It’s been more than eight years since the last Splinter Cell game. Blacklist came out in 2013. Fans didn’t know it then, but it marked the last time a mainline Splinter Cell game would be released for a long, long time. Since then, Ubisoft has attempted to placate folks with half-hearted cameos of its grumpy protagonist, as well as nods to the popular stealth franchise. Sam Fisher has shown up in Rainbow Six Siege and Ghost Recon, but not in any of his own games. That might change soon, however, as VGC reports that Ubisoft has greenlit a new Splinter Cell game.
According to their sources, the next iteration of the franchise is early in development. The outlet’s sources didn’t have a lot of detail, however. We don’t know which Ubisoft studio may be spearheading the project. Nor do we yet know what the game will be about, if it will still star Sam Fisher, or if it’s a sequel or prequel. The only bit of juicy info that got squeezed from the unknown sources is that the game is being made, and the French developer may give us a peak next year.
It’d be interesting to see how a new Splinter Cell game plays out. Blacklist was the first in the series to not have Sam Fisher voiced by Canadian actor Michael Ironside. Ubisoft’s reasoning at the time was that Ironside couldn’t do the acrobatics needed for the role. In many modern games, voice actors get fitted in motion-capture suits, and that wouldn’t work with the older actor. However, Ironside later revealed in a Ghost Recon: Wildlands interview that he was battling cancer around that time. That makes more sense. Ironside reprised his role in Wildlands, and is still working as an actor today.
Like a ghost’s shadow
Splinter Cell‘s disappearance and Ubisoft dragging it out for various other games has been frustrating. Considering the evidence, though, Ubisoft has been keen to keep the franchise in the minds of players. Sam Fisher has been making his cameos in other Ubisoft games, and the company recently announced an animated show for Netflix. Has it all been leading up to this? It’s hard to say at the moment. We’ll have to see if the sources are right about the new Splinter Cell game announcement next year.
