Metascore

Mixed or average reviews - based on 32 Critics What's this?

User Score

Mixed or average reviews- based on 16 Ratings

  • Summary: As Sam Fisher, Third Echelon's most skilled Splinter Cell operative, you are assigned to execute a hazardous series of operations to investigate and eliminate a new source of information attacks originating in North Korea. At your disposal is a lethal array of tactics ranging from Combat Knife techniques to experimental prototype weapons skills and more-radical hand-to-hand techniques such as the Inverted Chokehold. Experience the intensity of acting as a lone operative fighting tomorrow's threats in the field and of cooperating online with a partner to accomplish crucial missions. Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 32
  2. Negative: 10 out of 32
  1. Apr 26, 2011
    80
    The fact that Ubisoft was able to remaster one of the greatest chapters of the Splinter Cell on a portable platform with only minor downgrades is a small miracle. Splinter Cell 3DS is far greater than it has any right to be, given the drastic overhaul made to the control scheme and the newness of portable 3D gaming.
  2. May 9, 2011
    72
    It's not the best Splinter Cell game, but fans of the genre can't make anything wrong with Splinter Cell 3D. The missing multiplayer modes and the small amount of missions are its biggest drawbacks.
  3. Apr 13, 2011
    70
    In the end, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell is a fun game, especially for those who have never played the franchise before but just be warned that the game is very slow and if you're looking for action, you'll be sorely mistaken. That's not to say there is no action in the game because the combat is actually fun but it's just a very slow moving game from start to finish.
  4. Awkward to play, hard to look at, difficult to control and socially neutered. We're not sold on Splinter Cell.

See all 32 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 5
  3. Negative: 2 out of 5
  1. As a huge fan of the original Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory for Xbox and an avid supporter of the 3DS, this game seemed to be a match made in heaven for me. I was absolutely set on buying it when the game was announced, but since I never buy a game before taking a look at reviews, I almost didn't buy it. Nobody gave this game anything above a 70% so I was pretty skeptical. I must say, however, that I haven't regretted buying it for a second. I'll start off by saying that the control issues are greatly exaggerated in most of the reviews. Though I'll admit that controlling the camera with the face buttons is difficult at first, you get used to it pretty quickly. There are points where it can be annoying, but it's hardly a game killer. Mapping action commands to the d-pad actually works out just fine most of the time. The use of the touch screen is exactly what you would want it to be: fast, easy, and convenient. And, finally, the circle pad works just as well as an analog stick to control Sam Fisher's movements. For a game made with an Xbox controller in mind, I'm actually impressed with how effective the controls on the 3DS are. They're not perfect by any means, but they're clearly not as bad as they are made out to be. The missions from the original Chaos Theory are all here, and well put together. Obviously the beautiful level of graphical detail from the original is not present, but all in all they are effectively rendered if a bit watered down. The 3D effect, though not at all critical to the gameplay, looks great. With games like Pilotwings and Ridge Racer I have to keep the 3D slider somewhere in the middle to keep my eyes from being strained, but in Splinter Cell 3D I can keep it all the way up with very little eyestrain if any. There are times in the game where I have to stop for a moment just to appreciate just how cool the effect really is. Splinter Cell holds a special place for me as perhaps the only "secret agent/ super soldier" type game that I have ever really liked. There are few moments in gaming as satisfying as slipping past armed guards totally unnoticed, and there is plenty of that in this installment. While there are a lot of complaints about the aiming system being inaccurate (which, I'll admit, it is), the whole point of the game is to not have to use guns. It's much more fun to figure out a way to get past guards without killing them. While some may be sore about inaccurate aiming, I find that the classic "sneaking around" gameplay remains wholly intact. I do have some problems with this game in that the AI is very weak at times, and that there are some graphical glitches. If there are two guards talking to one another you can grab one in the middle of the conversation and drag him into the shadows without the other noticing. The conversation simply ceases and the other guard continues business as usual. There are also times that you can see a shadow on the wall of a guard that is in the next room, among a few other strange graphical quirks. These aren't huge issues, but the lack of multiplayer support, while unsurprising, is a bit disappointing. Most of the criticism of this game is derived from what the game DOESN'T do rather than what it does. All in all this game stays true to the classic Splinter Cell gameplay I've grown to know and love. It is by no means the best entry in the series, but it's a solid portable installment that, in my opinion, has received more criticism than it deserves. Expand
  2. Very solid on the road game. After awhile when you learn the buttons and how the camera works is just fine. Just remember it's a 3DS game, not a console one. Expand
  3. I was new to the series and this game made me want to delve into the series again after completion. True the camera may be a bit dodgy but in a stealth game about taking your time i feel it doesn't hamper the experience. The only true fault I had was that the areas in-game were so dark that during the day i kept the heat vision permanently on but when I played at night (which was most of the time) I felt it added to the experience. Enjoyable but not perfect Expand
  4. This game has no-other definition than CRAP. Is like they took the Mobile Phones' Spinter Cell, got it better graphics, worsened the rest a little and sold it as a new game. Expand

See all 5 User Reviews