ArtisticallyChill

I’m still surprised by the turn of events leading up to and after the midnight launch of Ubisoft’s Splinter Cell Conviction. As fan of Ubisoft and the Splinter Cell franchise, I expected them to deliver a game experience that is both memorable and worth talking about with my friends. So far the game has lived up to my expectations and gone beyond it. But their launch of this game has been nothing but a let down.

First the USB drive included with the Collector’s Edition of the game was defective. It just didn’t work when inserting it into a USB port. Ubisoft announced that the Special Edition price would drop to compensate for the defective drive. Originally it was $79.99, but was dropped to $69.99. The materials on the USB drive will be made available for download via SplinterCell.com according to Ubisoft. But I really don’t care any more.

After picking up my Collector’s Edition, I quickly noticed that the mini-comic book was missing. I later found out that the comic book was in PDF format and was supposed to be on the USB drive. The back of the Collector’s Edition reads as: “Digging In The Ashes” Comic Book. There’s no mention of ‘Digital’ or PDF. So now it looks like I paid an extra $10 dollars for 2 stickers, an unimpressive art book, a steel case, and two unlock codes for content that was already on the disc that I could have purchased later with the in-game point system.

What really defined this launch as an EPIC FAIL was the Day 1 patch that cause the game to freeze completely. At first, I had thought it was just my disc, got it exchanged and then when I thought my trouble were over, it froze again. The Day 1 patch was suppose to fix the freezing problems experienced in some co-op multiplayer sessions but it just made it worse. Ubisoft was made aware of this and quickly went to working on a resolution. In the meantime, I sat there with a defective game. I was able to figure out a temporary work-around by clearing out my Xbox 360′s cache and unplugging the console from the internet.

*UPDATE 04/14/2010* This issue has been fixed. I booted up the game after signing in to Xbox LIVE and have had no freezing issues so far.

What I want to know is how could this have happened, especially from a far more reputable publisher like Ubisoft? They had more than enough time to work on this game, both on the programming side and the marketing side with the Collector’s Edition, since the game’s release date had been pushed back. Was there any QA done at all? It seems like that Ubisoft didn’t even find out about the USB drives being defective until the last minute. This is probably the worst Collector’s Edition game of 2010.

I would rather have the Sam Fisher statue as seen in the Limited Edition sold outside of the US instead of faulty USB drive, two stickers, two codes for in game items I will probably never use, and a steel case.

Seriously, Ubisoft you owe your devoted fans that much and more with future Collector’s Editions.

~ LoneWolf

The word ‘brutal’ has said and thought of this past week in videogames. I recently picked up BRUTAL LEGEND and I’m having a blast with the game. It’s definitely not just a typical hack-n-slash. Beyond that game, I’ve recently watched to videos for games that I can’t wait to pick up. These games have their fair share of brutality and look to do it without having to sacrifice much of the gameplay and story. These games are ASSASSIN’S CREED II and SPLINTER CELL: CONVICTION.

I don’t really have to say how brutal the next installment of ASSASSIN’S CREED is going to be. The video shows it all. More weapons with their own set of animations which looks to improve upon the gameplay and not sacrifice it makes this game a must have and probably the best non-FPS game to come out this holiday season.

A more aggressive Sam Fisher is a more brutal Sam Fisher. The interrogation sequences seem to put Jack Bauer to shame and the new gameplay elements from the Mark And Execute to the Sonar Goggles push Splinter Cell into a whole new direction of a fast-paced, tactical shooter with the right balance of stealth mixed in. SPLINTER CELL: CONVICTION is due out next year, quarter one.

I can honestly say that both games’ predecessors were an enjoyable gaming experience but the lack of variety in Sam Fisher’s interrogations and Altair’s swordplay definitely did feel a bit boring after seeing it over and over again. Both games look to be providing a more immersive experience through the expanded gameplay and story. But what will really sell the game is its brutality. After just seeing the videos above, how can you say you’ll ever get bored playing either game when they come out?

~ LoneWolf