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Old 02-01-23, 06:16 PM   #1
Platapus
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Icon14 Sniper Eliite 5 Review

Review of Sniper Elite 5


I like sniper games and I like submarine games. Probably because they are very similar. A submarine is, after all, just a super soggy sniper. It is all about hiding, tracking and attacking in a disciplined manner.


Bluf: SE5 is a fun sniper game to play. I think it is worth the money, but if you can get it on sale, even better. Lots of killing of snotzies (hate those guys) in different and fun ways. It is not a perfect game and there are still a few bugs but I have not found them to be especially bothersome. A lot of the online critiques of this game seem focused on realism. SE5 is as realistic a sniper game as SH4 is a realistic submarine game – Realistic in some ways, not realistic in others. It is, after a video game. In that light here are my opinions of SE5 – The good, the bad, and the ugly.


The good – aspects of the game where I think the developers have done a good job and improved the game since SE3/4


  • The graphics are well done. Resolution in far distance, which is important in sniper games, is implemented well. I did not notice an over reuse of skins/tiles. What was especially impressive was the way that the developers aged and dirtied up the scenes. This game takes place in 1944 France. Things are beat up and look like… well.. like they have been through a war. The attention to detail to achieve this lived in/fought in appearance was impressive.
  • Stealth was well implemented. Sneaking and hiding are an integral part of any sniper game. It is sometimes too easy to give the player almost magical stealth abilities. For example in SE4, when hiding in the bushes, the player was pretty much invisible. There were instances where I had snotzies literally bump in to my character while hiding. This has been fixed in SE5 and for the better.
    • Stealth is now more like lower visibility than actual invisibility. Instead of the bushes of SE4, SE5 has tall grass in which to hide in. But it is not true stealth. The enemy will find you.
      • If you are motionless in the tall grass, enemies won’t see you until they get to about 2x melee distance (~2 meters). So don’t try to wait until they get into melee distance and then do your melee attack. It may work, but it won’t be as silent as a normal melee attack from behind.
      • If you are moving in the tall grass, enemies will spot you. It may take them a few seconds to lock on to you, but gone are the days of moving freely in concealment.
      • Hiding in tall grass also impairs your ability to see around you using any type of optic or weapon. Pro tip: using your binoculars in tall grass increases the chances of the enemy seeing you, which makes sense. This also applies when hiding behind objects – they can’t see you and you can’t see them in first person view. If you pop up to see them/aim at them, they can see you. I like that.
  • AI - Programming AI in a game is difficult. The developers are using a mathematical formula to simulate actions and responses of the computer controlled “characters”. I think SE5 has improved the AI since SE4.
    • Even when not alerted to your presence, the patrolling snotzies do not always take the exact same pattern. It will be close but can have just enough variation to make laying traps and ambushes a little more challenging.
    • After being alerted and for some time afterwards, the AI will vary the patterns of the NPCs significantly.
    • The time to recover from an alert is still a ridiculously short time, but that time compression is necessary for the game mechanics. However, the enemy is still looking for you and may have left you a surprise even after the “all clear”.
    • When alerted, the enemy will try to flank you and use coordinated attacks. The enemy also uses cover much better than in previous games. Gone are the days of the enemy blindly running right for you. However, sometimes the enemy is quite stupid when it comes to doorways. There have been many instances where I ended up with a pile of dead guys so big that afterwards I had to move each one individually in order to search them.
    • Alarms are a new feature. When alerted, the enemy will move toward alarm boxes to sound the alarm; which brings reinforcements. This is seldom a good idea for the player. According to my unscientific research, Rebellion still keeps with the idea that there is a finite number of enemy troops on every map. This is nice as no one likes endless waves of NPCs. This also makes the hit and run tactic valuable as you can slowly wear down the numbers of troops.
    • The game also introduced panic. Under some circumstances the enemy will panic and start running back and forth making it harder to snipe them. The presence of officers will help quell panic so it might be a good idea to snipe the officers first.
  • Suppressors – I like the way that weapon suppressors are handled in the game. They are truly suppressors and not silencers. Each weapon combination has a detection range which allows the player to make intelligent choices – choose a more powerful weapon for one shot take downs but risk attracting the enemy or choose a less powerful weapon that is quieter. I like the option of choices depending on the play style of the player.
