Well, this didn’t take long. No sooner was it revealed that Michael Ironside, the voice of super agent Sam Fisher through five Splinter Cell video games, would not portray Fisher in the Splinter Cell: Blacklist, than an internet petition shot up demanding Ubisoft reverse that decision.
“The fans of Splinter Cell are going to be very pleasantly surprised when they play this game,” Eric Johnson, the new Sam Fisher, said in a video released yesterday. Oh, ho, hoooo not so fast. You forgot to consult with the organisers of “Demand Michael Ironside,” who cite the “Retake Mass Effect” movement as a model.
“Based on the number of negative comments, I get the feeling we can pretty much all agree one thing: we want Ironside,” writes the organiser. “It’s not that we hate Eric Johnson, he is an OK guy — it’s that we love Michael Ironside!” No, based on the number of negative comments, it’s that you guys hate Eric Johnson. C’mon.
If they succeed in getting Ubisoft to completely reshoot everything done to this point — and the game is due for an early 2013 release, my hat’s off to them. Because then they’ll be getting a Sam Fisher that does have the voice of Ham Tyler Michael Ironside. He’ll also look like a 62-year-old man who is a little, well, broad, as this video delicately explains.
Ubisoft chose to capture voice with motion for a complete cinematic experience, sort of like what we’ve seen in Uncharted. While Johnson has a stunt double, he also has to project more physicality than Ironside, despite his badass last name, can at this point in his career.
But go for it anyway, Demand Michael Ironside. It’s your internet.
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