Hmmm. I really want to like this, but my gut tells me things may not work out. Snipers and Rifles: Tactical Run is essentially a bunch of like-minded souls commiserating over a few beers about how City Interactive’s Sniper: Ghost Warrior was largely awful, sniping in Bad Company 2 is now a dirty word, and how come no-one ever makes a game where you get to be a sniper just like in the movies, and why don’t we make one? Modders BlueDox have been posting fairly regular minor updates, they don’t seem to be taking themselves overly seriously – as in project leader Chekalov explicitly states their aim was to try and turn Call of Duty: Modern Warfare’s Chernobyl stage into a multiplayer mod – and it’s looking surprisingly professional so far.
The thing is, of course, unless BlueDox somehow restrict multiplayer to like-minded souls it’s all too easy to see this turning into precisely the same thing they’re trying to get away from. As the trolls on ModDB are already helpfully pointing out, only with more swearing (I apologise in advance for sending them anyone else eager to tell them how much they suck).
Obviously a Source mod probably isn’t going to be big business, unless you’re lucky enough to turn out the next Counterstrike but even so, if you announce you’re making a game or game type exclusively for snipers, I’d hazard a guess an awful lot of people who take you up on it are going to be giggling 14-year-olds camping your spawn points. Trying to make a game where sitting still for ages is a virtue is hard enough as it is. Trying to convert a significant number of people to that game who are willing to play it the ‘right’ way has got to be near impossible.
I want to like it, seriously. And there’s already lots to admire here, dull title aside. I adored Sniper the movie when I was younger, and I’ve been waiting for a game to capture the feeling of one shot, one kill ever since. I’m not sure this is going to be it, though. Best of luck to BlueDox – I suspect they’ll need it.
Snipers & Rifles’ page on ModDB can be found here.
BlueDox also have themselves a separate website for the mod, which you can visit here.