Why are sniper rifles so OP in every single MP game?

I could go way way back to Aliens vs Predator 2 when you could have been carefully stalking someone as an Alien for 10 seconds without him seeing you, but in the very last moment he could've spotted you and aimed at you in a matter of miliseconds and killed you every single time.

I despise sniper rifles in MP-based games, they rarely reward "true skill", it's just the level design a lot of times faciliates camping and thus even in Titanfall there are a lot of jerks overusing them camping for the entire time at the rooftops. I think sniper rifles shouldn't be so OP in most of MP games and in some games they shouldn't even exist in the first place. I love frantic gameplay without aiming down the sights, I don't like aiming down the sights and I like sniper rifles even less. To me mechanically milking easy kills isn't a way to go, I'd rather have fun despite not always killing somebody. Anyway, a game like Titanfall could've used more variety among weapons, weapons that would truly mesh with the wallrunning nature of the game.

Because they are overpowered in real life as well .

i main sniper in most shooters ,so no,its not about the easy kills ,its more about the patience and taking good cover and move to another position, sure most snipers camp but if someone is smart they know where u are and u are dead ,so simple.

snipers exist in real life and so they will always be a sniper weapon in shooters, if you dont know how to counter them then learn it .dont blame the mechanics of a game or real life....

because they are sniper rifles dammit

I can counter them but FOV in Titanfall is narrow and the fact it's 792p on Xbone doesn't help either, so the camper has more than perfect view on everything while you try to make out the details. So you're bound to be at a disadvantage. I know how to deal with them but sometimes it takes too much time to get to such a spot and when you're already engaged in several firefights, it's not so easy to get to point where you originally wanted to go.

I use sniper rifles as the perfect example of why I find it difficult to get into multiplayer shooters. They allow the opponent to shoot you in the back of the head and there is really no way to defend against it. I feel like shooters are a cowards game. I just can't get into that.

I'm a fighter man myself. It's just you put up against your opponent. No hiding. It's just skill against skill as purely as possible.

Gah thought this was gonna be a sniper thread. :p

all snipers in games should be bolt shot meaning u have to reload after 1 shot.

@Desmonic: Parody of what?

In real life, a snipe can spend days setting up a shot. In videogames, that's not the case.

Then again, most of the shots people take in videogames with "sniper rifles" could very easily be done with a more traditional assault rifle. It's not uncommon for someone who is a rated marksman to take 600yd or longer shots very easily with something like a SCAR. You could even make a 1000yd shot or longer with a SCAR provided you have the correct optics. Nevermind the fact it is essentially a .308 round, which will always hit a target hard when it gets there.

So, to answer the question. Yes, Snipers are kinda OP, but then again most everything else about FPSes is kinda stupidly nerfed when compared to IRL. Don't expect realism in games and you'll have way more fun.

Gears Of War 2 and 3 did Sniper Rifles right.... Its only effective if you nail a headshot... It takes 3 to 4 body shots to kill someone with that thing.

I think the reason FPSs don't do this is because of the constant bunny hopping, so they just said **** it and made body shots more lethal.

@Pikminmaniac

Hey I'm a fighter fan too :)

Howver I am open to some hiding and sneak attacks.... Because thats what Ninjas Do....

Speaking of which... Whats your oppinion on Spies vs. Mercs ?

@Lulu_Lulu: Spies vs mercs? huh? Ido not follow

Consolite.

@Pikminmaniac

Its the Splinter Cell Multiplayer mode... Spies use stealth mechanics and mercs use FPS mechanics.

Are there not a whole bunch of variables in shooters that detract from a pure person to person interaction? There's just too many cross hairs that a cheap kill seems inevitable.

Of course, I don't really play shooters so I'm ready to be proven wrong, but that's the feeling I get from the genre. I feel both fighters and RTS games remove as many variables that might detract from a skillful display/fair fight.

Nothing wrong with not liking them, and nothing wrong in liking them either. What's wrong is forcing one's preference on others.

If you don't like them just rent your own dedicated server and make it clear in the description that snipers aren't allowed.

I've just renewed my rented BF4 dedicated server on PS4 for another 3 months, the server title is "Bolt Action Snipers only", yet I get people messaging me complaining my admins are kicking / banning them for using primary weapons other than Bolt Action Sniper rifles.

When I tell them, "but that's the whole point of the server", they reply with; "ya, but TDM allows for any weapon, I'd like to play with whatever weapon I like".

No matter how many times I tell them there are plently of TDM servers out there they could enjoy without restriction and if they wish to play on my rented server they have to promise to abide by the rules, they simply don't seem to get it.

It's somehow weird seeing people not understanding that one's preference shouldn't be forced on the majority.

So, if you'd like to restrict sniper rifles, my advice is to rent your own server.

@Pikminmaniac

I support a moderate amount of variables.... A game shouldn't be too predictable, a few gaps here and there allows for some creativity and improvisation.

You are being ignorant to plenty of shooters that have a much higher skill ceiling for just the pure gun action (Quake, Unreal, Counterstrike), you are being ignorant to the fact that shooters are primarily team games that come down to coordination, on the fly tactics/anticipation/adjustments, and knowing your surrounding and using it to your advantage and the tools at your disposal. Gorilla tactics are by no means bad design, it comes down to you out thinking the other team. Camping is shit, that's different thing entirely.

I much prefer a fighting game for a competitive fix as I can actually watch Evo and not fall into a coma, there is something gloriously pure about it (kind of like gaming's equivalent of boxing). That however does not change the fact that you are fucking ignorant to better, balanced, and well thought out shooters. Call of Duty? Is spastic running around like a chicken with your head cut off, Battlefield has one too many things going on to be some supreme competitive shooter (it's fun for its chaos though), but Counterstrike was and is a thing, Unreal was a thing, Quake was a thing, and there wasn't anything about those games that didn't come down to "oh you died? suck less bitch".

