Sniper Elite III Review by: Eirinn - 8.2/10
Shooting Virtual Nazis Has Never Been This Much FunBefore starting this review it may be worth noting that this game contains some moments of intense violence and gore. Namely when the player performs an enemy takedown with the sniper rifle, the game offers a detailed X-ray view of the enemy as the bullet enters their body and pierces the organs, and when applicable, shatters bone. This feature can be turned off if you desire however.
Now on to the review.
You are Karl Fairburne, an American sniper in World War II. But you are not just a sniper, you are one of the best at what you do, and your skills are leveraged for far more than simple skirmishes that take place during the war. Through the course of your campaign in Africa you will find yourself hunting down Nazi top brass, performing espionage missions, destroying supply lines, and much more.
Graphics: 9/10
Excellent.
While I personally have no beef with the graphics here, especially for a game that was on both last gen and current gen systems, I heard a few complaints so I broke out my magnifying glass and inspected everything I could find.
The characters are easily the most important aspect in graphics to me, and SE III nails the look perfectly with only one minor issue -- and this should probably be expected, but the enemies: there are so few of them, or rather, there are so many enemies but so few original faces to go around. Now maybe Rebellion wasn't expecting people to use their binoculars (in-game binoculars that is) to inspect everyone's face like I did, but it quickly became apparent that throughout the course of the game, I shot the same guy several times, either that or all of his brothers were there and shared an incredible family resemblance. But then, does that really matter?
The only other things I could fault here are the textures on some walls and various other surfaces, and the blades of grass. At times, again under close inspection (dem binoculars, bro) they look a little more rough, dare say pixelated, than I'd prefer. But again this game was working with last gen restrictions so I don't expect it to look like a new gen exclusive. As for blades of grass...seriously? Are we gonna go there? My lawn look better than yours, dawg.
All in all the environments looked great and the objects were aesthetically pleasing as well. Not to mention that X-ray kill cam is very detailed and looks nice, in a gross sort of way.
Highlights:
•Characters look quite realistic for the most part
•Well made environments
•No binoculars were harmed during the making of this review
Sound: 10/10
Incredible.
So let me start off by saying that the sound here is so spot on that my mom heard me playing it and asked me to turn it down because it sounded creepy because it was so realistic. Yep. The sound effects are where this game shines in the audio department, and such should be the case in a stealth title like this one. But it doesn't stop at them being realistic, as the game also relies heavily on the use of sound masking meaning that the sound is actually a game mechanic in a sense. Your rifle is loud obviously, so you're encouraged to wait until something nearby is generating even louder noises (such as machinery or an airplane flying overhead) before firing so as not to alert the guards. Also of note is the exaggerated sounds of bullets piercing flesh, muscle, and organs during X-ray kills.
The music in this game is very unassuming, but as I've said before, sometimes that's a good thing, and such is the case with Sniper Elite III. The setting is a tense one in each mission, and as such the lack of music is quite fitting. Besides, sound masking is again a big deal here, so saving the volume for sound effects is ideal.
A final note in this category is the great use this game makes of the Dualshock 4's built in speaker. Just be sure not to have it turned up too loud. The reload sounds, enemy alert sounds, and a few others come through the speaker adding an extra layer of immersion.
Highlights:
•Sound effects are spot on
•X-ray kill cam sounds are intense
•Great use of DS4 speaker
Story: 5/10
Average.
I'm probably being generous here as the story is so bland for the first half of the game that you're likely to fail to notice what's going on really. It isn't until after the mission at Fort Refugio that the story even begins to intrigue, and after that it does a less than commendable job of playing it's cards right so to speak, trying to pull some moving moments and enjoin a sense of camaraderie, duty and guilt, but failing to hit the mark on any of them. It at least manages to give you a small sense of having something to fight for though, so it isn't a total loss.
Oddly enough, the only thing to really save this game from a considerably worse story rating is the war diaries you can find lying around. These carry on a full story conveyed from the perspectives of the loved ones of various soldiers. Thankfully the war diaries tend to follow the same few people throughout the course of the game and so make the stories interesting and at times mildly moving emotionally. Whatever you do, find all of them, even if you use a trophy guide to do so. This game isn't the same without them.
