Sniper Elite III has a new emphasis on creating your own sniper/assassin experience. Sniper Elite III takes place on the African front during World War II where you play as Karl Fairburne, an American OSS agent behind enemy lines.
I got a chance to play a mission from the game on the PS4, and the first thing that I immediately notice is that this game has improved a lot from Sniper Elite V2 in the mechanics department. On top of that it includes some much needed changes to make you, as the stealth sniper you’re supposed to be, more viable. One of the biggest changes that I have noticed is after you take a shoot at an enemy, you have a few seconds to relocate, during this time the enemy would then move to you last known position. This is a much needed improvement from V2, where if you shot an enemy, they would immediately know your position.
The second thing that I noticed was how open the level design was. I felt that I had a lot of options when attempting to snipe an enemy on the map. I was able to maneuver myself in an elevated position and take out an enemy, then immediately move again, get behind a rock and take another shot. I was able to do this several times without anyone finding my position. In V2, you had only a few levels that allowed you to maneuver and take shoots from elevated positions, and you felt exposed even though you had the higher ground.
I also noticed a weapon wheel had been added to the game; you no longer have to choose between a silenced pistol and a sub/assault rifle. You can have both. You can also hotkey the weapons you want to the D-pad for quick access to your tools. On top of this, there is no more health regen, every hit you take will take one chunk of your health, and you now have medical bags that you can find to heal yourself, which gives the game a new level of difficulty.
The last big change that that noticed in Sniper Elite III was the x-ray kill cam. It resembles the kill cam from V2 but with a nice twist: extra slow motion. I shot an enemy right in the nose; the bullet left my gun in that classic Sniper Elite slow motion style, but I got a treat at the end. The round went extra slow as it slammed into his nose, spraying blood and bone everywhere, and then slowly drilling its way to the back of the head in much greater detail than the previous game.
Sniper Elite III will be coming out for PS3, PS4, PC, Xbox 360, and Xbox One on July 1 of this year.
