The Special Ops mod aims to open up Blacklist to the player, giving you many new options for tactics and customization, while removing many of the limitations and handicaps that made the game easier and less rewarding. You'll find it's much harder for the player to control the battlefield and track enemies. A fully stealthy approach is even more difficult than before, and getting spotted can be very deadly if you are unprepared. You'll have to use a much wider range of tactics to evade and eliminate hostiles rather than striking from the shadows over and over - preparation is key. Hostile guards are sharp and deadly, and enemy commandos are a force to be reckoned with.
For me, there were only two really good things about Conviction. First were the brutal takedowns, which I wish you could use in Blacklist. Second was the excellent Deniable Ops mode, featuring Archer and Kestrel. You can already play as Kestrel in this mod, now you can play as Archer. Well you're going to have to pretend it's Archer, but I put a balaclava on the 4E Eclipse suit, and with green lights it resembles Archers look. You don't get the awesome H2H takedowns though.