Bonjour, je M’appelle le buisson. Then again after that whole World War I business, I don’t know how many bushes are left in France. Joining the Jedburghs and the SAS in the SOE operation to establish a foothold in Europe ahead of D-Day, Harry Hawker of Sniper Elite 3–5’s multiplayer section takes center stage alongside Fairburne, kind of. Taking place during the events of Sniper Elite 5, Resistance sees Hawker dropped into France alone to take on the Bosche like his name was Lord Flashheart. Maybe if he has time, he can make like Connor Swindells and shag his way across Vichy France too.
Supposedly with level design inspired more from “Spy Academy,” the eight proper levels are big and expansive. I’d hardly call Sniper Elite: Resistance an extended DLC or (in years prior) an expansion, but it is certainly a more focused experience. It’s almost a standalone in the franchise. Despite having the same number of levels as Sniper Elite 5, thankfully Resistance doesn’t feature a Duck Hunt-wannabe in “Loose Ends,” I’d argue there is something worse. However, I do enjoy Hawker’s adventures that start with a pre-Operation Chastise as he goes about sticking the boots into Nazis, as we all should.
To somewhat make up for the “lack” of a new engine, massively new mechanics, or otherwise to push the series along, the design focuses on that verticality “Spy Academy” is known for. There is also a new beat-the-clock challenge mode in Propaganda Challenges. This also promotes exploration as the challenges unlock after finding propaganda posters. Otherwise, the Axis-invasion mode, 16-player multiplayer, and survival are still intact for those who care about them.
As a game, there isn’t really anything to complain about when it comes to Sniper Elite: Resistance. In fact, it is very much a Sniper Elite game from top to bottom in practically every aspect. A bit more based on vantage points than finding random slits cutting through a small town or forest, there is a small sense of design to the level rather than everything feeling natural. Some levels you are (of course) going to get that in, but for the most part, the open-world saboteur ‘em up of the last couple of Sniper Elites is still true to the formula.
Harry is a bit different but still talks to himself like he should be locked up for insanity. For one he’s a bit more of a West London geezer than Fairburne’s baritone gruffness, so I might have been swearing like an OAP Arsenal fan when she’s slightly inconvenienced. His actual character doesn’t show through, and to a degree, I can see the point. Harry, Fairburne, and the resistance aren’t the main characters, it is whatever the magic superweapon and your guns are. The only difference between Fairburne and Harry seems to be the fact that Harry is hairier and the fact Hawker doesn’t do the mission briefings.
Of course, even Harry gets to take on a secret Nazi superweapon, as is tradition at this point. This one is called “Kleine Blume,” I assume based on Einsatzgruppe B Standartenführer, Walter Blume, who was part of the Gestapo and the extermination of the Jewish people in Belarus and Russia. Resistance’s early levels features a lot of Gestapo both to kill and as part of the story, as well as the guy’s last name being right there. Of course, I’m not going into massive, late-game spoilers. You know the name of the weapon by the end of the third level. Bonus points if you already knew Kleine Blume basically means “small flower.”
While there are technically eight main missions with a ninth that can get in the bin, technically it is only 7 maps. There is a set redressing of the first mission, though arguably unlike “Loose Ends” which was a turret mission, you are given that freedom to explore the map once it is opened up on the return. To a degree I could see that being called out as “cheap,” but honestly the levels can sometimes take hours to stealthfully take down, I’m not going to complain about that. I like the overall design for the most part.
The fifth level, “Devil’s Cauldron” is a bit of a messy one to start. I don’t want to go into too many details why for the sake of spoilers, though given it is the same superweapon story as before, you can guess. However, it is based in a French quarry and you start on the side of a road. It is very narrow and there isn’t much you can really do on that initial point to observe before you take a shot or move on.
A lot of Resistance’s design is about being open, allowing for those initial moments to observe the goings on and work out a way to infiltrate and get to the target. “Devil’s Cauldron” does open up, but you are initially pushed in a certain direction which is very narrow and there aren’t a whole lot of options for taking Nazis out. Not a bad idea, but when most levels are a bit more open it feels almost out of place.
