Sniper Elite (series)

Sniper Elite
Genres	Tactical shooter, stealth
Developers	Rebellion Developments
Publishers	MC2 France Namco Hometek Reef Entertainment MC2-Microïds 505 Games Rebellion Developments
Platforms	Microsoft Windows PlayStation 2 PlayStation 3 PlayStation 4 Wii Wii U Xbox Xbox 360 Xbox One
First release	Sniper Elite 18 October 2005
Latest release	Sniper Elite III 27 July 2014
Spin-offs	Zombie Army Trilogy

Sniper Elite is a tactical shooter video game series developed by English studio Rebellion Developments and currently published by 505 Games. It is a third-person tactical shooter that emphasizes a less direct approach to combat, encouraging the player as a sniper to use stealth and keep distance from enemy soldiers. Sniper Elite, the first in the entry was released in 2005, and was followed by Sniper Elite V2, a remake of the original Sniper Elite in 2012 and Sniper Elite III, a sequel of Sniper Elite V2 in 2014.

Gameplay

Sniper Elite is a third-person shooter that involves stealth and first-person shooter game elements. Many of the single player levels allow multiple routes for the players to take in order to avoid direct firefights. Set in World War II, the player character utilizes appropriate weapons for the era. The sniper rifle is the primary weapon throughout the game, though additional side arms including submachine guns and pistols, silenced or not depending on the situation. In addition to hand grenades, the player can deploy them as tripwire booby traps, land mines and dynamite. Binoculars can be used to tag enemies in view, displaying their position and movements to player. When using the sniper rifle however, certain elements can determine the outcome of a shot, taking realistic ballistics into consideration including wind direction and strength and bullet drop potentially altering the shot through the scope. In different postures such as crouching or lying down on the front can also steady a shot, however the player character also has the ability to take a deep breath to further steady a shot and from their perspective slow down time. Since Sniper Elite V2, “X-Ray Kill Cam” is featured where upon a successful and skilled shot will in slow motion follow the bullet from the sniper rifle to the target where upon impact will show an anatomically correct x-ray style reveal of the body part being hit and the damage the bullet causes to the organs and bones. Sniping can also be used to shoot the enemies’ own grenades triggering an explosion. In Sniper Elite III, stealth mechanics have been reworked. An eye icon squints or opens to denote the player's level of detection by the enemy. Enemy soldiers will also have a circle meter over their heads to indicate alert status. Players are also forced to relocate periodically to prevent detection with a white ghost image to mark their last known position and the enemy will search a wider area.

Video games

Year	Title	Publisher(s)	Platform(s)
			PS2	Xbox	Win	Wii	Wii U	PS3	X360	XBO	PS4
2005	Sniper Elite	MC2 France/Namco Hometek	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No	No	No	No
2012	Sniper Elite V2	505 Games	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
2013	Nazi Zombie Army	N/A	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
2013	Nazi Zombie Army 2	N/A	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
2014	Sniper Elite III	505 Games	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
2015	Zombie Army Trilogy	N/A	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes
2016	Sniper Elite 4	N/A	No	No	Yes	No	No	No	No	Yes	Yes

Reception

Aggregate review scores
As of 2 August 2014.

Game	Metacritic
Sniper Elite	76/100 (PC)
Sniper Elite V2	66/100 (PC)
Sniper Elite III	72/100 (PC)

Thus far, the series has been met with relatively positive reviews. And as per reports the developers are already working for its next version which is expected to be released in mid 2016.