Take the fight to the Middle East in Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 (SGWC2). In this awkwardly titled sequel, players again resume the role of Raven, an expert marksman and all around military warrior called in by a secretive organization to carry out contracts that see rogue or otherwise problematic governments and entities toppled. Armed with a futuristic helmet, trusty sniper rifles with various sci-fi bullets, and an arsenal of cool equipment like drones and auto-sniping turrets that feel like they’re right out of Q’s laboratory, there’s practically no mission that Raven can’t handle.
Last year I reviewed the original SGWC and it was okay, but something about SGWC2 just felt better from the start. With any sniping game, you’ll have purists that demand as much sim as possible and other players that simply want to line up the crosshairs and pull the trigger, with no accounting for bullet drop, wind, breathing, or anything else that might get in the way of a long range shot. My preference is somewhere in the middle, so for SGWC2’s difficult setting I went with the second out of four increasingly-challenging options. I liked that I could choose my difficult at the start of every mission as well. Each difficulty setting is clearly explained in as far as what the player becomes responsible for and what, if any, aids are enabled. There’s also a good tutorial to get you started that covers everything from tagging enemies with your binoculars to learning all about the sniping, to using some of your tools that you can purchase and upgrade as you work your way through the campaign.
Once you’ve cleared the tutorial and chosen your difficulty for the first mission, you’re taken to the loadout screen. With no funds available to start with you will get to see and read about a lot of cool upgrades that you cannot yet afford, but there is an extensive list of goodies available to you as you clear missions, keeping in mind that completing secondary and challenge objectives within missions nets you even more money to spend on goods. This adds to the replay value in that you can redo missions and go about them a different way, perhaps choosing to go more close range assault than long range sniping for example. Alternate objectives like hacking enemy equipment or freeing captives add to your rewards and take home money, as well. Any money you earn you will typically want to spend quickly on the variety of cool stuff such as various bullets for your rifle that draw enemies or disable electronics, drone upgrades, better recoil handling, a remote controlled auto-sniping turret — there’s a lot of enticing upgrades here, and I never felt like there was a shortage of something that I wanted to buy.
Mission layout and structure is clear, and I also like how an opening movie lays out the story for you. For about 30 years, a disgruntled married couple have ruled a fictitious Middle Eastern country with an iron fist. The husband dies, but the woman accelerates a dangerous agenda that could put the world’s oil supply in a lurch. With a staff of ex-military and otherwise disagreeable folks, she has power to create a war machine that will incite neighbors to dive into conflict. Raven is tasked with numerous contracts, about twenty in total, that will have him working to eliminate this evil leader and her inferiors along the way. Each mission sees you drawing closer to that endgame, and I have to say I appreciated the straight-forwardness of it all. That said, there are only about six main areas that are used to play out the story, but, they’re well-designed and deliver plenty of encouragement for performing long range (1km+) kill shots. Playing out missions gives players plenty of opportunity to live out their military sniping fantasies, but also affords the player ample room to engage in a more direct way if you so choose. Close combat is not as well done as games that are more designed for that from the ground up, but, it’s still fun and at least not as awkward as Sniper Elite in that regard. However, world interaction, such as jumping onto rock ledges or attaching to a zip-line could have been more refined because as is that exercise is a lot more hit and miss than it ought to be.
Though a fairly short game, SGWC2 is a lot of fun and it looks and plays smoothly in CryEngine. The desert landscapes look awesome and you can almost feel the dry heat as you skulk along, hunting your next target. It’s a graphically impressive game, but the blood effects were a little too anime for my taste. Localized dismemberment is featured here as well, and a bullet cam too, both of which you can customize the frequency of, which is appreciated.
Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 is a concise, focused sniping experience that packs a good punch at just $40. With lots of long range shots, fun gadgets, and good mission design, it’s an easy recommend if you’re looking for a summer sniping romp.
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