Splinter Cell may return as an animated Netflix series

Tom Clancy is anime now. At least he will be, with the reported announcement of an animated series based on long-dormant sneak 'em up Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell. While he's been out of the videogame space a long time, it seems like Netflix and Ubisoft are bringing Sam Fisher back via the streaming service, greenlighting a two-season adaptation that probably promises plenty of awfully dark frames punctuated by green dots and neck-snapping noises.

That news comes courtesy of Variety, which reports that John Wick writer Derek Kolstad has been brought on to write and executive produce an adaptation of Tom Clancey's Goggleboy. What's interesting is the direction they're taking it - reportedly opting for an anime series rather than the more predictable gritty, live-action "prestige" affair. Supposedly, Netflix have ordered a two-season, 16-episode run of Sam Fisher's animated hijinks.

Granted, there's every reason to be sceptical. Dozens of videogame telly shows have been announced before, only to vanish into production hell. As of 2017, Splinter Cell has itself had a film adaptation supposedly lurking in the shadows. But Netflix has better form than most - not only do their adaptations of The Witcher and Castlevania exist, but they're also pretty damn good. Here's hoping Splinter Cell gets a banger to rival "Toss a coin to your Witcher", eh?

It does feel like we're seeing more serious efforts pop-up these days, mind. Just this month, the creators of Westworld announced a "darkly comic" Fallout adaptation. The Sims, meanwhile, just got itself a reality TV show - though resident Simster Alice Bee reckons EA will never let it embrace the hot mess it longs to become.

Save a brief cameo in Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, it'll also be the first we've seen of Sam Fisher since 2013's Splinter Cell: Blacklist. Ubi have been teasing the green-eyed sneaker's return for years. Who knows, maybe a high-profile anime will be what it takes to bring your man out of retirement.