The sniper series from the House of CI Games can now look back on several published episodes, but really she could never shine. The latest episode Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts is now cut off old braids and bring a fresh breeze. We tell you in our test, whether the developers have kept their promise.
The story of Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts is quickly explained. The people of Siberia first cheer for a heroic liberator, who soon turns out to be a despotic tyrant and ultimately only another oppressor. In order to put a stop to this Fiesling and his accomplices, an unspecified client sends a sniper into the Siberian crisis area, which should support the rebellion there – albeit in an indirect way.
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You do not have to know much more about the background story of the game. This is not only because it remains rather superficial overall, but above all because it only serves to connect the more than 20 contracts. The characterization of the protagonist, who develops neither charm nor personality, remains superficial. The identification with him is therefore difficult.
The world is getting smaller
All this is not too negative, however, as the focus is on the game anyway. Already from the first minute on, one of the important innovations is noticeable: CI Games has abandoned the often criticized open-world mechanics of Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 and instead relies on a total of five larger sandbox levels, each with several mission goals.
This definitely has an optical advantage: The locations offer more variety overall and range from extensive coastal areas, over mighty fortresses to somewhat more angularly constructed building complexes. Each of these regions places different demands on your approach: While large areas are ideal for long range sniping, tight spaces require a bit more planning and, above all, soft-bottomed action.
Therein lies one of the strengths of Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts: In almost every mission, there are several ways to achieve your goals. In most cases, it makes sense to focus on the core of the game – acting as a sniper. However, there are always situations in which you can optionally free yourself with raw offensive power in the form of assault rifles and other weapons. In any case, you are not fixed on a given pattern, but have enough space to experiment.
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By completing the orders you will receive money that you can invest in additional equipment. This ranges from an improved visor to additional weapons to more or less useful gadgets such as drones and small turrets. Especially the gadgets provide a higher degree of variety and more tactical depth. For example, it is possible to tag multiple enemies with a drone to mount the turret while targeting another target.
In this way, it is no problem to eliminate multiple enemies within a short time – which also causes an undeniable feeling of satisfaction. By the way, the same applies to the core mechanics of the game: sniping. You still have to consider numerous factors such as distance and wind before taking targeted distance shots. If, after careful planning, you press the trigger and change the action into the slow-motion view, a pleasant mix of relief and pride spreads.
Not again!
But as satisfying as the gameplay and presentation improvements may be, it does not change the obvious issues that Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts struggles with. This already starts with the mission design: at first the goals sound quite varied. So you do not have to turn off only certain people, but also occasionally hack into computer systems or steal explosive data.
However, the structure is always very similar, so that despite the different level maps and the associated conditions after a few hours a certain sense of monotony opens. In addition, in most cases you will have to return to a specific point on the map after completing a mission goal, which often degenerates into long and deadly forced marches. A fast travel system would have been very helpful in this regard.
The mentioned rewards in the form of new weapons and gadgets open up a bit more playful space for tactical experiments. However, they are rarely needed. For most of the missions, the standard approach (peeking, firing, sneaking) is quite enough. In addition, there are some technical problems that leave a bland connotation. So the enemy AI often has to fight with annoying dropouts. Why does a guard stay apathetic in most cases when a comrade next to it is just struck down with a head shot? In addition, we had to fight during our test games again and again with incomprehensible crashes and violent stuttering. Hopefully the developers will help with an update soon.