Sniper Elite developer Rebellion has revealed they tested gorier versions of the series’ infamous kill cams, but opted against them as they felt it could have ‘gone too far’.
Speaking on an upcoming episode of the FRVR podcast, Sniper Elite lead level designer Beck Shaw explained the difficult balancing act between satisfying the player base’s love for the bloody slow-motion kills, and ensuring people don’t leave the game with PTSD.
“War is horrible and bullet wounds are not very nice, so I think if we pushed it to the far realism effects it might put a lot of people off,” he said. “Internally we have tested things. I mean, you get PTSD from playing a game, who wants that?”
The Sniper Elite games are known for their bloody, tongue-in-cheek violence – with their trademark X-Ray kill cams evolving every year. However, for those expecting them to get gorier with every iteration you may be disappointed. “You want to play a game to escape the realities of the world,” said Beck. “Internally we have tested additional features in the bullet cam and felt like it was going to be too far.”
I mean, you get PTSD from playing a game, who wants that?
Sniper Elite lead level designer Beck Shaw
Sniper Elite is just one series that is infamously tied to its epic X-Ray feature, and it does quite quite gruesome. For example, missions involving Nazi leader Adolf Hitler allow you to snipe through his single remaining testicle which the game shows in hilarious, grisly detail. However, compared to the sheer goriness of Mortal Kombat, the series is quite tame.
Another positive around controlling the level of violence is that the game can sport a lower age rating (Sniper Elite 5 is PEGI 16+), which can boost sell-ability. “I think having a lower age bracket means we can have a bigger audience and get these games out to more people,” said Beck.
The Sniper Elite series, now in its 20th year, may have stuck to the same core formula, but Beck doesn’t think this is a problem, especially for future iterations as the team continues to refine and add new gameplay elements. “I think every time we release a new iteration there are more features so they’re bigger and better,” he said.
“If players were to join the Sniper Elite series at a certain point they might jump in at the latest title rather than Sniper Elite 1, which might feel a bit… it’s a product of its time, isn’t it?” he continued. “It hasn’t got all these nice features that the latest game has. For new players, at least, the latest game is probably the best place to start and I think for the core audience, they’ve probably got all the Sniper games and completed them… hopefully we can create something that they’re excited about still 20 years on.”
Sniper Elite’s last content drop, Mud and Thunder, released back in August, but it seems that more games are in development at Rebellion. While not confirmed, whatever they do release will not be set outside of WW2, that’s for sure.
