After 3 years and a brief tenure on Battlefield 6, former Splinter Cell: Remake game director rejoins Ubisoft for Sam Fisher's big comeback: "A very special team and project to me"

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After 3 years and a brief tenure on Battlefield 6, former Splinter Cell: Remake game director rejoins Ubisoft for Sam Fisher's big comeback: "A very special team and project to me" News By Anthony McGlynn published 1 December 2025

David Grivel is back to help shape the new Splinter Cell

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Ubisoft's remake of the original Splinter Cell is still in development, as a familiar face returns to the project. David Grivel, former game director on the upcoming release, is now back directing Splinter Cell: Remake, after leaving the same position over three years ago.

Grivel himself confirmed the move on LinkedIn, announcing he's back in familiar territory with Sam Fisher. "A very special team and project to me," he says in the post.

Previously, he held the director's position from November 2021 to October 2022, through Splinter Cell: Remake's announcement. Then, he exited Ubisoft Toronto to join another major publisher, EA, working on Battlefield 6 with Ridgeline Games until that outfit’s closure in March 2024.

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Then comes an interesting wrinkle: Grivel rejoined Ubisoft Toronto, but for an unannounced game in summer 2024, only to step away again in December of that year for the since defunct studio Worlds Untold. And now, he's returned to where this cycle started, back guiding Sam Fisher's glorious return to our screens and controllers.

It's been 12 years since Splinter Cell: Blacklist, the last game in the stealth franchise thus far. Though Blacklist did well critically, it didn't sell as much as Ubisoft would've liked, leading to Sam being placed on the backburner until now.

His resurgence is underway, with Splinter Cell: Deathwatch having come out on Netflix in November, and now this remake. Though we haven't had any more substantial updates, Grivel's appointment suggests it's still a priority and moving ahead as planned, if largely in the shadows.

Ubisoft turned a new Splinter Cell game into the failed live-service shooter xDefiant in an effort to chase live service hits and Call of Duty, former devs say

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Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. TOPICS Ubisoft CATEGORIES PC Gaming PS5 Xbox Series X Platforms PlayStation Xbox Anthony McGlynnSocial Links NavigationContributing Writer

Anthony is an Irish entertainment and games journalist, now based in Glasgow. He previously served as Senior Anime Writer at Dexerto and News Editor at The Digital Fix, on top of providing work for Variety, IGN, Den of Geek, PC Gamer, and many more. Besides Studio Ghibli, horror movies, and The Muppets, he enjoys action-RPGs, heavy metal, and pro-wrestling. He interviewed Animal once, not that he won’t stop going on about it or anything.

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