Ubisoft showcases non-lethal takedowns in Splinter Cell: Blacklist trailer

Ubisoft has released a new trailer for its upcoming stealth/action game Splinter Cell: Blacklist. The trailer shows examples of all the ways you can take down enemies without being lethal with alpha gameplay footage.


The developers are focusing on fluid animations to show that the protagonist - Sam Fisher - has a move for every situation he could find himself in. The game is set to have more than 90 moves, according to the developers. The game will also have non-lethal takedowns for situations where he has been spotted, so he can get more violent with the takedowns.

The game, based heavily on the world created by Tom Clancy – writer of books based on espionage stories – puts you into the shoes of NSA (National Security Agency) operative Sam Fisher. The next game in the series, titled Splinter Cell: Blacklist, was announced earlier this year during E3. Ubisoft had released some information about the story of the game, along with a trailer that showed off some gameplay in Blacklist. The game seems to be taking on a more action route, rather than the silent stealth route of the earlier games.

Here is a quick summary of the story of Splinter Cell: Blacklist. In 1941, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave what became known as the 'Four Freedoms' speech, laying out the quartet of fundamental liberties that people “everywhere in the world” should hold as a birthright.  Those four, brought forth as the world struggled with unprecedented barbarity, were the freedom of speech and expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear.

The iconic night vision goggles

But it was recognised that noble as the ideal of the Four Freedoms might be, there would be times when they would need to be defended against oppression, tyrants, and terror. Thus was born the Fifth Freedom, the right and responsibility to do whatever it took to protect the other four. The bearer of the Fifth Freedom has a mandate to go anywhere he needs to and do anything he must – kill, steal or destroy – in the interest of the greater good. Only the President can authorise the Fifth Freedom, and only the most skilled and trustworthy operatives America has to offer have ever received it.

Sam Fisher initially received the Fifth Freedom as the prototype for the new Splinter Cell program. At a time when the scope of information warfare was exploding, Third Echelon needed an agent who could combine cutting-edge technology with old-fashioned tradecraft. Using the Fifth Freedom judiciously, Fisher defended the United States against biological attack, against state-sponsored cyber warfare and against domestic terrorism, before walking away.
 
However, terrorists have now targetted America and people are in danger. Since Sam Fisher is the only badass we know who can handle situations like this, Fisher agrees to take up the power of the Fifth Freedom again to stop the terrorists and their Blacklist.
 
Splinter Cell: Blacklist is set to be released during spring in 2013.