While III flirted with the idea of a more open approach to the franchise, the level of depth present in each area is kind of astounding. Speaking of maps, Sniper Elite 4’s are the biggest in the series. Do they keep scrambling for new vantage points? Do they fire off a shot only to lure Nazis into traps? Do they want to gun down the investigating troops with an assault rifle or shotgun? The choices aren’t endless, of course, but they are abundant, and make for some fun replays of maps. It’s up to them how to progress from there. Players take a shot, and if the sound isn’t masked, enemies begin to investigate their position. It’s easy to pick up and learn, but there’s plenty of room to learn how to take the perfect shot.įrom that simplification, though, springs a natural depth. There are fewer systems to worry about when looking down the sight and firing off a round here – it’s more arcade-esque, in line with something like Konami’s Silent Scope. Gone are the confusing “sniper nests,” the awkward “Ghost” system, the unclear detection by enemies found in III. It’s a tighter, pared-down version of the mechanics we’ve seen since V2, complete with monitoring Karl’s heart rate and holding breath for accuracy. Sniping in Sniper Elite 4 is one of the most satisfying mechanics in a video game, period. Yet that core gimmick is still great, and better here than ever before. In a series sold on one core gimmick, the variety here is kind of staggering, and undoubtedly impressive. Whether a player wants to lure Nazis into landmines, sneak up behind them with a silenced pistol, or simply engage them head-on, the gameplay holds up across every imaginable situation. Maneuvering Karl never feels clunky or awkward, whether he’s doing parkour, slitting throats, or holding his own in the middle of a firefight. While previous attempts at implementing gameplay other than “aim down a scope and splatter some brains/lungs/testicles” have yielded mixed results, those attempts are knocked out of the park here. Yet Rebellion, with over a decade of experience in this genre under their belt, has produced a mechanically sound game that offers players a wealth of variety and depth. In a post- Phantom Pain world, it’s an unenviable task to make a third-person stealth title. That said, Sniper Elite 4’s true strength lies not in its perfectly adequate narrative, but in its exceptional gameplay. Even if she is a side character, I wanted to see more of her, and found her to be one of the more memorable female characters as of late. ![]() ![]() ![]() She’s on the same playing field as all the male characters – gruff, resilient, and not sexualized. In an age where “strong female character” means “sexy and has a lot of daddy issues,” Sofia is a compelling snapshot of a woman in wartime. Also similar to that 2013 title is a surprising knack for female characterization, exemplified in Sofia, an Italian resistance leader. It’s a similar move to the route Wolfenstein: The New Order took, turning its archetype of a protagonist into something more nuanced and satisfying to take control of. These characters, while not deep by any stretch of the imagination, give Karl people to play off of, which in turn makes him a bit more of a compelling protagonist. There’s actually a supporting cast now, and not just a radio telling you what to do, or a solitary supporting character. Karl destroys top-secret weapons, uncovers artillery caches, assassinates key Nazi figures, and generally makes himself a thorn in the Third Reich’s side.īut it’s in how Karl accepts these tasks that differs from past entries. Players snipe, sneak, and stab their way through 1943 Italy, aiding a local resistance effort and enlisting the Mafia to push out the fascist regime. Yes, it’s still about Karl Fairburne acting as a one-man exterminator to a Nazi infestation, but the little bits and pieces surrounding that winning premise are more interesting than previous games. From a narrative standpoint, even, Rebellion has upped the ante a bit.
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