- "Oh, good. Another guy who likes dogs."
- ― Sam Fisher to himself during a mission.[src]
A guard dog or attack dog is a dog trained by a human to defend or attack a territory, property or person either on command, on sight or by inferred provocation.
Overview[]
Guard dogs are able to pick up scents and strange sounds any enemies may trigger, prompting them to alert guards and investigate. If a scent or noise is picked up, the dog will usually slowly make his way towards the disturbance or place of origin while sniffing the ground. If a dog spots or detects the player, it will bark in the direction the player is hiding or the last known position the player was spotted or detected, and/or run towards the player and attack. The dog's barks will also alert any human guards in the area as well and they will be prompted to investigate.
Gameplay[]
Guard dogs have increased hearing and scent and can be alerted to the player's presence from quite a distance away. When they are alerted to the player's presence, they will attempt to charge at them head on and bite them. If the player chooses not to knock them out, a head shot can put down a dog. If the player prefers to keep the dog alive, non-lethal gadgets like the Sticky Shocker, Ring Airfoil, Sleeping Gas, or Proximity Shocker can knock them out. They can also be stunned and incapacitated with gadgets, such as the Flashbang Grenade or Tear Gas. When or if a dog picks up the player's scent, the player can lose the dog by traveling through water, such as a creek or river. If the player sticks to a higher elevation, using pipes or ledges, dogs are less likely to detect the player. Dogs can also be drawn away by the noise of the Sticky Noisemaker, like human enemies, they will be attracted by the noise, but will bark at it, then investigate.
In Splinter Cell: Blacklist, dogs can be killed or knocked out, whichever the player chooses to do, their body can be carried like other human enemies, except they're thrown over the player's back and carried round the shoulder. They can also be hidden in containers and other hiding places, and the player will gain points just like with other enemies.
Some are equipped with armor, although it does not appear to have an effect on their health. When alerted, they will charge the player and grab onto their arm, dealing damage and immobilizing them. They are extremely fast and are hard to hit because of their low profiles, making them dangerous enemies who can leave the player open to attack.
Appearances[]
- Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell
- Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow
- Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Blacklist
Trivia[]
- In the first Splinter Cell and Pandora Tomorrow, the dogs featured are either rottweilers or dobermans, while the Splinter Cell: Blacklist has dobermans and German Shepherds.
- Guard dogs can either be killed or knocked out, depending entirely on the player's actions in the games that they appear in.
- The non-German Shepard guard dogs are referred to as 'mutts' in the Splinter Cell: Blacklist concept images.
- In Pandora Tomorrow, there is one section in the level "Komodo, Indonesia" where the player can go under a closed in hut where a guard dog is present in. The dog will bark, and a guard will investigate and, if the player remains hidden, will find nothing wrong. Repeating this will cause the guard to become frustrated until he finally aims his weapon and shoots the dog.
Gallery[]
