14 DAY TRIAL // Despite the different tone between the two games, the upcoming Splinter Cell: Blacklist will acknowledge the story told in Conviction, the much criticized previous installment in the series, and will even try to put a positive spin on the way the characters evolved during its narrative.
Maxime Beland, who is the creative director working on the game, has told Joystiq that, “The game takes place about six months after Conviction. You’re going to see in the first half hour of the game where it’s not just the President coming to Sam and saying ‘I need your help yet again’. We’ve made it very personal for Sam.”
It seems that the developers also have plans to introduce new information that will offer clues as to the missing time period, with Beland adding, “We’re going to be also doing some exciting stuff in the gap between the two that’s outside of the game.”
Beland is one of the developers who has been involved with the creation and launch of Splinter Cell: Conviction and he says the experience allows him to be careful that the new Blacklist does not make the same mistakes.
He described the previous game as a mix of good and bad and said that much of the criticism was generated by the fact that the game needed to be launched in under two years.
Blacklist will see Sam Fisher appointed as the leader of the newly created Fourth Echelon with a clear mission to track down and eliminate the terrorists who are threatening the security of the United States.
This time around the enemies are attacking from within and Fischer and his team will need to stop an escalating Blacklist of attacks.
The game will use stealth as its core mechanic.
Splinter Cell: Blacklist will be launched on the PC, the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3 during March of 2013.