Thief: Deadly Shadows Preview

The expert thief does not merely lurk in the shadows, he owns them.

The Thief series of videogame titles started off by introducing a master thief in a time that smacked somewhat of a medieval fantasy setting. But the game seemed to stray from that with the second in the series, Metal Age.

Eidos Interactive and Ion Storm combined efforts on the latest Thief title, Thief: Deadly Shadows for the Xbox. This title is slated for release on May 26, but GameZone was given a look at preview code. What was discovered, in the deepening shadows of the city, was a world that is full of character, a world full of foulness and corruption, a world in which a master thief may rule and through plying his trade, save the innocents from a deadly betrayal to evil.

“Cry, Brethren, for the Betrayer is Come.” – this is from a scrap of The Propheticus, a document missing for more than a century.

Garrett was trained in the art of thievery by a secret organization known as the Keepers. His name is featured in the prophecy about the coming dark age. The Keepers supply Garrett with certain information and he uses is amazing skills to steal the items they seek. But in the midst of this, Garrett begins to find items the Keepers didn’t want him to know about. And the more he finds, the closer he gets to uncovering the source, which may be within the ranks of the Keepers themselves, behind the coming darkness.

As the game starts, Garrett has a simple task – steal into an inn, find out where a certain lord is staying, sneak into his room and relieve him of a velvet bag about the size of a man’s fist. Don’t fret, this is a training mission and you will be guided each step of the way. The idea is to get players comfortable with the stealth aspects of the game.

To that end, the interface of Deadly Shadows has a light gem at the bottom of the screen. This gem illuminates to show the player how visible the hero throughout the stages of each mission. (As a side note, the instructions tell you to use the Y key to crouch, when it is actually the X button that crouches Garrett.) Also, sound plays a factor in this title. Certain surfaces, like metal, ring louder and will alert guards to your presence, and there are a number of guards, all along the way, each with their own eccentricities which can be used against them.

Garrett is also armed with weapons, which can be of use in this game. His bow comes equipped with water arrows, which drop water onto a target – perfect for extinguishing those torches to bring darkness to his world.

There are four difficulty levels – easy through expert – but on the preview version only the normal setting was active. Garrett’s arsenal has been expanded, and the game itself can be played from either the third-person or first-person perspective.

Thief features amazing graphical elements, with dynamic lighting and shadows. Sound is also an important element in the game (as noted). Noise will attract unwanted attention, but you can use it to your advantage.

The game’s sound is also taut and very appropriate to the mood of the game. Garrett has a world-weary, somewhat cynical tone and the music is wonderfully meshed to the action.

The graphics are also first-rate. The animations are smooth and excellent, with some rag-doll physics thrown in, and the game uses a free-rotating camera, and wide open world to pull players deep within the story. You can walk a straight path through the missions, but you can also take off in any direction you wish. Thief: Deadly Shadows is an exquisite re-immersion in Garrett’s world.

The interface itself is easy to use and you can call up the inventory by using the black button. Equipping and using each item is easy. The bow uses the R trigger and right thumbstick to target and fire. Lockpicking is about finding the sweet spot through controller vibration.

Thief seems to have returned to its roots with this outing, and what a joyful return it is. The game is a terrific blend of all the stealth elements, puzzles, pursuits and huge mapboards that will supply hours upon hours of gaming fun.