A concept for a new Splinter Cell game exists, just as soon as Ubisoft would like to resurrect one of the stealth genre’s most iconic IPs. The design was developed by Jade Raymond’s team, presumably just after 2013’s Splinter Cell: Blacklist, on which Raymond served as executive producer and which remains the most recent Splinter Cell game.
Speaking with Game Reactor (via WCCF Tech) at the Fun & Serious game festival in Bilbao, Raymond says:
“The last Splinter Cell [Blacklist] is the last one that shipped, so… you know what? There is a design that we actually had and worked on and would have wanted to make, but since I am not at Ubisoft any more I can’t talk about it, and I don’t know who wants to share that concept.”
A new Splinter Cell was not announced at E3, giving the lie to rumours ahead of the show. But Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot did say that “we love the brand. We really want to come back to it, but I can’t say much today.” On Reddit, he added that “teams are working on different things” with respect to a new Splinter Cell game, “so stay tuned for more.”
That’s pretty encouraging, and Splinter Cell protagonist Sam Fisher’s surprise cameo in Ghost Recon Wildlands last year was another hint that he’s still on Ubi’s minds.
Related: check out the best stealth games on PC
Jade Raymond is best known as the EP and one of the original creators of Assassin’s Creed. She has since left Ubisoft for EA. How much of her Splinter Cell concept survives if Ubi is indeed cooking up a new game is unknowable for now, but the fact that a post-Blacklist idea was conceived is yet another promising sign. I’d personally be pretty surprised if we haven’t had a Splinter Cell announcement by the time E3 2019 wraps.