Splinter Cell is built upon the fictional universe of Tom Clancy, which focuses on high-tech military devices and conspiracy-laden plots. It's more than just that, though, and Tom Clancy is not the only inspiration behind these games. There's a lot of real-life inspiration at work, from the portrayal of the NSA to the gadgets that Sam Fisher works with. Not only that, but it even fulfilled a need that most had not seen before, which made it one of the fathers of the modern stealth game.

The first of Splinter Cell's notable real life parallels is the works of Tom Clancy. While Tom Clancy has been writing military and political thrillers for quite a while now, the last book he created was in 2003. Most books bearing his name today are ghost-written, with the real author's name in smaller print underneath Tom Clancy's. Games such as Rainbow Six and EndWar have his name has been attached to theme, even if he has done little more than glance at the game and give it a thumbs up. While he does not do much work in regards to authorship nowadays, his earlier novels were incredibly engaging and important to the genre of military thriller fiction. The Hunt for Red October is considered his best, and was made into a movie starring Alec Baldwin (which practically launched his career) and Sean Connery.

Another is the usage of the National Security Agency, or NSA. While they are portrayed as a pseudo-militaristic arm of the United States intelligence community, this is far from the truth. The NSA is an organization of desk jockeys and cryptographers that act as analysts for other governmental organizations in the US. They work closesly with the CIA and FBI, with the CIA covering field operations outside of the US, and the FBI covering internal operations. There is no such thing as Third Echelon or anything remotely similar to it in the NSA, although it is argued that there's no way the public can be sure.

Splinter Cell was released around the same time as another major game in the stealth genre known as Metal Gear Solid 2. While MGS2 focused on smart combat, patrol paths, and vision cones, Splinter Cell took a much more subtle approach. In fact, the games act almost as a contrast to each other, with the MGS series being combat-oriented and Splinter Cell being stealth-oriented. Splinter Cell has a much larger stealth element, with sound, body dragging, darkness, and alternate routes forming the core of the game's appeal. Note that while Metal Gear Solid has all of these elements, it does not do them to the extent that Splinter Cell does, while Splinter Cell does not hit combat with the same precision and entertainment that MGS does. In short, Splinter Cell is about positioning, not shooting. Fighting smarter than your average joe.

Many of Sam Fisher's moves also resemble that of the parkour discipline that so many games have begun to feature recently. Fisher must find the most efficient as well as most stealthy path through the levels, with several moves being pulled directly from those seen in parkour. One such example is when Fisher does a split to wedge himself between two walls in order to get the drop on a guard. However, the game focuses less on the reaction times present in most elements of parkour and instead on using the environment to one's advantage and overcoming obstacles in a smart way.

Splinter Cell Conviction most resembles another piece of famous spy fiction: the Bourne books. Much like Jason Bourne, Sam Fisher is now ousted from the intelligence community with conspirators nipping at his heels. He's running around in civilian clothing, taking justice into his own hands and doing what he feels is right while uncovering a deepening plot. He even has some interesting moves that resemble what one would expect from the reluctant, efficient killer that is Bourne.