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doctor 7 posted:Which is too bad because I really liked Conviction's fast-paced stealth mechanics. I use them in Blacklist, Panther rules. To be fair it wasn't really bad, It just...Well, the mechanics weren't the tightest, and the gunplay was boring. The AI was braindead, and the story was cliched as gently caress. All I could really remember when I played it how dumb it was in regards to the storyline. Though I guess you don't play Splinter Cell for the story.
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Mar 8, 2014 09:03
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It definitely wasn't for everyone, but I always liked the "vaguely plausible not-really" storylines of the original Splinter Cell games. And even if the dry techno-thriller vibe wasn't for you, Sam's character was GREAT. Especially early on, he felt like a more realistic take on the supersoldier archetype. The ways in which Conviction and Blacklist completely abandoned that and even spat in the face of the old trilogy really does rub me the wrong way. And for the record, I think that something like Rainbow Six benefitted tremendously by switching out the dry techno stuff for the 24-esque nonsense of the two Vegas games. But oof, man, I still can't get over how awful Conviction and Blacklist's stories are. Top to bottom, beginning to end - a goddamn mess.
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Mar 8, 2014 11:07
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I actually don't think it was conviction's fault. I just think it is a different time and a whole lot of other factors such as Ironside, marketing, etc.
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Mar 8, 2014 18:17
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Two things really hurt Blacklist: first, that really whiny, annoying vocal minority of people who refused to play this game because Michael Ironside didn't want to play the role any more were also the same group looking for anything and everything to poo poo on this game and it hurt the public perception of the game. But what really hurt it was competing against Saint's Row IV. All those people who weren't sure about Blacklist because of the negative nancies instead just decided to spend the cash on Saint's Row IV knowing that it really was more of the same of a game series with gameplay they already liked. They can always get Blacklist on a super cheap steam sale later, right?
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Mar 8, 2014 18:34
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Naky posted:Two things really hurt Blacklist: first, that really whiny, annoying vocal minority of people who refused to play this game because Michael Ironside didn't want to play the role any more were also the same group looking for anything and everything to poo poo on this game and it hurt the public perception of the game. I ended up buying Blacklist thanks to reviews and positive comments after release, but man, if the trailers were all I saw I wouldn't have even considered it.
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Mar 8, 2014 19:01
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The problem with stealth game play is that it's really, really hard to make an exciting trailer showcasing stealth. The only way they can effectively market that is by doing hands-on previews with reviewers to demonstrate it and other styles of playthroughs but if people don't happen to watch those previews then it's understandable to think that they didn't really market it very well. To be honest, I don't really remember who well or poorly the game was marketed though as I tend to ignore all marketing period.
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Mar 8, 2014 19:05
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smuh posted:I honestly don't think competing against SR4 was the biggest hit against the sales of Blacklist. Mostly the marketing was just kind of awful and made the game seem like action-packed stealth-shooter with very questionable torture sequences and scripted events, instead of a polished choose-your-playstyle stealth game in the vein of Dishonored which it ended up being. Also seemingly not giving a poo poo about the fanbase of the original games got it some extra negative attention very similar to, say, the new DMC or Hitman: Absolution. Nothing was made look very good about it and it wasn't very clear who they wanted to sell it to. Yeah, but those Hitman Absolution I believe was one of the best selling games in the franchise. I really think it was the marketing for this.
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Mar 8, 2014 19:06
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Replacing Ironside wouldn't have been so bad after release if the actor they got to replace him turned out to be good and/or was given more than scenes to mumble threateningly or talk really blandly to his daughter. Ironside was given all matter of lines (at least before Conviction), from humorous and sarcastic all the way up to threatening, that gave his already distinctive voice a lot more character to be associated with. It's not a dealbreaker to me but it really does highlight that you need more than a voice actor to lend gravitas and humanity to a character. And while I'm complaining about things that didn't ruin the game but could have made it much better Blacklist could have really used a better final bossfight. It seemed to start out really well then just gives up. Basically what I thought was "Okay, this is the stage that tests cover-switching and line-of-sight, next we'll probably have a stage that uses gadgets/guns against some mooks he calls in for back-up while also avoiding his line of sight, and then maybe we'll have to stalk him throu--oh, its a QTE sequence, great."
