Software:Sniper Elite (video game)

From HandWiki
Sniper Elite
Developer(s)Rebellion Developments
Publisher(s)
  • Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox
    • NA: Namco Hometek
    • EU: MC2 France
  • Wii
  • Reef Entertainment
  • OS X
  • MC2-Microïds
Director(s)
  • Jason Kingsley
  • Christopher Kingsley
Producer(s)Emerson Best
Designer(s)Emerson Best
Programmer(s)
  • Kevin Floyer-Lea
  • Kieran Donaldson
Artist(s)
  • James Fraser
  • Mark Bradshaw
Composer(s)Tom Bible
SeriesSniper Elite
Platform(s)
Release
  • Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2
    • EU: 30 September 2005
    • NA: 18 October 2005
  • Xbox
    • EU: 7 October 2005
    • NA: 18 October 2005
  • Wii
    • NA: September 2010
    • EU: 10 December 2010
  • OS X
    • WW: 23 April 2013
Genre(s)Tactical shooter, stealth
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Sniper Elite (also known as Sniper Elite: Berlin 1945) is a 2005 third-person tactical shooter stealth video game developed by Rebellion Developments and published by MC2 France in Europe and by Namco Hometek in North America, in 2005. In 2012, to coincide with the release of the remake Sniper Elite V2, it was re-issued through Steam by Rebellion itself.

The protagonist of Sniper Elite is Karl Fairburne, a German-born American OSS operative disguised as a German sniper. He is inserted into the Battle of Berlin in 1945 during the final days of World War II, with the critical objective of preventing German nuclear technology from falling into the hands of invading Soviet forces.

Gameplay

Sniper Elite is a third-person shooter that combines stealth and first-person shooter game elements. To reinforce the stealth aspect, there is a camouflage index, measured in percentage, that displays the visibility of the player. Fairburne uses several World War II-era weapons, including various sniper rifles, a silenced pistol, submachine guns, light machine guns, an anti-tank weapon, and hand grenades that can also be used to set up tripwire booby traps.

One of the main features of the game is the option of realistic ballistics, involving factors such as bullet drop, wind strength, and breathing when attempting a shot. Sniping gameplay is performed in first person scope view, whereas movement and use of all other weapons is in third person view. When the player successfully takes a particularly well-placed sniper shot (such as a head shot or a shot on a moving target), the view follows the path of the bullet in slow motion, while the camera rotates around the bullet.

Other features include the ability to wound an enemy so that their comrades are forced to come to their rescue and thus expose their positions for sniping, detonating enemy grenades and fuel tanks with well-aimed bullets, and timing shots so that loud noises such as thunder or artillery blasts mask the sound and thus avoid alerting nearby enemies.

Plot

In April 1945, as Berlin is slowly encircled by rival American and Soviet armies, Karl Fairburne, an agent of the American OSS, is deployed into the ruins of the city wearing the uniform of a German soldier. His superiors have tasked him with thwarting efforts by the Soviet Union to obtain information, personnel, and technology from the German nuclear weapons program. Very little information is revealed about Fairburne's background, other than he was raised in Berlin before the war broke out, that he studied at West Point shortly after America's entrance into the war, and the fact that he was primarily chosen for the mission because he's familiar with the city's geography and can easily blend in with Berlin's defenders.

There are several factions active in the city, including the German resistance, who assist Karl, the Soviet NKVD, who are working against him for access to the spoils of German nuclear research, and the remnants of the Nazi forces in Berlin. The historical Nazi official Martin Bormann, an extremely powerful figure within the Third Reich, is one of Karl's first targets for assassination as he plans to meet up with an NKVD contact at the Brandenburg Gate to defect to the Soviet Union (in real life, Bormann committed suicide rather than be captured by the Soviets). The rest of the characters (such as Dr. Max Lohmann, a key German scientist who Fairburne is assigned to help capture and escort out of Berlin to America in order to prevent him from falling into the hands of the NKVD) are fictional with the exception of George S. Patton, commander of the American forces assaulting Berlin, who is responsible for authorizing Fairburne's mission.

