Splinter Cell is a series I never thought would have trouble getting sequels made. With the success of Sam Fisher's previous missions, it came as a bit of a shock to find out how far Conviction had veered off course. The latest trailer, and now gameplay show that Ubisoft really has gone back to the drawing board to give their stealth-action franchise a new make-over.

The Splinter Cell Series has always been about sticking to the shadows, and taking out your enemies one at a time. While the early rumors about Conviction were that the gameplay was going to shift more towards close combat and a heavier use of your environment, it appears that the action has been ramped up, a lot.

Sam enters a room full of enemies, carefully plans his attack, and then uses the chaos to his advantage. A new gameplay mechanic has been added, allowing Sam to trick enemies into thinking he is hiding in one location, allowing him to move around to a flanking position. The trademark night vision goggles have also gone missing, with a new desaturated color palette that lets you know when Sam is in cover.

One of the most interesting additions are the new mission updates, like "Find Sarah's Killer", which populate relevant areas of the screen. It's odd at first, but it could fit in very well with the new aesthetic Conviction is taking. It looks like the extra time spent on Splinter Cell: Conviction has been used to really make Sam a formidable opponent in the stealth-action wars.

Check out the two-part gameplay clips below.

Part 1

Part 2