In 2005, many users entered a franchise that will be two decades old in a few years, and this is Sniper Elite. From fighting in the ruins of Berlin, to fighting across the wastelands of Africa, to blowing up Nazi heads in fascist Italy, we have accompanied our beloved Karl Fairburne through years of war against Nazi Germany, but we still have many wars to fight.
A few months ago, Rebellion announced the fifth numbered installment of the numbered franchise, this time set in Nazi-occupied France, and a few days separate us from enjoying this new adventure, again with Fairburne as the main character, and that You will have to cooperate with the French resistance to defeat the invading army. Throughout this text, we will expose the virtues of the title, such as the weakest points of the game. If you are undecided with the purchase, or you want to know more about the title, enjoy this Sniper Elite 5 review.
Operation Kraken must be stopped
As always, it seems that Nazi Germany does not get tired of its most secret projects being destroyed by the famous sniper called “The Shadow”, and in this title, things do not change at all. Fairburne is forced to travel to France to end “Operation Kraken” and with the leaders who lead the entire project.
We will travel through various parts of France (from the battlefront, to an old town in the middle of a beach, a visually incredible level) and with various objectives to accomplish. While we are destroying the leadership of Operation Kraken and discovering what it is about, we will meet the most important members of the French Resistance, some characters that, although they could have become much more charismatic and closer to Karlit is appreciated to have allies in the plot.
As an experienced sniper, we can finish the missions in different ways
A One of the best ideas that Rebellion has implemented in this title is the “freedom” that it gives us users to choose various paths to reach our goal, although without reaching the level design mastery of Dishonored. From the beginning of each mission, when opening the map, we can see all the routes we have to complete the mission (there are usually three very clear routes, and then deviations from the main path).
Although the level design is quite good, it must be said that movement around the map leaves a lot to be desired. On many occasions, Karl has a hard time jumping obstacles, and he doesn’t react in the best way to the controls of, for example, crouching and lying down, often causing you to get desperate in stealth situations, and end up getting caught. It’s a shame, as Rebellion should have put more work into polishing up the movement system (we’re not asking for it to be as perfect as Metal Gear Solid V’s, either).
Popping heads in slow motion is still very rewarding
Without a doubt, the hallmark of this franchise is the slow-motion “kill-cam” that we can see when we fully hit the last bullet of an enemy, and in this installment it is still present. Depending on where we give it, we will get some extra experience, and that urges us to place ourselves in different positions, and eliminate many Nazis in the most precise way possible (yes, they give extra points for bursting their «cataplines» with a bullet, although it’s not as graphic as it would be in Mortal Kombat).
Besides, in this installment we have a fairly diverse arsenal at our disposal, but the best is saved for the weapons table, where we can customize each aspect of our weapons as we please, so that it is more suited to our way of playing (the missions can be played both “Rambo” and more pure Snake style, without being seen). Weapon customization adds a layer of depth to the gameplay, and it’s killer.
With all the good things, Sniper Elite 5 does not reach the levels of quality of a triple A
And beware, it is not a bad thing at all, since many times the best works come from the indie world, but we are referring to the level of quality in the technical aspect and how polished it should be. Various glitches in the enemy AI that makes it unpredictable, but in a very frustrating way and makes it much harder to know how to catch them off guard, and a technical section that lags far behind compared to other releases this yearmake Sniper Elite 5 a somewhat “poor” title in some respects, and also a continuationist, even too much.
In the end, Sniper Elite 5 It is created to please the loyal fans of the franchise, without innovating in anything important either., staying in “no man’s land” and it’s a shame, because if Rebellion had bet more on offering a more innovative experience, surely the surprise factor would have generated many users interested in this fifth installment. Obviously, it is not a bad game, since the plot is interesting, the gameplay is fun and it is very, very replayable, but some other change is missing that would make this game, something different… But it seems that Karl Fairburne will continue being the same as always in France, both for the good and for the bad.
