Preview - Splinter Cell: Blacklist Spies vs. Mercs

Tacked-on multiplayer has become a dirty phrase. Those three words put together are enough to make gamers weep, or at least become very, very angry over the internet. The idea of games that started out as a fundamentally single player experience having a shoddy multiplayer mode thrown in for the sake of it just seems to grate with too many people.

But what if the mode managed to merge the elements of the single player game with an interesting twist to freshen things up a bit? Then you'd probably be looking at Splinter Cell: Blacklist's Spies vs. Mercs.

The mode returns for this year's Splinter Cell and it's been spruced up to be even more competitive and adrenaline inducing than before. The premise is simple: two teams of players, one team of spies that must hack three areas on a map by using stealth and gadgets, and one team of mercenaries that has to stop them by using firepower and brute force.

The nice little twist comes in the form of mercenaries being controlled in first-person, so it's much like a traditional shooter when you're hunting down the spies. Having the first-person viewpoint is obviously better for aiming and shooting, but your vision is hindered by only being able to see straight ahead, and it's so easy to get taken out from behind by a pesky spy lurking in the shadows.

Likewise, spies also come with flaws. If you're careless enough to wander straight in front of a mercenary then chances are you're not going to be alive for too much longer, as it doesn't take many bullets to end things and your firepower is frankly pitiful in comparison.

But in terms of the better side to play on, it feels like this game is weighted towards making the spies seem the more attractive option. They can climb walls and crawl through small vents, something the mercenaries can't do. They have gadgets which allow them to locate enemies around corners, perfect for plotting the perfect attack. And while not being able to do much damage from range, spies have a one-hit melee kill that they can perform when up close, which really is devastating if used right.

There are also plenty of customisation options for both sides. Mercenaries have different classes which come with their own specialist equipment, so there's a class that has more powerful grenades, or a class that can use drones to attack enemies. It's all about finding the right one which suits your style of gameplay. Choosing different classes for spies is similar, there's one class that comes with a gadget that can locate enemies using their pulse (my personal favourite), a class that allows spies to go invisible for a short period and a class that destroys enemy gadgets.

During our playthrough we were surprised at how immersive it all felt. Sure, controlling a mercenary wasn't that fun and it felt like you could have been playing any random game, but once you control a spy it really does feel like Splinter Cell. You have to use your gadgets and your cunning to get the best of your opponents, and it's always better to play it safe instead of running wild.

Our first impressions leave us feeling pretty good about the mode, and it should be enough to convince players to keep the disc in their consoles for a little while longer after completing the main game. This is definitely something to watch out for.