In the process of destabilizing the Separatists, Jon is sent to kill a local crime lord doing business with the Separatists, who turns out to be Vasilisk, who is revealed as a member of the 23 Society. When confronted by Jon, Vasilisk once again plays a game of Russian roulette with him, which ends with Vasilisk shooting himself in the head before Jon can interrogate him.
Jon is eventually confronted by Armazi himself, who turns out to be Robert, who has been subjected to drug therapy, genetic engineering, and brainwashing to transform him into a supersoldier loyal to the 23 Society. Robert demonstrates his superhuman abilities to Jon before unsuccessfully attempting to recruit him into the 23 Society.
Later, Jon receives intel that the scientist Sergei Flostov is being held at a Separatist facility. Jon rescues Flostov, who states that he was forced by the 23 Society to help them create brainwashed, genetically modified super-soldiers. Flostov informs Jon that the 23 Society recently captured an American soldier and are going to execute him soon due to failing to brainwash him. Jon travels to the location where the captured soldier is being held and discovers it is Cole Anderson, the protagonist of the previous game. Cole, who was defeated in combat by Armazi and later mutilated by him beyond the point of recovery, reveals to Jon that Flostov is actually the leader of the 23 Society, and then asks Jon to leave behind his pistol so that he can end his own life and die with dignity, which he does as Jon leaves to pursue Flostov. Flostov contacts Jon over the radio and gloats about how the 23 Society killed Robert's wife Milla, then used her death to break his mind and brainwash him.
Jon saves one of the Separatist leaders, Inna, from an attack by 23 Society super-soldiers, and learns from her that the other remaining Separatist leader, Davit, is allied with the 23 Society and responsible for killing her fiance Tomas. Jon kills Davit, and in exchange Inna tells him where to find Flostov and Robert/Armazi, who are located at an old uranium mine where Flostov has set up a nuclear reactor to produce yellowcake uranium for the creation of nuclear weapons. As Jon infiltrates the mine fighting through mercenaries and 23 Society supersoldiers, the nuclear reactor becomes unstable. Jon confronts Flostov and Robert at the reactor, revealing to Robert that Flostov and the 23 Society killed his wife Milla, staging her death to make it look like she was killed in an American drone strike to turn him against his country. Upon learning how he had been brainwashed and manipulated, Robert kills Flostov, then locks himself in the reactor room to manually stop the meltdown in order to give Jon time to escape, dying of radiation poisoning in the process. Jon exfiltrates in a helicopter alongside Lydia and Raquel, vowing revenge against the remaining members of the 23 Society.
Gameplay
Similar to its predecessors, Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 is a first-person tactical shooter game. It is designed to be less linear than Ghost Warrior and Ghost Warrior 2, since the title is the first in the series to feature an open world environment, which can be freely explored by the player. The game's world is scattered with different activities and side missions which are known as "war crimes". These can be completed by the player if they are not playing the main missions. According to CI Games, the title is designed to be accessible for both players who are new to the franchise or the genre, while tactical enough for more hardcore players.
The game is based on three different pillars: target, execute, and survive. The player can use different approaches to complete missions and defeat enemies, as maps are now larger and more open-ended. For instance, the player can utilize stealth and melee combat to kill enemies, in gun and run style, or use the weapons or gadgets provided, like sniper rifles, to snipe enemies from a long distance.
The game's objectives are not shown on the mini-map provided to the player. The player is required to find them by completing intel-gathering missions. The player can also use a drone, which is one of the newest additions to the series and can be controlled by the player, to scan and survey the environment, and to detect enemies. The drone can also be used to hack enemies' electronic equipment and weapons, and to create distractions. However, there are risks when the player is using the drone, as enemies may become alerted when they spot it. As one of the game's core experiences is sniping, the accuracy of long-range shots is affected by various factors, such as calibration of the rifle's scope, weather, wind speed, distance, gravity, and the protagonist's breathing strength and rate. As a result, the player has to plan, adapt, and react to the game's environments to alter these factors.
Navigation is enhanced in Ghost Warrior 3. The player can carry out some "extreme navigation" movements, according to the game's developer, such as free-running, parkouring, climbing ledges, and rappelling. The player can activate Scout Mode, which is an ability of the game's protagonist to highlight places of interest and detect explosives such as mines. The player can also make use of the mode to find a new sniping spot during missions. The game also focuses on realism; as a result, it also features a dynamic weather system and day-night cycle which effects the gameplay and enemy behavior. The player can make use of these situations to create tactical advantages.
