Sniper Elite: Resistance is a odd entry in the long-running and highly enjoyable series about shooting Nazis in the junk. Running alongside Operation Kraken from Sniper Elite 5, it’s technically a sequel but ultimately ends up feeling more like a big expansion pack as very little has changed. The few new additions are forgettable, and so your potential enjoyment comes down to whether you feel like the series is due for a big overhaul, or whether you’re still happy to shoot Nazi’s from across the map. Luckily for Resistance, I was in the second camp going in. Now that I’ve finished it, though, Sniper Elite 6 needs to up its game lest the series become stuck in the past.
Series stalwart Karl Fairbourne has been replaced for this adventure by Harry Hawker, a Brit with a budget Jason Statham accent and exactly the same level of personality as Karl- i.e. not much. Where Karl was gruff, Harry is also gruff, except now it’s gruff with a beard and a slightly crazed-looking facial model. Seriously, look at his eyes – the man is clearly in the throes of a psychotic break.
Available On: PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, PC, Game Pass
Reviewed On: PS5
Developed By: Rebellion
Published By: RebellionReview key provided by the publisher.
Unfortunately, his chattiness levels have been upped to a slightly annoying degree. “A scoped rifle, this will come in handy” exclaims the sniper for the hundredth time. “I know it like the back of my hand” he says while picking up another sniper rifle. If you didn’t know a sniper’s rifle like the back of your hand, Harry, I’d be a bit worried about your job title, mate.
Let’s be honest with ourselves, though: who plays the Sniper Elite series for the story and characters? I’m guessing very few of us. Resistance does little to change this fact, weaving together a fictional WW2 story of superweapons, while also barely involving the actual resistance fighters that the game’s own name alludes to. Its bland stuff told through stilted cutscenes that bookend missions and voice acting that ranges from lazy to completely over-the-top. Kudos go to the bomber pilot in the opening tutorial mission who gets show down. That man gave it all in his performance.
Perhaps this is one area in which the series could look to improve going forward, though. A little more effort into the story could help keep it feeling fresh.
Honestly, it’s hard to care about the weak story and non-existent characters when the game is so damn fun to play, though. I’ve had a soft spot for this franchise for years because it perfectly encapsulates everything brilliant about the double-A gaming space – it’s a bit janky, a bit rough around the edges, but it’s also scratching an itch that no other games quite scratch. It’s like a comfort food to me, a little digital playground where I can mess around with Nazis, line up absurdly long-distance shots and revel in the franchise’s staple gory x-ray camera shots of intestines exploding and brains being penetrated. Of course, you can choose to turn the X-ray sequences off which is probably a good idea as they do slow the pace of the game down quite a bit.
Like the title on the box would suggest, sniping is the name of the game, and it’s as satisfying as ever. Resistance keeps up Sniper Elite 5’s level design ethos, meaning the maps are big, varied and have plenty of handy vantage spots where you can happily spend 30 minutes delivering long-range bullet-parcels to unsuspecting Nazi soldiers like the world’s most violent courier. Like before, there are a host of options to choose from to make sniping as easy or as hard as you like. You can turn off things like bullet drop, for example, and make heavy use of the focus mode that draws a square on the screen to indicate where you need to aim to account for wind, drop and travel time. Or you can go the hardcore route, turn all that crap off and attempt to use all that school maths you never remembered. Whatever method you opt for, sniping is a blast, especially when you decide to try out explosive ammo and watch in shocked awe as a soldier is launched skyward by your well-aimed bullet to the crotch. Look at him go! That’s an Olympic-level height, that is.
It’s also still a lot of fun to think like a sniper, too, by laying down traps to take out any Nazi who happens to hear your gunshots, or by sabotaging a generator so that its failing engine covers up your shots.
In other words, being a sniper is still an immensely fun and enjoyable gameplay loop.
Harry’s adventures take him to a varied selection of levels, too. There’s a beautiful vibrant French town that boasts a church, a small castle, flats and even a very nice library. There’s a sizable dam you visit twice in the campaign, offering scenic views and ample opportunities for long-range violence. A rain-soaked island plays home to a vast Nazi bunker and buckets full of atmosphere.
Notably, the developers said they took inspiration from Sniper Elite 5’s “Spy Academy” mission which was and still is widely viewed as the pinnacle of the series. Unfortunately, while I can see where they tried to emulate that level’s sprawling layout, excellent verticality and dramatic vibe, none of Resistance’s locations come close nor sticks in the memory quite like “Spy Academy” did. Worse, the locations are starting to feel samey and recycled, like visiting yet another train station or countryside manor.
But while the levels don’t hit quite the same, they are still well designed with plenty of room to mess around. Exploring can lead to finding underground tunnels, gaps in fences, climbable walls and various other ways of reaching objectives. It’s like a Hitman-lite kind of vibe.
