Improvements for Splinter Cell

This guide will show you how to improve your experience in Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell, and optimize it for modern computers.

Enhanced Patch

Enhanced SC[github.com] is a major patch I have created to fix bugs and adding gameplay improvements.

This patch includes all the fixes below, so the later sections are not necessary unless you want to download PlayStation 3 HD Textures.

Downloads:

Enhanced SC v1.1[github.com]

Note: Your original saves will not be deleted, but they will appear as missing. Enhanced intentionally hides them because they aren't compatible with this version.

How To:

After downloading the patch, extract the contents to your Splinter Cell directory and overwrite all existing files when prompted.

You may configure additional settings from:
System \ Enhanced.ini

[Echelon.EchelonGameInfo]
m_defautSpeed=5
; Default: 1 - Initial speed when starting a mission. Controller will ignore this value and always start at 5.

bCrouchDrop=True
; Default: False - When hanging or using a zipline, crouch key will drop and jump key will raise legs, similar to later Splinter Cell games.

bOpticCableVisions=True
; Default: False - Allows the Optic Cable use all vision modes, similar to later Splinter Cell games.

bAltDoorStealth=True
; Default: False - Hold left/right to use Open Door Stealth instead of back for keyboard input.

bXboxDifficulty=False
; Default: False - On Xbox, Sam starts with 300 HP on Normal and 198 on Hard. The PC version was rebalanced to 200 HP on Normal and 132 on Hard.
; Note: Elite Mode will override this setting and apply its own health values.

bEliteMode=False
; Default: False - No starting ammo, no quick saves, autosaves only. Xbox checkpoints if enabled. Sam starts with 100 HP on Normal and 66 HP on Hard.

[Echelon.EPlayerController]
InputMode=IM_Auto
; Default: IM_Keyboard - The input mode affects if the game uses the keyboard or controller variant of the HUD and interactions.
; IM_Auto - Automatically detects input device based on the last key/button pressed.
; IM_Keyboard - Forces keyboard input mode.
; IM_Contoller - Forces controller input mode.

ControllerScheme=CS_Default
; Default: CS_Default - Overrides the default controller layout with alternate control schemes.
; CS_Default =  Default controls (Xbox)
; CS_Pandora = Pandora Tomorrow controls (Xbox)
; CS_PlayStation =  Default controls (PlayStation 2)
; CS_User = No controls automatically bound, manually bind in SplinterCellUser.ini

bNormalizeMovement=False
; Default: False - Normalizing diagonal movement so that holding two directional keys simultaneously does not increase overall movement speed.

bBurstFire=True
; Default: False - Restores the burst fire mode for the SC-20K, featured in builds prior to E3 2002.

bToggleInventory=False
; Default: False - Toggles the inventory on and off with a key press, instead of holding the key.

bUnlockAllLevels=False
; Default: False - Unlocks all levels, bypassing profile progression.
; Note: Elite Mode will override this setting and set it to false.

[Echelon.EVolume]
bEnableCheckpoints=True
; Default: False - Restores the checkpoints from the Xbox version.

[EchelonIngredient.EFragGrenade]
ExplosionDamage=150.0
; Default: 100.0 - Increased so that enemies die with one frag grenade on Hard difficulty. Enemies have 100 HP on Normal and 150 HP on Hard.
; Note: Elite Mode will override this setting and set it to 150.0 if it's greater than 150.0.

[EchelonIngredient.EWallMine]
ExplosionDelay=0.5
; Default: 1.75 - Decreased to prevent running past the wallmine before it explodes.
; Note: Elite Mode will override this setting and set it to 0.5 if it's greater than 0.5.

[Echelon.EchelonPlayerStart]
bThermalOverride=False
; Default: False - Enables thermal vision to be available for all levels, regardless of their original settings.
; Note: Elite Mode will override this setting and set it to false.

[EchelonHUD.EchelonMainHUD]
bShowHUD=True
; Default: True - The default state of the HUD when a level starts. In the in-game options, you can assign a keybind to toggle the HUD.

[EchelonCharacter.ESam]
ESam_DefaultMesh=0
; Default: 0 - Specifies the default suit used across all levels unless overridden below.
; 0 = Default
; 1 = Standard
; 2 = Balaclava
; 3 = Partial sleeves

; Individual level overrides
ESam_Training=0
ESam_Tbilisi=0
ESam_DefenseMinistry=0
ESam_CaspianOilRefinery=0
ESam_CIA=0
ESam_Kalinatek=0
ESam_NuclearPlant=0
ESam_Severonickel=0
ESam_ChineseEmbassy=0
ESam_Abattoir=0
ESam_ChineseEmbassy2=0
ESam_PresidentialPalace=0
ESam_KolaCell=0
ESam_Vselka=0

Widescreen Support and Shadow Buffers

Downloads:

ThirteenAG Widescreen Fix with dgVoodoo2 included[drive.usercontent.google.com]

How To:

Copy content of archive to the Splinter Cell folder.

