you will be given away. But still the game employs the same trial and error style, along with several ways to tackle each mission. Such as in the train level, you can either scale over on the roof of the train, hang on the side of it or go underneath it, each with its own pros and cons. Although some ways will obviously be easier.

But the levels themselves appear even more detailed visually and use completely new ideas, such as making each level much more spacious so that even though restrictions are still present they are less obvious and make levels easier to navigate and with more options to choose from. While light has always been a key part of Splinter Cell now it is used much more for smaller touches, such as when light pours into a room it seems much more natural, and in one level the mission takes place as the sun rises and sets, so the use of dieing and morning light has to be used and adapted to. But light is not the only thing that has been made sharper. Sam now looks even better than before and the levels are far more detailed and crisper, like in the jungle level, where the grass is all individually modeled and moves as Sam crawls through it.

But while the single player games looks to be even better than before, there will be nothing for Gamecube owners, to make up for the lack of Online Multiplayer. But Co-Producer of Pandora Tomorrow, Oliver Dauba, did make the good point that spilt screen multiplayer would not of worked in a game where the whole point was not knowing where your enemy was, which is impossible to achieve through split screen. However Ubi Soft have included the much loved GBA-GC connectivity so now you can use the GBA to see the activity and locations of enemies in your whereabouts and set up traps. Of course this is nothing like what fans were expecting, but it's the though that counts, and it appears the single player game should be pleasing enough.