Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent is an action-adventure stealth game released in 2006. It was developed together by Ubisoft Milan and Ubisoft Shanghai and published by Ubisoft. The Splinter Cell series, supported by American author Tom Clancy, follows Sam Fisher, an agent working for a secret group within the National Security Agency (NSA) called Third Echelon. The game was available for GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox, and Xbox 360 in October 2006. Versions for Wii and Windows were released in November 2006. A PlayStation 3 version came out in March 2007.

There are two versions of Double Agent. The first was created by Ubisoft Montreal, known for making Splinter Cell and Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory, and was released for GameCube, PlayStation 2, Wii, and Xbox. The second version was made by Ubisoft Milan and Ubisoft Shanghai, who also developed Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, and was released for PlayStation 3, Windows, and Xbox 360. The Ubisoft Milan and Shanghai version uses a special software system, while the Ubisoft Montreal version is based on technology from earlier Splinter Cell games. Both versions share the same main story but have different details, events, and levels. They also share the same background music, some scenes, and the same voice actors. A separate version for mobile phones was made by Gameloft.

Splinter Cell: Double Agent got good reviews from critics for most platforms. A follow-up game called Conviction was released in 2010.

Plot

The two main versions of the game have different storylines. They include the same places but have different levels arranged in a new order.

Before the events of Splinter Cell: Essentials, Sam Fisher must deal with the recent death of his daughter in a car accident caused by a drunk driver. He has little time to grieve because he is soon sent on a secret mission. He must pretend to be a criminal to join a terrorist group in the United States. This mission forces Fisher into a difficult situation where the line between right and wrong is unclear, and many lives are at risk.

In September 2007, Sam Fisher and a new agent named John Hodge are sent to Iceland to investigate strange activity at a geothermal plant. This is also Hodge’s training mission. Fisher stops a terrorist attack that kills Hodge. Later, he meets Colonel Irving Lambert on a V-22 Osprey. Lambert tells Fisher that his daughter, Sarah, has died in a car crash. Overwhelmed by sadness, Fisher is removed from active duty.

Lambert offers Fisher a job as a secret agent, hoping it will help him recover. The NSA creates fake bank robberies and murders to make Fisher look like a criminal so he can join a group called John Brown’s Army (JBA). Fisher is sent to Ellsworth Prison in Kansas, where he is placed in the same cell as Jamie Washington, a JBA member. With help, Fisher helps Washington escape and joins the JBA.

At the JBA’s base, Emile Dufraisne, the group’s leader, orders Fisher to kill Cole Yeager, the pilot who helped them escape prison. This action affects Fisher’s position within the JBA and the NSA. Fisher is then sent to take control of a Russian oil tanker in the Sea of Okhotsk. He communicates with Enrica Villablanca, the JBA’s weapons expert. Fisher’s mission is to allow JBA ally Massoud Ibn-Yussif to deliver one of Emile’s bombs.

After completing this task, Fisher is flown to the Jin Mao Hotel in Shanghai. CIA agent Hisham Hamza, who has secretly joined Yussif’s group, tells Fisher to record a meeting between Emile and a Pakistani scientist, Dr. Aswat. During the meeting, Aswat sells Emile several kilograms of red mercury, a powerful explosive. Fisher is ordered to collect a sample from a safe in the room. At the same time, JBA’s security chief, Carson Moss, tells Fisher to steal notes from Aswat’s hotel room. The NSA then orders Aswat’s assassination.

With the red mercury and Aswat’s notes, the JBA builds a bomb. Emile sends Fisher to Cozumel to test it by blowing up a cruise ship. Whether the bomb explodes depends on the player’s choice. The player can let the bomb detonate, prevent it by jamming the signal, or frame Enrica using her disarm code. Each choice affects Fisher’s trust with the JBA and NSA. If the bomb does not explode, Emile kills Enrica in anger.

Emile later meets with Yussif and another JBA ally, Alejandro Takfir, in Kinshasa. Fisher secretly listens to the meeting and learns that each leader plans to use red mercury bombs to destroy Mexico City, Los Angeles, and New York City. During the meeting, Hisham’s secret identity is discovered.

