A brief discussion of a video game came up in another thread and Jerjo stated we need a gaming thread. Jerjo's wish is my command.


I've been an on again, off again gamer since Asteroids. I once spent $30 in a single afternoon playing it. And I'm not embarrassed by that. lol

My favorite game series is probably Splinter Cell. I loved the first installment so much that I went out and bought a PS2 and I never had any inclination in buying a game console. I was always a PC gamer.

If you've never played it or heard of it, this is the premise of Splinter Cell: You are Sam Fisher, a highly trained agent of a fictional black-ops sub-division within the NSA, dubbed "Third Echelon". And you go on black missions.

The game emphasizes stealth, so rushing in and blasting away at your enemies can actually be a good way to get killed. No, you sneak in. Part of your accouterments is a high tech suit that enhances your ability to hide in the shadows since it's designed to not reflect light. You also have a semi-automatic pistol and an assault rifle both of which are suppressed and which are useful for shooting out lights and, thus, creating more shadows or, in some cases, complete darkness.

The hallmark of Splinter Cell is Sam's "trifocal goggles" which utilize night vision as well as thermal vision. Darkness is your friend.

The assault rifle is equipped with both a scope and a launcher. Using the launcher, Sam can shoot a projectile that knocks out an enemy. Other implements shot from the launcher are a "sticky shocker" (a self-contained taser), a grenade that releases sleeping gas, and a "sticky camera". The camera is especially useful for reconnaissance and is equipped with both a noisemaker (to draw in enemies) and sleeping gas.

Fisher is also very agile and can mantle up walls to ledges or overhead pipes. He's also adept at knocking out enemies or taking them hostage for interrogation purposes or, in cases where you've fucked up and are between a rock and a hard place, using a captured enemy as a human shield. Perhaps the coolest maneuver Sam is capable of is the split jump. It is performed in narrow spaces – between two walls – and results in Sam positioning himself about 7-8 feet above the floor with a foot on each wall. In this position he can use one of his weapons to kill or knock out an enemy. Or he can simply hide. Better yet, he can wait for an enemy to walk under him so he can then drop down on them and knock them out.

The game isn't fast paced but it sure is a hell of a lot of fun.