Key Takeaways
1. The Splinter Cell remake, announced in 2021, has faced leadership changes and development challenges, raising concerns about its progress.
2. Andrea Schmoll, the current game director, left Ubisoft Toronto in September 2025, marking the second leadership change for the project.
3. The absence of gameplay visuals and updates has led to worries about the project’s health amid Ubisoft’s restructuring.
4. A job listing for a new game director was briefly posted and removed, indicating ongoing internal struggles in the development team.
5. Despite speculation of cancellation, Ubisoft claims the remake is still in progress, with a potential release aimed for 2026.
Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, a well-known stealth espionage series from Ubisoft, has been inactive for over ten years. A remake of Splinter Cell has been in development, but it recently faced another challenge with the exit of its game director.
Details on the Remake
The Splinter Cell remake was first announced in 2021 and is said to be utilizing Ubisoft’s Snowdrop engine, being developed under the codename North. However, the absence of gameplay visuals, trailers, or notable updates has sparked worries regarding the project’s health, particularly amid Ubisoft’s larger restructuring after a partnership with Tencent.
Changes in Leadership
Recent news reveals that Andrea Schmoll, who took the role of game director after the project started, left Ubisoft Toronto in September 2025, as shown in her LinkedIn updates. Schmoll previously held a position as a systems designer on Far Cry 6 and had been in charge of key aspects of the remake, such as gameplay dynamics, gadget use, NPC actions, and interaction within environments.
This resignation is the second significant change in leadership for the remake, following the exit of original director David Grivel in 2022. Grivel had spent more than ten years at Ubisoft, contributing to games like Splinter Cell: Blacklist, various Far Cry titles, and Assassin’s Creed Unity, before moving to EA to work on the Battlefield franchise.
Internal Struggles
The latest round of issues came to light through a now-removed job listing on Ubisoft’s website, which Tech4Gamers noticed. The ad sought a new game director for the Splinter Cell remake at the Toronto studio. It had been live for around five to six weeks before its removal, outlining tasks such as managing NPC AI, fine-tuning stealth mechanics, camera systems, and leading the development team in introducing fresh features while preserving the core gameplay of the franchise.
Frequent changes in directors, twice in three years, can often signal trouble for projects, similar to delays seen in other Ubisoft remakes like Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time.
Future Prospects
Even with speculation of the project’s cancellation, Ubisoft maintains that the remake is progressing, and insiders hint at a potential release in 2026. With over ten years since the last main game, this remake might be Ubisoft’s final chance to bring back the Splinter Cell series. However, the ongoing leadership changes are causing doubts about whether players will ever again get to wear Sam Fisher’s iconic night vision goggles.
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