It's refreshing then, that after all this time Double Agent's single player experience deftly avoids this particular trap on a number of fronts. In previous games the scenario has always been black and white with you, as Sam, working for the government in order to stop a nefarious international threat. While this is also the basic underlying story for Double Agent, the game approaches the idea from a wholly different slant. This time the people that need to be stopped require infiltration from the inside, so instead of just sneaking around in the shadows Sam has to get up close and very personal by posing as one of their own. The group in question, John Brown's Army (JBA), are a bunch of American 'patriots' who are planning widespread mass destruction against their own government. Using the cover that he's gone off the rails and been imprisoned as a criminal, the levels of the game have Sam infiltrating the JBA and keeping close tabs on them to uncover the true extent of their plans. This means Sam has to globetrot to a variety of locations, the diversity of which helps keep things interesting. Each level has a different contrasting style from the dingy JBA headquarters, snow blinding Arctic levels, the darkened Shanghai skyline as it's illuminated by fireworks, and the explosions and utter carnage of civil war-ravaged Congo. With these often taking place in broad daylight both in and outdoors, the shift away from Sam skulking about in constant darkness and artificial light is a departure that does wonders, drawing the player in and giving a fresh feeling to the proceedings. Each stage is also more expansive than ever before with wider open spaces to explore, although ultimately the path from one point to the other within a level is still very linear.

During each level Sam is given objectives by his government employers at Third Echelon as well as the JBA, and these always conflict directly with one another. For example Lambert or a handler at Third Echelon may order you to protect someone, while the JBA wants you to kill them. The decision of what to do is left up to the player but failing the objective will result in a loss of trust with the disobeyed group. This does make for some superb and palpably tense experiences as both sides play the devil and angel on your shoulder, barking orders at you with only mere seconds to choose. During the between-level interludes at the JBA headquarters, objectives include assembling mines for the terrorists, or planting wire taps and sabotaging the JBA's equipment - most of these are optional but again failing to do each one will result in a loss of trust.

Two bars represent the trust level for each faction and, during crucial moments, also give an indication of how much trust will be lost by a particular choice. Completing or failing the objectives adds or removes sections of the bars, while blowing your cover with the JBA by tampering in areas of their headquarters where you shouldn't be will result in game over. Instances such as these are cleverly handled and it is always immediately obvious when you are placed in a situation where this will happen. The game’s checkpoint system also means that replaying previously failed sections is not that onerous.

The outcomes of your actions are usually quite limited outside of having to balance the trust of both organisations and this is a necessary trade off for progression of the story. Some of the choices do have an immediate impact as you quite literally decide who lives and who dies, with the firing shot usually being delivered with force and brevity. In the long term the ultimate outcome of the story cannot be affected - all that varies is the path used to get there. What Double Agent does well is wrap you up in the proceedings so that this false freedom is muddied and not immediately obvious. The decisions you are required to make are ones that no self-respecting person possibly can without having a moment of blind panic about which option is right and which is wrong.

The Splinter Cell games have always been visually impressive with their use of lighting and shadows, so naturally the updated graphics this time around also help. As is to be expected, the detail in the environments and characters is also noticeably superior with a nicely polished feel and the addition of little touches such as the screen being lighter or darker depending on whether Sam is wearing sunglasses.

Other than these supplements the single player campaign is very much business as usual in terms of controls and Sam's expansive array of gadgets. Where Double Agent manages to push itself above the previous games is in how the newer elements are well thought out, well implemented and add to the experience. The game is also still full of exciting, tense and memorable moments that the previous titles have become known for.

Some of the older problems from the series do remain, such as the rather clunky control system which can take time to get used to and those that didn't like the previous Splinter Cells will find that very little has changed to make them reconsider their opinion. Existing series fans and newcomers alike will certainly be gripped by the game.

While single player offers enough to keep things new, the same cannot be said for multiplayer. The three against three Spies Vs Mercenaries gameplay that has been part of the series since Pandora Tomorrow is still here, with co-operative play against the capable A.I. or human opposition. Matches can still be frantic free for alls or stealthy tactical gameplay, depending on your play style, and while it has been tweaked the differences are not substantial enough to make it feel like anything more than the same as before, just with some new levels and costume designs. That isn't to say that multiplayer can't still be a lot of fun, but it won't do anything to enthuse those who didn't get on with it before.

Thanks to the tweaking, pacing and `in the moment` choice system Double Agent is a solid piece of crash bang wallop entertainment, mixed with a healthy dollop of softly-softly moments. Moreover, the game is an excellent first step for the Splinter Cell series on to the newest generation of consoles and gives hope that there is still plenty of scope left for Sam Fisher’s exploits in the next inevitable instalments.