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Point the gun and shoot. It’s a simple premise, the kind of thing you’d expect would make for shallow games. Not every bullet weighs equally, however, and some shooters set themselves apart. What if bullet drop and wind velocity mattered? What if an eye for accuracy were everything? Games like Hitman, Sniper Elite, and Metal Gear Solid are paradises for sniping enthusiasts, but the genre never exploded the way boomer shooters and tactical shooters did. Well, now a new professional is stepping onto the gun range. Can Sniper at Work help this FPS subgenre score the bull’s-eye it deserves?
Sniper Games as Sandboxes and Shooting Galleries
Failing to account for sniper rifles has ruined more than one FPS level. When we’re talking about the ability to accurately one-shot enemies from the safety of a crow’s nest, it’s easy to one-shot the balance, too. There are a few solutions. One is to optimize and triple-check every angle the way tactical shooters like CS:GO do. Another is to ditch streamlining and double down on player freedom. Think of the interactive playgrounds found in The Phantom Pain and Ghost Recon Wildlands. Then there’s the approach in Sniper at Work.
If the new FPS by Cherrypick Games resembles anything, it’s the clockwork sandbox of Hitman: World of Assassination. Sniper at Work pairs isometric stealth sequences and puzzle elements with gritty first-person shooting. Every spot at which you can deploy has different ratings for target visibility, covertness, and time window. You have to avoid guards, snip your way through chainlink fences, and more if you want a shot at your target. At least here you have drones to help instead of a cod and a banana.
The Anatomical Accuracy of Sniper Elite
Sniper Elite and Zombie Army may not be historically accurate, but their anatomical knowledge is on point. Scrambling Gestapo gray matter in the streets of Paris never gets old. It’s that extra bloody squish that sells it. Sniper at Work isn’t the Human Anatomy 101 gorefest of Resistance and the like, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s not about a 7.62mm round coldcocking a Nazi’s pancreas at 1,500 yards. It’s about meticulous planning, mapping your approach, and then revoking your target’s Life Permit before you get caught and shot. When it all goes wrong, only strategic improvisation can save you.
In Sniper at Work, you’re Agent 47 meets Inspector Clouseau: two parts cold contract killer, one part Infinite Goof Machine. Like the ball-popping antics of Sniper Elite, it’s a signal to the player that hijinks and hilarity belong here as much as death. Your mission board is the launchpad for a series of violent misadventures. That’s true whether your approach is dormouse quiet or as loud as your panicked gunshots. Set traps. Drop a chandelier. You’re the hitman Scooby-Doo would hire. Sniper at Work is exactly serious enough.
Sniper at Work, Sniper at Play
A few games have come close to reinventing the sniper subgenre, freeing it from the confines of familiar mechanics and rehashed scenarios. They haven’t all landed. At least most fared better than the aborted Sniper Elite battle royale. Sniper at Work isn’t obligated to reinvent anything, but it still might disrupt the genre’s stagnation. Using multiple, unique camera perspectives is something FPS games haven’t tried enough. Bouncing between isometric stealth and FPS killing might be just what’s needed. If nothing else, I’m glad some devs are still pushing our expectations.
Boomer shooters tested our reflexes. Tactical shooters tested our plans. With their emphasis on ballistics, wind physics, and breathing, sniping games test our muscle memory, gear knowledge, and patience. Sitting in one place? Measuring the rise and fall of your chest before you pull the virtual trigger? It’s a skill set that’s worlds away from the twitchy ballet of CoD. Sometimes it takes a professional mindset to find the fun. Well, call us the CEO of Headshots. Sniper at Work should be on the job soon.
