Sniper Elite 5: How do Axis Invasions work?

Sniper Elite 5 was recently released for PC and consoles. Rebellion Developments' latest third-person open-world shooter is a brand new adventure for protagonist Karl Fairburne. Set in France in 1944, players must embark on a mission to unveil a secret Nazi operation called Project Kraken.

As with the previous game Sniper Elite 4, Fairburne will navigate across sandbox levels armed with weapons and the patience of a monk. The game's signature sniping gameplay and interactive systems will keep players busy, but stealthing around Nazi patrols is not the only thing they will have to worry about.

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Sniper Elite 5's Axis Invasion system lends a real sense of tension to the gameplay

The developers have taken a page out of Japanese studio From Software's book with the newest entry. The Axis Invasion system mimics the Souls games' mechanic of allowing players to infiltrate another's session as a hostile enemy.

In the case of the World War II shooter, opponents will be an Axis soldier, a Jager sniper, to be precise. This small inclusion of PvP makes skirmishes threatening as the sentient foe may pop out of nowhere.

They are a customizable avatar with a custom loadout but will still blend in among other foes. Note that they will also be aided by the German forces, so they have an armada of NPCs as well as several skills to rely on.

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How does invading work?

Axis Invasions can be toggled on or off from the Options menu for starters. Those who wish to face off against the added challenge can leave it on to prepare for the worst. On the Axis sniper's side, invading a game is simple. Select Play, under which the Axis Invasion option is available.

This starts matchmaking and sends the player to a random Fairburne session. Note that the host will be alerted to an invader joining their game. However, they will not know where the invader is as there is no signifying marker or UI prompt that sets the real opponent apart from AI.

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What can be done while invading and being invaded in Sniper Elite 5?

On Fairburne's side, they must hunt the invader down before the opponent can take them out. Players can use Invasion Phones located throughout the mao to get intel on the invader's whereabouts.

However, using them too often will alert the enemy to the player's location. Invaders may also boobytrap them, so that's something to bear in mind.

If that isn't enough, the game discourages comping (i.e., milling about in one place), so if the player is camping, their location will be revealed to the invader. Further attempts will auto-kill the player on the spot. So it quite literally does or die.

For the invader, they must stop the host from completing objectives and reaching their goal (which the invader will be notified about). Several unique skills can help boost both the opponent as well as their German allies in skirmishes against the host.

For example, Eagle Eyes allows tagging German soldiers so they can relay the hosts' last known location. Stay Sharp grants increased awareness to German soldiers. Conversely, a game may have multiple co-op players, so invaders may have to contend with more than one threat and be hunted.

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What are the perks to Axis Invasions in Sniper Elite 5?

Invaders unlock customization items like skins and even weapons for each successful assassination. Racking up 100 kills grants the Ghillie Suit sniper outfit, which is a decent reward, all things considered, as it can further help with sneaky takedowns when invading.

The host also receives similar rewards for killing the invader. However, either bonus are different enough to promote playing both sides of this multiplayer aspect of Sniper Elite 5.