  • Weapon specialization – SE games have offered weapon choice and specialization but I have found that in each game there was a clear optimum choice. I am happy to state that this is to a lessor extent in SE5. There is truly a good selection of weapons and specializations to suit the player’s play style. Each weapon/specialization has pros and cons that force the player to make real choices. I like that.
  • Re-playability – All the SE games have good re-playability. In looking at my steam account, I have amassed 681 hours in SE3; 1,641 hours in SE4 and since Christmas 335 hours in SE5… which is kinda pathetic when you think about it. In SE3/4 just varying how you approach the map changes the engagements significantly. SE5 is no different, but also have the new feature of allowing the player to discover alternative starting locations. These will allow the player to replay the maps and not have to go through the same starting areas. Beware, alternative starting locations may be significantly harder than the standard starting location, but again, it is nice to have choices.
  • Ammunition choice – Each weapon class (rifle, submachine gun, pistol) has different types of ammo that the player can choose to use. Like everything else in the game the choice of ammo has advantages and disadvantages. Ammo can be stocked up at the start of the mission as well as picked up during a mission. Some ammo types are less common then others.
    • Match – improves accuracy and decreases bullet drop. Only really useful on rifles so pass on this for SMG and pistol
    • AP – Armor piercing. Useful for taking out armored vehicles (rifle) and for shooting snotzies hiding behind wooden cover. The rifle one was the only one I found especially useful
    • Soft Point – increased damage against unarmored parts of enemy. Helmets can deflect soft point ammo BTY. Very useful for pistols and SMG and a good way to save ammo as fewer shots will be necessary for a kill. When the player is hit was soft point ammo, it will result in a bleed. If untreated by a First Aid kit or Bandage, one hit will eventually cause the player to die. I have not experienced this bleed damage over time when used against NPCs though. Usually it is a one shot kill.
    • Subsonic – reduces the noise of your shot. When combined with a suppressed weapon, this can be a pretty quiet kill. Unfortunately, subsonic ammo does not seem to affect range, bullet drop or damage, which does not seem right to me.
    • Non-lethal – yeah… well we will discuss that later in this review
  • Snipers –like in the other SE games, there are enemy snipers. In addition,in SE5 there are elite snipers. What? Did you think you were the only elite sniper??
    • Enemy snipers move in this game and not just back and forth. They will relocate to avoid you and to target you.
    • Scope glint is still present in the game but your reaction time must be very quick. These AI snipers fire very quickly and accurately.
    • Elite Snipers shoot soft point ammo which will cause a bleed. If you run out of first aid kits or bandages, too bad, so sad. Reload a save.
    • Do not underestimate Elite Snipers. They are a tough enemy
  • Action vulnerability – Taking action such as reloading your weapon or searching a body takes a few second and can’t be easily stopped. This leaves you very vulnerable
    • Make sure the area is secured before searching dead guys.
    • I found out the hard way that I had developed a bad habit in SE3/4 in automatically reloading my weapons after every use. This got me killed several times in my early play throughs.
  • Using enemy weapons – Like in SE3/4 you can pick up enemy weapons.
    • The difference in SE5 is that picking up an enemy weapon does not replace your own weapon as in SE3/4. However, if you switch to another weapon, you will drop the enemy weapon. Not always bad as you can pick it up again. One thing you can’t do is reload the enemy weapon. Until you get the higher upgrades, sometimes the enemy weapon is significantly better than the one you are carrying.
    • Unfortunately, this applies to the flare gun. Like in SE4 it is a single use weapon, but in SE5 you can’t pick it up and save it for later. You can carry it but you will be constantly picking it up again and again, which may be worth it.
  • Focus – Focus is a skill where you can stop and listen in an attempt to locate unseen enemies.
    • It is not overpowered like some magical ability.
    • It is not error free. It is possible to not detect a close enemy that is hiding
    • It is a good skill so use it
  • Time – I am happy to announce that there are no timed missions in this game.One thing I despise is when game developers introduce time constraints that force the player into rushing. This is a sniping game and slow careful movement is the key. I found that each mission took me about 2-3 hours to complete. There are YouTube videos showing people completing missions in 15 minutes. Why? They miss most of the game that way.
  • PVP – my last “good” is that PVP is completely optional in this game. PvP is not my thing but I know that other players like it. It is good to offer the player a choice and not force them into a play style they don’t like
The Bad – Aspects of the game I did not care for. Some of these are more “meh” than bad, but I could not have my oh-so-clever schema of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly if I also included a Meh.