Also this is straight bullshit, given how patient have to be, how much more specific you have to be with a sniper to get a kill (usually head shot or bust in good first person shooters), how much you are dependent on not only lining up your shot, but maybe leading your shot and pacing it to make sure it hits the mark, accounting for bullet drop in some games, and all that jazz. A great sniper can break competitive games wide open, and that's partially because there is some genuine skill required in dropping faces in a multiplayer game.

Even in something like Battlefield a sniper can be handled given how chaotic those games are, how much is going on, and more importantly given that those games are objective based stuff like Conquest/Rush, the sniper probably isn't actually attacking what he/she needs to be getting.

@jg4xchamp: I already admitted I was not very aware of the shooter scene and was speaking with very little experience. I also said I was expecting to be proven wrong. No need to keep calling me a F@#king ignoramace.

In any case, I'm glad you proved me wrong.

I actually like matches that are customizable in FPS games where you can either remove them, or allow only snipers and a pistol. Mixes it up.

because they have power and distance. You could say that the reload time would be the disadvantage but at the end the distance is so great it doesn't matter. There's no way to balance that.

Quit playing console shooters.

Exactly, just like shotguns are high powered weapons at short range.

Great points. I would also add that snipers typically have lower ammo capacity so they can't be spammed like assault rifles, and longer reload times. Some games will add a bullet trail visual graphic (like Halo) to counter the stealth element of snipers. This gives the other players a chance to track down the sniper once he's given his position away.

Other weapons are centered around run n' gun and those players rack up high kill counts. Sniping is about patience so even if killing is effective, it isn't as frequent.

This opinion was actually quite painful to read.

You really should broaden your gaming horizons.

Given how you talk about knowing the intricacies of "good" level design and gameplay mechanics, it's pretty sad that you're so unaware of entire worlds of amazing gaming experiences simply because you choose to dismiss playing on the platforms they fall on.

They aren't OP in PS2 or Tribes.

I know what you mean. Thing is they have a lot of downsides in reallife that are completely non existant in most game designs.

It's also why a pistol tends to be useless and/or extremely accurate in a game. Some examples: You don't have the disadvantage of weight. Therefore hardly an advantage of height. Most games let weapons obscure only a tiny part of the screen. So the size is not much of an advantage. The space you need to point and shoot is not there (indoor environments for example). Magazines are never an issue in games. You get magic magazines. You never have to conceal the weapon. You can fire anything while running. Etc. Etc. Etc.

So you are against snipers rifles in video games MP. I see.

because most MP games aren't made to be realistic

I generally don't try to comment on genres I can't get into very well. I probably shouldn't have said anything here because I'm out of my league when it comes to shooters. I do love discussing game design a lot though.

Not sure what you mean by the bolded...

Thank, God (DICE) that BF4 has UCAV. So much fun blowing those pesky snipers to pieces.

It's balance, they typically have lower rates of fire and require precision and are less versatile in close quarters combat.

One shot, one kill

Eh, sniper rifles are kinda shit imo in Insurgency. I find it much better to simply go with the EBR or FAL equipped with the 7X scope--both weapons are more than capable of one shotting anyone and they have the advantage of being able to fire semi or full auto rather than bolt action.

Not to mention wind, gravity and the actual curve of the Earth. All has to be taken into account. Snipers in real life are fucking scary man.

Some developers try to add ballistics, round trajectory and windage into their games, which can make a sniper's life more difficult. At the end of the day though they are games, if you were hit in real life by a .22, you're not going to hide behind a table until you feel better and then carry on, let alone half a magazine of 5.56.

Getting killed by a single shot in an FPS by a guy with a powerful rifle and optics is just one more challenge to over come, find out a way to get close and shove a knife up his ass.

You also saw "Shooter" with Mark Wahlberg, didn't ya? ;)

I like the way you think >;)

I can't snipe for shit so it must take some skill. I keep tracking guys but they don't stop fucking moving and I can never line up a shot. I'm just to hesitant to make a shot because I'm afraid I'll miss and get killed, so I end up just watching guys move in and out of view. Then I eventally get found by a re spawning player and get unsuspectingly knifed in scope view.

So if any one is playing bf4 next week please stay still so I can get a couple of kills with a a sniper, thanks.

TC sounds like to me you cant learn how to deal with snipers so instead you complain? I was top of OGL boards in the Medal of Honor days on PC and NEVER used a sniper riffle...you just have to learn how to outsmart them..AND yes sometimes you get blocked in cornered..and sometimes you have spawn killers..but thats part of the game..I have since moved from online gaming as it lost its "magic" to me.

First this salty lemming noob complains about snipers and now he's complaining about the low resolution in Xbone games makes it even worse. ahahaha!

TLHBO!!!

I'm not a noob in Titanfall, I can singlehandedly win my team a 8v8 game and have done so numerous times. I dare you to challenge me.

He can't. Titanfall is not on PS4...

Because sniper rifles are literally designed to be "OP" in real life as well.

Snipers are incredibly hard to detect and they can shoot you from over a mile away.

They are supposed to be "cheap"...there is no such thing as a "fair fight"...you do everything in your power to give yourself every advantage possible.

and so are shotties, g nade launchers, rockets and magnums. they're all op in real life too

A sniper is a game changer in theater. Depending on the round and the scope (the xm109) reducing targets behind walls and "bullet proof glass" is a reality.