After having managed to carve out a good number of fans, the shooter series of Sniper Ghost Warrior it has certainly lost much of its charm. The fault of the collapse is undoubtedly the third chapter, Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 (released in 2017), a game capable of burning all - or almost all - of the good ideas set up by its predecessors. Thanks to this spin-off of the tactical FPS saga branded CI Games, Called Sniper ghost warrior contracts, returning to the role of the cold-blooded sniper should (the conditional is a must in these cases) have rekindled hope for a series relegated to the bench for quite some time. Will it be enough to take us into a scenario of political fiction typical of the works of the writer Tom Clancy?
Aim ... Aim ...
The narrative pretext of Contract is quite usual, but able to immerse us in the war context set up by the developers. Siberia has decided to distance itself from mother Russia, becoming a state governed by Nergui Kurchatov, a character who certainly does not send them to say. In the game we will be called to take on the role of the "Predator", a silent and deadly murderer with no name, hired to put an end to a whole series of international plots and top-secret secrets to be recovered, scattered within the numerous game missions (scattered in large areas) to be faced in the ways and in the times we deem appropriate.
Sniper ghost warrior contracts therefore briefly follows the basic Hitman structure (but also that of the more recent Wolfenstein: Youngblood), setting aside a linear development of the main plot. The open scenarios with various main objectives within them to be completed without a pre-established order are also enriched by a whole series of secondary missions, such as elements to be eliminated, collectibles to be collected and challenges of various kinds. If the cinematic (and pyrotechnic) element to Call of Duty is almost completely absent, on the other hand we therefore have a decidedly more sober and reasoned general game rhythm. Lurk, wait for the enemy to pass several hundred meters away, take aim and only then fire (with the inevitable killcam that shows the bullet penetrating the unfortunate target), is always a mechanism capable of giving the right satisfactions. , thanks also to the architecture of the various play areas (rather large and often built vertically too).
…FIRE!
Unfortunately, since it is also a rather atypical first person shooter, frustration could soon peep out: lurking for endless minutes, calculating the trajectory of the bullet and seeing the entire mission frustrated due to a bug linked to the artificial intelligence of the enemies, can be really very annoying. This is because, especially in the intermediate difficulty levels, the AI of the soldiers oscillates dangerously between the so-called "hawk eye" and the "blind andante". In fact, we can be noticed from miles away, without any valid reason or oversight on our part, just as an enemy can beautifully ignore us even if we are only two meters away from him (and without cover). Even when we are seen by the opposing soldiers, they will not be able to engineer who knows what offensive maneuvers against us, limiting themselves to attacking us one after the other in single file. Luck has it that the graphics sector, fruit of the evergreen CryEngine, will at least make our suicide missions pleasing to the eye, not to mention the numerous customization possibilities of our avatar, including perks and skills to unlock (not to mention a list of weapons that includes a myriad of sniper rifles, pistols and machine guns of every kind).