  • Traps – Traps used to be an important tool in the SE games. Anti-personnel mines were useful for protecting the player’s flank. Unfortunately, the choice of traps has been reduced to two. Gone are the bouncing and trip wire anti personnel mines.
    • Teller mines. Teller mines are anti-vehicle mines. In real life they weigh about 20 pounds each, but in SE5 I can easily carry three of them. The problem is that in real life, the minimum pressure to detonate a Teller mine was about 200 pounds with some models requiring higher pressures. Even the game states that an enemy will only set off a Teller mine if they are carrying a “heavy weapon”. As a matter of game fact, Teller mines may or may not detonate when an enemy steps on it. A single Teller mine can destroy an armored car, but will only disable the movement of a tank.
    • Schü-mine 42 – which is a small anti-personnel mine. In real life this was useful for blowing off the feet of anyone who stepped on it. But in SE5, somehow it magically knocks the enemy unconscious. I promise that we will get to my non-lethal rant soon.
    • So there are really no good options for traps in SE5. That stynks.
  • Weaponspecialization – Yes, it was also listed as a Good, but it is also a Bad.
    • There are specializations available that I doubt were really available in WWII. You can pimp out your pistol like it was in The Man from Uncle to the extent that any enemy within 60 meters is better handled with the pistol.
      • Every dark cloud has a silver lining – pimped out pistols allows more sneaking up on the enemy and shooting them in the back of the head, which, honestly, is one of my more enjoyable game activities. Fun, but not realistic.
    • All the weapons can be pimped out to an unrealistic extreme. Your rifle can be equipped with optics and suppressors that I don’t think were all that common as so can your pistol.
    • Too many suppressors. There are a lot of suppressed weapons in this game. More than I would imagine in real life. It is one thing to be able to equip high tech suppressors before a mission, but you can actually find a lot of suppressed weapons just laying around. Really?
      • In real life, WWII suppressors wore out the more they were used. In SE5, a suppressor is good for the entire game. I would have liked the option of a more realistic suppressor life where after so many rounds your weapon would slowly get louder and louder. This would require the player to both be more conservative with the suppressed weapons or have to find the workshops and get a new one.
  • Skills – upon earning experience points the player can choose specific skills from a library of 27 skills. By the time the player reaches the seventh /eighth mission they will have enough points to max out all the skills. After that experience does not seem to have much use
    • The skills are not all useful. Some of the skills are focused on multiplayer/PvP. Honestly, the only useful skills were the ones that gave you increased health and allowed you to carry increased types of ammo. The rest of the skills were Meh at best.
      • One skill I wished they would incorporate would be grenade throwing. Unskilled grenade throws should be accurate to a circle of error, subsequent training would increase the precision of grenade throws. Currently, any player can throw a grenade with pin point accuracy.
  • Crowbar and Bolt Cutters – these are pieces of equipment that you can pick up during your mission. There are boxes of supplies that can only be opened if your character has a crowbar. Evidently a combat knife can’t be used. Bolt cutters can be used to open padlocks (noisy) or to cut cables which can help in some missions. But if you don’t have a crowbar or bolt cutter, tough luck.
    • Be aware that using the alternative starting locations may not allow you to pick up a crowbar or bolt cutter easily.
    • It would be nice to have the option of using one of your equipment slots to carry a crowbar/bolt cutter. I am a special operator with access to all kinds of high tech equipment but I can’t be issued a crowbar/bolt cutter? Really?
  • Stance does not affect accuracy – your character can be in three stances: Standing, kneeling, prone. None of them seems to affect accuracy. You can pull off 600 meter shots standing up just as easily as you can while prone. This is not right.
  • Pathing – There are, unfortunately some pathing bugs in the game.
    • Most of the walls you can climb are marked with white scuff marks.. but not all climbable walls are marked.
    • Most of the waist high barriers (walls, ditches, hedges) can be vaulted over…but not all.
      • Some barriers can only be vaulted over if you approach them from about 90 degrees (+/- 15 degrees)
    • There are piles of rocks/dirt that you can walk over.. but not all
    • This can make movement a little dicey, especially when you are trying to sneak past the enemy and you need to clear an obstacle before they turn around. I wished there were clear indications of where you can and can not transverse before committing.
  • Ziplines. Yea the developers know how to code ziplines. I get it. There are way too many ziplines in the game and a lot of them are far too long to be realistic.
    • I seem to have no problem carrying a hook to use on the ziplines but I can’t carry a crowbar/bold cutter. /rant
