Sniper Elite Resistance Review

Sniper Elite Resistance Review – X-Ray(ted) Fun

Rebellion is back, bringing us another round of long-distance sniping, x-ray kill cams and all manner of saboteur goodness. We’re staring down the barrel of an all-new release in the long-running series with Sniper Elite Resistance despite it having been a mere two-and-a-half years since Sniper Elite 5 dropped. This time Karl Fairburne is giving up the spotlight and letting a new(ish) protagonist take center stage, as events unfold in parallel with our former hero’s exploits in the 2022 installment.

Sniper Elite Resistance brings Special Operations Executive agent Harry Hawker into the fray as the star of the show. You may recognize the British marksman from the multiplayer tied to Sniper Elite 3 or as an unlockable character in the last two entries. However, Harry is looking much more grizzly in Resistance, ensuring that he remains equally as gruff and edgy as ol’ Fairburne. Captain Hawker finds himself working with the French Resistance as both attempt to thwart the Nazi’s latest scheme, which has bleak implications for the outcome of the war. What unfolds is the waging of a less visible war far from Fairburne’s frontline efforts.

Coming only a couple years after the last mainline title, Sniper Elite Resistance is a spin-off that’s more about offering up a second helping of the meal we ate earlier rather than craft a brand new culinary experience. Sure, there’s nothing wrong with maintaining the same enjoyable flavor, but sometimes the palate yearns for more. That is to say, if you loved Sniper Elite 5 and all you’re looking for is more of that exact experience, Sniper Elite Resistance provides just that. However, if you were hoping Rebellion would innovate and meaningfully push the series forward, my response is “better luck next time.”

Sniper Elite Resistance Review

New Protagonist, Same Game

Sniper Elite Resistance keeps the core of its gameplay tight and entertaining as ever. A host of customizable weapons are at Hawker’s disposal, including various rifles, handguns and submachine guns. While exchanging small caliber fire with Nazi forces can be punchy and enjoyable, the sniper rifles are the main attraction. The nine campaign missions, which range from infiltrating a production facility on a thunderous rainy night to assaulting a Napoleonic fortress, offer a wealth of avenues for delivering long-range death. Harry can climb vines to gain vantage points; he can dismantle boards to gain access to inactive tunnel systems; or our recon specialist can simply lie in a patch of thick grass to obscure himself as he lines up the perfect shot. How you play Hawker is up to you. Four quadrants—lethal, non-lethal, assault and stealth—rank the player’s approach at the end of each mission, highlighting the personal combination of tactics utilized in the pursuit of dismantling the Nazi threat. Whether you’re looking to set the record for the longest distance testicle shot or you prefer to get up close and personal with a knife, Sniper Elite Resistance is all about saying yes.

The wide variety in combat approach is mirrored in the varied level design. Different levels of verticality empower the player to seek high ground for a greater line of sight or leverage the obstructions at the street-level to remain hidden from elite enemy snipers and other deadly threats. Figuring out how to maneuver through each sandbox is an absolute joy, especially given how much is awaiting player discovery. There’s more than a main mission objective on Hawker’s radar; plenty of optional side objectives can be completed to extend the lifespan of each level. For example, Harry may have an optional task to eliminate a high-value target that is critical to the Nazi’s nefarious endeavors.

While targets can be eliminated via the trusty method of leaving a high-caliber hole in their skull, exploration can yield more creative solutions, a la Hitman. Perhaps a piece of “torpedo coal” can be added to their coal reserves so that the target’s next use of the fireplace results in a more lethal outcome. Or maybe the HVT happens to be wandering under a crane holding heavy equipment; an accident from above could befall them for not paying attention to their dangerous environment. Finding new ways to kill old foes is a treat. And it’s always hilarious when several minutes pass after setting a mine, only to be reminded of its existence when the camera quickly cuts away from Harry to focus on some poor sap who finally ran through the trap.

Sniper Elite Resistance Review

Of course, little else beats the classic bullet-borne fatality thanks to the ever-pleasing x-ray kill cam. Courtesy of a toggleable frequency setting, those violent kill cams can occur as often or as little as you want. Find your mark, send it and watch the bone-shattering, organ-bursting dance of death play out. Vanilla headshots are only one piece of it all. Eyes can be blown out; kidneys can be decimated; hearts can be ruptured; hell, even testicles can be shot clean off. No one is going to judge how you eliminate the oppressive forces occupying France. Familiarize yourself with our anatomy by systematically targeting every vulnerable part of the human body. The x-ray camera is as sadistic as it is amusing.

