Premature Thief Impressions

I was wrong. Thief unlocked some time this morning. Yesterday, the countdown on Steam indicated a 1PM central unlock time.

I've been able to squeeze in almost a couple hours today, and here's what we got so far. Bear in mind, these impressions are drawn from the best version available, the PC version.

First things first, this is a fairly good-looking game. I've maxed all the settings, but turned the anti-aliasing off, and performance is good. Thief is one of the few games out there that actually relies on crisp visuals, since much of the game is contingent on concealment, and things like line of sight, as well as light, dark, and shadows inform that. This game does a very good job of making you aware of the environment, even with the first-person perspective, which, absent peripheral vision, makes it much harder.

The movement through the game is a lot of fun, but I'm trying to decide if I'm still getting used to it, or if it could use just a tiny bit of improvement. It's almost silky smooth, but not quite there, especially where the context-sensitive jump/climb is used. Like I said, I could accept either one as the case.

Part of the problem there is that I've also just recently completed the Titanfall beta, which had AMAZING control. I almost want to merge the two.

Aaahhh. Parkour wall-running in Thief. Sooo wonderful to think about.

Anywho, I'm still early in the game, so it's impossible to say what skills I haven't discovered yet, and how much I settle into the rhythm of the movement.

As for the story, I like it thus far. We start out with Garrett and a protégé of his, and then shit goes sideways. I'm a little confused about the transition from the prologue to the first chapter, but I believe that's intentional. Overall, Garrett, thus far, is a solid sympathetic protagonist, and while I think I may have most of the rest of the plot figured out, if it's told well, then this could be a fun tale.

The best thing about the game so far is the problem-solving. Nearly every situation is Portal-like, in terms of applying your knowledge of the game's mechanics. I love that kinda shit. Even better, everywhere I've gone so far has had tantalizing optional areas that have beckoned to me, and I've been unable to resist the siren call of impossible-to-pull-off thefts. Thanks to the generous auto-save in the game, I've been able to combine reason with trial-and-error (heavy on the 'error,' thus far.) That aspect of the game, which is the bulk of the game so far, is a blast.

Tonight, I'm looking forward to some more Thief, as well as 3D Thor: The Dark World on Blu-Ray. Good times.

How are you enjoying Thief thus far? If you're not playing it, why not?

-Blaine