For my liking – both of the series and particularly “Spy Academy” – I quite enjoy “Dead Drop.” It is basically another castle mission but this time it is a small town surrounded by a massive wall, which contrary to popular belief is really easy to go under, through, or even over. Similarly “Assault on Fort Rouge” is quite interesting because it works more on the realistic principle of World War II snipers in populated areas; firing through bombed-out, smokey rubble from the few vantage points left. It’s narrow and tense, but you have options to move.
Otherwise, the levels are what you think they are from previous Sniper Elite games: Railyards, cities with a fort or fortified structure in the middle, a coastal location where you blow up a sub, underground bases, a French vineyard that’s turned into a Nazi castle, and so on. Don’t fix a formula that isn’t broken, I’d say. That’s exactly what Sniper Elite: Resistance is, a Sniper Elite game that doesn’t break the formula for the sake of a gimmick. However, some might look at that as not really doing much that 5 or others don’t already do.
This is where we need to talk about the Propaganda Challenges. Playing as the resistance, you are placed somewhere on the maps available and given a gun. Sometimes this is a pistol as is the case for “La Résistance,” and other times it is a sniper, as found in “Le Maquis Voit Tout.” As is the case with most game modes of its ilk, you get points for killing Nazis and there are three medals you can get for crossing a certain threshold of points. Simple stuff, until you have to kill 20 Nazis that are initially unmarked with a loud pistol in about one minute thirty seconds.
Yes, sometimes as is the case with “Le Maquis Voit Tout,” you might get flashbacks of “Loose Ends.” I don’t hate the concept of the Propaganda Challenges. However, I certainly wish they were at least a bit more lenient when it came to the time. They weren’t something I spent a lot of my 30 hours in, but certainly something that could be worth giving a go.
Though in those 30-ish hours, I didn’t really see many performance hiccups while running everything (aside from motion blur, I’m not that insane) on Ultra. There was an occasional dropped frame or two in an area, but nothing significant that made certain parts feel more or less sluggish. I did, however, encounter a few known issues such as AI, infinite loading, collision with stairs causing Harry to spider-walk up them, and so on. Nonetheless, I did find one or two rare or notable issues.
On the final proper mission “End of the Line” and on a replay of second mission “Drop Dead,” I found a point where after scanning the area from the initial infill point the mouse wouldn’t work. A controller could work, I could move Harry, I could open menus (couldn’t click) and the mouse would move, but it seemed Harry’s neck was broken. The solution is simple: Restart the game and the level. Otherwise, nothing necessarily game-breaking occurred, just a couple of oddities to shrug off. On the technical side, it isn’t groundbreaking, but neither is Resistance chugging along at a slow rate.
That said, during the review period and before the initial launch you’re told that to play online as many often do, you’ll need to install Denuvo anti-cheat “optionally.” The only reason I bring this up is that I can predict at least someone will be displeased by this, chances are moments after release there will be “mixed” reviews across Steam. On a personal level, I don’t really care, but for the few that seemingly do, it is worth noting this before you purchase Sniper Elite: Resistance.
As I keep saying and I also feel might be underserving it, Sniper Elite: Resistance is just more of Sniper Elite if you want it. Its story maybe isn’t as thematically solid as prior releases, in fact, I came away likening it almost to a semi-memorable double-A PS3 release. Though some might look at that as a knock for Resistance, I’m speaking more in its pacing when we had those “action-adventure” titles that you could complete in 15-20 hours instead of today’s 40-50 (minimum) mark. I’m a fan of that more focused pace.
Though if I’m drawing comparisons, the Kill List which asks you to kill certain high-ranking Nazis on each level felt a little more Hitman in its direction. Possibly due to the overall design changes, the focus on methodically picking off surrounding Nazis, and a greater focus on the sabotage-based stealth in that respect makes it more fun. Less challenging than Hitman of course, your goal is to kill everyone, but it feels more like a thing to go out of the way to do than before. Completing each Kill List challenge with the desired goal adds variety to your weapons loadout.
Ultimately, Sniper Elite: Resistance may not be a long-time fan’s favorite for story or character, for what little that’s worth in Sniper Elite. However, it is more or less a greater amount of the best qualities from 5. The final mission is a letdown and feels completely opposite to everything the prior eight levels built on. It is also particularly annoying on higher difficulties. Nonetheless, Resistance is another great romp of irrigating the skulls of Nazis, a lesson we seem to never stop having to teach.
A PC review copy of Sniper Elite: Resistance was provided by Rebellion for this review.
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