Wonder if they will re-enable the coop mode just so that they can disable it after a few years like they did with the original version 
Fortunately both versions of Double Agent are backwards compatible on Xbox, but I would need to confirm if they are still purchasable from the store (website is giving me issues checking).
I think I read somewhere that V2 was removed a while back… Not sure though, since I don´t have Xbox (otherwise I would´ve bought them a long time ago). Still want a PC port of it though 
Yeah, I was able to check the Xbox Store, the OG Xbox games except for Chaos Theory are not available for purchase.
Oh wow, so (almost) all of them? That´s peculiar…
Ok, so I forgot to post about this when it first surfaced because of life stuff, but recently, those magnificent lads in the SC modding community have made massive progress towards enhancing the PC version of SC1 and slowly turning it into the most “definitive” possible experience.
Last month they revealed that through data mining efforts, the files for the cut levels Nuclear Power Plant and Severonickel were found in the Korean and Japanese release of the Xbox version, making it possible to try and port them to PC (an ongoing WiP).
Today, they released an Enhanced SC patch which includes said levels in a somewhat playable form (still very WiP though - see my remark below), as well as numerous gameplay enhancements and level versions ported from the Xbox version, with improved lighting and mesh. QoL improvements and controller support are also included, as are ThirteenAG´s widescreen fix and dgVoodoo2 (for fixing the lighting and FPS issues).
The release info on Reddit can be found here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Splintercell/comments/1k6zim5/enhanced_sc_a_new_major_patch_for_splinter_cell_1/
Or you can go directly to the patch´s GitHub page:
That being said, the patch is still WiP, especially where the cut levels are concerned, and the modders are looking for anyone who can help them overcome the issues, specifically anyone who is familiar with Unreal Engine 2.
Here are also the links to the original announcement from last month:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Splintercell/comments/1jdxl4j/major_development_splinter_cell_1s_cut_levels_are/
and the subsequent update, which also details some of the issues the modders are facing with the level porting, especially audio:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Splintercell/comments/1jph4x2/update_splinter_cell_cut_levels_on_pc/
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Came across this 2023 article while scouring Reddit. Very nice read.
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Splinter Cell: Double Agent 6th gen is VASTLY superior to the 7th gen. I consider there to be a Splinter Cell quadrilogy of “original games.” SC1, Pandora Tomorrow, Chaos Theory and Double Agent (6th Gen). Double Agent (6th gen) is actually so similar to Chaos Theory in a lot of ways that I call it Chaos Theory 2.0. Double Agent (6th gen) is the best kept secret in the Splinter Cell series.
Mad lads still going strong!!
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Recently I finished Blacklist and I loved it! It’s like the right mix of Conviction with the classic games.
Well, by now all of them are classic games.
I finally played it recently after 19 years of waiting in vain for Ubisoft to port it to PC (I still am hoping someone there will get the bright idea of taking cue from the MGS Master Collection and re-release all the classic SC games on modern platforms, but I´m not holding my breath). “Unfortunately”, I played it via PS2 emulation, which was fine gameplay-wise (even if I´m not fond of using a controller), but it did take away quite a bit from the visual qualities and aesthetics of the Xbox version (and the first three games), which I know is a lot better in that regard.
Now, I enjoyed it, a lot. It was great having a “new” proper SC experience after such a long time, and I´m gonna play it again to experiment with some other options. But I wouldn´t consider it a vastly superior game to V1. The gameplay is tighter (based on CT, of course it is), the level design is good, the dialogues and general writing are better (though story-wise it still has flaws), and having a proper light and shadow system instead of the binary system of V1/CV/BL was a godsend.
But as someone who also loves V1 despite its myriad of flaws (and terrible state of the PC port), I only found V2 slightly better overall. V1 does a number of things better in my opinion, while V2 does other things better. So I consider myself part of the community which believes the best option would´ve been doing just one version of the game, blending the best of V1 and V2 and ironing out the flaws.
I think most of the SC community refer to it as CT 2.0. It´s an apt label, as it´s really just the same with a few tweaks (though I´m not sure what they were thinking with the HUD).
But yeah, it definitely works a loooot better as a follow-up to the first three games, which to me is its greatest asset. It´s not even so much from a gameplay perspective, but the fact that it actually references past events and characters. It feels like an actual sequel, whereas V1 almost feels like a soft reboot in comparison. And I´m kinda fine with it, because now in my head V2 is the only viable canon (along with maybe Essentials and 2007 Conviction), whereas I can just treat the “actual” canon of V1, Conviction, and Blacklist as a paralel universe.
Not sure it´s a secret. The people who´ve played it or at least heard of it are aware of its qualities. But it is true - and rather telling of what a mistake making two versions was - that a good part of the community are not aware of this version, simply because the grew up playing V1. And conversely, there are people who grew up playing V2 and had/have no idea that V1 exists…
That was my initial feeling after playing it as well, but afterwards I just realised how much of the “classic” stuff that I love and that defines SC for me is actually missing, so now I find it more like Conviction pretending it´s like the classics. And that´s not even talking about the characters and lore - that´s just a continuous and disrespectful clusterfuck.
I agree it plays great on its own, but I feel it would´ve worked better as a spin-off than a mainline entry (and the same basically goes for Conviction).
Since I still have and play the classics, was a nice change of pace to try out Blacklist. I loved the customization it offers and variety of approaches.
Obviously I don’t expect for it to have the narrative and humor of Pandora Tomorrow or Chaos Theory but still is good, IMO.