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Mar 8, 2014 19:18
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There was a pretty constant stream of troubling previews and reports about Blacklist's development, and the marketing campaign was almost non-existant. I had several friends who were shocked when I mentioned a new Splinter Cell game had come out - it landed without much noise. Given all the bad previews I read, I was actually surprised to see Blacklist have some decent stealth mechanics and interesting levels.
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Mar 8, 2014 21:00
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I picked Blacklist up along with a couple of friends recently and we have been having a blast playing SvM. Only problem is that one of my friends keeps getting his rank reset to 1 and he loses all his unlocks randomly. He got to rank 5 the first night and it reset to 1 the next day. We played every night this week and he got up to the teens and then when he logged back in today all his poo poo was gone and he was rank 1. I told him to try and disable cloud saves but I'm not sure if that will actually help. Shouldn't all this poo poo be stored server side? Also the matchmaking system is total bullshit. It doesn't seem to take rank into consideration at all. Maybe they turned it off because there are so few people playing. calusari fucked around with this message at 21:34 on Mar 8, 2014 |
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Mar 8, 2014 21:32
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Is Spies vs Mercs dead on the PC? I found one match for the rogue agent thing and got stomped hard by two level 56s but couldn't find anything in the quickmatch.
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Mar 16, 2014 08:20
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FadedReality posted:Is Spies vs Mercs dead on the PC? I found one match for the rogue agent thing and got stomped hard by two level 56s but couldn't find anything in the quickmatch. I can play it pretty much whenever I want. Classic is fun, though the options in customizing your spy/merc is a lot of fun as well. If you want we could set up a team sometime.
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Mar 16, 2014 19:30
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E-Tank posted:I can play it pretty much whenever I want. Classic is fun, though the options in customizing your spy/merc is a lot of fun as well. If you want we could set up a team sometime. I'm fadedreality01 on Uplay, Steam is on my SA profile. I wish Ubisoft hadn't fumbled this release so badly, I like this game a lot more than Conviction and more people need to get at it.
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Mar 17, 2014 16:15
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FadedReality posted:I'm fadedreality01 on Uplay, Steam is on my SA profile. I wish Ubisoft hadn't fumbled this release so badly, I like this game a lot more than Conviction and more people need to get at it. Added you on Steam and uPlay
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Mar 17, 2014 17:57
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doctor 7 posted:Added you on Steam and uPlay I added him as well. 
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Mar 17, 2014 18:02
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Its kind of weird that they forgot that the whole Megiddo thing existed. Do they ever mention it at all in Blacklist? I mean you can't just ignore conviction considering they brought Kobin back and changed Grimsdottir to be more like her character in Conviction.
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Mar 19, 2014 23:28
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blackguy32 posted:Yeah, but those Hitman Absolution I believe was one of the best selling games in the franchise. I really think it was the marketing for this. I think the reason why hitman absolution beat blacklist was simply the difference of setting and look. Would you rather buy the game with Super Operator #85930277949 in whatever-istan like every other game? Or the one with the eccentric yet slick and badass bald dude dual wielding his silenced shiny guns, smashing bottles over people's heads like it was St patrick's day? In essence both are kinda the same thing and blacklist is simply better. I'm a diehard fan of both series. Absolution was a complete letdown considering how great the previous release was. Blacklist made me believe in the loving series again after one stale game and another that didn't belong in the series. Blacklist ain't no chaos theory, but it's better than double agent and especially conviction. Also huge fan of the concept of pather style getting more and more attention. That's the one thing this game did for the series. You can go balls out and you aren't hindered at all (NPCs taking ten shots to the gut and still standing: combat being utterly useless). Absolution did this as well, but it hosed itself by doing away with pre mission prep and large open level design/pacing.
