Non-RPG General News - Released 20 Years ago - Thief: The Dark Project

HiddenX

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PC Gamer looks back at Thief: The Dark Project:

20 years ago, Thief: The Dark Project defined the stealth game

A look back on the game that gave players the tools to sneak, not to fight, and the impact that had.

Footsteps in the dark. Mutterings under breath. The sound of a bowstring, pulled taut and released. To think of Thief is to think of its sound design, from the simplest combat effect to the gravelly narration of Stephen Russell's Garrett as he hides in the dark, observing a city so corrupt that a man like him can be its unsung hero. It's to remember that city, nameless and broken, where the cold steel and hot fires of the Metal Age sit atop the weeds and lost secrets of ancient pagan culture and zombie boneyards. The quiet moments. The frenzies as a plan goes wrong and shouts of "Taffer!" fill the night sky. The perfect getaways and the desperate escapes.

Despite all this, if there's one thing that defines Thief, it's in the title. Many games, including successors like Deus Ex and Dishonored, are fundamentally built on playing things your way. You get the tools to sneak around if you want, but you also get a sack of guns and explosives, super-powers to break the rules of the world, and levels and enemies built to allow you to explore them. Thief instead strikes a deal. It gives you the tools and experience of a master criminal, but only so long as you're willing to play the role.

[...]
Thanks henriquejr!

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It's absolutely surreal to me that in some departments, especially audio in service of stealth as an active tool you have to master, Thief hasn't been topped since the second game.
 
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Loved Thief. I'm not sure another game has instilled in me the same sense of panic when I screwed something up. Running from a full alert was damn good fun.
 
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Good memories. Even the third one was still kind of fun.
 
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It is strange that bo-onbe (read : no developer) ever followed that path of nonviolent games like this.
It almost seems as if violent games make more money.
 
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The Thief games used to be some of my all time favourites, back in the day; especially the first one. There are very few games that have equalled it in terms of atmosphere, world realisation, and story. The bit where the Woodsie Lord comes and takes your eyeball is still one of my all time best memories playing any video game.
 
This my first serious PC game and I have never forgotten its atmosphere that always seemed to carry a sense of foreboding. The story was amazing in plot and detail. The first time I came across a zombie and the panic I felt as I soon realized broadhead arrows or one's sword did basically nothing to them. And it was a game that really forced you to use your inventory wisely.
 
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Still one of the best games out there. Graphics may have gotten old, but the gameplay is still top notch. Has anyone tried The Dark Mod? I remember trying it few years back and it played very well, but for some reason I only played one mission before I stopped. I ought to play it some time in the near future.
 
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Thief: Deadly Shadows is the BEST game I've ever played! I wish to God I could play the others, but I get motion sickness, so it's impossible for me to play first person games.

But Thief: Deadly Shadows (in third person mode) is the most extraordinary gaming experience I've ever experienced, I've never played anything like it (and I suspect I never will again).

I remember when I finished the game for the first time, I just sat there in awed silence for awhile. Absolutely incredible game!
 
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Has anyone tried The Dark Mod? I remember trying it few years back and it played very well, but for some reason I only played one mission before I stopped. I ought to play it some time in the near future.

Whoa… I thought I tried the Dark Mod a few years ago, but it didn't look like that. I might have to replay Thief with that installed. :)

Thief is an amazing game especially in terms of atmosphere. I never finished Thief II despite so many people claiming it's better. The level design was superior, but I missed the supernatural elements (i.e. zombies, etc.) from the first game. Those things seemed barely present in the sequel. I've never played Deadly Shadows for some reason.
 
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Er, you don't replay Thief with The Dark Mod. It's a new game, new gameplay, new missions. It's called a Mod because it was a Doom 3 mod trying to be like Thief, but not directly copying every aspect 1:1. Since the source code of Doom 3 was released it became stand alone. It was made as a new framework for people to make new Fan Missions provided with a level editor and art assets on top of the gameplay mechanics but comes with a few missions of its own (or one?) and the rest is up to the community. It's pretty good, though to me it feels clunkier than the original games. I don't think anybody has recreated the Thief campaigns in full with it.

Another good game for Thief fans is Neon Struct, it also has a level editor but I don't know of any good fan missions for that yet. The game is great, though not quite as hardcore as Thief, you can mess around more with the simple AI and various gadgets.

You're missing out with Thief II, not having as many zombies or magic is hardly a reason to not play through the greatest sneakery of all time, lol. It still has haunts and such, it doesn't pretend they never existed in-universe or anything.
 
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Er, you don't replay Thief with The Dark Mod. It's a new game, new gameplay, new missions. It's called a Mod because it was a Doom 3 mod trying to be like Thief, but not directly copying every aspect 1:1. Since the source code of Doom 3 was released it became stand alone. It was made as a new framework for people to make new Fan Missions provided with a level editor and art assets on top of the gameplay mechanics but comes with a few missions of its own (or one?) and the rest is up to the community. It's pretty good, though to me it feels clunkier than the original games. I don't think anybody has recreated the Thief campaigns in full with it.

Ah ok, my misunderstanding. I briefly watched some of the video and assumed the mod was some kind remaster. Here's hoping we get that treatment for Thief I&II someday. :)

You're missing out with Thief II, not having as many zombies or magic is hardly a reason to not play through the greatest sneakery of all time, lol. It still has haunts and such, it doesn't pretend they never existed in-universe or anything.

I played around halfway through Thief II before getting burned out. It could be because I was playing it immediately after a full run of Thief Gold, and perhaps it was just too much of the same type of gameplay.

I still prefer Thief Gold though at least to what I saw of Thief II. It just seemed to have a little more variety. II has more intricate levels, but I can only sneak past so many guards before wanting something different…
 
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Frankly, I never really liked Thief THAT much. Too "pure" and simplistic for my tastes.

I liked the concept well enough - but I vastly preferred games like System Shock 2 and Deus Ex - because they were so much richer in terms of the gameplay horizon.

Modern stealth games are more in line with my tastes - as they tend to allow for a much larger arsenal of toys when it comes to approaching the challenges at hand.
 
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