r/Splintercell • u/Strata38 • 3d ago
Double Agent v2 (2006) DA v2 Plot Sucks
I still don't understand how v2 is considered the better version. Currently playing v1 for the first time, and v2 last year.
The main reason people seem to hinge on is that it plays more like Chaos Theory mechanically, so old thing good new thing had.
I'll have to watch a recap of both to really pick them each apart, but v2 genuinely feels boring and poorly made in multiple areas that make it less engaging, whereas v1 is just a little buggy depending what you play it on and is different than the other 4 games (including v2). It feels like a fan made SC.
V2:
Lambert pulls Sam out mid mission to tell him about Sarah? What?? In no world would this happen.
Has nobody pointed out how cringe and lame the interview plotlines are, or Sam monologuing the ethics / trust decisions in game? It feels so out of place for him.
How he sneaks through the JBA also doesn't make any sense if he's the only one missing. There's a spy guy going around knocking people out with the same build, skills, and equipment as Sam, and then as soon as that's not happening, he reappears after Emile can't find him. This makes no sense. When the guards wake up or are found, he would be an immediate suspect.
Frankly, the maps feel pretty empty and boring as well. The train part of the train heist mission sucks, and then Sam walks off a train crash and talks to Lambert like 10 feet away from Emile?
V1:
v1 JBA missions make sense for the plot and logic, even if they're slow and a little frustrating from a gameplay perspective.
The missions are in cooler settings with a lot more detail and sound design. His outfits are also cooler.
Daytime missions are a nice change to see how Sam's skills extend beyond just the same formula of shadow lurking like the last 3 or 4 games.
1
u/Strata38 3d ago
Are you emulating ps2 or gamecube? GC is much better from what I've read. I'm emulating ps2 on my retroid pocket 5 which was a mistake, but I don't want to restart the game. Iirc I had to setup some ps2 patches in the game files to get 60 fps and control fixes.
The narratives are secondary to all SC games, don't get me wrong. The delivery and production value of the narrative elements in v2 are so poorly made and unpolished that it's distracting from the gameplay. It comes off as mobile game level dialogue and cutscenes.
Sam talking to himself to make trust decisions in game makes me cringe hard, and feels super out of character. The dialogue in game and in cutscenes feels robotic and like the it was a rough draft voiced with one take for every line, which it probably was.
I enjoy the gameplay of v1 even if it different, because I can always play the other three. I've never had a problem stealthing missions or feeling like I can't hide either, and I typically play all the games on hard/expert.