These levels play host to plenty of optional content. There’s always a side-mission to complete, plus each area has a special target to kill, including a secret special method of execution that will unlock bonus guns to use. Various weapon benches hidden in the levels also open up more weapons and customisation options for all them. It gives the game solid replay value.
Just like the previous Sniper titles, pretty much everything outside of the elite-level sniping is where the game struggles. While the levels are big and offer plenty of uninterrupted views that are perfect for sniping, the game likes to force you into buildings, bunkers and barns where a sniper rifle isn’t so useful. Stealth is meant to be the preferred approach using a mixture of melee takedowns (non-lethal is an option, but there’s really no reason to use it) and silenced weapons. Something I really appreciate about this series is that silencers do not automatically render a gun completely silent, they just reduce the audible range at the cost of power. It means you have to be aware of how close enemies are, otherwise they will be alerted to your presence. Overall, the stealth is functional. It’s fine. But it plays like every other basic stealth game, right down to hiding in the tall grass and whistling to lure enemies to their doom.
Getting into gunfights is pretty much the same; functional and competent but lacking any oomph, any element that makes it stand out. In theory firefights should be best avoided, but in reality you can blaze through Nazis easily, and escaping the area is a doddle, so getting spotted and shooting everything is not a punishment – hell, it’s probably quicker and easier in most regards.
It’s not like I actively dislike sneaking and shooting – both elements work just fine and can be fun in small doses, but I also didn’t look forward to them like I did the sniping. If we get a Sniper Elite 6, and I assume we will, this are key areas in which the series needs to improve.
The biggest problem with this being essentially a reskin is that many of the same problems that plagued Sniper Elite 5 have carried over, the biggest of which is he brain-dead AI. Sure, it is kind of fun to think that all Nazis had the brainpower of a goldfish suffering from a concussion, but they don’t make for very challenging foes on the battlefield. Examples of dumb behaviour include getting stuck in scenery, and then running up a wide open road toward the known sniper before stopping, contemplating life for a moment and then running back down the road away from aforementioned lunatic sniper. Sometimes they’ll attempt to flank you by literally running all the way around the map, which is a highlight. Defeat at the hands of the Nazi’s will rarely ever come because they are smart and dangerous, but because you got complacent and put yourself in dumb situations.
Their intelligence is not improved when searching for you, either. In fact, they seem even less inclined to really press your last known position, making traps less effective overall. It also makes escaping the area too easy, as you’ll often have minutes before an enemy soldier will come looking. It makes screwing up and being heard meaningless because you can just pack up and amble off.
Invasion Mode is back and as fun and tense as it was in Sniper Elite 5. Provided you don’t turn off the option it allows another player to enter your game as a counter-sniper with one goal: stick a bullet in your brain. It’s an intense game of cat and mouse as you suddenly find yourself trying to complete objectives while constantly scanning the horizon for the glint of a scope.
Of course, you can opt to enter other people’s games and ruin their day. As the Invader you have a few extra abilities to aid in your search for Harry Hawker, including your Nazi allies calling out potential locations. Finally spotting your pretty and delivering an across-the-map game over screen is immensely satisfying.
The only completely new piece of the game are the Propaganda missions which are unlocked by taking down posters found throughout the levels. These timed missions task you with killing targets in a given timeframe, either by using stealth, sniping or something else. Bonus time is provided for stuff like headshots or blowing up vehicles using a heavy weapon. These are a fun diversion, worth a replay or two in order to get the high scores.
All of the rest of the stuff from the previous games in the series is still here, too. You can jump into the multiplayer or team up with a friend in co-op which is always fun. I honestly don’t have much to say about the multiplayer aside from that it’s enjoyable enough for a few matches but probably won’t hold your attention.
In Conclusion…
It’s not the most exciting or revelatory conclusion, but Sniper Elite: Resistance is basically more Sniper Elite 5 in a slightly different skin. It’s a stopgap, hardly surprising given the subtitle instead of a number in the title.
That makes reviewing it a tad tricky. It can be unfair to criticise a game too harshly for being more of the same because that’s really the point of a sequel. You’re probably going to pick up Call of Origins: Subtitle of Fate 69 because you enjoyed the previous 68 games. Likewise, you’ll want to pick up Sniper Elite: Resistance because you enjoyed the previous games.
And yet, there’s also merit to pointing out when a series is stagnating and Sniper Elite is heading that way. I’d argue it hasn’t evolved its core mechanics since Sniper Elite 3.
Regardless, Sniper Elite: Resistance is a fun sniping sandbox, retaining the excellent long-range shooting that has made the series so enjoyable. The big, open levels have plenty of scope for nailing headshots from hundreds of meters away, and for toying with dumb Nazi soldiers. Provided the series hasn’t worn out its welcome with you yet, Sniper Elite: Resistance is a damn good time.
