Sniper Elite III is a cross country road trip. You'll slog through the majority of it, but during detours and destinations you'll have a blast and tell all your friends about it. In this case, those memorable experiences are unquestionably the incredibly satisfying kill cam that comes with your successful sniper shots. The slow motion, ultra-violent moments add weight to your kill and seemingly never get old. Unfortunately there isn't much else in the game that matches that feeling. Sniper Elite III may do a lot to fix some of the problems that plagued it's predecessors but it's nothing we haven't seen before, over and over. Fans of the series will love the new open world gameplay and extensive multiplayer suite but Sniper Elite III unfortunately fails to pack enough to compete with today's AAA shooters.

"...filled with such cliched dialogue and characters that it's funny..."

Sniper Elite III again continues the story of Karl, a gravely voiced american solider in the middle of the African conflict in World War II. There's not much story here besides the fact that Karl is really, really ridiculously good with a sniper riffle and he's got it pointed at bunch of German soldiers. It's a story that'll take you through there majority of the African continent, but you won't be able to remember exactly why you're doing it. It's a campaign that's filled with such cliched dialogue and characters that it's funny more often than not. This would be a bigger deal if the game' main attraction wasn't so incredibly satisfying.

Your main weapon of choice will be your sniper rifle and as the name of the game suggests, you'll love using almost every minute of it. Like previous games in the series, every successful sniper shot is displayed via an ultra slow-motion, ultra-violent, x-ray cam that's ridiculously satisfying to watch. You'll get extra style points for hitting certain spots like the head and yes, the crotch so it's a lot of fun to try to aim your shots exactly where you want them. There's a certain amount of skill that goes into landing a great shot since the game has you account for factors like your heart rate and wind resistance; which makes landing that perfect shot even more satisfying. Admittedly, some will find the kill-cam to be a bit too violent, but those who can stomach it will love it, even to the point where like me, they used the sniper riffle in sections where they probably shouldn't just to see it.

"...that trick gets old pretty quick..."

It's disappointing then that the rest of Sniper Elite III doesn't even come close to be as satisfying or fun, in fact, it's pretty predictable. The non sniping parts of Sniper Elite III could be taken out of pretty much any third-person WWII stealth game as Rebellion Oxford trots out nearly every trick in the stealth book but they're seemingly not as effective thanks to an absurdly cheap AI system that can kind you even when you're seemingly in cover. The game does benefit from an open-world layout, which definitely changes the way you'll play the game versus the arena style setup of previous games but it too often feels like it's wasted when you're not sniping since you'll be spending the majority of your time running and hiding after shooting. There are some cool features like the ability to sabotage machinery to mask your shots, but that trick gets old pretty quick and what you're left with is a pretty standard third-person shooter experience.

The multiplayer suite is admittedly quite packed compared to the rest of the game and if the game has any legs to stand on, they'll be found here. There are challenges based on skill and distance that you'll have fun challenging your friends in, but the co-op modes are key here. I had a lot of fun in the survival mode, which had one player using binoculars and scouting out enemy soldiers and the other taking the shots. It's a lot of fun to plan and strategize with your teammate, especially when the action gets frantic and your scrambling to take out enemies just as they get close to your position.

Sniper Elite III does a lot to fix what it's predecessor did wrong and the result is a fun, if not predictable shooter game with heavy strategy elements. The highlight is unquestionably the incredibly satisfying kill cam that accompanies your successful sniper shots and while the rest of the game isn't a bad experience at all, it seems mundane and predictable by comparison. Fans of the series will love the new open-world style gameplay and the impressive multiplayer suite, but I couldn't help but be done with an experience as thin as this long before I should have.