Ubi Soft announces multi-platform Splinter Cell sequel

Ubi Soft has announced the sequel to its hit stealth title Splinter Cell, which was the best-selling Xbox game of last Christmas and recently topped the UK sales charts thanks to a release on the PS2 (as well as PC and GameCube releases).

The new game is called Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, and is due to arrive at retail in the first quarter of 2004. The game will focus on single-player, but will also add a multiplayer component to the franchise, with proper real-time multiplayer options including the ability for several players to explore the same area at once.

Interestingly, the game is being developed as a multi-platform title from the outset. It's not clear whether this rules out a period of Xbox exclusivity before the release of the other versions, but it certainly looks that way - a fact which is something of a blow to Microsoft, as Splinter Cell was the key must-have title which drove Xbox sales last Christmas.

It's also unclear which platforms will include the online support, although we'd imagine that PS2, Xbox and PC are the obvious candidates.