Sniper Elite fans around the globe were absolutely thrilled when Rebellion revealed the latest entry in the series, Sniper Elite 4, back in March. With promises of new levels, more choices on the battlefield and a pair of brand new kill cameras, Sniper Elite 4 looked poise to deliver just about everything a fan of the franchise could hope for in 2016. Unfortunately, the latest word from the studio is that we’re going to have to wait until 2017 to get it.
Despite originally planning to release Sniper Elite 4 before the end of 2016, Rebellion has decided to push back the launch date for the next entry in its popular sniper series. The news is unlikely to go over well with fans, many of whom have been excited by promises of massive new levels and improved artificial intelligence for protagonist Karl ’s enemies. But Rebellion co-founders Jason and Chris Kingsley offered a pretty reasonable explanation for the decision in a press release announcing the launch delay.
“When we revealed Sniper Elite 4 back in March our plan was to release it at the end of 2016,” the pair said in today’s press release. “However, we now know Battlezone will release in October as a launch title alongside PlayStation VR. That gave us a tough decision to make. Ultimately, we’re a relatively small independent studio, and releasing two major titles in the same quarter didn’t seem like a sensible thing to do. A few of our shared internal teams will probably sleep a bit easier now!”
Obviously, it’s hard to take issue with a small studio trying not to overload its employees. Too often we hear about the myriad ways that “crunch” periods negatively impact our industry, so it’s nice to see a developer do what it must to avoid such situations for its staff. That said, it’s also hard not to be disappointed by the news that we’ll have to wait a few extra months for the next entry in the Sniper Elite franchise.
On the plus side, the 2016 holiday season is already looking pretty crowded. So at least we should have plenty of great games, including the studio’s VR-ready Battlezone reboot, to keep us entertained in the interim. The studio also released more than half a dozen new Sniper Elite 4 screenshots this week, all of which can be seen in the gallery sitting atop this post.
Sniper Elite 4 is in development for PS4, Xbox One and PC. The game is currently scheduled to debut on February 14, 2017.
Be sure to check back with iDigitalTimes.com and follow Scott on Twitter for more Sniper Elite 4 news in 2016 and for however long Rebellion supports Sniper Elite 4 in the months after launch.
