“Sniper Elite 5 doesn't have anything new to say, but its open-ended missions make for a devilishly enjoyable Nazi-slaying sandbox.”
There are pros and cons.
Cons.
Every video reel for the next decade is going to feature a game like Sniper Elite 5. It is nauseating violence that will catch your senator's eye, but it is not what makes the shooter stand out.
Good, old-fashioned design is what makes the latest entry in Rebellion Developments' stealth-action series noteworthy. The fifth iteration is a full-blown sim set during World War II and builds off of the increased scope of its predecessor. Every Nazi target is an opportunity for players to unleash their imaginations in a series of free-range murder sandboxes.
The open-ended approach to stealth action makes for a devilishly satisfying war game, but its limited toolset and generic set-dressing don't elevate it to the level of creativity it deserves. Make sure your stomach is prepared for violence so gruesome that it could make a white supremacist fear God.
Karl Fairburne is a highly skilled sniper with zero tolerance for Nazis. Fairburne is part of a U.S. military operation to dismantle a Nazi plot which threatens to turn the tide of WWII. Fairburne must assassinate key targets and sneak into secret facilities to sabotage crucial weaponry.
The story is not very interesting to set up missions. Fairburne is a dull video game hero because of his voice and personality. WWII has been done to death in video games, and Sniper Elite 5 doesn't have much else to say about it. It feels like it could have been made any time in the last 20 years.
The difference between Metal Gear Solid 5 and Sniper Elite 5 is.
It's approach to mission design sets it apart. Each mission drops Fairburne into a map filled with key objectives that can be checked off in any order. The level of freedom in the game makes it stand out. Call of Duty tends to have linear campaigns built around Hollywood set pieces, but missions play out organically here.
I need to break into a castle, find a hidden office, and take some documents. I start by patrolling the farmlands on the perimeter, picking up tools that could make my break-in easier. When I'm ready to sneak in, I shimmy my way onto the castle grounds after dropping off the side of the bridge. I overheard two guards talking and someone mentioned that there was a weapons room inside. When I reach the building, I climb some vines to sneak in through a window and kill the Nazis before I get to the office.
The game is so exciting because that scenario could have gone completely different. I can run into the courtyard with guns blazing and rush the front door. There is a place where I look for those charges and blow down doors instead of looking for keys. In its best moments, Sniper Elite 5 is better than Metal Gear Solid 5.
The sandbox has some limitations. Fairburne's toolset is mostly restricted to guns, explosives, and simple distraction items since this is a grounded WWII game. The game doesn't evolve much from level to level, rather than introducing new tools every mission. In mission nine, everything available in mission one will be used the same way as in mission one.
The game's enemies are cogent.
While its sim hooks don't quite hit the unpredictable joys of a game, it makes up for that shortcoming with crisp stealth and gunplay. I feel like an unfriendly ghost when I sneak in the shadows and pick off enemies from afar. My quest to tear down the Nazi war machine is like a poltergeist-like quest, and every quiet takedown or shot from afar is a brutal victory.
I can survive with a more aggressive style, but Sniper Elite 5 encourages a stealthier approach. The game's enemies are cogent. They don't feel like they are being watched. An entire brigade will abandon their duties to sweep the area if I hit someone from far away. It's easy to get overwhelmed due to a sloppy approach, which increases the stakes every time I step into the light.
The series' signature feature: its grotesque kill cam, is further aided by all of that. The game launches into a slow-motion X-ray shot of the bullet cutting through my enemy's organs in nauseating detail when I deliver a killing shot to him. It's excessive and I can't say that it helps gaming's image problem, but it also shows the game's stance in blood: No quarter for Nazis.
I wish it was obvious. It would be nice to live in a world where I didn't feel bad about turning Nazi soldiers into cheese. In the age of white supremacists using talking points from elected officials to justify racial violence, it's not just a boring historical reminder. It can be ignored because of the war cry delivered loudly.
Maybe the person that needs to hear it is the one who pisses off your senator.
The single-player campaign of Sniper Elite 5 is meat and potatoes, but it has a robust suite of side content to enhance the experience. There are several deathmatch playlists for those who just want a WWII shooter. A wave defense mode lets players shoot in a fast paced setting.
There is a fresh approach to the game.
The mode isn't a total drag, which is perhaps its most impressive accomplishment. In games like Deathloop, invasion mechanics can be frustrating because an online player can jump into someone's game and try to sabotage it. This is a tense game of cat and mouse where the hunter-and-hunted dynamic can flip on a dime depending on who winds up in the other's scope. Whenever I died to an invading player, it was not much of a problem. It can be disabled as well.
The majority of the value is in revisiting missions. There is plenty of space to experiment while chasing down stray collectibles and side objectives with several ways to tackle maps. Since the game will be easily available to curious friends via the Game Pass, it's a strong reason to come back in.
Rebellion has a brief window of opportunity after Call of Duty and Battlefield failed to impress fans. If you're looking for a stealth-action game with a fresh approach, then you're in the right place. Though its gore is sure to be its legacy, it is much more than that.
There is a rare WWII game that does something new with the conflict. Its story has nothing new to say and its commitment to history can be a burden on its creative potential, but its open-ended missions make for a devilishly enjoyable stealth action game. It can be hard to stomach excessive violence, even for the most hardened of players, but you can't have a guilty pleasure without a heaping helping of self-indulgence.
The closest parallel to the sim front is the excellent Hitman 3. Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus has the same amount of blood, but it has more compelling narrative hooks.
The campaign can take a few hours more if you are doing every objective. There's a lot of things to do with here too.
Yes. The open-ended missions of the game make it one of the best WWII games.
The review of Sniper Elite 5 was done on a PS5.
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