Wii version

The Wii version of the game was released by Reef Entertainment in North America in September 2010.[1] It is compatible with the Wii Remote and Wii Zapper and contains a bonus new level. The game was also released in Europe later the same year.[2]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score
AggregatorScore
Metacritic(PC) 76/100[3]
(PS2) 76/100[4]
(Xbox) 77/100[5]
(Wii) 71/100[6]

Sniper Elite received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[3][4][5][6]

The game was awarded "Best PC/Console Game" in the TIGA Awards of 2005.[7]

Novel

Rebellion Developments' book imprint Abaddon Books released a novel inspired by the game, Sniper Elite: The Spear of Destiny written by Jasper Bark.[8][9] In this book, Karl Fairburne's mission is to stop a rogue SS officer named Helmstadt from selling Germany's only working atomic bomb to the Soviets.

References

  1. ↑ Parfitt, Ben (16 February 2010). "Sniper Elite targets Wii | Games Industry". MCV/Develop. http://www.mcvuk.com/news/37576/Sniper-Elite-targets-Wii. Retrieved 15 May 2014. 
  2. ↑ "Sniper Elite released date confirmed". The Gaming Liberty. 9 December 2010. http://thegamingliberty.com/index.php/2010/11/15/sniper-elite-released-date-confirmed. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Sniper Elite for PC Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/sniper-elite/critic-reviews/?platform=pc. Retrieved 29 May 2020. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Sniper Elite for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/sniper-elite/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-2. Retrieved 29 May 2020. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Sniper Elite for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/sniper-elite/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox. Retrieved 29 May 2020. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Sniper Elite for Wii Reviews". Metacritic. https://www.metacritic.com/game/sniper-elite/critic-reviews/?platform=wii. Retrieved 29 May 2020. 
  7. ↑ "Rebellion picks up Tiga's game of the year award". Gamesindustry.biz. 16 December 2005. http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/rebellion-picks-up-tigas-game-of-the-year-award. Retrieved 15 May 2014. 
  8. ↑ Jasper Bark, Abaddon Books, August 2006, ISBN 1-905437-04-8
  9. ↑ "Sniper Elite: Spear Of Destiny". Jasperbark.com. http://www.jasperbark.com/novels/Sniper%20Elite/. 
  • MobyGames is a commercial database website that catalogs information on video games and the people and companies behind them via crowdsourcing. This includes over 300,000 games for hundreds of platforms.[1] Founded in 1999, ownership of the site has changed hands several times. It has been owned by Atari SA since 2022.

Features

Edits and submissions to the site (including screenshots, box art, developer information, game summaries, and more) go through a verification process of fact-checking by volunteer "approvers".[2] This approval process after submission can range from minutes to days or months.[3] The most commonly used sources are the video game's website, packaging, and credit screens. There is a published standard for game information and copy-editing.[4] A ranking system allows users to earn points for contributing accurate information.[5]

Registered users can rate and review games. Users can create private or public "have" and "want" lists, which can generate a list of games available for trade with other registered users. The site contains an integrated forum. Each listed game can have its own sub-forum.

History

Logo used until March 2014

MobyGames was founded on March 1, 1999, by Jim Leonard and Brian Hirt, and joined by David Berk 18 months later, the three of which had been friends since high school.[6][7] Leonard had the idea of sharing information about computer games with a larger audience. The database began with information about games for IBM PC compatibles, relying on the founders' personal collections. Eventually, the site was opened up to allow general users to contribute information.[5] In a 2003 interview, Berk emphasized MobyGames' dedication to taking video games more seriously than broader society and to preserving games for their important cultural influence.[5]

In mid-2010, MobyGames was purchased by GameFly for an undisclosed amount.[8] This was announced to the community post factum , and the site's interface was given an unpopular redesign.[7] A few major contributors left, refusing to do volunteer work for a commercial website.{{Citation needed|date=June 2025} On December 18, 2013, MobyGames was acquired by Jeremiah Freyholtz, owner of Blue Flame Labs (a San Francisco-based game and web development company) and VGBoxArt (a site for fan-made video game box art).[9] Blue Flame Labs reverted MobyGames' interface to its pre-overhaul look and feel,[10] and for the next eight years, the site was run by Freyholtz and Independent Games Festival organizer Simon Carless.[7]

