Deep, slow breaths. It keeps the heart beat slow and steady- keeps the sight on the rifle still. The scope peers out into the darkness, the cross-hairs centered above the face of a distance enemy soldier. Finger on the trigger and at the ready, but not now, not now.

The original Sniper Elite was a shooter that was quite unlike any other at the time. While pretty much any game with a firearm features a sniper rifle, this game really made you work for your position and your shot.

Sniper Elite V2 includes moments of great gameplay, but it's let down by padding and systems that don't work quite as intended.

Sniping and the eye-opening presentation of its results is great, grisly fun; Setting up traps and ambushes and then putting them into effect from afar can be very satisfying

Stealth gameplay is poorly executed; Enemy AI needs to go back to school; Early campaign are annoyingly linear and confined

Tactical systems and satisfying ballistics marred by irritating levels and punishing sight-detection by the enemy.

Sniper Elite V2 (PC Version Reviews - Game Also Available on XBox 360 & PS3) I was belly crawling through Hell. Buildings all around me lay in ruin, some partially destroyed, some burning, and others fully collapsed inward. Smoke and burning embers moved with the occasional breeze.

A sniping game for true enthusiasts who can forgive its shortcomings

Sitting in a window across the map from the enemy is normally the kind of activity that would get you called a camper in any other military shooter. Now what if you were told there was a game where this behaviour was encouraged?

Despite the fact that the original was a bloody good game, if you mention Sniper Elite to most people you'll likely get a blank look shooting back at you. Perhaps that's because the original was released way back in 2005, or maybe it's just that people have pushed the WW2 gaming years out of their...

Despite dated looks and gameplay, this WWII shooter hits most of its targets.

Tense sniper gameplay; Fabulous X-Ray Kill-Cam; Smart; unpredictable gameplay

Game world needs more interactivity; Patchy and often dated graphics; Miserly approach to checkpoints

Merge the X-ray fatalities of Mortal Kombat with the cover-based beats of any modern shooter, plus a little of Splinter Cell: Conviction's stealth mechanic whereby your last known position is superimposed on the game space, and you have a good idea of how Sniper Elite V2 plays.

X-ray bullet cam is fun; Focused design that offers a range of approaches; You get to blow up a tank with one bullet; Semi-realistic bullet physics (with hardcore option; Variety of kill situations

Limited enemy AI; Feels budget; No console deathmatch