  • Satchel Charges – the good news is that the player, unlike in SE4, does not have an infinite number of satchel charges. The Meh news is that when you need a satchel charge there usually just happens to be one near by for you to pick up. I really doubt that the snotzies just had satchel charges laying around like that.
  • TNT blocks – They seem useless with the exception of booby trapping vehicles. You can only blow up stuff that is coded to be blown up. In some missions you have to destroy AA guns but in other missions you are unable to destroy the same looking AA Guns.
    • They don’t seem useful in destroying armored vehicles or tanks. I have not tried combining TNT with a Teller mine. One reason is that you can’t place a TNT block you can only throw it. So you would have to throw the TNT block to where you want it and then walk up to it and place the Teller mine. I don’t know if that would destroy a tank or not.
    • TNT blocks can be used to trap bodies, vehicles, and alarm boxes
  • Tanks – Tanks are still way too easy to destroy in the game
    • A Teller Mine will only disable the movement of the tank. To destroy it you have to maneuver so that you can aim at the rear of the tank. Switch to Armor Piercing Rifle Ammo and shoot the tank’s butt about four times. This may take some time as the turret will be looking for you. But in the end you can kill a tank with just your rifle. Pretty realistic huh?
  • Ammunition is still interchangeble.
    • Even if you modify a weapon to take different calibers of ammo, any rifle ammo fits any rifle, same with SMG and pistols.
    • Be aware that at the medium and higher difficulties, ammo becomes harder to find so this is not a spray and pray type of game.
  • Tagging – You can still tag, with the binoculars an unlimited amount of tags. These will show up on the map as well as on the display. I guess this is supposed to represent you heightened sense and memory or something
    • You can’t tag dead bodies any more. This was handy in SE4. Few things are more frustrating when you are low on ammo/supplies than not being able to find the body you just killed. Fortunately, bodies that have something important on them have a little mark that makes them a bit easier to find.
    • You can’t untag anything. You can tag a lot of things, some of which you are not interested in tagging. If your binoculars stay on a tag-able object fort too long, it gets tagged. This can clutter up your map if you are not careful. There should be a way to untag things.
  • Non-Lethal – OK, I promised. In SE5, there is the option of non-lethal take downs. Really? My character is a sniper, and his job is to shoot snotzies in head! So why is there a non-lethal option?
    • In melee attacks, it is possible to either kill or pacify your target. Pacify renders your target unconscious. At the end of the mission, you will garner more experience points for every unconscious target that remains. The issue is that after around mission seven, experience points don’t seem to matter
    • Before you feel all altruistic and want to just knock out the enemy, please be aware that they will remain unconscious until the end of the mission or until another enemy comes and revives them. That means that you will now have two enemies that are probably behind you. There really is no downside to killing the enemy
    • But there are some isolated instances where non-lethal take downs can be useful. There are some special kill objectives that will have special awards if you kill the snotzie in a special way. No spoilers, but you can either wait until the target is in the right place or you can knock them unconscious and move then to the right place and then kill them
    • If you throw a bottle at the head of an enemy there is a very good chance you will knock then unconscious
    • The issue is that you can use all weapons for non-lethal takedowns. Somehow there was special ammunition for rifles that would only knock someone out at 400 meters. Really? I doubt it
    • The good thing is that non-lethal takedowns is strictly optional and easy to ignore.
  • Incapacitation. If you wound an enemy, they can become incapacitated. In SE3/4 an incapacitated enemy would bleed out and die. In SE5, incapacitated enemies just become unconscious, which means that they can be brought back to full health by another enemy.
    • The good news is that an incapacitated enemy will attract other enemies to be sniped.
The Ugly – Things that really don’t work very well in the game.
  • There really is only one ugly aspect about this game and it is so easy to fix. The game options. How can a developer mess up an options screen. List all the choices on several screens and allow the player to select what they want to change. Is that really difficult?
  • One of the more common options to select/deselect is the auto aiming function. The game defaults to having automatic aiming where when you are aiming at your target a red diamond appears showing you exactly where you bullet will impact. Great for beginners but like in SH4, a lot of the players want to enjoy the challenge of manual targeting. So how do you turn off the diamond? Sucks to be you, the game option screen ain’t going to tell you!!!
    • If you are dumb like I was, you would go to the Options screen on the first game display. Sucker! Why would I think that game options would be on an options screen???
