Sniper Elite 5 - coming May 25/26th, 2022

[hepcat]

Have you had a really good ass shot kill?

[Smoove_B]

I hit one dude that was bent over and checking on his friend and I actually saw an intestinal sphincter, so...yes?

[hepcat]

I still think what I experienced was a glitch. The kill cam literally showed my bullet blowing off part of his ass (no internal view, thank god), and then he died. If it had entered his body there and then exited through his body elsewhere it would have made more sense. But it glanced off his ass and…

…you know what, that’s a paragraph about shooting a guy’s ass off. I need to take a break from this game for a bit.

[Isgrimnur]

[Smoove_B]

I still think what I experienced was a glitch. The kill cam literally showed my bullet blowing off part of his ass (no internal view, thank god), and then he died. If it had entered his body there and then exited through his body elsewhere it would have made more sense. But it glanced off his ass and…

…you know what, that’s a paragraph about shooting a guy’s ass off. I need to take a break from this game for a bit.

[Smoove_B]

So yeah, Map 3 is so good. What's crazy is that for the amount of time I spent here, I still couldn't find 2 work benches or 2 of the stone eagles. I thought I went everywhere, but apparently not.

[jztemple2]

So yeah, Map 3 is so good. What's crazy is that for the amount of time I spent here, I still couldn't find 2 work benches or 2 of the stone eagles. I thought I went everywhere, but apparently not.

I finally had to go to the internet to find my two missing work benches.

[Isgrimnur]

I only found the pistol bench on that level. Never did see a stone eagle.

[AWS260]

I do have one major complaint about the multiplayer: one player is designated as the host for every multiplayer game. If they leave for any reason, that game ends and everybody is dumped back out into the lobby. It's such a dumb decision.

[jztemple2]

After the claustrophobic third map the fourth one was bigger and a big more open. I'm on the fifth map which is more like the first map.

[jztemple2]

Finished the fifth mission:


I think I'm going to stop playing SE5 for awhile. I tend to burn out on many of these kinds of games before completing the campaigns. Once I start getting the feeling of "been there, done that" in the gameplay I find myself wanting to rush to finish a map. Best to put the game away for awhile and see if I'm feeling better about it in a week or two.

[Jaddison]

is each mission 2 hours long or thereabouts?

[coopasonic]

is each mission 2 hours long or thereabouts?

They can be 10 minutes or 3 hours depending on your approach, how patient you want to be and how complete you want to be. I'd say 60-90 minutes is probably reasonable for most maps for a stealthy approach.

[jztemple2]

They can be 10 minutes...

That will get Karl's heart racing!

[coopasonic]

They can be 10 minutes...

That will get Karl's heart racing!

OK, maybe not on the first play, but with unlocked alternate starting locations, or just plain run and gun, it's feasible.

[hepcat]

is each mission 2 hours long or thereabouts?

They can be 10 minutes or 3 hours depending on your approach, how patient you want to be and how complete you want to be. I'd say 60-90 minutes is probably reasonable for most maps for a stealthy approach.

I know i"m merely human, but for my stealth attempts, some of those maps I can't imagine finishing in less than 3 hours. Map 3, for example. That one is just huge.

[jztemple2]

is each mission 2 hours long or thereabouts?

They can be 10 minutes or 3 hours depending on your approach, how patient you want to be and how complete you want to be. I'd say 60-90 minutes is probably reasonable for most maps for a stealthy approach.

I know i"m merely human, but for my stealth attempts, some of those maps I can't imagine finishing in less than 3 hours. Map 3, for example. That one is just huge.

The thing about Map 3 is that it is so convoluted that even though I've played it three times, I'm not sure I've actually seen everything on it

[hepcat]

Ditto. It's got so many nooks and crannies I think I'll call it The English Muffin Map.

[Smoove_B]

Also, the battery in the first map does not make any sound on my system. The sound indicator comes up when it fires, but no sound plays. Artillery silencer?

It has been addressed with today's patch!

