If Chaos Theory focused too much on stealth, Conviction's main campaign has too little of it. There are few situations that you can't shoot your way out of (and in some situations that's actually the only way out), and the game feels more like a cover shooter than a proper stealth game. The lack of a scoring system serves to further discourage a stealthy approach. Still, the game is visually appealing, and Fisher's graceful movements are a joy to watch, whether he is vaulting over an obstacle, killing an opponent with his bare hands, or shooting several enemies in a row using the Mark & Execute ability. There are many weapons to choose from, and the gadgets are easy to use, unlike Chaos Theory. Unfortunately, the story is so hackneyed, it's downright embarrassing. Seriously, I could come up with a better story in five minutes. This is the reason why I can't give the game a "good" rating.
The Deniable Ops mode is where the game really shines. If you are playing the Infiltration mode, it is pure, unmitigated stealth, and it can be very challenging. The levels are very large and contain many traps, the enemies spawn in different places every time and behave fairly realistically. The only drawback is that your progress isn't saved when you exit the game, so if you want to complete a particular level, you have to do it in one go, which can take several hours.
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