You may configure additional settings from:
system \ scripts \ SplinterCell.WidescreenFix.ini

[MAIN]
ResX = 0
ResY = 0
ForceShadowBufferMode = 1 // Use with d3d8 wrapper that comes with this fix or any other that fixes the issue.
HudWidescreenMode = 1 // Makes certain hud elements offset to screen edges.
WidescreenHudOffset = 120.0 // This is the default offset for 16:9. For lower aspect ratios adjusted automatically, for higher you may change it manually.

DLC Missions

Downloads:

DLC Missions [drive.usercontent.google.com]

How To:

Copy content of archive to the Splinter Cell folder.

Three new missions will be added: Kola Cell, Vselka Infiltration, and Vselka Submarine.

Note: The DLC missions are pre-installed on the GOG and Ubisoft Connect (Uplay) versions of the game.

Textures

The PlayStation 3 HD textures originally caused issues with shadows not rendering properly through alpha textures. I’ve recently rebuilt them to fix this problem. However, some of Ubisoft's replacement textures deviate from the original design instead of just increasing resolution.

Downloads:

PC Original Textures [drive.usercontent.google.com]
PlayStation 3 HD Textures [drive.usercontent.google.com]

How To:

Copy content of archive to the Splinter Cell folder.

Comparisons:

Frame Rate

Splinter Cell was developed with a target frame rate of 30 frames per second. Exceeding this frame rate can cause problems with AI pathing, physics, and other elements that are dependent on frame rate. To minimize these issues, it is recommended to cap the frame rate at 60 FPS, even when using a high refresh rate monitor.

By default, Splinter Cell allows for a maximum frame rate of 200 frames per second, often leading to significant issues.

How To:

There are many programs to use to lock your game at 60 frames per second. Both NVIDIA Control Panel and AMD Radeon Settings have an option to lock the frame rate for a particular game.



As an alternative, we also can recommend using the latest version of NVIDIA Profile Inspector [github.com] (for NVIDIA graphics cards only), or using MSI Afterburner.[download.msi.com]

Comparisons:

Mouse Polling Rate

Currently, many mice come with polling rates that can reach 1000 Hz or higher. However, in Splinter Cell, higher polling rates may cause issues with your mouse aim. If your mouse allows it, try setting the polling rate to 125 Hz through software. This issue also applies to all games in the series, from the original Splinter Cell to Splinter Cell: Blacklist. It is possibly related to the use of the Unreal Engine 2.

Other Guides

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1361585370
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=728093866
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=935210001
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2969130403

[gloom]

I downloaded the enhanced patch but when I start the game the screen goes black with only the background music, is there any fix for this?

[Joshhhuaaa]

Steam and GitHub should be identical, it’s just a link to the same download. Don’t download the source code zip, not necessary for installing the patch.

[DeathBlow2U]

Great work! However, I am confused which one I should be downloading for the full enhanced version. On this Steam Community Hub page, under Enhanced Patch then Downloads: I selected the link for Enhanced SC v1.1. This downloads the Enhanced-SC-v1.1.7z file. I extracted the files and within it is an animations folder that has 6 other files within titled EDog.ukx, EFemale.ukx, ENPC.ukx, ESam.ukx, ESkelIngredients.ukx and ETrk.ukx. I then visited the Enhanced SC GitHub link under the Enhanced Patch section. I went to the Releases section then under the latest titled Enhanced SC v1.1, under Assets I downloaded the file Enhanced-SC-v1.1.7z. I extracted the files and within it are folders for animations, LIPSYNCH, maps, Sounds and system. I also noticed a Source code (zip) file under Assets which has even more different folders and files. Can you clarify which one I should be downloading and putting into the Splinter Cell directory?

[Tuffy Ducky]

This is the best thing to happen to this franchise in a long time. Keep up the good work!

PS Hopefully PT and CT next

[Sevka Slav]

The author of this guide is a legend
thank you for the mods

[XECuTiON]

Alright waited and it did end up working. Was saying how the file couldn't be scanned for viruses but did you want to download it anyway. Thank you for the heads up

[MrSmity]

It still works, I just double checked myself. It takes like 20-30 seconds to load I think due to AV protections.

[XECuTiON]

When I click on the ThirteenAG Widescreen Fix and click on continue to external site it's just stuck on loading. Is there a way to fix that

[SimplySucking]

Is there ANY way to fix his aim i stand still try to shoot a guy in the head and miss every time unless im right next to him its the reason i put off the game for so long it so annoying to blow stealth because sam cant hit a barn wall 10m in front of him

[Joshhhuaaa]

Nvidia removed maximum pre-rendered frames over 5 years ago from the Nvidia Control Panel, update your GPU drivers if your hardware is new enough. Max Frame Rate got introduced as a setting in January 2020. If you can't get a newer driver, use RivaTuner or Nvidia inspector like cubabori suggested