This satisfying core gameplay extends to the returning wave-based Survival mode, as well as the debuting Propaganda Challenge. Throughout the campaign, propaganda posted can be found that unlock special, timed missions. These missions come in one of three types: stealth, sniping, and combat. As the names imply, each challenge presents a particular style of gameplay, and the player must hone their skills in that particular focus to maximize their score within the time limit to achieve the lofty gold medal. The new Propaganda Challenge missions aren’t transformative, but they do add a fun, albeit brief, diversion.

I wish I could say it was all high points with Sniper Elite Resistance, but there are a handful of areas that hold it back from being an extraordinary experience. I have already touched on this earlier, but it bears repeating: Sniper Elite Resistance is more of the same. In fact, despite sporting a campaign equal in length to that of Sniper Elite 5, it often felt like I was playing an expansion to the 2022 game. Obviously, the $60 price tag indicates a full, standalone release. The sense of déjà vu cropped up now and then, reminding me that what was in front of me was largely the same as Rebellion’s recent offering. To some, that may not be an issue. But the shift in protagonist shouldn’t have been the biggest “innovation” to the Sniper Elite formula. Rebellion needs to find a way to continue elevating the franchisee to avoid becoming stale.

Sniper Elite Resistance Review

A Buggy Bombardment

Even if the lack of meaningful growth isn’t a deterrent, Sniper Elite Resistance proved to be the buggiest experience the series has seen yet. On numerous occasions, enemy pathing completely broke. Using the see-through-walls focus ability, I observed multiple Nazis stuck walking in circles or into obstacles, making zero progress towards returning to their patrol routes or investigating my character’s whistle. One particularly odd glitch saw an enemy officer clip through the stairs while pursuing me, encasing the character in a concrete tomb that he could shoot out of but I could not shoot into. Coupled with wildly inconsistent enemy AI, where sometimes a suppressed handgun shot would draw more attention than blowing up a transport truck, the bugs were made all the more glaring. The two definitely came together at points to upend the game’s otherwise enjoyable flow.

Harry Hawker also experienced his fair share of problems. In a few instances, Harry could not overcome the top of staircases if he was crouched. Having to stand up and sprint over an invisible obstruction in plain view of enemies was less than ideal. At another point, Harry refused to use a ladder to return to the city streets and instead chose to hang from a phantom ledge a few feet from actual edge of the platform. There were many other odd happenings, such as Harry getting stuck in a reload cycle, teleporting to the other side of doors when trying to open them, and having to pick the same lock twice despite the door showing swung wide open.

All of that said, those frustrations are temporarily forgotten when an assassination plan comes together perfectly in Sniper Elite Resistance. This is doubly true when playing through the game in co-op. All of the tactical freedom available in single player is amplified with a friend, as fresh approaches are devised and executed together. For those that fell in love with Sniper Elite 5‘s Invasion Mode, you’ll be happy to know it has returned. You can choose to invade others as an Axis sniper or welcome the challenge of a player-controlled sniper entering your mission. Keep in mind, this is completely optional. Rebellion isn’t forcing its Soulslike inspirations on everyone. Also returning are the competitive multiplayer modes, but I imagine these won’t attract new players. If you enjoyed counter sniping in the long-range No Cross mode in 2022, you are likely to enjoy it in 2025.

Sniper Elite Resistance Review Verdict

Sniper Elite Resistance: Sniper Elite Resistance is essentially a standalone expansion to Sniper Elite 5. Its story runs parallel and it hosts the same engaging yet unchaged gameplay as its predecessor. Propaganda Challenges add a small bit of new content, and co-op is as fun as ever, but there's little else helping Resistance rise above the previous installment. It possesses the same strengths, but unfortunately a host of new bugs makes the experience more uneven. Joshua

7
von 10
2025-01-27T06:00:00-0800

[Editor’s Note: Sniper Elite Resistance was reviewed on PS5, and a copy was provided to us for review purposes.]

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