Advantages: Atmospheric gameplay, cool gadgets
Disadvantages: Some ideas taken from MGS2, some

...Naturally, before playing on Splinter Cell, due to all the rumours about it being an exact copy of Metal Gear, I was sceptical. However, after just a few minutes of playing as Sam Fisher; the third echelon special forces operative, I soon realised how brilliant this game is. Now, admittedly the name Sam Fisher doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as Solid Snake but he is certainly a far better stealth operative with more gadgets, moves and grey hair than Snake could ever muster. The game starts with two agents lying in the cold spying on an enemy force. They creep into a vent and make their way down to a bunker of sorts. They discover a huge army ready to mobilise and immediately transmit to HQ. Unfortunately before they manage to communicate what they’re seeing in more detail they’re seen by a guard and fired... Read review

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Advantages: Good graphics and voice acting, good replay value
Disadvantages: A poor attempt at innovation, needs something new

...With Splinter Cell: Double Agent being the fourth incarnation of Ubi Soft's now well established stealth-based espionage franchise, the developers desperately needed to build on their previous success and inject some much needed innovation into the once groundbreaking series. There is no doubt that Ubi Soft tried to push the boundaries here, but, upon playing Double Agent and hoping for the best, I unfortunately came away feeling that Splinter Cell has become rather tired and overdone. With a plot that makes some gestures towards depth but ultimately fails to excite, and a new but half-hearted trust-gauge mechanism, the basics of Splinter Cell remain untouched in Double Agent. Based more upon stealth, and, to some extent, strategy than full blown action, the game sees the player take on the role of Sam Fisher, an NSA operative... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Good people, like anywhere else in the world
Disadvantages: Bad people, like anywhere else in the world

...As one of the few German users of Ciao UK and someone who has lived and studied in Britain, I have decided to exploit my position and engage in a piece of cultural crossover, exclusively for Ciao's UK community. Do not expect any descriptions of cultural, architectoral or historical sights here. The purpose of this article is the same as should be with every opinion at Ciao, i.e. to answer the question "Should I buy this?", or, as in this case, "Should I go there?" I am about to answer this question in the view of recent reports of xenophobia, neo-nazism and anti-semitism in Germany, thus I am focussing on the aspect of how safe it is to travel there, how openminded people are or not, and what kind of experiences you can expect to collect when interacting with German people. You can imagine that this is one of the most difficult... Read review

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Advantages: -
Disadvantages: -

...Hello Ciao Members! I am from Germany, so I want to say sorry, that I am doing a lot of mistakes. Now, I want to tell you something about my homecountry, namelly Germany. In Germany live about 88 Million people, the capital of Germany is Berlin. In Germany are 14 % of the population unemployemt. And ca. 8 % of the inhabitants are from another nationality. Germany consists of 16 counties: 1. Nordrheinwestfalen 2. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern 3. Bayern 4. Rheinland-Pfalz 5. Sachsen 6. Sachsen-Anhalt 7. Schleswig-Holtstein 8. Hessen 9. Hamburg 10. Berlin 11. Brandenburg 12. BadenWürttemberg 13. Niedersachsen 14. Thüringen 15. Saarland When you want to go on holiday in Germany, you can visit some very interesting cities. A lot of tourists visit Koeln, München or the capital Berlin. Koeln: In Koeln live about 1, 008... Read review

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Advantages: Fantastic fun, great opportunity to broaden your horizons.
Disadvantages: Takes a while to adapt to a new country.

