Sniper Rifle
GTA V's basic bolt-action precision rifle — the entry-level dedicated sniper in V's catalog, sitting between the semi-automatic Marksman Rifle and the heavier-caliber Heavy Sniper as the standard mid-tier scoped rifle.
Skeleton entryQualitative description only — specific stats, locations, and customization paths are added when verifiable against community-measurement archives or Rockstar Newswire posts.
Sniper Rifle
The Sniper Rifle is Grand Theft Auto V's basic bolt-action precision rifle — the entry-level dedicated sniper in V's catalog, available at Ammu-Nation, sitting structurally between V's Marksman Rifle (semi-automatic DMR-class) and Heavy Sniper (anti-materiel) as the standard mid-tier scoped rifle. Where the Heavy Sniper handles vehicle-class targets and the Marksman Rifle handles sustained mid-range engagement, the Sniper Rifle handles the standard "I want a long-range precision shot" use case the genre has built its sniper-class architecture around since at least San Andreas (2004).
What's confirmed
- Class: Sniper rifle — bolt-action, single-shot precision (mid-tier of V's sniper catalog)
- Game: Grand Theft Auto V (2013 original, 2014 PS4/Xbox One re-release, 2022 PS5/Xbox Series X|S "Expanded and Enhanced") and GTA Online
- Acquisition path: Available at Ammu-Nation as a precision-rifle-tier purchase (specific price tier and unlock-progression beat deferred)
- Tier position within V's sniper catalog:
- Sniper Rifle — basic mid-tier bolt-action (this entry)
- Marksman Rifle — semi-automatic DMR-class (different fire mode register)
- Heavy Sniper — anti-materiel, heaviest damage in V's sniper catalog
- Default scope: Scoped at base configuration; advanced scope variants typically available via customization
- Cross-game lineage: Bolt-action sniper rifles have appeared in mainline GTAs since at least San Andreas (2004); V's Sniper Rifle is the modern-engine iteration of the franchise's basic precision-rifle slot
What this entry doesn't yet include
Deferred until verifiable:
- Exact damage / fire-rate / recoil / accuracy stats
- Magazine capacity and reload speed
- Specific Ammu-Nation price tier and unlock-progression beat
- Customization catalog (extended magazine, scope variants, suppressor, finish options)
- Specific real-world rifle aesthetic inspiration
- Specific mission appearances
- Online customization additions over V's lifecycle
Why it's catalog-worthy
The Sniper Rifle is V's clearest example of preserving the franchise's basic-precision-rifle slot across the modern-engine catalog. Where V's broader weapon catalog has expanded the sniper class into multiple tiers (Marksman Rifle DMR, Heavy Sniper anti-materiel, Marksman Pistol revolver-precision sidearm), the basic bolt-action Sniper Rifle remains the "default sniper" entry — the rifle a player picks up when the goal is single-shot long-range precision without the over-specialization of the Heavy Sniper or the rapid-fire register of the Marksman Rifle.
That structural-slot preservation is meaningful. Most modern AAA shooters consolidate sniper-class weapons into one or two entries; V's choice to maintain a four-way precision-rifle architecture (basic Sniper Rifle + DMR + anti-materiel + precision sidearm) gave the catalog more granularity than the genre default. The Sniper Rifle as the "basic" entry in that architecture is the one that demonstrates V's sniper catalog isn't trying to replace the standard with sub-specialization — it's expanding around the standard.
For GTA VI's eventual sniper catalog, the question of whether Rockstar preserves the basic-bolt-action-sniper structural slot or consolidates the catalog is one of the trackable design questions. The basic Sniper Rifle is the rifle every GTA player has used; whether that continuity carries forward to VI's weapon catalog is a small but worth-tracking design question.
What's connected
- Marksman Rifle — V's DMR-class scoped rifle; the semi-automatic precision counterpart
- Heavy Sniper — V's anti-materiel sniper rifle; the heavy-caliber precision counterpart
- Carbine Rifle — V's mid-tier assault rifle; the broader precision/assault-rifle adjacent register
- Pistol .50 · AP Pistol · RPG · Sticky Bombs — V's other catalog entries across sidearm / explosive / utility tiers
Sources
- Grand Theft Auto V (2013) — base game, primary source
- Rockstar Newswire archive — weapon catalog context across V updates
Skeleton entry. Specific damage stats, magazine capacity, customization catalog, and real-world rifle inspiration land when sourced.