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Update 9/7/14 17:45. We've been talking with Rebellion today and have made a couple of changes to this article. Specifically, tessellation is implemented on consoles but in a significantly pared-back manner compared to PC, only affecting near-distance objects. Certain texture assets are blurrier on Xbox One - which Rebellion says is down to lower anisotropic filtering, not lower quality assets (and the good news is that it may be patched). The studio also points out that obscurance fields are in effect on Xbox One, though we're still looking into what look like some curious differences in ambient occlusion on the Microsoft platform.Original article: Sniper Elite has debuted on next-gen and the benefits of the new wave of technology are instantly apparent. Players are given newfound freedom to explore their surroundings and take on targets in any way they see fit. The sprawling maps provide opportunities for stealth and distraction, while the developer's enhanced Asura engine provides detailed locations and long draw distances that hold up well in brightly lit, arid environments. The result is a clear step beyond the previous Sniper games, although not quite distinctive enough to be considered a true next-generation demonstration of graphical quality.
Instead, Rebellion looks to have focused on optimising the in-house technology in order to boost performance, targeting 60fps on both Sony and Microsoft's new consoles while providing enough visual flair to comfortably eclipse the majority of last-gen console titles. The decision to aim for the gold standard in frame-rate in a shooter that requires the player to make precision shots is arguably the right call, although in practice neither console version of Sniper Elite 3 manages to achieve the perceptual 60fps that defines the likes of the Call of Duty titles. This is something that more strongly affects the Xbox One version of Sniper Elite 3, which also features a few additional graphical shortcomings compared to the PS4 and PC releases.
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