...in America and get away with passing the course! Others, myself included were naturally apprehensive but quite looking forward to the idea of having a year abroad. Fast forward a couple of months and we had all made the difficult choice of what to do in our year abroad. Manchester uni had given us three fairly broad options. They were study, work, or serve as a teaching assistant. Study, which I chose was by far the most popular, this was followed by teaching. A few hardy souls chose the option to work in Germany or Austria, but in 2003 this was the more difficult option as the downturn in the economy of Germany was just beginning and very few firms had the budget to take on a potentially risky British student for a year! So finally it came to October 2002 and I found myself standing in Leipzig-Halle airport facing a year in Germany. I had... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Good Graphics, Fans of the series will like it
Disadvantages: Poor attempt at innovation

...Splinter Cell: Double Agent Review! Snazzy title eh? Splinter Cell: Double Agent promised us something different from previous Splinter Cell’s, a game that followed Sam Fisher a grizzled veteran stealthily completing missions and saving the world. The series is hugely popular with fans and critics who love the realistic and patient style of game play. However, when Chaos Theory the third game in the series was released, it garnered a lukewarm reception, and whilst still being fundamentally sound it was a case of been there done that for gamers. Something needed to be done to freshen up the series and in October 2006 Double Agent arrived to do just that. Or did it? When I heard the premise for Double Agent I was excited, too excited if I’m honest. The idea of choosing how I play the game and how good or bad I am... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Great sound, fantastic graphics
Disadvantages: a little hard to control at first, but keep at it!

...When I recently upgraded my computer to an all singing all dancing version, I decided to test the graphics and gaming card that PC world told me was "the best money could buy". I opted for Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell. * A bit about the character you control, SAM FISHER* You play the character of Sam Fisher and you are the best filed operative of a secretive NSA sub-agency. Sent to execute desperate missions, you are the last resort of your government. Shoulf you be captured of killed, all knowledge of your existence will be denied: you are SPLINTER CELL. Fisher has been on the front lines of espionage in several defining conflicts throughout past decades. He has not only survived, but also excelled in the field of covert operations through hard work, insatiable curiosity and brutal honesty. He has little time for polite... Read review

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Advantages: Quite fun when you're in a thinking state of mind.
Disadvantages: Very hard sometimes. Actually most of the time.

...FreeCell is a tricky little game and unless you knew how to play or read the instructions you’d be there forever trying to work it out. I’m not kidding and you’ll find that it’s just as tricky to actually play it and this is once you know how. FreeCell usually comes as one of the preset games in your computer when you buy it along with Solitaire, Hearts and Minesweeper although there are some variations to which you get. FreeCell is by far the most difficult to complete. The FreeCell game board is made up of eight columns made up of a mixed up pack of playing cards. Then on the top left, you have four free spaces or cells hence the name and four free cells on the top right. The object of the game is similar to Solitaire and you need to end up with four stacks of each suit in order from Ace to King at the end to win. It’s harder than... Read review

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Advantages: Really good game. Good, easy to understand missions and exeptional graphics.
Disadvantages: Very difficult to master, sound system needs a bit of work.

...One of the latest instalments of the hugely successful Splinter Cell series, Splinter Cell Double Agent is a great game, cool and fun to play as, for the first time ever, you take on the role of a bad guy. Splinter Cell is now more interactive than ever, as even the slighest descision can change the outcome of the game. This time, you have to build on the trust of both the NSA, and the JBA, a terrorist group you have been sent to infiltrate and destroy from within. In Double Agent, you will alternate between actual missions and resting at the JBA's base, where you are to complete missions for the NSA (eg, scan finger prints and retina's to gain access to hidden rooms etc). This kind of mission is timed, and often involves sneaking into private areas, and so builds on tension. Ubisoft have really thought this out. Graphics... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Good acting performances, excellent plot. DVD boxset for good price.
Disadvantages: Maybe too short.

...I read a review about sleeper cell in a newspaper and they rated it better than 24. I on the other hand would not go that far. I did think that sleeper cell was gripping and tense but didn't have the twists and turns that 24 presents. Even though i say it isn't as good as 24, it is one of those dramas that has you reaching for the DVD remote to watch the next episode straight away. Sleeper cell follows the story of a muslim undercover FBI agent who infiltrates a terrorist cell that is planning a major attack in America. The actors all give excellent performances and really make the program enjoyable to watch and the fact that the members of the cell are not all middle eastern is quite refreshing because it doesn't stereotype Arab muslims as terrorists, it shows that anybody from any walk of life can be influenced by others... Read review

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