Tom Clancy’s ‘Splinter Cell: Echoes’ Comic Will Lead From ‘Conviction’ To ‘Blacklist’

The comic that will be written by Nathan Edmondson (Ultimate Comics: Iron Man) and illustrated by Marc Laming (Planet of the Apes) was announced by Tom Clancy videogames publishers Ubisoft on Wednesday. Cinema Blend notes that Edmondson and Laming have worked together in the past on the military thriller “The Activity,” which has apparently gotten the attention of “Splinter Cell” Ubisoft.

Fans of Edmonson past works can look forward to more of the comic author’s style in “Echoes.” While in an interview with IGN – linked to in the Ubisoft Facebook announcement - Edmonson said that the creative team was given a great deal of control by Ubisoft and Clancy’s representatives.

“We wouldn't have agreed to work on the book if we didn't know we'd able to do something special, something top-notch. Nothing has been dictated to us,” IGN claims Edmonson said. “The Splinter Cell Toronto team and the Tom Clancy folks have been partners with us all the way, giving input, encouraging ideas, helping us to better understand the Splinter Cell world, but they have never harnessed our creativity.”

Bridging the gap between the videogames is an important task to fans of the series, as “Conviction” ends with Sam Fisher no longer employed by the United States government as a spy, states Cinema Blend. When gamers pick up “Blacklist” upon release in March 2013, they might wonder how he became a part of the organization called the Fourth Echelon, and “Echoes” will explain.

“Echoes” won’t be Ubisoft’s first departure from gaming, with the videogame publisher and developer making graphic novels of other popular franchises like the Assassin's Creed spinoff “Assassin's Creed: The Fall.” IGN claims that the comic was a success and gave new aspects of the game’s universe to the fans who read it, and was followed up with another “Assassin's Creed” graphic novel, “The Chain.”