Laying down on top of a building 600 meters away, Hitler in your sights, and… BOOM! You see the bullet travel through his skull with his brains splattering out the back, the entire world changed because of that one shot. These are the moments that make this game shine above all others of it’s kind. Although there isn’t many other sniper only games (Sniper Ghost Warrior and Sniper Elite), this is the best by far. If you know anything about history, this is taking place in World War II (Hitler), but besides that, we don’t really know who you are. There isn’t much background on this guy, all we know is that he a US sniper whose name is Karl Faireborne. So as you may be able to guess, there isn’t much of a story going on here, so if you’re looking for something with a story, look elsewhere. But is you are just trying to be stealthy while shooting people from hundreds of meters away in the head, then this is the game for you.
The overall gameplay makes up for the poor story line, for example the bullet’s physics and the cool X-Ray Kill Cam, which is a very nice touch. And those bullet physics add a good challenge but without being too hard, and you have the option to choose the Sniper Elite difficulty if you want it to be extremely difficult. Another thing that I’ve been noticing is that the AI doesn’t just stand there and let you shoot them, it’s not target practice. You’ll see them diving behind cover, sneaking up behind you, and sometimes running straight towards you like the Terminator. Which makes the game a lot more fun and challenging. One thing that I was really disappointed in though was that there is no co-op campaign option, other than playing online. I wish you play spit screen with someone else in the house, it seems like game developers think that no one has friends over, although it doesn’t effect the actual game I still wish that was an option.
Overall Sniper Elite V2 is a great game if you’re looking for something different than that all too well known run and gun, the gruesome X-Ray Kill Cam is a fantastic edition, and the realistic bullet physics create a customizable challenge. This game is no where near perfect though, the lack of a story line and for me personally, coop campaign, is a big downside. Either way if you can live without those two cons, and want to try something different, go get this game (or at least rent it).
Rating: 8.5/10