      • It is not under options at all! Why would you expect an option to be on the options screen??
    • The diamond is called Aim Assist, but don’t worry about because there is nothing in the options section that addresses Aim Assist.
    • Here is the secret they don’t want you to know. It is under Difficulty and specifically advanced difficulty customization.
    • So where is the Aim Assist? Silly Allies, there ain’t no setting for Aim Assist.
    • Despite the fact that Aim Assist is for all weapons now, the option you are looking for is under Sniping and you choose Empty Lung Assist.
      • Of course you would find Aim Assist under Empty Lung Assist, silly.
      • It is not there. Repeat after me. There ain’t no Aim Assist button
      • Under Empty Lung Assist you have three options: Normal, Reduced, Disabled. Which one do you change if you just want the Aim Assist diamond not to appear? The game ain’t gonna tell you that. If you go on line you will find helpful people who will tell you to select Reduced. Probably the most common option a player wants to change and it is hidden.
  • That is the most frustrating aspects of this game. The options and difficulty settings don’t really tell the player what to select for their specific desires. They really dropped the ball on this one. Good thing there is the Internets Tubes to look things up.
Tips but no spoilers
  • Shoot and scoot – there are few places where you can safely camp and snipe enemies with impunity and they are usually at the start of a mission. In the mission, shooting and staying in one position is not healthy
  • Think like a sniper – always have two avenues of escape. The “best” sniper nest may turn out to be a good place to be trapped. I learned that the hard way.
  • The AI also knows where the best sniper nests are and will alter their attack plans accordingly
  • Pay attention to your SMG. In SE3/4 I honestly did not pay that much attention to my SMG as I used it very rarely. In SE5 you will be using your SMG much more often so don’t neglect the SMG upgrades
  • Actions like searching and reloading can’t be stopped once started. This will leave you vulnerable. I developed a bad habit in SE3/4 of automatically reloading my weapon after firing. Don’t do this until you are sure the area is clear. I learned that the very hard way.
  • You may find yourself running away from the enemy when things go bad. Avoid stairs. Your speed going up and down the stairs is slower than normal movement. Got shot in the back a lot of times on stairs
  • There are alarm speakers and alarm activation boxes. Try not to allow the enemy to get to an alarm activation box
    • If you can see an alarm activation box, you can shoot it to render it useless. This even works from behind the box
    • If a specific alarm activation box has been activated, you can shoot that alarm activation box and silence the alarm. It won’t work if other alarm activation boxes have been activated
    • At melee range you can disable an alarm activation box or booby trap it if you have extra explosives
  • At the higher difficulties dropped ammunition becomes harder to find. Search everyone and don’t waste ammunition. It sucks running out while surrounded.
  • Take your time. The good news is that there are no timed missions (I hate those). Each mission takes me about 2-3 hours.
  • Speaking of which, explore the map to find stuff including alternative starting locations and to discover new objectives. In SE5 you are rewarded for exploring.
  • On your minimap you may find triangles centered at your location. These are bad.
    • A yellow triangle on your position indicates that the enemy knows you are there but has not targeted you. The faster the yellow triangle rotates, the more they know
    • A red triangle means that they have you targeted and you can expect bullets to be flying toward you.
    • If you see a triangle at your position, move. You will find that the triangle moves with you. You have to physically break LOS from ALL enemies (hiding in tall grass does not count) before the triangle stays put at your last known location. Once you are separated from the triangle, then you can hide.
    • Try to play the game in a way that you never attract a triangle.
  • The SMG also operates quite nicely as a semiautomatic weapon. This is a great way to conserve ammunition. You don’t always want to spray the area.
  • Don’t forget to tag enemies with your binoculars. Sure it may be overpowered but it helps. Take your time and tag as many enemies as you can before sniping them. You can also read interesting back stories about the person you are about to kill
  • You are limited to the number of equipment you can carry. Specifically you can carry one med kit and three bandages. When you search the enemy, pay attention to what they are carrying that you did not pick up. Remembering where the closest medkit can be a literal lifesaver. This is why it sucks that you can’t tag dead bodies.
  • Final tip: Enjoy the game. It is, after all, a game. If you are not enjoying yourself, you shouldn’t be playing it.
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Old 02-01-23, 07:32 PM   #2
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Thanks for the extensive review! It shows that you like this series.

