14 DAY TRIAL // Ubisoft has talked about the stealth mechanics implemented in its upcoming Splinter Cell: Blacklist game, highlighting that it's more about giving the players many choices in a carefully tailored ecosystem than about the actual gameplay systems.
Splinter Cell: Blacklist, the next installment in the popular series, has the tough job of delivering a blend between the stealth mechanics of earlier games in the franchise with the action elements from the more recent Conviction installment.
According to Game Director Patrick Redding, stealth is more about creating an ecosystem within the level and letting players choose what to do within it.
"Stealth – from a level design perspective – is not about avoidance," he told GameSpot.
"Instead, it's about building an ecosystem, and [that ecosystem] needs to feel like it has an existence outside of what the player is doing. That's why having a really [dynamic] AI is so important."
"There's a lot of depth in using gadgets in combination, understanding how sound will attract the AI, knowing where to hide bodies, and so on. By giving all these tools to the player, and offering multiple paths in the environment, you're reinforcing that they have the ultimate choice in how this is going to play out."
Giving players enough hints as to what can happen if they commit certain actions is crucial, as Redding believes seeing a plan work or fail can produce a lot of fun.
"At the same time, you don't want conditions to be so fragile or so volatile that the player feels like they have no idea what's going to happen when they push a button or pull a trigger. For the player, the challenge is surveying the situation, observing the AI, and then putting together a plan. The fun is then executing that plan and seeing whether it plays out exactly how you thought, went a little differently, or having it all go wrong and needing to [escape]. That's what's satisfying for stealth players."
Splinter Cell: Blacklist is out this August and allows for different play styles, including the Ghost, Panther, or Assault, depending on the preferences of the player.