Sniping in war and videogames: Why it's hated, why it's loved, and why we do it

Sergio Leone, Steven Spielberg, the USSR, and our love of ballistic accuracy

Words: GamesRadarTylerWilde on October 7, 2010

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JADENkOTOR - October 7, 2010 11:56 p.m.

Nothing is more annoying than playing Battlefield BC2 and having 3 snipers in your squad. Every time you sacrifice your own life to plant a charge and an M-com station and force the other team back, you would like some of your squad mates to help you out. Then when you respawn all of your squad is on the other side of the fucking world, so it takes another 2 minutes just to get back in the action. Snipers don't add any pressure to the opposing side in a team oriented game such as BC2, and can be extremely frustrating when paired with the bastards. I liked the article
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profile0000 - October 7, 2010 11:55 p.m.

This was a really great article, and thank you for giving me a reason to watch The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly again.
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FuzzyDeath - October 7, 2010 11:47 p.m.

I don't mind sniping but when they camp it's annoying. I snipe myself but I'm always running around. I don't stay in a single spot. It's also annoying when playing BC2 on Hardcore and there is like a billion snipers out there. Just a couple for each team.
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Baron164 - October 7, 2010 11:28 p.m.

I love sniping but I find in my games that aren't Battlefield the maps are too small and enclosed to really take advantage of sniping. I was actually excited about Sniper Ghost Warrior until I found out how glitchy it was.
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Gurkog - October 7, 2010 11:27 p.m.

eek! EDIT- I also found picking people off with my rocket launcher from across a map to be the most satisfying form of sniping.
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Gurkog - October 7, 2010 11:23 p.m.

I enjoyed harassing snipers while playing TFC back in the day. I also found picking people off with my rocket launcher from across a map.
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getlefty - October 7, 2010 11:20 p.m.

My favorite sniper is still the one from Team Fortress Classic. You'd hold the shoot button down and it would bring up a red dot on the screen. When you released the button your weapon would fire. Instant gratification at its finest!
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batmanboy11 - October 7, 2010 11:19 p.m.

I don't mind sniping, and do it semi-frequently, but I hate the people who snipe on every map in every game mode, in EVERY GAME!
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ThatGuyFromTV - October 7, 2010 11:18 p.m.

@elpurplemonkey I know what you mean, sniping only swhen others aren't. Don't you think it's ironic how the easiest sniper targets are snipers themselves?
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Evilsafetyboy - October 7, 2010 11:12 p.m.

Although it had some flaws (such as enemies with near ESP), Sniper Elite for the PS2 (and Xbox) was the best sniping game. Gravity AND wind played a part in a sweet WW2 setting. Hoping they would make a sequel in Vietnam.
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enlargedhousecats - October 7, 2010 11:08 p.m.

where there's a gun there's fun -Ross Scott Tyler's great writing and the fact it's about guns and shooting guns makes this history lesson oh so fun.
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JayBeat - October 7, 2010 11:07 p.m.

Awesome and interesting article :)
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oneshotfinch - October 7, 2010 11:02 p.m.

Durr u used a skreeen frm MW2dat game sux so this suxs
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GamesRadarTylerWilde - October 7, 2010 10:56 p.m.

@farsided Häyhä did also achieve over 200 kills with a sub-machine gun, but the 500+ kills I referenced were with a Mosin-Nagant rifle.
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farsided - October 7, 2010 10:53 p.m.

Here's a tidbit-Hayha scored a majority of his kills with a submachine gun.
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elpurplemonkey - October 7, 2010 10:52 p.m.

Interesting read. I only like to snipe when no one else is sniping, otherwise I put myself in danger of being sniped- something that I absolutely hate. You're spot on about the demoralization- if I'm facing a team with a good sniper, it definitely throws me off my game.
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Sy87 - October 7, 2010 10:52 p.m.

Sniping is very hated in real war. It is very unlikely that a sniper will be taken prisoner. As a sniper you leave a calling card. One shot one kill. The enemy know you killed there friend and there not about to let you live. But sniping in reality is not just about being a sharpshooter. Its about evasion. You shoot, kill, and relocate. That's a tactic that helps in games as well. I kill many opponents that come looking for me in a spot that they saw me get them. It also helps that you have teammates cover you as you do work. However, games will never be able to give the feel of real sniping, but it is fun and gets the heart pumping when you got a challenge of taking on other snipers.
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ThatGuyFromTV - October 7, 2010 10:50 p.m.

I can't tell if those are closed or open iron sights in Hayha's picture. I can't stand open iron sights on real guns.
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twishart - October 7, 2010 10:49 p.m.

Great read. Strangely fascinating. I don't feel like such a douche with my Intervention anymore.
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Felixthecat - October 7, 2010 10:46 p.m.

Great article. I despise sniping in games, but people do it anyway. Then again, so do I, but I suck at it. Quick scoping is a different story though. That is why I refuse to play MW2 ever again.
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