Thief: In with the Old, In with the New

Before Sam Fisher, before Agent 47, before Corvo Attano, there was Garrett.

Garrett was introduced in 1998's Thief: The Dark Project, the first stealth game to feature a first-person perspective, and one of several games that made the now-defunct Looking Glass Studios so beloved among PC game enthusiasts. With the plainly-titled Thief, Eidos Montreal resurrects a series left untouched since 2004's Thief: Deadly Shadows for a gaming public apparently ready for the next step in stealth. Of course, the question for concerned fans becomes: will the new Thief be enough like the old Thief, or will it be diluted by modern elements that diminish the challenge and the tension? In other words: Is Thief really, well, Thief?

The answer isn't yet clear, but with Deus Ex: Human Revolution, developer Eidos Montreal has already proven their ability to modernize an older franchise and still retain much of what makes the series unique. During the week of San Francisco's GDC, I met with producer Stéphane Roy and lead level designer Daniel Windfeld Schmidt for a private demonstration of Thief and the technology bringing it to life. And while many modern concessions were clear--I noted similarities to Assassin's Creed and, unsurprisingly, Human Revolution--what I saw of the game seems to have retained the series' soul, which came as some relief. And of course, the games I mentioned above owe enormous debts to the original Thief, so it's only appropriate that a new Thief game should emerge to remind us of the stealth genre's origins.

It all begins with Garrett, whose mysterious ways and hushed monologues have made him a popular figure. He is part of what makes Thief what it is, along with The City--that is, the dark, corrupted, pre-industrial metropolis where Garrett makes his home. And while it might be a cliche to call a setting the "real" star of a game, given how often such claims are made, Thief makes a strong case for that old chestnut, for what I saw of The City looked phenomenal. The City is about contrast--the interplay between light and dark, between hot and cold, between rich and poor--and the demo exhibited that contrast in a number of ways, both visually and narratively.

If there was one such element that was abundantly clear from the moment the demo started, however, it was darkness. Garrett's approaches The City's gates hidden in a merchant's cart, narrating the circumstances of his past while brief flashbacks hint at shaded memories. It is frighteningly somber. Thunder and lightning are an old narrative trick used to communicate fear and dread, and Thief uses this trick to its advantage, allowing brief flashes of light to illuminate the sharp angles and heavy iron details of its architecture. So, too, is The City's malice illuminated. The signs of oppression are everywhere, from the sights of men secured by stockades, to the corpses hanging from rafters to remind the populace of the consequences of wrongdoing.

Oppression comes at the hands of the Baron and The City Watch, but fortunately, the autocrats do not rule unopposed. An opposition force, and its charismatic leader, have called for a revolution, and like it or not, Garrett finds himself drawn into the imbroglio. And if he hopes to thrive, Garrett must use every tool and skill at his disposal. Thief is built to support a three-way gameplay loop. First, there is infiltration--the ways you exploit the shadows and the enemy AI to express your stealthy creativity. Then there is theft, which requires skill and dexterity. And finally, you have escape, in which Garrett shows of his daring, agile side. From these three pillars arise focus abilities, which allow you to spend a resource called focus in order to expedite and enable your thievery.

Focus is one of Thief's clear nods to gameplay mechanics associated with more modern games, though it's worth noting that series purists can choose difficulty levels that disable focus if they prefer (along with vision cones, markers, and any other assistance). But what are these focus abilities? Well, there's The Eye, a sight mode that highlights fingerprints and interactive objects in the vicinity. Or how about lockpicking? Using focus this way allows you to speed up the process of attaining precious jewels when under duress. Alternately, you might use focus to enhance your pickpocket skill, which allows you to nab more items from your hapless victim in a slick, single move.

You can also use focus in combat, though you shouldn't take this to mean that Garrett is a sword-wielding menace, prepared to slice his foes Ezio Auditore-style. But there are times when you might need to disable or distract a guard that's caught on to your wily ways, and focus allows you to pinpoint and exploit an enemy's physical weaknesses, thus giving yourself time to flee. Of course, a proper thief avoids even the keenest of eyes, and Garrett has a variety of gadgets at his disposal, each of which aids in his sneaky pursuits. What would a Thief game be without the blackjack? Try using it to break a window and distract a particularly annoying sentry, or to perform a takedown from behind or above. Of course, you get a bow as well, along with various types of arrows, such as a dry ice arrow that reflects light--a useful tool for throwing a nosy foe of your scent. Garrett also possesses a claw, which he uses as he did the rope arrow or vine arrow in previous games: as a means of navigation to higher places. The claw also has a narrative purpose, though for now Eidos Montreal is keeping such details close to their chests.

Anyone up for some blackjack?

Such gadgets and abilities make Garrett the ultimate voyeur, so it's only appropriate that the demo requires that he infiltrate a pleasure palace called the House of Blossoms, though reaching that opulent destination means slinking through The City's sinister streets. You sneak and peek, watching your hands grasp corners as you scope out any danger lurking ahead, and ultimately climbing a rooftop so that you can identify the red light that marks the brothel that houses your target. The House of Blossoms now in sight, you fall onto a guard below for a debilitating takedown and rush towards your goal, rushing ahead as if you are a speeding Cinderella, hoping to make it home before the clock strikes midnight.

Thief is still about freedom, so it's only sensible that you might try the front door or some other route, though in the demo's case, following a guard towards an alternate entrance provides the right kind of opportunity. Using snuff arrows to veil your careful movement, and firing broadhead arrows to smash vases and make a little distracting noise, you make your way across beams and rappel to solid ground when you get the chance. The camera occasionally moves from the standard first-person view to a third-person perspective for a bit of Assassin's Creed/Uncharted-style platforming, as you snake across ceiling beams before dropping down and peeling back a velvet curtain.