Stuart Richardson 

Sniper Elite III review – cheap but mostly satisfying thrills

There is an unpolished feel to Sniper Elite III, writes Stuart Richardson
  
  

Sniper Elite III, games
Sniper Elite III: 'outsmarting enemies is a matter of patience over skill'. Photograph: PR

This latest edition of the snipe-'em-up franchise comes bursting with cheap, gory and mostly satisfying thrills beneath a po-faced pretence of historical realism. As an allied sniper in north Africa during the second world war, players are set to traversing respectably sized maps to round up intelligence and shoot people from ever-greater distances. Gameplay is solid, despite occasionally lazy enemy AI, and the slow-motion x-ray killcam that follows your accurate shots is an ingenious if guilty pleasure.

There is an unpolished feel that anyone familiar with the franchise will recognise, however. Even on higher difficulties, outsmarting enemies is a matter of patience over skill, and characters occasionally skip over large distances in the blink of an eye. Action frequently feels claustrophobic in spite of the size of the maps, which themselves feel padded out rather than diverse.

Fans of stealth and slow-burning combat will find plenty to enjoy, but not too much to write home about.

 

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