Game: Splinter Cell: Conviction
Release Date: April 13th 2010
Platform: Xbox360/PS3/PC

Splinter Cell has been in production for an extremely long time. First officially announced in 2007 it has suffered several major delays and at one point was put on indefinite hold. It resurfaced with a major change in both its gameplay direction and visual style. The game completely reinvents the current take on the stealth genre, and is a fresh and addictive addition to the series itself. If you haven’t played the previous title, Double Agent, then that is no major problem here, the game fills you in on the basics of the back-story and you don’t feel like you are missing out on any past details having not played its predecessor. Splinter Cell changes the way the player views the stealth approach to games, you no longer have to wait in the shadows endlessly until you are able to silently take out your victims. The game makes you feel like a deadly weapon, with stealth kills and lightning fast attack combos at the touch of a button. The pacing is consistent and intense the entire way through.

Presentation

Splinter Cell has a few intuitive design features that make the presentation of the game quite unique. Throughout the campaign, your mission objectives and important information are projected onto nearby walls or the sides of buildings, thus discarding the need for an intrusive HUD. This is a really cool aspect of that game, which, while simple, is really effective. This feature is then expanded on in some points in the game where flashbacks are also projected, which fill in the player on some of the back-story.

Game: Battlefield: Bad Company 2
Release Date: March 5th 2010
Platform: Xbox360/PS3/PC

The original Bad Company was a good game. I didn’t think it was particularly great, with the destructible environments providing some great gameplay moments and visual treats, but the campaign bored and frustrated me enough that I didn’t even complete it. That said, I liked the multiplayer in Bad Company 1, and therefore thought I would see how Bad Company 2 had been improved from its predecessor.

Presentation

Bad Company 2 is a well presented game. From the beginning, you will realise that it’s also a very pretty game, boasting improved visuals and great draw distances. The campaign is a lot more epic in scope, and while it’s a relatively good storyline, it feels slightly under par when compared to the cinematic and tense campaign of its immediate competitor, Modern Warfare. The game tries to do too much to feel concise. Its not focused enough to really suck the player into the tension they are trying to achieve, and while the epic sequences like flying a helicopter or driving a tank are very satisfying, it misses out on what makes a game feel genuinely tense.