I do not know SE, but the reading has made me curious. I have set it on the Steam Wishlist for a future sale to maybe pick it up then.
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Old 02-02-23, 07:57 PM   #3
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I've been thinking about giving this a try. Thanks for the in-depth review! That's always helpful when considering a new title.

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Old 02-07-23, 04:43 AM   #4
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I bought Sniper Elite 5 over the weekend and have now played the first two missions and half of the third. There would be a lot to complain about, but I'll stick to the game's poor progression in this post.

I'm one of those for whom a "carrot" is important in games. It gives me a reason to keep playing and play missions again. The carrot in Sniper Elite 5 is one of those wilted, pathetic looking ones that gets left in the shop and thrown in the trash at the end of the day.

The game has two progression systems. One is XP which you get by doing missions, simple challenges (shoot someone from x meters away) etc. XP is used to unlock skills, of which there are 27 in total divided into three categories; Combat, Equipment and Body.

Sounds cool, doesn't it? Well, no. Out of the 27 skills, I've deliberately chosen only one that I know will help my style of play. The rest I've chosen just to use my skill points for something. There's even a setting in the game that if you turn on, the game automatically uses your skill points. Tells you something, in my opinion.

Well, that was XP. It's not (as far as I know) used for anything other than skills. Skills, of which 26/27 are useless for my taste.

Another progression system in the game is collecting new weapons and parts. The main way to collect these is to find workbenches in missions. Usually there seem to be three workbenches per mission, one per weapon type (pistol, smg, rifle). If you find a pistol bench, you unlock parts for the pistol, etc. Another way to get new gadgets is through the kill challenges in the missions. Kill a certain person in a certain way and you get a new weapon. Some parts seem to be locked behind specific weapon challenges. EDIT: Forgot to add that you also unlock stuff by simply completing a mission.

The progression of weapons and parts is also problematic. Usually, in games where sound is a big part, equipment like a suppressor isn't given until later. In Sniper Elite 5, you get the rifle suppressor as early as the second mission. By the third mission, every weapon you have is suppressed. In SE5, you don't have to agonize over the first missions with inferior equipment, and thus you don't return to those missions later to avenge the wrongs you've experienced with better weaponry.

So, to recap: XP is only used for skills and weapons/parts are obtained through challenges and exploration.

Let's get back to that carrot. I found all three workbenches in the first mission and did the kill challenge as required. For what reason would I like to play the mission again later? I've already gotten everything it has to give, except for playing on the hardest difficulty level.



Since SE5 borrows quite a lot from the Hitman series, let's compare the progression system between the two.

In Hitman, each map has its own XP progression system (location mastery) which is fulfilled by replaying the map and doing different challenges ( of which there are tons). Most maps have 20 levels of mastery and the levels unlock different things, like new starting locations or new equipment that you can use in other maps. Different challenges can also reward you with new gadgets. Also note that I use the word "map" instead of "mission". In Hitman, each map covers several missions/play modes, some of which give new challenges to complete.

And that's how easily the game gives the player a "carrot" to chase through for multiple playthroughs. That SE5 fails so utterly here is hard to fathom. Linking XP with weapon/parts unlocks would have gone a long way. Heck, even unlocking cosmetics with XP would have been tolerable compared to what's in the game.

SE5 is still an ok game. I just have a lot of disagreeable things to say about it. But I think that's enough (for now).