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Mar 23, 2014 23:46
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I've temporarily lost my internet connection and now it seems all my saved progress. Not just that but when I started a new game none of that progress was saved either. Am I screwed until my internet connection comes back out did someone know a workaround? I've already turned off cloud saving.
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Mar 24, 2014 01:39
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I finally got around to beating Blacklist. I think it's easily the best game, gameplay-wise, since Chaos Theory [I liked Conviction a lot, but it felt weird as a main series game]. I played it pretty much like the old-school stealth bastard, ghosting in and out of places. I really agree with the other posts, though. A lot of the plot and characterization just feels straight-up nasty compared to the other games. Fisher used to feel more like a low-key, thoughtful guy [E.G. when Lambert orders you to kill that Mossad agent in the elevator in PT with no further elaboration, and Fisher gets really upset, or when he cuts down the dead guy's body in the first mission of Chaos Theory]. He was a pretty interesting [by video game standards] character that provided a [somewhat off-kilter] moral grounding in a bunch of weird right-wing silliness. He just comes across as vicious and aggressive towards everyone except his daughter in Blacklist, though. It's really jarring, especially considering how vividly I remember his character in CT. I particularly thought the part at the end with Sadiq and Vic in the interrogation room felt really gross. All the stuff with torture feels really weird especially considering I played the Gitmo mission in Blacklist less than a week after I played MGS: Ground Zeroes. What a crazy contrast. I also miss the information-warfare focus of the first game. He was just a guy with a very specific job, and a lot of the flashy key events happened somewhere else, while he's sneaking into weird places. Now he's just TURBO JACK BAUER 2K14 - MEANER THAN USUAL, DEFUSIN' ALL THE WMDS EVERY DAY. DrankSinatra fucked around with this message at 04:50 on Mar 30, 2014 |
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Mar 30, 2014 04:40
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You did infiltrate a missile bunker in chaos theory to effectively stop it from launching nukes. I mean you're totally right. Even if the plots weren't superb in the first three games, at least everything did actually feel like a real black ops mission. Don't forget though, there was plenty of out-there drama in the original games. That being said I do also miss the more low key tone of the old games. It was never really personal. Sure some personal sub plots would show up but they didn't do the whole aforementioned primetime show act. I don't understand why plots of video games have to be so god drat personal now. I really would rather feel like a cog in some giant plot than be the motor that runs it. It used to be about survival or doing a job, now it's about revenge. Perfect example, the hitman games.
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Mar 30, 2014 05:36
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This game is on sale for less than $20 (PS3/360/WiiU) and $29.80 (PC) on Amazon, and is on sale for $29.99 digitally on PSN. Now is the time to strike, if you haven't already. EDIT: And the HD remakes of Splinter Cell, Pandora Tomorrow, and Chaos Theory are all on sale for $3.99 each on PSN.
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Apr 5, 2014 21:32
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It was I think 19.99 a few weeks ago on steam, which is when I picked it up.
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Apr 6, 2014 02:34
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Sorry to dredge this thread up, but I'm wondering if there's any sort of active blacklist multiplayer community nowadays? I'm into the singleplayer - like, really into it - but I feel like I'm missing something special without semi-regular dudes to play around with. Random groups and matchmaking seems like it'll play to the weakest aspects of the series.
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Jul 4, 2014 01:37
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I'm down for Co-op... but it would be insanely difficult if you didn't have a mic. I can play either top or bottom... sam and briggs, respectively.
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Jul 4, 2014 02:56
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poptart_fairy posted:Sorry to dredge this thread up, but I'm wondering if there's any sort of active blacklist multiplayer community nowadays? I'm into the singleplayer - like, really into it - but I feel like I'm missing something special without semi-regular dudes to play around with. Random groups and matchmaking seems like it'll play to the weakest aspects of the series. Me and Doctor 7 are up for games. I'm E-Tank on Uplay.
