This game has some jank and definitely has some issues, mainly the story, which I still hold the belief that the story sucks in every Splinter Cell game...however.......The game itself, everything about it is so fucking good for no reason. Basically every level except for Seoul is great. This game is Thief 2 and Hitman: Blood Money level peak regardless of having a shit story compared to the other 2 (though, Blood Money's story is nothing to write home about)

If you know me at all, you know that stealth games that make use of shadows tend to be my favorite. While I adore games like Metal Gear, I still think games utilizing shadows and open ended design structure keep me interested the most.

There's something about being able to go at my mission both in a way that I can handle it like a complete ghost all while going toward the objective in the way I'd personally like to that just feels so good. It's something that a lot of other stealth games don't get.

The first 3 levels of this game are probably my favorites in the whole thing honestly. I love most of this game, but the Lighthouse and Bank levels are just so unnecessarily perfect it's actually fucking annoying. The Bank level isn't anywhere near as good as the Thief 2 bank level for me but it's still really damn good and the amount of options you have just makes it so much more fun.

A thing I would love to talk about is the soundtrack. Each level has a different theme for the context of sneaking, when enemies are on alert, or when chasing you. Amon Tobin composed the soundtrack and this game's soundtrack is easily the best of the series for sure. The Lighthouse is one of my favorite tracks in any soundtrack ever and it's just...Ugh I could talk about it for hours.

Anyway, this game is easily my favorite of the Splinter Cell series replay so far and I feel it's gonna stay that way. Chaos Theory is a damn masterpiece and I can't recommend it enough.

Oh yeah btw considering it's been about 4-5 years since I last played in full, I had so many moments of frustration because of how rusty I am. I used to be able to complete most of the levels with a 100% stealth rating or atleast a 90%, and while I got the Bank at 90% and Lighthouse at 90% everything else I was so familiar with kept hitting a 40-70% at most and it was so frustrating.

The amount of quicksaves used in this playthrough was wild lol.

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory is a masterpiece of stealth action. You play as Sam Fisher, a highly-skilled operative infiltrating hostile territories under the cover of darkness. The game masterfully blends tense stealth sequences, satisfying gadgets, and a gripping espionage plot. Chaos Theory excels in its level design, offering multiple paths and approaches to each objective, promoting replayability and experimentation. Its atmospheric visuals and sharp sound design further enhance the immersive experience.