GAMES & GIZMOS

Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Conviction

For a change, we got a mobile game for you this time. So, yup, kiddos... log on to your operator portals or Gameloft's site and download the paid version... it don't cost a pretty penny! And is it worth the cheap bucks? Well, it's a Splinter Cell game so it obviously has playability... good bang for your buck pretty much! So, the review then!

The biggest thing here is Sam Fisher (for those of you not familiar with the Splinter Cell games, Sam Fisher is the hero). He has changed and he may just not be the hero anymore. Why? Coz he's on the run from the agency which he so loyally served till Double Agent, the last game in the series. And now, Sam Fisher is an effective, killing machine... heaven help those who cross his path. Or wait... is he still the good guy? Is he trying to save the White House from a secret agency? Play and find out!

All the sneaking and puzzle solving and shooting which have come to define the Splinter Cell franchise are available here. And the sneaking especially is much improved and has more options. The controls are not as smooth as you'd like but it's fun nevertheless. The action sequences are very well done though, as usual, and it's a treat to take on all the enemies whiling rolling, barging, pulling...

The puzzle-solving adds some more playability as do the 2 mini-games - a Sudoku-style number grid game and a bomb disposal game. The graphics are on the OK side and so is the sound. But for a 5-rupee game, Conviction packs a pretty mean punch.

Ah! What be that in the picture there? That be the Zeemote, friends! Even though it's been around for a while, since we reviewed a mobile game this month, we figured might as well review a gadget that goes with it. What? How? The Zeemote connects to your phone via Bluetooth and then you don't need to use your phone's sissy keypad or touchscreen or stylus to play... use the Zeemote. And it works with Nokia, Samsung, SonyEricsson, LG and Blackberry handsets. What's that? You got an iPhone? Too bad, showoff! No Zeemote for you... only touchplay!

Anyhoo, the Zeemote... the features! That little joystick on top is an analog stick with 4 action buttons and 360-degree movement. And it gives you over 30 hours of play with 3 AAA batteries. Cool, huh?

There is a catch though: for you to play games on your phone with a Zeemote, the games also need to be published using Zeemote APIs. The good thing is that apart from handset manufacturers, the people behind Zeemote have also tied up with mobile operators and some of the biggest game publishers (like Digital Chocolate, EA, Disney, Eidos to name a few) to ensure that you have access to a large game library for your Zeemote.

So, ready to go out and buy one? Well, here's the big hitch... it's only available in Western Europe, Mexico and Israel for the now. So you will need to ask someone going there to get you one back! Or you can buy one on Amazon... will cost you about 1100 bucks! So, what are you waiting for __ get pleading or get clicking! This ees zee zendoff!