Rebellion, independent UK developer and creators of the Sniper Elite series, are gearing up to release the latest installment of the third person World War II shooter series this June. However in a twist the Oxford-based team also have another announcement in the works for something a little bit different; cue Rebellion CEO and Creative Director Jason Kingsley:
“We couldn’t be more excited about Sniper Elite 3’s launch on June 27th. Naturally, being on five platforms – including the new consoles – means it’s had more attention than anything we’ve made before. We’ve been taken aback with the interest and reception so far.”
“But there’s always more work to be done getting the Sniper Elite name in the hearts and minds of gamers who are new to the IP, or aren’t aware of the stealth and emergent gameplay that surrounds the core sniping mechanics”
“Next week’s news will be a huge step towards this goal.”
“But there’s always more work to be done getting the Sniper Elite name in the hearts and minds of gamers who are new to the IP, or aren’t aware of the stealth and emergent gameplay that surrounds the core sniping mechanics”
“Next week’s news will be a huge step towards this goal.”
Aside from the stealth and gameplay mechanics Sniper Elite 2 was perhaps best known for the brutal yet innovative 'kill-cams', making the game far more visceral than it really had any right to be as a stealth and sniping title. Unsurprisingly this generated quite some buzz, and it will be interesting to see how the second sequel can build upon it.
As for the announcement, apart from the above teaser there's sadly no concrete information available except that it's not directly related to the new game. As per the teaser image it will instead be linked to the the franchise as a whole, but it's unclear exactly in what capacity; I suppose we'll all have to wait with baited breath.
Bringing the Sniper Elite franchise to the attention of new gamers will certainly be a challenge, but Rebellion may have been inspired with their timing. Gaming-focused sites are currently on a steady diet of pre-E3 innuendo and so concrete information for any title of significant size should be leapt on; it also allows the team to avoid the post-E3 saturation of console-war commentary which is typical to this period.
Meanwhile Sniper Elite 3 itself is now available to pre-order from Steam for 20% off the RRP, and includes the Target Hitler: Hunt The Grey Wolf DLC. The game will be published by 505 Games on the 27th June for PC, XBOX ONE, OBOX 360, PS3 and PS4 across Europe. A North American release will follow in July.
Source: Via Press Release.