Sniper Elite

Xbox Core: What is the story and setting behind Sniper Elite?

Daniel Tovar, Associate Producer: The story takes place in April 1945 at the close of World War II in Europe and the onset of the Cold War. The Germans have all but been beaten and the Russians are threatening to acquire the German atomic bomb and dominate all of Europe . The O.S.S (the WW2 equivalent of the CIA) is trying to prevent the NKVD. (the Russian WW2 secret service) from acquiring atomic technology, so they send you in disguised as a German. The player takes the role of Karl Fairburne, the son of a US diplomat who spent his child-hood and early teens in Berlin before going on to enroll in the US military, so he is the perfect candidate for the OSS due to his knowledge of the language and the city.

XC: What all is involved in lining up a sniper rifle shot in Sniper Elite?

DT: Anyone who has ever fired a real rifle can tell you it's not as simple as point and click. There are a great many factors involved in getting into position and then a hitting a moving target from 200 meters out with a high wind blowing. Weapon physics have been pushed to a more realistic level so bullets are affected by both wind, gravity, and bullet penetration of weaker objects is also a factor. The player will be able to empty their lungs in order to get a more stable shot just as real snipers are trained to do. Likewise, firing from a prone position will increase your accuracy as compared to firing from a standing position. Overall, we have tried to create a game about the use of real sniper tactics and highly skilled sniping instead of just another WWII shooter.

XC: What happens after you pull the trigger of your sniper rifle?

DT: If you have taken the time to line up a particularly skillful shot, the game features a bullet trajectory replay mode. This allows the player to see the point of view of their bullet traveling to the target in slow-motion as a reward for making really skilful shots. These views amount to 'Points of Fame' which are up-loadable to the online scoreboards and allow people around the world compare how successful they are as members of Sniper Elite.

XC: How many different weapons are there? Will we be able to use other weapons besides a sniper rifle?

DT: The primary weapon in Sniper Elite is of course the sniper rifle. There are several different models available with varying degrees of accuracy, power and scope capabilities. In addition to sniper rifles, you are provided with a wide array of authentic machine guns, silenced pistols, various grenades, tripwire grenades, TNT, time-bombs and even the dreaded panzershreck anti-tank weapon.

XC: Will explosives, grenades, smoke grenades, or flash grenades are included in this game?

DT: Smoke and Flash grenades have not made it into this game but as I said, there are several different types of explosives: frag grenades, tripwire grenades, TNT, Timed Bombs, and even a bazooka-like weapon (known as the panzershreck).

XC: In single player, what are some of the missions like?

DT: There is a wide variety of objectives for our man to achieve. There are escort missions, assassinations, demolitions, intelligence gathering, rescues, etc. All types of opportunities to sneak around and cause serious amounts of chaos.

XC: What do some of the levels look like?

DT: All the locations are set in and around the German city of Berlin . Most of the areas have been thoroughly bombed and so are mere shadows of their former glory. Locations vary from wrecked city areas to real life landmarks like the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag, to fuel dumps, train stations and parts of the subway network. Historically, these were all used as military bases during the war.

XC: Will you have people that aid you in the missions, or are you just a lone sniper?

DT: For the most part, you are one man alone on a mission. There are several occasions where others will come into play to supply equipment or information, but these are short lived and do not offer a significant impact for our man.

XC: What will online play be like?

DT: The game's Online Mode has a variety of game play modes; including Death match, Team Death Match, Assassination and Manhunt. Up to 8 players can play against each other using GameSpy and Xbox Live!. Sniper Elite also has a Co-op mode which will allow you to play through the entire single player campaign with a friend on one system, with additional features to encourage team-work.

XC: What is your favorite part of the game?

DT: It's quite a thrill to sneak up behind a tank, throw some TNT into its path, then slink away to a hidden locale and snipe the TNT at just the right moment to destroy the tank, and then mow down the remaining panicked Russian troops with your MG-42 heavy machine gun.

Article By: VGcore Staff