Fixed several missing sounds - most notably the big guns in 'Atlantic Wall'

[Daehawk]

[Smoove_B]

I feel like I've been missing out on a whole set of extra things for SE5. During M4 I was doing my usual creep and spot technique to try and minimize being surprised. As I'm scanning areas, I see a person that wouldn't flag as a target but he was definitely there.

Spoiler:

He was a German solider (?) operating the crane near the train yard

Anyway, I couldn't mark or even target him (get the sight to turn red) but I decided to shoot him anyway, because that's what I do when I see Nazis.

Spoiler:

He died, crane load went into another structure and made a big boom

Imagine my surprise.

But even following that, I started M5 and after coming out into the entry area I noticed something

Spoiler:

There was a little ceramic gnome on one of the tables

I decided to shoot it as well (because that's what I do when I see Nazi decorations) and sure enough a tracker unlocked suggesting there were more to find. I did some poking around and apparently there were similar things to "collect" in M3.

Lots of layers to this game. Still having an absolute blast (figuratively and literally - setting up teller mines on dead Nazis never gets old).

[coopasonic]

In mission selection, there is a prompt to press Tab (I think) for details and it will show you collectibles and I think it includes things like the gnomes and pigeons. If not, the medals (or ribbons?) give it away.

[Smoove_B]

Huh. That'll teach me - I just jumped right in and started blasting. I don't remember anything other than the stone eagles from the other games, so I appreciate having even more to do.

[Blackhawk]

Or, from in-mission, escape, Service Record, Collectibles.

[Blackhawk]

This is not a criticism, just an observation.

As I play more, I am still sticking with the point I made earlier about there being fewer stealthy sniping opportunities than in previous entries in the series. You can always get on a hill and open fire - that's not the point. I just mean that as a stealth player I'm rarely sniping - I'm using my pistol or knife far more often, and that wasn't true in the previous entries.

SE 3 and 4 often had overlooks set up for sniping - a single tower or a small camp with a generator or the equivalent up on a hill or the edge of a cliff - from which you could clear out whole camps. Now, when there are generators (or sabotagable vehicles) now, they're usually in the middle of a camp/occupied area. You can't access them until you've already cleared the camp out, and when you do, there are usually only a few sniping targets that you can see from within sound range of the generator. On map 2, for instance, there was a small farm on one end of the map. A barn, a stable, and a house with a short tower with a view of the surrounding countryside. The only way to activate the generator was to clear out everybody else in hearing range (or they'll all come running when you're still right next to it - the opposite of what you want.) When I did sabotage it, I climbed the tower. There had even been an enemy sniper inside, but it was placed just out of range of the sound masking, and couldn't be used. When you were within range of the masking, hills or buildings blocked every view, and there were exactly two enemies visible.

Like I said, it isn't really a criticism. The game has changed, but it's still a fun game. But it is now closer to a Hitman/Splinter Cell style stealth game (unless you play it run-and-gun) than a sniping game. They just aren't really supporting that play style this time.

[coopasonic]

Yeah it is much more a pistol and knife game for me, but the rifle gets used, just not as often. I do get excited when an opportunity presents itself and there are some places for 400+ meter shots and opportunities to clear out piles of enemies at long range. Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 has more of the super long sniper shot focus if that's what you are after.

[Blackhawk]

Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 has more of the super long sniper shot focus if that's what you are after.

I wouldn't say that so much as I'm having fun, but just miss that element. And yeah, I've got Ghost Warrior 1, 2, 3, and Contracts (plus Sniper Elite 1, 2, and Sniper: Art of Victory) that I've yet to devote time to, although not all of those are considered 'good' games.

[Smoove_B]

Mission #5 had the potential for some insane shots where you're never going to be found, but yes I would agree there definitely more of a focus on mid-to close range combat. I'm still enjoying it, but I've had to change my tactics on the last two maps a bit just because going complete stealth has been harder and harder.

[Isgrimnur]

Sniper Elite 1

Better left to memory than actually played in this day and age.

[Blackhawk]

Yeah, I've heard that it is a series that is best played from 3 onward.