On November 24, 2021, Atari SA announced a potential deal with Blue Flame Labs to purchase MobyGames for $1.5 million.[11] The purchase was completed on 8 March 2022, with Freyholtz remaining as general manager.[12][13][14] Over the next year, the financial boost given by Atari led to a rework of the site being built from scratch with a new backend codebase, as well as updates improving the mobile and desktop user interface.[1] This was accomplished by investing in full-time development of the site instead of its previously part-time development.[15]

In 2024, MobyGames began offering a paid "Pro" membership option for the site to generate additional revenue.[16] Previously, the site had generated income exclusively through banner ads and (from March 2014 onward) a small number of patrons via the Patreon website.[17]

On February 13, 2025, Freyholtz stepped down as the site lead to move onto new projects, leaving operations to Tracy Poff, a veteran coder on the site, and Atari staff.[18]

See also

  • IGDB – game database used by Twitch for its search and discovery functions

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sheehan, Gavin (2023-02-22). "Atari Relaunches The Fully Rebuilt & Optimized MobyGames Website". https://bleedingcool.com/games/atari-relaunches-the-fully-rebuilt-optimized-mobygames-website/. 
  2. ↑ Litchfield, Ted (2021-11-26). "Zombie company Atari to devour MobyGames". https://www.pcgamer.com/zombie-company-atari-to-devour-mobygames/. 
  3. ↑ "MobyGames FAQ: Emails Answered § When will my submission be approved?". Blue Flame Labs. 30 March 2014. http://www.mobygames.com/info/faq7#g1. 
  4. ↑ "The MobyGames Standards and Practices". Blue Flame Labs. 6 January 2016. http://www.mobygames.com/info/standards. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Miller, Stanley A. (2003-04-22). "People's choice awards honor favorite Web sites". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 
  6. ↑ "20 Years of MobyGames" (in en). 2019-02-28. https://trixter.oldskool.org/2019/02/28/20-years-of-mobygames/. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Plunkett, Luke (2022-03-10). "Atari Buys MobyGames For $1.5 Million". https://kotaku.com/mobygames-retro-credits-database-imdb-atari-freyholtz-b-1848638521. 
  8. ↑ "Report: MobyGames Acquired By GameFly Media". Gamasutra. 2011-02-07. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/game-platforms/report-mobygames-acquired-by-gamefly-media. 
  9. ↑ Corriea, Alexa Ray (December 31, 2013). "MobyGames purchased from GameFly, improvements planned". http://www.polygon.com/2013/12/31/5261414/mobygames-purchased-from-gamefly-improvements-planned. 
  10. ↑ Wawro, Alex (31 December 2013). "Game dev database MobyGames getting some TLC under new owner". Gamasutra. https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/game-dev-database-mobygames-getting-some-tlc-under-new-owner. 
  11. ↑ "Atari invests in Anstream, may buy MobyGames". November 24, 2021. https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2021-11-24-atari-invests-in-anstream-may-buy-mobygames. 
  12. ↑ Rousseau, Jeffrey (2022-03-09). "Atari purchases Moby Games". https://www.gamesindustry.biz/atari-purchases-moby-games. 
  13. ↑ "Atari Completes MobyGames Acquisition, Details Plans for the Site's Continued Support". March 8, 2022. https://www.atari.com/atari-completes-mobygames-acquisition-details-plans-for-the-sites-continued-support/. 
  14. ↑ "Atari has acquired game database MobyGames for $1.5 million" (in en-GB). 2022-03-09. https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/atari-has-acquired-game-database-mobygames-for-1-5-million/. 
  15. ↑ Stanton, Rich (2022-03-10). "Atari buys videogame database MobyGames for $1.5 million". https://www.pcgamer.com/atari-buys-videogame-database-mobygames-for-dollar15-million/. 
  16. ↑ Harris, John (2024-03-09). "MobyGames Offering “Pro” Membership". https://setsideb.com/mobygames-offering-pro-membership/. 
  17. ↑ "MobyGames on Patreon". http://www.patreon.com/mobygames. 
  18. ↑ "An update on MobyGames leadership". 2025-02-13. https://www.mobygames.com/forum/3/thread/269628/an-update-on-mobygames-leadership/#post-269628. 
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