Emile orders Fisher to kill Hisham, who has fled to the Congolese presidential palace. Fisher takes a position on a radio tower with a sniper rifle. He can choose to shoot Hisham or save him.

When Fisher returns to the JBA’s base, he is ordered to kill Lambert, who was captured sneaking around the compound. The player can decide to shoot Lambert or Jamie Washington. Shooting Lambert keeps the JBA’s trust, while shooting Washington causes the JBA to become suspicious of Fisher. If Enrica is still alive, she discovers Fisher’s secret identity but allows him to access the labs under the base. There, Fisher kills Emile (and Washington if he was not killed earlier) and disarms the bomb. A SWAT team then attacks the compound. This version of Double Agent is part of the official story.

The game’s ending depends on completing three objectives: saving the cruise ship, saving Hisham, and killing Lambert.

• If Fisher fails all three or fails two with the NSA’s support below 33%, he initially surrenders to the SWAT team but escapes using a smoke grenade.
• If Fisher fails two with the NSA’s support above 33% or completes two or three objectives with the NSA’s support below 33%, he is captured, charged with murder, and pleads “not guilty.” After a trial, he escapes from prison and goes on the run.
• If Fisher completes two or three objectives with the NSA’s support above 33%, he escapes the compound by disabling a SWAT officer and stealing his uniform. In a bonus level, he boards a stolen Coast Guard boat used by Carson Moss to deliver the last bomb. Fisher kills Moss, disarms the bomb, and escapes just before the bomb is destroyed. This ending includes the phrase “To be continued…”

Officially, Fisher saves the cruise ship, saves Hisham, and kills Lambert to maintain his cover.

In January 2008, Sam and Hisham Hamza are sent to Iceland to investigate a geothermal plant. The mission is canceled, and Irving Lambert activates a Splinter Cell team to destroy the plant. Sam meets Lambert on the Osprey, who tells him that his daughter, Sarah, died in a car crash. Overcome with grief, Sam is unable to focus and is removed from active duty.

Lambert offers Sam a job as a secret agent, hoping that joining the JBA will help him recover. Fisher becomes a wanted criminal through staged bank robberies and is sent to Ellsworth Prison in Kansas. There, he befriends Jamie Washington, a JBA member. With help from a Splinter Cell team, Fisher helps Washington escape and joins the JBA.

At the JBA’s base in New Orleans, Sam finds an email from Cole Yeager, a JBA member, describing his plans to take control of the group. If Sam sends the email to the NSA, they briefly capture Yeager for questioning. If Sam sends it to the JBA, Yeager is killed by the terrorists. Sam is then sent to hijack a train in Grand Central Station carrying money, gold, and jewelry. Because Lambert pretends to be an arms dealer for the JBA, Sam has access to his NSA equipment and is easily briefed.

After the JBA builds a bomb using red mercury, Emile sends Fisher to Cozumel, Mexico, to test it by blowing up a cruise ship. If the player chooses to sabotage the bomb, Sam and Enrica are severely injured. If the bomb detonates, many people are killed. This decision does not affect the game’s ending in this version.

Sam is then sent to take control of a Russian oil tanker in the Sea of Okhotsk.

Multiplayer

When starting the game, the player chooses to join either the Spies of Third Echelon or the Mercenaries of Upsilon Force. This choice determines the player's mission goals, tools, and how they play the game.

Third Echelon Spies: The Spies are very fast and agile, faster than the Mercenaries. They can perform special acrobatic moves that help them move around the map and reach places the Mercenaries cannot. Their mission is to collect two encrypted files from four terminals spread across the map. They use a wrist computer to hack the terminals. The closer a Spy is to a terminal, the faster they can hack it. Progress made while hacking is added up for that Spy until they are defeated, at which point the information is lost. To win, the Spy team must collect two files and return them to their starting point. They can also win by killing all Upsilon Force members, but this is risky and not recommended unless the player is very skilled. The mission must be completed within 20 minutes, or the Upsilon Force wins.