Last edited by Dowly; 02-07-23 at 05:44 AM.
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Old 02-07-23, 05:51 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dowly View Post
For what reason would I like to play the mission again later? I've already gotten everything it has to give, except for playing on the hardest difficulty level.



For the challenge. You can fulfill the objectives in a different way just by changing your approach. You can unlock different starting locations which changes the game experience.



I am on my seventh or eighth play through and each play though is a little different. There are also the objectives you can uncover by exploring the map. If you limit yourself to only the primary missions, you are not experiencing all that the game offers.



I agree that replaying the same mission at the same difficulty could be dull, but every play though I change the difficulty.


The thing I like about the SE games is that there are several ways to achieve the same objectives. I have 443 hours and I still have not explored everything.
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Old 02-11-23, 06:25 AM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Platapus View Post
For the challenge. You can fulfill the objectives in a different way just by changing your approach. You can unlock different starting locations which changes the game experience.
Yes, I can do that, but only if I want to complete everything in every way in the game that doesn't reward me for it. That was the whole point of my criticism; the progression system in SE5 doesn't encourage the player to re-play missions.



*clears throat*

So, I'm now on the 5th mission of the game and I can't shake the feeling that things have been left halfway.

Let's start with a mission where one of the optional objectives is to destroy an antenna mast. The main way to destroy it is to go inside the coastal bunker (on which the mast stands) and destroy the antenna's electronics, but if you listen to the guards talking it turns out that the antenna cables are in bad shape and if two of them fail, the whole mast will go down. Sounds like a clever opportunity for a little sniping, doesn't it? Wrong! You can't shoot the cables to pieces, you have to cut them with cutters. Where can you find cutters? At the bunker. Where are the cables? At the bunker. Sure, you'll need a crowbar to destroy the electronics, but that too can be found near the bunker. The game gives you two ways to do something, but neither way is easier or harder. The only choice is: Do you prefer a crowbar or bolt cutters?

In the same mission, you'll find a safe with the combination you need a few feet away on a table. Why? The information you find in the safe could have been left on the table. Sure, you'll have to shoot the lock off the room door using armor-piercing bullets, but I suspect all players at this point in the game already have them with them from the start of the mission.

***

The glass bottles used to distract enemies is another thing that makes you wonder. Unlike in Hitman, for example, you can't use just any bottles. The only way to get more bottles is to find them around the map, and they have to be the exact same bottles. Why do away with throwing stones and replace it with such a gamey system? A system that makes no sense.


The elusive glass bottles. Only empty bottles found in these boxes can be used.



***

In-game cutscenes will always show your character with their starting weapons and uniform, regardless of how you've customised your character and what weapons you're using. Games have shown your character wearing proper gear during cutscenes for a very long time. No reason to leave it out in a game published in 2022.


Fairburne in a cutscene and immediately after.



***

In SE5, the sniping doesn't feel so much like a half-finished job as an afterthought. I don't mean how the sniping works, the shooting, but where the rifle can actually be used. So far, the fourth mission has been the only one where I've felt like I could incorporate sniping into the otherwise stealthy gameplay that is the main focus of SE5.

There are plenty of sniping nests, but in the missions so far they've always felt forced. They feel as if the game makers just wanted a few spots per map where the player could perform a precision brain drain method before being sent deeper into the mission where the rifle is less useful due to the short distances. Sure, from these nests you can clear areas of enemies you might go into later, but it never feels necessary. The submachine gun as well as the pistol will do the job just as well up close.

I mentioned earlier the fourth mission of the game. Of the ones I've done so far, I think it's the best because the rifle remains an effective option throughout the map. Even though the other maps have been more open, the factory area in mission four is made so that you'll constantly find ways to use the rifle in addition to other weapons in a natural way. The area could easily have been made into a maze where the rifle is useless, but thanks to the verticality of the map and the large factory halls open at both ends through which you can force-feed lead to the Germans, the map is a real pleasure to play. The only downside was the lack of enemy snipers. I think there were one or two enemy snipers in the mission, although the map would have been perfect for more.


The beginning of mission three is perhaps the worst case of offering sniping for the sake of offering sniping. All of the objectives are in Mont-Saint-Michel, past the bridge, where the rifle is far less useful due to narrow winding streets and small interiors. This entire starting section could be removed without it affecting the mission itself.

