Syphon Filter might not have been quite the genre-defining powerhouse that Metal Gear Solid was, but the shooter/stealth hybrid still presented a solid alternative to the slower paced stop-and-go style of Kojima's masterpiece, and even spawned several sequels. The franchise took a turn for the worse with the Omega Strain however, which squandered an exciting new concept with shoddy design. Things started looking up in 2006 with the release of Dark Mirror, which brought back the gameplay of the original three titles and adopted the pop-and-shoot mechanics of recent times. A multitude of new abilities and weapons were introduced as well; including a spiffy new sniper rifle - which was capable of switching between explosive, electric and gas rounds- a grapple line, and multi-purpose goggles. The overhauled system breathed new life into the series, and when you coupled that with levels that were littered with collectible 'evidence', Dark Mirror went a long way towards earning every dollar spent. Despite all that, Syphon Filter simply didn't have the staying power of it's contemporaries and was ultimately relegated to... well, lists like this.