Mercenaries of Upsilon Force: The Mercenaries are heavily armed and have tools to stop intruders. They can knock opponents to the ground and temporarily disable them with a melee attack. They can sprint for a short time, which makes it harder to aim or turn. Mercenaries can also sprint into a Spy, knocking them down and temporarily disabling them. They can rappel down surfaces to quickly move to lower floors. Their mission is to protect the four terminals from the Spies. The Mercenaries win by killing all Spies or if the timer runs out before the Spies return two files. They receive audio and visual alerts when a terminal is being hacked and can see which Spy is hacking and how much of the file has been retrieved.

The Xbox and PlayStation 2 versions include a "Spy vs. Upsilon" mode, where players can choose to play as Spies or Upsilon agents. These versions also include a co-op mode that connects with the single-player story.

Online multiplayer for Double Agent was stopped on April 15, 2010. However, some servers, like Insignia, have restored online play for the game.

There are six game modes in these matches: Team Hack, Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Key Run, Sam Vs. All, and Countdown. In Team Hack, players try to steal data by hacking enemies' computers and protecting their own, similar to "Capture the Flag." Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch involve players competing to kill each other. Key Run is like Team Hack, but players must capture a key to hack the enemy's computer. Sam Vs. All is similar to a mission in Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, where one player, Sam Fisher, must complete a mission alone while fighting Upsilon Force members. However, Sam Fisher does not have the tools from the single-player story and is similar to regular Spies. Countdown is like Deathmatch, but players must survive longer by earning more kills to extend their time.

Cooperative missions are available that connect to the story. These missions involve Spies helping Sam Fisher complete his goals or acting on information he provides. The first mission takes place in Iceland after Sam is rescued. The Spies destroy a plant to help Fisher. Next, they cause a riot at Ellsworth Prison to distract Fisher and Jamie Washington during their escape. Using information from Fisher, the Spies damage a chemical bunker in Kinshasa owned by Tafkir and Massoud and gather important details. The final mission happens as Fisher works to stop the JBA. The Spies, led by Assistant Director Williams, sabotage several Red Mercury bombs on a cargo ship heading to Los Angeles.

Soundtrack

Michael McCann, using the name Behavior, was the main composer for the game's soundtrack. For the Ubisoft Shanghai edition, McCann composed all the music, except for the Main Theme, which was created by experienced composers Cris Velasco and Sascha Dikiciyan. McCann made most of the music he composed for the game available for free on his website. For the Generation Six version, McCann composed all the music except for the cinematics, which were created by Velasco and Dikiciyan.

Reception

The reception of the game was varied, with some reviews being positive and others more mixed. GameRankings and Metacritic gave it scores of 89.31% and 89 out of 100 for the Xbox version; 85.12% and 85 out of 100 for the Xbox 360 version; 84.40% and 84 out of 100 for the PlayStation 2 version; 81.32% and 80 out of 100 for the PC version; 78.94% and 78 out of 100 for the PlayStation 3 version; 64% and 64 out of 100 for the GameCube version; and 61.36% and 61 out of 100 for the Wii version.

The Sydney Morning Herald gave the Xbox 360 version five stars and called it "a contender for game of the year." The Times praised the game, describing it as "sweaty-palmed fun, combining the excitement of a well-paced thriller with the joy of playing hide-and-seek in the dark." USA Today awarded it nine stars out of ten, noting that "Sam Fisher is impressive, whether he is the hero or villain, and fans may want another sequel."

Hyper’s Dylan Burns praised the game’s visuals, "moral ramifications," and "branching objectives." However, he criticized it for repeating "the same old trial and error gameplay" and for ending "too quickly."

In 2016, PC Gamer listed the PC version of Double Agent as one of the worst PC ports.

• Received IGN’s award for Best Xbox Action Game of 2006
• Received IGN’s award for "Best Original Score of 2006" for the Xbox 360
• Nominated by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences for "Action/Adventure Game of the Year," "Outstanding Achievement in Male Character Performance" (Michael Ironside as Sam Fisher), "Outstanding Achievement in Sound Design," and "Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition" at the 10th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards
• Won TeamXbox’s "Best Action Game" and "Game of the Year" for the Xbox version
• Won GameSpy’s "Game of the Year" and "Best Action Game" for the Xbox version
• Won Official Xbox Magazine’s Action-Adventure Game of the Year – February 2007
• Won Official Xbox Magazine’s Co-op Game of the Year – February 2007