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Old 02-15-23, 04:43 PM   #7
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I am on my seventh or eighth play through using different weapons and tactics and I am still entertained.



But I tend to replay games a lot.


But I just checked my Steam account and I have 12,725 hours playing Civ 6, so I think I have a problem. Crikey, that's 1.4 years! I think I got my money's worth out of that game.



And I wonder why I ain't got no life.
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Old 02-16-23, 10:26 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Platapus View Post


But I just checked my Steam account and I have 12,725 hours playing Civ 6, so I think I have a problem.
Crikey is right! Holy smokes, mate. But you know I won't pass judgement, just in awe of that investment. Hell, I play a lot of games, and devote a lot of time to it. I play games each week like it's a full time job.


12k is amazing. My most-played Steam game is EU IV with 3,500 since 2014. But I've likely sunk more in to Falcon 4.

And Civ 6 is a good game. I've dropped hundreds in to it, and again for Civ 5, but 12,000 is astounding.


On topic.... I could never quite get in to the Sniper Elite series, and I tried. Sniper games are right up my alley. Any games that have solo play centered around stealth are my jam, and why I come 'round here for sub sims. Same deal. I prefer the Sniper Ghost Warrior series for my sniping over Sniper Elite. It's first person too. Turn off all the silly bullets cams and HUD stuff and the series is a solid tactical sniper experience. There are two basic versions, the Sniper Ghost Warrior main titles, and the Contracts spin offs. An alternative for anyone who doesn't find SE suits them.
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Old 02-16-23, 05:03 PM   #9
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There is a guy on Youtube who does SE4 and SE5 missions with no or only the required killing, just sneaking on authentic difficulty. It is quite impressive despite the editing that you are not supposed to notice.


Still some of the moves he pulls off is quite impressive. I might try the ultimate sneaking game play next play through.
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Old 02-16-23, 05:07 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dowly View Post
The beginning of mission three is perhaps the worst case of offering sniping for the sake of offering sniping. All of the objectives are in Mont-Saint-Michel, past the bridge, where the rifle is far less useful due to narrow winding streets and small interiors. This entire starting section could be removed without it affecting the mission itself.

I find that starting position one or the more enjoyable ones. One of the few times you can pull off 600 meter snipes. By sniping all you can, it will make sneaking on the parameter a lot easier.


While it does get a bit cramped, there are still places where you can wait and snipe from about 100 meters, the rest you have to shoot a lot closer.



The northern section of the map has some nice sniping areas 300-400 meters, which is nice.



But I agree there is far too much reliance on the SMG for my liking.



In SE3 and 4, I rarely used my SMG, but in SE5, I use it a lot.
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Old 02-16-23, 10:12 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Platapus View Post
There is a guy on Youtube who does SE4 and SE5 missions with no or only the required killing, just sneaking on authentic difficulty. It is quite impressive despite the editing that you are not supposed to notice.
Definitely need to give it a try.
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Old 02-17-23, 03:21 PM   #12
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Search Youtube for Core2TOM that's the name of his channel
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Old 07-21-23, 09:56 AM   #13
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I bought Sniper Elite 4 (Italy) with all DLC for $8 and change during the Steam Summer Sale. It's grand fun!

Based on my experience with SE4, I want to add SE2 Remastered, SE3, and SE5 eventually.

I also have Sniper: Ghost Warrior Contracts 2. That too is very good.

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Old 07-22-23, 10:48 AM   #14
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Is this a third person game? I can't stand them.
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Old 07-22-23, 11:49 AM   #15
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Yes, it is, and one of the reasons I suggested Ghost Warrior as an alternative to Sniper Elite. I don't like third person either, but I'll still do it if the game is good enough. Witcher 3 and Hitman WoA being a couple examples. Even in GTA and RDR2 I played exclusively in first person even if it is a bit clunky and there are disadvantages to playing first person, particularly situational awareness in PvP.

The Ghost Warrior series, including the Contracts spin-off is pretty good when you sum up the parts. Nothing in isolation will blow your socks off, but taken as a whole it is a solid tactical sniper game. Turn off the bullet cams and HUD elements and it's right about where I want it to be.
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