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Jul 4, 2014 20:26
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I sent invites.. with 4 players we could do decent mercs vs spies
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Jul 4, 2014 22:46
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Im down for anything. trob32 on Uplay.
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Jul 4, 2014 22:48
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E-Tank posted:Me and Doctor 7 are up for games. I'm E-Tank on Uplay. Honestly I would be but work has me at a more remote location complete with satellite internet so limited bandwidth and stupidly low data caps. I'm 12 days on, 2 days off too so it would require literally weeks in advance to schedule a game and 
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Jul 5, 2014 00:13
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Could totally use more people. Coop is really fun even with my stunted inventory (reinstall). Either way some spies vs mercs would be badass if we had the people.
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Jul 5, 2014 10:12
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Awesome to hear! My username is the same as here. 
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Jul 5, 2014 10:23
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My uPlay ID is dr7flow so add me and if I'm online and not on satellite Internet I'll Panther it up with you dorks
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Jul 5, 2014 21:13
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Ghost is the real way to play, you loving hack.  THAT SAID, Shooty Sam is hilarious for what it does to the storyline. Getting bitched at for being a cowboy American is rather silly when literally nobody sees, hears or notices anything related to you - shooting everyone in the face and seeing Sam get annoyed at being called out for it, however, is brilliant. e; also guys, not ignoring you on UPlay! Didn't realise I had the overlay disabled so wasn't getting any notifications. poptart_fairy fucked around with this message at 01:34 on Jul 6, 2014 |
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Jul 6, 2014 00:56
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You guys gotta up your game. I am starting to frigging destroy your Shadownet 'challenges'. Fourth Echeleon, more like Fawful Echeleon amirite. 
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Jul 10, 2014 09:58
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poptart_fairy posted:Ghost is the real way to play, you loving hack. Ghost is a PITA until you have the full sneaking suit, though.
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Jul 10, 2014 10:21
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Bah, you just gotta be patient and pick your battles. Full sneaking suit is a concession, not an improvement!
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Jul 10, 2014 11:00
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I would up my game but I've never been in a game with you, so far. Also only scrubs use top tier equipment. Real operators use vanilla everything. Not even silencers. Muffled gunshots are for pussies. If you're going to pop a goon make sure they hear it.
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Jul 10, 2014 21:16
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I enjoy using the un-suppressed Makarov for the style. Sleeping gas bolts feel like cheating. I mix and match guns depending on my mood--really fun to use shotties, except that the shotties clearly have no spread.
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Jul 10, 2014 21:20
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I really wish they had a walther PPK or something... The f40/makarov have to do as far as underwear guns go.
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Jul 10, 2014 21:39
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Started playing Blacklist yesterday, seems like fun. I lost the bonus on the Brittish sea fort because right at the end a goon went to check on a pair of doors I had left open, found another open door and then a passed out guy in the next room. Don't think I've ever seen that in a stealth game before. I even had trouble in the very first area with multiple enemies. I'm also looking for people to play coop with, I'll try adding some of you who posted profiles earlier. I heard the story was bad, and I'm not very far in yet but drat. This Sam Fisher doesn't seem like the guy you should give the ability to kill anyone anywhere without legal repercussions. Haven't played any of the games since Chaos Theory, I guess being a main character in a Ubisoft franchise does that to you.
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Jul 21, 2014 19:43
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Captain Scandinaiva posted:Started playing Blacklist yesterday, seems like fun. I lost the bonus on the Brittish sea fort because right at the end a goon went to check on a pair of doors I had left open, found another open door and then a passed out guy in the next room. Don't think I've ever seen that in a stealth game before. I even had trouble in the very first area with multiple enemies. I'm also looking for people to play coop with, I'll try adding some of you who posted profiles earlier. After the last actual 'stealth focused game' Ubisoft got it in their head that they needed to re-invent him into a stealth/action star. So instead of making it more like you're trying to get by without being spotted once, they took away quite a few options to get through without being spotted, making it less 'stealth all the way through' and more 'Stealth kill everyone'.
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Jul 21, 2014 22:01
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