Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 Review

Title: Sniper Ghost Warrior 3

Where To Buy: Xbox Live, PSN Store, Steam, Local Retailer

Not all that long ago now, I did an impressions piece for the closed beta of Sniper Ghost Warrior 3. After my playthrough, I was optimistic about the title. Then it’s release was pushed back from the beginning of April until the end. The reason was due to feedback received from the beta. “We’ve worked tirelessly creating a whole new Sniper Ghost Warrior experience set in an ambitiously crafted open world new to the series,” said Marek Tyminski, CEO of CI Games. “While it’s an unfortunate decision to delay the game one last time, we believe these final changes will result in a better experience for players worldwide on day one. Thank you for your patience – we know the wait will be worth it.” Unfortunately, I don’t know if it was worth the wait.

Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 is an open world tactical first person shooter. It has very much of a Far Cry feel to it. It’s also the first title in the series to get AAA treatment. Ghost Warrior 3 certainly isn’t awful but… it is disappointing. The game launched on April 25th and so far the reception has been lukewarm. It certainly didn’t help that it launched without Multiplayer despite no prior warning. CI Games’ reasoning was they did “not want to dilute any potential” from the main campaign. Given the fact that Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 has already suffered three separate delays, it really feels like the delay is due to the fact that the multiplayer simply isn’t ready. If the main campaign was, in fact, a polished piece of work, I might be more inclined to believe that statement. Although, given the bit of a mess it is… I’m not sure I do.

The loading times in Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 are atrocious. The second time I loaded the game up to play, I went and got an iced coffee from my kitchen, cut up a banana for my daughter, went into the next room to change and came back with plenty of time to spare before the level loaded. I can’t even understand what is taking so long to load. The only other title I can recently recall playing with a long load time is Grand Theft Auto 5. Given the sheer amount of things to do there, I don’t mind a little longer loading time. Now, since the game’s release, CI Games has specifically spoken about fixing the loading times and framerate issues. That’s great, but in reality, this game was released before it was ready.

While I understand my comments sound largely negative about the game, I’m not trying to give the impression that it’s completely awful. I don’t think Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 is all that bad. I’m just disappointed at what the current delivered result is… at least for now. When it comes to the missions, there is plenty of variety. There are also plenty of outposts to clear and bounties to collect on that will keep you busy outside the main campaign. With the open world setting, you’re able to attack your objective how you see fit. You could go in guns blazing or slowly work your way in only taking out the enemies that stand in your way. One thing I think gamers do like with these type of shooters is a choice… and you’ll have that here. There’s plenty of gadgets and weaponry to unlock and buy as you move through the game. You have the ability to craft several different types of rounds.

One thing Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 does get right is the sniping. It has a very realistic feel to it.  And if you’re playing on the harder difficulties, it’s quite a challenging experience. Much like Sniper Elite 4, a bullet cam will pop up when you’re about to achieve one of those precise skills. It can seem repetitive but it’s not something that overly bothered me. An option is available to turn it off. A skill tree is also present allowing you to upgrade your character as you progress through the game. Three sections, Sniper, Ghost and Warrior, allow you to upgrade things such as weapon reload time and being able to hold your breath longer. On the most challenging setting, access to the skill tree will be turned off.

Technical glitches run rampant in Sniper Ghost Warrior 3. On several occasions, I found myself seemingly stuck between two objects. In one case, I was prone and trying to advance forward and became stuck on a railroad track. Steam users are often reporting the game crashing but I haven’t run into that on the console. I did, however, have an issue where gameplay studdered considerably in a mission. Issues such as this make all the difference to me and once that continued to happen, I was ready to turn it off and go play something else.

The bottom line is, you’ve played Sniper Ghost Warrior 3 before. It’s nothing new and ultimately comes off as a disappointment. The game was clearly released before it was ready and I certainly can’t give you a reason to justify dropping $59.99 on this title. I’m sure when the sales begin to struggle you’ll be able to get a decent deal on it. My review may be subject to change somewhat in the future when the multiplayer component is released but I’m not holding my breath for anything outstanding.

Have you played Sniper Ghost Warrior 3? If so, what did you think? Were you as disappointed as I was or did you have a different view on it entirely? Be sure to let us know in the comments below and check back for future updates. Also be sure to check out our review for the recently released Outlast 2.

• Gameplay: You’ve played Ghost Warrior 3 before. Nothing new her

• Graphics: Framerate issues and loading issues are a big disappointment

• Sound: Some positives but the civilians cries not to shoot them played over and over again are brutal

• Presentation: This title simply wasn’t ready for release but the sniping can be challenging and fun.

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