Ubisoft is remaking the original Splinter Cell

Ubisoft announced that a remake of the original Splinter Cell is in the works, and it’s promising to both keep the stealthy spirit of the 2002 game while making it comfortable to play for modern gamers. It’s being developed by Ubisoft Toronto, and the company says it’ll use the Snowdrop engine it co-developed (and has used in games like The Division and Mario + Rabbids) to take advantage of the tech offered by new consoles.

According to Ubisoft’s announcement post, the remake won’t go open-world. Instead, there’ll be linear levels where “every square inch is part of a choice, or directly offers a choice.” The team working on the game has also said that it’ll have updated visuals (a good call, since the original came out almost two decades ago), as well as tweaks to “some of the design elements” to make the game “match player comfort and expectations.”

While the initial response from fans seems to be cautiously optimistic (with some pleas for Ubisoft to not ruin the game with NFTs), it’s not time to start holding your breath for a release date; in its Q&A, one of the game’s producers says that it’s currently “in the very earliest stages of development.” Given that Ubisoft’s promotional material for the game currently has “now hiring” plastered all over it, it seems like it could be a bit before the team is even assembled to fully start working on the game.

Ubisoft Toronto isn’t a stranger to Splinter Cell — the last game in the franchise, 2013’s Blacklist, was the first game the studio shipped. Since then, it’s worked on games like Far Cry 5 and 6 and Watch Dogs: Legion.

If you’re looking for a crash course on the original Splinter Cell, Ubisoft has put out a video with some of the team behind it and the remake discussing what they felt was special about the game when it first came out. You can watch it below.