Sniper Elite
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| Sniper Elite | |
|---|---|
 Xbox cover art |
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| Developer(s) | Rebellion Developments Raylight Studios (Wii) |
| Publisher(s) | MC2 France Reef Entertainment (Wii) |
| Distributor(s) | Atari, Namco, Ubisoft Creative Distribution (Wii) |
| Designer(s) | Jason Kingsley (director) |
| Composer(s) | Tom Bible |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows PlayStation 2 Xbox Wii |
| Release date(s) | |
| Genre(s) | Tactical shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Rating(s) | |
| Media/distribution | DVD ROM, digital download |
| System requirements
Pentium III, 256 MB RAM, 4GB HD space (PC) |
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Sniper Elite, also known as Sniper Elite: Berlin 1945, is a 2005 tactical shooter created by UK video game developer Rebellion Developments. In 2012, the game was remade as Sniper Elite V2.
The main character is Karl Fairburne, an American OSS secret agent disguised as a German sniper. He is inserted into Battle of Berlin in 1945, during the final days of World War II, with the critical objective of obtaining German nuclear technology before the Soviet Union.
Contents |
[edit] Story
The game follows protagonist Karl Fairburne as he attempts to prevent the Soviet Union taking control of Germany's nuclear secrets in and around Berlin, April 1945. Very little information is known about his background, other than he was raised in Berlin as the son of a U.S. ambassador to Germany before the war broke out, that he studied at West Point shortly after America's entrance into the war, and the fact that he was chosen for this mission because the city was his childhood home.
There are several factions contending for supremacy in the city, including the German resistance, who wish to aid Karl, the Soviet NKVD, and the Nazi forces. Martin Bormann, an extremely powerful figure within the Third Reich, is one of Karl's targets for assassination as he plans to meet up with an NKVD contact at the Brandenburg Gate to defect to the Soviet Union. The rest of the characters (such as Dr. Max Lohmann, a key German scientist who Fairburne is assigned to help capture and escort out of Berlin to America in order to prevent him from falling into the hands of the NKVD) are fictional with the exception of General Patton who has sent Fairburne on his mission.
[edit] Gameplay
Sniper Elite is a third-person shooter that involves stealth. To reinforce the stealth aspect, there is a camouflage index measured in percentage that displays the visibility of the protagonist. Fairburne uses several WWII-era weapons, including sniper rifles, a silenced pistol, submachine guns, machine guns, an anti-tank weapon, and German and Soviet hand grenades (which can be also used to make tripwire booby traps).[1]
One of the main features of the game is the option of realistic ballistics, involving factors such as bullet drop, wind strength, and breathing when attempting a shot. Sniping gameplay is in first person scope view, whereas movement and use of all other weapons is in third person view. When the player makes an extreme sniper shot, the view follows the path of the bullet in slow motion, while the camera rotates around the bullet. Features include an ability to wound an enemy so that their comrades expose their position by coming to their rescue, detonating grenades and fuel tanks with well-aimed rifle fire, and timing shots so that loud noises such as thunder or artillery blasts mask the sound.
[edit] Wii version
The Wii version of the game was released by Reef Entertainment in North America in September 2010.[2] It is compatible with the Wii Remote and Wii Zapper and contains a bonus new level. The game was also released in Europe later the same year.[3]
[edit] Reception
Sniper Elite was awarded "Best PC/Console Game" in the TIGA Awards of 2005.[4] As of 2010 the game holds an average GameRankings scores of 73.44% for the PC version,[5] 76.65% for the PlayStation 2,[6] and 76.97% for the Xbox.[7]
[edit] Novel
Rebellion's book imprint Abaddon Books released a novel inspired by the game, Sniper Elite: The Spear of Destiny.[8] In this book, Karl Fairburne's mission is to stop the renegade SS general Helmstadt from selling an atomic bomb to the Soviets.
[edit] Remake
In 2011, Rebellion announced that it is co-publishing a new game in the franchise with 505 Games, called Sniper Elite V2. Due for release in May 2012, the game has been described as a "reboot" of the original game, rather than a sequel.[9]
[edit] References
- ^ Sniper Elite - imfdb
- ^ Sniper Elite targets Wii | Games Industry | MCV
- ^ Sniper Elite released date confirmed | The Gaming Liberty
- ^ Rebellion picks up Tiga's game of the year award
- ^ Sniper Elite for PC - GameRankings
- ^ Sniper Elite for PlayStation 2 - GameRankings
- ^ Sniper Elite for Xbox - GameRankings
- ^ Jaspre Bark, Abaddon Books, August 2006, ISBN 1-905437-04-8
- ^ http://www.gametrailers.com/video/organ-piercing-sniper-elite/725834
[edit] External links
- 2005 video games
- Atari games
- Cold War video games
- Multiplayer video games
- Namco games
- PlayStation 2 games
- Rebellion Developments games
- Spy video games
- Stealth video games
- Tactical shooter video games
- Ubisoft Entertainment games
- Xbox games
- Video games developed in the United Kingdom
- Video games set in Germany
- Wii games
- Wii Zapper games
- Windows games
- World War II video games
