Sniper Elite 4

Today we're talking about Sniper Elite 4.

I have a long history with this franchise, starting quite a few years ago when I bought Sniper Elite 1 and 2 as a bundle during a Steam Summer sale. I started playing the first game, but gave up fairly quickly as the graphics were muddled and grainy by modern standards. The game was released in 2005, so maybe that wasn't so strange. Besides, the reason I bought the bundle was SE 2. As it turned out, this wasn't a problem as SE 2, released in 2012, is a remake of the first but with modern graphics, a much better gameplay over all and the famous kill-cam featuring a realistic x-ray camera showing you exactly what kind of damage your bullet has done.

I played SE 2 several times so I was pleased when they released SE 3 in 2014. What's important to note is that SE 3 is a prequel to SE 2 as is SE 4. One thing that confused me a little, is that the protagonist in all games is Karl Fairburne and in SE 2 he clearly works for the American Office for Strategic Services (OSS) but in 3 and 4 he works for the British Special Operations Executive (SOE). Karl is an American you see, so it confused me a bit, but the fact that 3 & 4 are prequels explains that very well.

Anyway on with Sniper Elite 4.

First off, almost everything that has been featured in the previous iterations is still here, but with a lot more stuff added. The one thing I do miss from SE 3 is the ability to set fires as a distraction or to blow something up. It was a useful mechanic, but whatever.

You still sneak around and quietly take out soldiers, sabotage ammo dumps and assassinate important targets. It's a true part of the franchise, and no mistake.

The first thing that should be mentioned is that the maps are huge. They have never really been small, but in SE 2 they were pretty linear, and in SE 3 they were expanded if not enormous, but in 4? They are gigantic. I was constantly surprised at how big and detailed they are. There are ten levels which doesn't sound like much, but if you want to do all the side objectives, it can take a couple of hours easily to complete a level.

Next up, the weapons. All the old favorites are back, with a couple of additions like a pump action shotgun and the German paratrooper rifle, the FG42. My complaint here is that quite a few weapons are DLC only, meaning you have to fork over more money to get them all. On the other hand there are more than enough to go around and they have a new upgrade system I'll talk about next.

Another new feature is the upgrade system, both for Karl himself and for the weapons. When Karl reaches certain milestones you get to choose one out of two abilities that go into effect. An example is choosing between taking less explosive damage or defusing mines faster. It's very much up to you and your personal play style.

Weapons get better when used enough according to certain challenges. Improved damage and stability, that sort of thing.

I have a small complaint with these upgrades and choices, and that is that the game doesn't explain their presence at all. It's new to the franchise, and Rebellion could have done a better job pointing out the new things.

The final point I want to talk about is the information you get on the enemy. As in previous games you still use the binoculars to tag enemies so that they are visible even behind cover. What is new is the level of information you get for each enemy if you keep the binoculars on them. Ostensibly it's “British Intelligence” but to know the name, weapons carried and personal detail about every soldier and officer is perhaps stretching the believability a little. Furthermore, you can pick up not only mission vital intelligence from people you've shot but also letters from home, letters to home and last letters. This little detail really hammers home that it's people you are shooting. Not just fascist or nazi goons. It sells the grim reality of war quite well.

Final thoughts. I could go on nitpicking the good and the bad, but in broad strokes, I'll say this: if you liked the earlier games, there is no reason why you wouldn't like this, and if you've been thinking about starting your own Sniper Elite journey, this is as good a place as any.

That's that. Until next time, have a great week!