The result is a pastiche across multiple shooter subgenres, with just enough unique elements to help this title stand out among the rest. Karl helping allies storm the beaches of Normandy would have been too predictable, instead this focuses on the notion of “what if the Nazis prepared a deadly counterattack response to D-Day?” However, while playing through the game, the various plot elements, gameplay mechanics, and characters certainly ring a few bells, touching upon numerous tropes and WWII/stealth shooter hallmarks. The plot surrounding Project Kraken adds some fascinating insight into the choice of putting Karl in France for this game, which is a better excuse than simply adding a few new maps. During all these exploits, he makes a personal mission for himself too, to take down Abelard Möller, Kraken’s orchestrator. His strategic mission includes assisting the French Resistance by taking down Nazi targets, weapons, and defenses while unveiling the nefarious Project Kraken. After the North African theater and Italian campaign exploits of the 3rd and 4th games, Karl finds himself joining the Allied efforts leading up to and after Operation Overlord, D-Day. Karl Fairburne returns in this 5th installment as the franchise’s maverick deadeye protagonist. In addition to avoiding detection, you’ll be rewarded for taking a non-lethal route, either by leaving enemies unconscious (non-lethal takedowns or ammo) or by outright avoiding the action whenever possible. You can forego the stealth element, and you’ll even see that reflected in your post-mission score. While it doesn’t have the same sheer volume of blood and gore some shooters may have in the traditional sense, the slow-mo and view of Nazi viscera being torn up by bullets make you feel pretty immersed and leaves little to the imagination. The shooting action, especially the sniper play, is the most uniquely recognizable feature of this franchise, with the glorious x-ray camera making its return yet again.
The campaign features 8 full missions with an open map as well as a short finale mission, somewhere between Splinter Cell and Metal Gear Solid V in terms of explorable area. While there are more obvious objectives like killing targets undetected, there are some such as sabotage of equipment which requires a bit more recon and planning and can be carried out in several ways. Sniper Elite 5, much like its predecessors, is a third-person shooter with stealth mechanics, placing you on a large map in each campaign mission in which you can take different routes to complete your objectives.