Highlights:
•The war diaries pick up part of the slack left by the main story
Depth: 7/10
Very Good.
Again, a little generous, but the game has as much to offer as you want it to. If you're a trophy nut or completionist then you'll be playing this for a while to come as it'll require several playthroughs as well as plenty of time and effort spent looking for all of the cards, war diaries, and sniper's nests, as well as finding and successfully pulling off all of the long shots (shots made from a long distance on a specific target), even if you do use a guide.
Aside from collectibles there are tons of unlockables in both single player and online multiplayer, from weapons to items, to scopes, stocks, and barrels. And after installing a mandatory patch, you'll also gain a shooting range where your abilities will definitely be tested if you want the gold. There are other modes as well such as survival, where you try to survive all of the waves of enemies, but frankly they add nothing to the game.
Simply put, what the gameplay lacks in depth it makes up for in modes, unlockables, collectibles, and customization.
Highlights:
•A lot to collect and unlock
Addictiveness: 10/10
Incredible.
I've played through this game twice and I plan to play through it twice more to earn all of the difficulty specific trophies, and I'm still enjoying every bit of it. The additional modes do precious little to add to the addictiveness, but I do find the firing range to be entertaining in short bursts. And even though the game doesn't change anything up on you, what's on offer is enjoyable enough that I would have played it again even without the trophies, if for no other reason than to try the effects each difficulty mode has, and they get pretty extreme.
Highlights:
•Difficulty
select adds a good amount of replayability
•Firing Range is mildly entertaining in short bursts
Difficulty: 5/10
Average.
There isn't just a ton of challenge here, at least not on Cadet difficulty. However the difficulty on Authentic is absolutely bananas. Think you're MLG? Take this game on in Authentic mode and you might be singing a different tune (might I suggest the TMNT theme song?). A quick breakdown of the difficulty effects:
Cadet - Bullet goes where you aim it.
Marksman - Gravity causes the bullet to drop a little over a distance.
Sniper Elite - Gravity effect is more realistic (drops more) and wind pushes bullet off target
Authentic - Same as above, plus no minimap, no health meter, no target indicator, no pulse indicator, no tagging enemies, no visibility indicators, no search indicator, and you cannot see the relocation meter.
Additionally, enemies become smarter, tougher, better at CQC, and deal more damage with each increase in difficulty, plus there's a custom difficulty option to boot.
So yes, the game is fairly easy on the lowest setting, but it's a nightmare on it's highest setting. But as always, I base my difficulty rating on the "easy" mode, and on Cadet you won't have any trouble finishing the game, but you also won't breeze through with no issues at all.
Highlights:
•Difficulties range from Easy peasy to OH MY GRAVY, LET ME PULL OUT YOUR HAIR BECAUSE I'VE PULLED ALL OF MY OWN! [/caps spam] So there's something for everyone. Even bald people.
Overall: 8.2/10
Exceptional.
While I love this game and have played it too much already and will play it even more too much (let's pretend that made sense) in the near future, it's not without it's faults, namely the handling of the story. But then in all fairness, the gameplay is obviously the main focus here, and it definitely delivers in that respect.
If you're a fan of stealth games, or if the idea of using a virtual sniper rifle to pick off enemies a quarter of a mile away appeals to you, give this game a go. I'd say it's worth at least a $35 price tag, but bear in mind that SE4 will be releasing early next year bar any delays. Still even if I had played SE4 first, I wouldn't have wanted to miss this one. Do be aware the slow pace of the gameplay however, but then it's essentially a stealth game after all so that's to be expected.
In conclusion, Sniper Elite III is certainly worth a look for anyone who finds it's concept intriguing, and well worth what you're likely to find it priced at. It may not be the most revolutionary or cutting edge game out there, but it sets out with a specific plan in mind and it accomplishes just what it intends to. So go get it and shoot things...the legal way.
Graphics
9 Sound
10 Addictive
10 Depth
7 Story
5 Difficulty
5
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