Bron: Homelan: Weinig echt nieuws, maar voor de diehards, die echt alles willen weten: The announcement earlier this year of Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell didn't raise much notice at first but that all changed at last May's E3 when the gaming press saw how developer/publisher Ubi Soft was taking the third person action game to a new level. With the release of the Xbox and PC version of Splinter Cell around the corner, HomeLAN got a chance to chat with Mathieu Ferland, the producer of the game, to find out more about their plans for Splinter Cell. HomeLAN - Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell is a very different game than previous Tom Clancy branded titles. How did you come up with the idea for the game? Mathieu Ferland - The first goal was to create a console game around Clancy universe introducing a new hero. To do that, we've introduced a new kind of threat that would force the NSA to create this new type of special force. So, we had the idea to introduce this Information Warfare where only a solo operative can be efficient, and this suddenly justified the whole concept. Then, tones of other ideas came out and we've solidified the concept by introducing the light interactions and shadow effects, the cool moves of the character and the innovative gadgets he is using. All Clancy games have a justification: Rainbow team is acting in close quarter sites for quick, tactical, critical operation; Ghost Recon team is there to act on militaries open field areas; and Sam Fisher joins the troops to act silently and secretly where none of these teams can go. Supported by a group of strategists, it's a new force that allows the NSA to be proactive and to investigate on the field before any bad thing happens, to protect our nation. HomeLAN - The game received some of the best notices of any game at E3 last May. How do you feel about the reaction the game received at the expo? Mathieu Ferland - Before E3, we knew we had technical features never seen before in a video game. However, you never know about competitors and we could have been 20 developers using those new features. Fortunately, other developers have concentrated their efforts on other aspect and Splinter Cell became a quite innovative game. Since E3, the team is working even harder to make this game successful. We're on the right track so far as consumer's play tests revealed very positive feedback. It's nice to know that the game is expected and it pushes us to make the game better and better for good reviews and sales. At E3, people were enthusiastic about graphics, now we want costumers to be crazy about gameplay and replay value. HomeLAN - What input does Tom Clancy have in the making of Splinter Cell? Mathieu Ferland - He approves the concept, the storyline and follows key steps in the development. He helps the games be more realistic in every detail. HomeLAN - What can you tell us about the main character in the game, Sam Fisher? Mathieu Ferland - Fisher has been on the front lines of espionage in several defining conflicts throughout the past decades. He has not only survived, but also excelled in the field of covert operations through hard work, insatiable curiosity, and brutal honesty. He has little time for polite niceties and even less for lies. He is quiet, instinctive, and observant: somebody who watches from the outside. Combat, espionage, and constant training have defined his adult life; his tactical experience has become part of his instinct. HomeLAN - What sort of research into real spy organizations did the development team do for the game? Mathieu Ferland - Our story writer met with NSA agents at the beginning of the project. Also we had the input of Clancy and we did a lot of reading… HomeLAN - What can you tell us at this point about the storyline for the game? Mathieu Ferland - Republic of Georgia Oct.11th 2004: Two CIA agents monitoring nearby communication outages disappear. Fearing the agents’ lives have been jeopardized by an unknown terrorist effort, the secret NSA sub-division Third Echelon activates Sam Fisher. HomeLAN - What locations will Splinter Cell take place? Mathieu Ferland - U.S CIA headquarters, Russia, Former Soviet Republic of Georgia, Myanmar HomeLAN - What weapons and items will be available for the player in Splinter Cell? Mathieu Ferland - Sam uses two main weapons. A silent Handgun, the Five-7 and the F2000 a multipurpose rifle. The F2000 has different fire rates, can be used to snipe, and is equipped with a grenade launcher. The launcher can be used to launch smoke grenades, electric shockers, airfoil rings, or sticky cameras. Besides this Sam can use regular grenades, fragmentation grenades, wall mines, or flares… HomeLAN - Since Splinter Cell is a single player game having solid AI for the enemies is important. What can you tell us about the AI of the enemies in the game? Mathieu Ferland - The A.I is guided by scripted elements and reacts to the environment. The A.I not only reacts when it sees an enemy, but reacts to any unusual sound or change of light in its environment. The A.I is also programmed to work in groups and call for help. In combat it finds the best angle and takes cover. It is really advanced and sometimes scary! HomeLAN - What other unique gameplay elements will Splinter Cell have? Mathieu Ferland - Most of the cool gameplay comes from the cool moves and gadgets that Sam has. For instance you can throw a diversion cam: it whistles to attract guards and then you can release a lethal gas. You can shoot at any lights to create a dark environment and use your night goggles to take out enemies, you can see Keypad codes with your Thermo vision goggles after someone used it, you can blow a fish tank and electrify the water on the floor to take out several guards in one shot. You can blow out oil barrels, you can pick-lock doors, it uses the rumble feature of the Xbox pad, that’s pretty cool, the list is long… HomeLAN - What alterations, if any, are you making to the Unreal engine for your use in the game? Mathieu Ferland - We used a lot of the cool features and textures from the original engine, but we also did a lot of work on it to allow us to create the special lighting and some effects we wanted. The engine is really a new engine now! HomeLAN - What will the differences be between the PC and Xbox versions of the game? Mathieu Ferland - Screen resolution is better on PC, controls with keyboard and mouse, apart from that it’s pretty much the same game. HomeLAN - What is the current status of the game's progress and when do you expect the PC and Xbox versions to be in stores? Mathieu Ferland - Xbox in Nov. around the 15th, PC will come a little bit after. HomeLAN - Finally, is there anything else you wish to say at this point about Splinter Cell? Mathieu Ferland - Yes, pre-order now if you want to play it the first week it releases, there might be shortage!
