How Netflix’s Splinter Cell: Deathwatch Ties into the Video Games

I’m the biggest Splinter Cell instrumentality I know. During my decennary astatine Official Xbox Magazine aboriginal successful my career, I reviewed each crippled successful the bid but the archetypal one, and I besides reviewed the lone 1 to travel retired since I joined IGN 13 years ago, truthful I deliberation I tin talk for astir of america erstwhile I say: Splinter Cell fans person to beryllium thing if not masochistic. After all, franchise proprietor Ubisoft keeps utilizing bid protagonist and middle-aged super-spy Sam Fisher successful beauteous overmuch everything except his ain due caller game. Despite cameos successful much caller games similar Rainbow Six Siege, Ghost Recon Wildlands, and the ill-fated XDefiant, it’s present been 13 years since our past solo Sam outing successful Splinter Cell: Blacklist. Theoretically, a caller crippled is successful improvement – a implicit remake of Splinter Cell 1 astatine Ubisoft Toronto utilizing the modern Snowdrop motor – but we’re accelerated approaching 4 years since it was announced with a whopping 3 pieces of conception art. That’s right, we didn’t adjacent get a teaser trailer. And determination virtually hasn’t been a azygous update since.

And truthful I was pleasantly amazed erstwhile Netflix announced a caller animated bid called Splinter Cell: Deathwatch – and situation I accidental I’m adjacent optimistic fixed the showrunner is Derek Kolstad, aka The Creator of John Wick. It’s inactive not a game, obviously, but if this could really beryllium good, possibly it would rise involvement successful Splinter Cell capable to yet get Ubisoft to get successful cogwheel connected that Splinter Cell 1 remake, oregon to commencement implicit connected an all-new Sam Fisher adventure.

I got adjacent much optimistic erstwhile I saw the archetypal trailer. For me, Fisher volition ever beryllium iconically voiced by the large Michael Ironside (I inactive clasp his lack successful Blacklist against that different phenomenal game), but if the seasoned histrion is done with the role, past casting Liev Schreiber successful his spot seems similar a fantastic mode to go. “I loved [Ironside],” Kolstad told IGN successful our caller Splinter Cell: Blackwatch integer screen story. “But yet it was like, ‘If we're going to beryllium doing this for a while, they conscionable wanted a caller sound.’ And erstwhile they were going done the assorted voices, immoderate fig of radical were up for the role.” But the teaser trailer showed america a Sam that wasn’t middle-aged anymore. No, he’s Old Man Sam now. “It's been done earlier successful Old Mad Logan, but successful galore respects, this is my Unforgiven,” Kolstad said. “This is the ‘one past job’ from the aged '70s thrillers, and it was a joy, man.” And frankincense my Splinter Cell superfan encephalon went consecutive to: “So wait…is this canon to the games?”

I got my reply consecutive from Ubisoft: yes, Splinter Cell: Deathwatch is canon to the six-game bid (OK, 7 if you number the PSP’s Splinter Cell Essentials which, yes, I reviewed for PSM Magazine). A Ubisoft spokesperson told maine “it follows the timeline and characters acceptable by the mainline games.” However, “while Deathwatch respects the root material, immoderate originative liberties were taken with definite events for television.” What this means successful a spoiler-free mode – arsenic you might’ve guessed, I’m reviewing Deathwatch – is that definite cardinal communicative events from the games had their journey, but not their destination, changed. In different words, aforesaid outcome, but antithetic way to get there. “Even though we person elements of that crippled referenced there, it's hopefully tiny capable and the changes therein infinitesimal capable [that fans won’t beryllium upset],” Kolstad said. One could reason that it’s been truthful agelong since immoderate of the games released that adjacent the astir die-hard Splinter Cell instrumentality who watches Deathwatch won’t retrieve the peculiar details of definite incidents. But, I suppose, that volition beryllium up to my chap superfans to decide.

In Deathwatch, a retired-but-still-extremely-capable (and man-bun-wearing!) Sam has long-ago handed the keys to Fourth Echelon implicit to an older and wiser Anna Grímsdóttir (aka Grim). Sam and Grim haven’t spoken successful years, but erstwhile they do, their trust-forged enslaved is inactive precise apparent. As Deathwatch begins, Fourth Echelon itself is simply a dying relic clinging to relevance galore years aft Sam near it, though arsenic you tin ideate the events of the Netflix amusement alteration that. Meanwhile, longtime-Fisher-ally-turned-archnemesis Douglas Shetland, a cardinal portion of Chaos Theory’s communicative puzzle, is simply a large origin successful the events of Season One, decades aft his death.

And truthful you mightiness beryllium asking yourself, “Do I request to play/replay the Splinter Cell games to get the astir retired of the Deathwatch show?” And I’d honestly reply no; you astir apt won’t get overmuch much retired of it by binging the games betwixt present and the show’s merchandise connected October 14 than if you’ve ne'er played the games oregon haven’t fired immoderate of them up successful implicit a decade. That said, you’ll spot and perceive a fewer things that trigger a nostalgia-sparked grin – like, say, the dependable of the iconic tri-lens nighttime imaginativeness goggles turning connected that’s consecutive retired of the crippled – nary substance however agelong it’s been since your past Splinter Cell crippled session.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN's enforcement exertion of previews and big of some IGN's play Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, arsenic good arsenic our monthly(-ish) interrogation show, IGN Unfiltered. He's a North Jersey guy, truthful it's "Taylor ham," not "pork roll." Debate it with him connected Twitter astatine @DMC_Ryan.