One tip that's still true from past SE titles. If you're going for any of the ribbons/medals or the unlocks that are associated with them, but there's something tough to pull off, there is an easy way to cheese it (I'm not a fan of farming for crap like that.)

Say you need to do something tricky, like kill three enemies with one grenade five times, or you need to use weapons that don't suit your play style (like "Kill enemies with 20 different weapons" when you're playing stealth.) Find a spot with an easy opportunity to do so (a cluster of enemies for the grenade, a special weapon with enemies nearby, etc.) Quicksave. Do the thing - mow down the enemies, throw the grenade, whatever. Now quick load. You won't have done it yet, but the progress still counts. You could, theoretically, get the 'kill 50 enemies with a 1911' with one enemy and one bullet by saving and reloading 50 times.

[Blackhawk]

And I got my 100+ meter nut shot, plus the 8/8 organs hit.

[Smoove_B]

It's not really a game until you detonate a testicle at 100 meters. Been trying to do that one for a while, but I'm always going for the head shots. It's a tough habit to break.

I was missing the stomach on "maim that organ" bingo card. I wish I could say shooting Nazis stops being fun at some point, but it really is the gift that keeps on giving.

I'm on Mission 6 right now and playing it much more aggressively. I continue to be amazed at the map design for this game. They really were crafted by people that wanted to make sure you have so many opportunities to play how you want.

[hepcat]

I returned to Elden Ring this past weekend as I’m only about 100 hours away from finishing that one, I believe. It’s a bit of a let down though that I can’t just stand on a mountainside and pick off evildoers with a scoped crossbow.

[Blackhawk]

I'm on Mission 6 right now and playing it much more aggressively. I continue to be amazed at the map design for this game. They really were crafted by people that wanted to make sure you have so many opportunities to play how you want.

Except for stealthy sniping.

[hepcat]

Meh, I found numerous ways to do it in the first 4 maps. Subsonic ammo, for example. I never seemed to have trouble finding an auto, or a generator, outdoors. Indoor sections were obviously not made for sniping, but 4 had those too.

[Smoove_B]

Except for stealthy sniping.

Maybe I'm trying to pay more attention, but for M6, there have been two spots now where generators have been placed in such a way as to facilitate stealthy sniping- and I did so happily.

[jztemple2]

And I got my 100+ meter nut shot, plus the 8/8 organs hit.

I guess that's why I'm not getting as much out of the game, I turned off all the close up kill cameras...

[Blackhawk]

I didn't say there were no sound masks. I said there were far fewer than in the rest of the series, and I stand by that. Some of them are placed in such a way that it's like they're actively discouraging you from sniping. I was just in a spot with a motorcycle that I sabotaged. There is a wall on one side, a cliff on another, and a hill behind you with steps. If you go up the steps, you hit the edge of the sound masking just a few feet before you can target anything beyond the hill. In the fourth and final direction there is a relatively small area you can aim through. When doing so, there is a tree right in front of one stationary guard, and a pile of boxes in in front of another. That left exactly one sniping target - a guard in a tower. They gave you a way to shoot stealthily, but could not have placed things better to limit your targets to the ones they had selected.

They really do seem to be going out of their way to either push you into going loud, or to push you into going into hand-to-hand range. I have no idea why.

[Blackhawk]

And I got my 100+ meter nut shot, plus the 8/8 organs hit.

I guess that's why I'm not getting as much out of the game, I turned off all the close up kill cameras...

Hitting the organs doesn't require the kill cams. Personally, I enjoy them, but I tend to turn the frequency way down about halfway through the game (at least I have in the previous ones.)

[jztemple2]

And I got my 100+ meter nut shot, plus the 8/8 organs hit.

I guess that's why I'm not getting as much out of the game, I turned off all the close up kill cameras...

Hitting the organs doesn't require the kill cams. Personally, I enjoy them, but I tend to turn the frequency way down about halfway through the game (at least I have in the previous ones.)

Oh I know I can still get the organ credits (there's some joke about Private Wurlitzer somewhere in there) and I find the kill cams a little off-putting.