Thief™ Gold

The Dark Project gets 5 stars hands down as probably the best Stealth game there is, but Gold added 3 extra levels that are just OK. Some of the changes they made in Gold are not all that welcome... To justify using the mages twice for example, they removed the craymen from the lost city and replaced them with mages. The story doesn't flow as well as The Dark Project either with some inconsistencies, but I will not spoil it. With all that said, it is still a great nearly unmatched game! Dishonered tried to carry it further, but the stealth aspects of the original Thief is better IMHO. Do not forget to install TFix 1.27 full. The GoG version comes with TFix 1.26 Light, but you want the whole thing. https://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=134733

I played this for the first time two years ago. I had heard great things about it, but could it live up to those expectations without any nostalgia influencing my opinion? I was already a fan of stealth games, and if it wasn't for the blocky graphics (which you'll soon ignore because of the fantastic lighting and level architecture) I would have thought that this was the next generation of the genre. Huge, non-linear levels that I could spend several hours clearing. Tense stealth mechanics where every encounter is important. The wonderful feeling of exploring (and getting lost!) in a level that feels like an actual place and not a bunch of linked hallways. I was wary about the supernatural elements when I was reading reviews, but, as one who doesn't really like zombies in general, I have to say that they are among my favorite levels. I think they work perfectly with the atmosphere and have this really great grave-robbing feel to them. I absolutely must mention the fan maps, which have easily added 200 hours to my playing experience. Outstanding new maps are still released monthly, many of them surpassing the original levels in some way (length, originality, etc.). Thief 2 has the most active mapping scene and the bulk of the maps, so I'd wait for GoG to release it before you dive into the fan mission scene. I'd easily rank Thief among my top 5 games of all time. A must-buy.

The Dark Project is regarded as a classic. Playing it, feeling it, it's easy to see why. Hide in the shadows. Stay away from the light. Tread on quiet ground. Besides a robust set of mechanics, The Dark Project gives you a set of tools to make situations more fortuitous. Need to extinguish a torch? Water arrow. Need to bypass a heavily guarded stairwell? Shoot a rope at the ceiling. Thief is designed so you have resources to bypass your problem, but in a way so rationing is required. It has the meaningful decision making good games do. The story works. It's a shrouded sleazy and glum atmosphere. Heavy, long notes substitute a more traditional soundtrack. Levels often take you places and site you never expect. Kind of strange how horrifying a game about burglary and taffers can be. Not without levity, and not without its problem (there's a real lack of central drive early on) but the written narrative is better than expected. So why isn't Thief a 5/5 epitome of the stealth? Level design I commend The Dark Project for purposely making maps ambiguous. The player must explore, familiarize, and find secrets in the environment. Problem, some of these levels are so convoluted that you'll be backtracking, constantly, just to figure out where the objective is. This is understandable for the one intentionally labyrinthine mansion, but levels like the Bonehoard and Thieves' Guild are just tedious. One's a giant tunnel. One was half sneaking through an intriguing underground criminal den; half finding out an essential item was tucked away in a hard to see spot in an minor location. There's only 12 levels in Thief Gold if you ignore the tutorial. The bad apples stand out when every level counts. This is the problem with Dark Project. Occasionally, it's a chore to play through. Sometimes the levels are great and exactly how people remember it. Other times one spends more time figuring out where to go than any sleuthing, like it's some sort of walking simulator.

While my personal favorite game of all time is actually Thief 2, the first game runs a close second. This is the game that invented stealth gameplay, and it's still one of the best implementations of stealth to be found anywhere. If you haven't tried this game yet, you owe it to yourself to do so immediately. The game was never much of a looker, even when it was released, but don't let that stop you. You'll be hiding in near-darkness most of the time anyway. Where the game really shines is in its audio. Listening for footsteps in the next hallway. Eavesdropping on a conversation between two guards. Straining your ears to try and locate the... thing... that's out there, hunting you. It's still the best audio design I've heard in any game, ever. Play this. Just do it. And then, when GOG releases Thief 2, play that, because it's more, and (in my opinion) better. Even the third game, despite several shortcomings, is definitely worth playing. One of the best, if not THE best, game series ever. You won't regret it.

I'm sitting here and considering downloading and playing Thief again instead of Skyrim. I have to disagree with people who say that Thief 2 is better, if for no other reason than the head-bobbing in Thief 2 made me feel sick and the controls for Thief feel more intuitive. But also I found the Trickster faction much more interesting and mysterious than the Hammers. Also, the Thief graphics are fine for me. This is definitely a game that's more about gameplay than graphics and the graphics do their job well. For those who haven't played the game, there is no good and evil in the Thief world. It's about chaos, neutrality and order. Each game in the trilogy focuses on one of these belief systems, through the associated faction. Whether he likes it or not (and he mostly doesn't as he doesn't want to take sides), Garret falls into the neutral camp. You have to play all three games in order to appreciate the full story that is told. Thief is just the first installment. To a newcomer the game might seem a bit dull at first, but it is introducing Garret and his 'lifestyle'. Persevere and you will start getting hints of mysterious goings on, that Garret is getting drawn into against his will. Not a game to play if you've had a stressful day and just want to blow off some steam, but highly recommended nonetheless.