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Freedom. In the gung-ho world of Tom Clancy, it’s something that must be defended, no matter how murky the politics get or how cynical the agents become. That takes heroes. Heroes like Jack Ryan. Heroes like Ethan Hunt. Heroes like (goddammit) Team America. And heroes like Sam Fisher. But while Splinter Cell’s protagonist may be one of freedom’s staunchest defenders, you could never really say the same about the games’ developers.

You see, in the wise words of Mahatma Gandhi, “Freedom is not worth having if it does not connote freedom to err”, and this is one area where Splinter Cell has always fallen short. True, the visuals have always been amazing, and in Sam Fisher the series found a hero with the sort of acrobatic flexibility and razor-sharp combat skills that put Bond or Ethan Hunt to shame. But you always felt you were in a game where you have to play by the rules, where the designers had plotted you a route through each level, and if you didn’t have the good grace to follow that yellow brick road, you had better learn to love the ‘mission failed’ screen.

Where Metal Gear Solid seemed happy to cut you some slack and let you find your own way through the game, Splinter Cell had you reaching for the game guide from the start. To be frank, I’ve always found the franchise horribly dull and restrictive.

Well, Gandhi is unlikely to have been much of an influence on Splinter Cell 3 – after all, it’s a game where peaceful resistance is less successful than sneaking up behind people and incapacitating them – but Chaos Theory shows that the developers have finally learnt what freedom really means. The missions have now developed multiple routes – want to get further into the terrorist compound? Shoot out the light and drop the guy on the door, or scale the wall and make it in through the back entrance, it’s up to you. Want to see what’s in the tent? You could try the door, but why not try out the new knife – also very handy for those sneaky, silent kills – to slice through and give those terrorists a big surprise.

What’s more, the old ‘three alarms and you’re done for routine’ has been scrapped. If you want to take the Rambo route you’re still going to have a tough time, but the game no longer penalises you every time a rogue shot sounds. You can sneak, hack, fight hand-to-hand, snipe, batter, or blast your way through the game, choosing the right approach as you see fit. Some ways are harder than others, but if it gets the job done, why worry?

The result is a far more elastic game experience in which you have freedom to err every now and then, but still enough challenge to keep things interesting. And where Splinter Cell once seemed to take itself far too seriously, Chaos Theory actually seems to have a sense of humour. It’s not quite up there with Snake Eater’s lecherous cut-scene camera, but it’s not too far behind, and the guard’s conversations – not to mention their dubious musical tastes – show a game that’s willing to make every effort to entertain you. Everyone’s having fun.

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