Sniper Elite III is a third person shooter where you play as a sniper during World War II. With missions taking place in North Africa, you will have the opportunity to take out numerous German soldiers in a game that's entertaining, but doesn't have a lot of variety. 

The war on good taste is declared

Sniper Elite III is an action game that focuses on marksmanship and infiltration. Since other episodes in the series were rarely acclaimed for their quality, the developer has decided to re-enter the fray with a newly redesigned version. The main difference from the previous games is that the levels have been expanded and are now less cramped.

You will generally be provided with several ways to finish missions, adding a significant element of flexibility. However, don't expect a miracle: Sniper Elite III is still quite limited, with much smaller levels than the average action game and invisible walls that spoil the experience.

As for the direction of the game, I must admit that the developers haven't exactly racked their brains. There are quite a few cutscenes scattered among the missions, however they're mostly uninteresting and poorly made. Everything seems minimalist in Sniper Elite, and the special effects don't make things any different. Every time you shoot an opponent, you follow the bullet's trajectory in slow motion and are treated to an explosion of blood and guts upon impact.

A sniper simulation or a pigeon shooting game?

With Sniper Elite III, you shouldn't expect a challenging simulation! Despite the well thought out ballistics (requiring you to calculate shot distance and wind speed in order to hit the target), the game is far too short to be credible. The ability to shoot cans or a vehicle's fuel tank creating Michal Bay style explosions is certainly fun, but it ruins the already staggering realism of the game.

As for the infiltration aspect which is meant to vary the mission dynamics, it is simply crippled by the inanity of the AI. While the system was originally well thought out (requiring you to take into account the guards' sound perception as well as ambient noise), enemies are too lethargic to be threatening.

They're all far too easy to avoid and you'll soon figure out how to get rid of the guards so you can progress through the levels without too much worry. It's a shame, because even though you have detailed options for adjusting the level of difficulty and realism, the game's overall level of difficulty is way too low 

Technically average

Sniper Elite III is not ugly, but the physical aspect isn't too straight forward either. The textures and effects are decent, but unfortunately we can't say the same for the poor animations. The characters are animated with the typical rigidness of a cluttered foundation, and their movements are painful to look at. This is one aspect that I would like to see improved as proper animations are important for simulating the sensation of shooting. 

A fun game that shows its limits

If you are an avid fan of combat marksmanship, then Sniper Elite III is the game for you! Provided, however, you're not be too picky when it comes to realism, the game still very arcade like in many aspects. If we take into account the weak animations and poor artificial intelligence, Sniper Elite III is a game that has too many flaws to be really appealing in the long term. Nevertheless it still remains fun for fans of the genre who have already finished the other episodes of the series.