Splinter Cell Remake Updates Its Story for a “Modern-Day Audience”

According to a recent job post published by Ubisoft, the story of Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell remake could be different than the original 2002 game. Ubisoft intends to “[use] the first Splinter Cell game as [a] foundation” and plans on “rewriting and updating the story for a modern-day audience.”

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell is an iconic stealth action-adventure series. The first game came out in 2002 as an exclusive title for the original Xbox. It was later ported to PlayStation 2, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Microsoft Windows, and Mac, allowing more players to discover this gem. 

The game follows the story of Sam Fisher, an NSA agent sent to investigate the disappearance of two CIA officers. Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell emphasizes stealth as Fisher needs to move through the shadows to avoid getting seen by his enemies.

The original Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell game was a commercial success. Over 6 million copies were sold worldwide, leading to the development of multiple sequels. The last entry in the series was Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist, released in 2013. Since then, Ubisoft went radio silent and didn’t publish any additional Splinter Cell games.

During E3 2017, Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot teased a return of Splinter Cell. A virtual reality version of the series was announced three years later, exclusively for the Oculus VR. On July 21, 2022, Ubisoft announced canceling this Splinter Cell VR project.

Luckily for fans, this isn’t the end of Splinter Cell yet. In December 2021, Ubisoft revealed working on a remake of the first game. If this remake doesn’t have a release date yet, a recent job post reveals more about the story of this upcoming game.

The job description for a Scriptwriter position at Ubisoft Toronto mentions a rewriting of the original story. “Using the first Splinter Cell game as our foundation we are rewriting and updating the story for a modern-day audience,” the job post explains. “We want to keep the spirit and themes of the original game while exploring our characters and the world to make them more authentic and believable.”

According to the description of a “daily life of a Scriptwriter at Ubisoft Toronto,” the Scriptwriter would write dialogue for in-game missions and cinematic scenes, “including barks and NPC conversation.” 

Since the Scriptwriter would rewrite the story of the Splinter Cell remake for a “modern-day audience,” we can expect some changes from the original 2002 game. According to Producer Matt West, “the gaming public now has an even more refined palate,” which is why Ubisoft opted for a remake instead of a remaster. The update of Splinter Cell’s story makes sense since the world changed in the past twenty years. Updating the story while keeping it true to its core value will be a challenge for Ubisoft, but if they succeed the Splinter Cell remake could reach an even larger public than the original game.

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