* So by now you know Sam comes back to help out a Grim, but doesn't like what's going down at the "new" 3rd Echelon. He is an enemy of the state, fighting for what he believes in. He's on the run with limited resources. He's alone but not defenseless. At the same time, he's not a victim a fugitive or in hiding; he's fighting for his convictions (hence the title).
* The screenshots are AWESOME! The environments look totally interactive. In one shot, it appears he punched or threw a guy who then lands on a counter and knocks over cups and plates while civilians are scattering.
Conviction uses Havok physics, but all the original code has been rewritten.
* "In previous games, we had 2,000 or 3,000 animations, now we already have over 10,000."
* The pace of the game is going to be changed. The devs want to create 15-minute playable segments so it's a little more accesible to casuals, but they promise you can still sit down with it for a few hours if you like. Hopefully they find a balance that still keeps you immersed.
* Previous SC games were about "passive stealth" where you hide in the shadows and wait for a perfect opportunity to strike. In conviction, the idea is "active stealth" where you react quicky to your surroundings. You'll always be on the move. Again it's mentioned that Ubi wants to give Sam more ways to interact with the environment instead of just shooting or turning off lights.
* The animation system is based on the concept of Biometrics which just means getting the character to move naturally and fluidly. They mention how they want to eliminate pressing a button to pick something up and seeing Sam slide into place in front of the object before he interacts with it. They say an animation of Sam running up to a chair, picking it up and throwing it took 8 months to work out. I'd be willing to be they got it right. The screens of him progressing through the animation look very good. Also, there will be physics tied to the chair Sam is holding, so you'll bump into things with the chair and it won't just go through a wall.
* The original games went for a T rating from the start, but this time, they're going for an M rating so things should be a little more realistic. They mention how this could have an interesting impact on Sam's finishing moves.
* They mention a sort of hypothetical gameplay situation where Sam takes out a guard with some crazy melee combos. He then grabs the guard and throws him through a pane of glass or over a table (knocking over all the stuff on the table). Sam grabs the guard's radio and listens in on police radio chatter. He hears that they're sending in police after him through the front door. Sam opens the back door but doesn't go through; instead, he hides under a table, a guard walks in and investigates the open door. At that point, Sam could sneak out the front door, or he could knock over the table he's hiding behind, use it for cover and open fire on the guard. OR he could sneak up on the guard, handcuff him to a rail and kicks him down a flight of stairs. wow.
* When you are detected, there's no limit to what you can do. All the tools you use are available in your immediate surroundings. Sam doesn't have a backpack of gadgets this time. Use what's around you and improvise to get out of a sticky situation.
* About the beard: Originally, Fisher was created with a beard in the very first game.
* New form of lighting called indirect lighting means that the way light reflects off your surroundings affects how light is cast on you and nearby objects. Light reflecting off a large red poster will cast nearby things in a slight tint of red.
* There will still be a lot of classic SC moments like planting bombs or hacking computers, but the gratification won't necessarily come from completing the objective, but the path you take to the objective.
* Crowd AI will react to Sam's behavior. For example, Sam can steal a guy's laptop, but the guy will follow Sam and call for the police. Nearby witnesses will also point Sam out to nearby police. Sam can blend into the crowd in certain situations to avoid detection. The crowd AI is pretty smart. You won't see NPCs walk into each other, spaz out, then walk away in totally opposite directions. People move out of the way of objects intelligently.
* Sam has an ability called Heroes Instinct where the crowd and surroundings become greyed out and threats such as police are made to standout. Assassin's creed anyone?

No MP details were given aside from the fact that Montreal is doing that aspect of the game as well, so they aren't going to split SP and MP between two dev studios.

good god...

Pretty much my reaction. It's incredible how ambitious some Ubi's projects are. There will be a trailer on Friday, so we'll see all the graphics and nimations in motion... can't wait. At least I hope it's base on some gameplay/in-engine footage

I sure as hell didn't expect to be this excited about a splinter cell game this generation.