Thief reboot announced, screens and interview. Will remain true to the franchise

http://www.computerandvideogames.com/394467/thief-dev-there-are-a-lot-of-action-titles-this-is-thief/?cid=OTC-RSS&attr=CVG-General-RSS

After a long silence, Thief 4 has finally been official announced, except it is now a reboot and now simply named "Thief"

The developers assure the game will remain true to the core mechanics of the series: in short, "it will feel like Thief."

Fantastic news for all stealth fans famished for a pure old style stealth experience. The game will be out on PC, PS4 and (I quote) "other next gen systems" sometimes in 2014.

A bunch of features and info have been released:

AI

• Garrett isn't a fighter
• Fighting against four or more guards in combat won't go well
• Guards and other NPCs are aware of the level design, so they know where a person might try to hide
• Guards understand the topography of the level and which areas could be useful for hiding
• Different NPCs will look for Garrett in different ways

Gameplay mechanics

• Navigation beacon shows players where to go 
• Dev. team wants players to explore environments as they see fit
• Multiple entrances and exists in each room
• Multiple options available for stealth approach
• "Focus" mechanic: has many uses, including being able to aid Garrett's vision as he navigates through open levels
• Focus lights up the screen and highlights pipes you can climb + candles you can put out to make the room darker
• Can upgrade Focus
• Doing so will give you a bigger radius of things to see
• Fingerpints system: gives you hints on which drawers are best to look in
• Every drawer is accessible
• Can pickpocket
• Use Focus while pickpocketing to slow time and swipe up to three times as many items from others
• Can spend money to upgrade supplies and equipment at the end of each mission
• Various artifacts are scattered throughout the game's level
• Can use these to decorate Garrett's hideout
• Garrett is motivated by the thrill of stealing something that others can't take
• Focus will show a number of attack points on enemies
• Can select a point (like the chest) to do a quick push that will buy him more time to dash off into the shadows
• Can also string together a number of points to perform a more debilitating attack
• Team is trying to find a balance between making combat enjoyable and allowing players to enter combat if they want
• Major mechanics are in place 

Tools

• Blackjack: use when sneaking up behind guards to knock them unconscious 
• Bow: powerful, can be used outside of combat (ex: fire at a bottle in another room to lure a guard away, trigger a switch to lock the guard inside)
• Specialty Arrows: different uses; dry-ice arrow can be used to snuff flames from far away; smoke-starter arrow: cover and a distraction
• Claw: grapple attaches to certain points

General

• Garrett design made by game director Nicolas Cantin
• Garrett's scar represents that his past has left long-lasting effects on his life
• Eidos being vague about how faithful the team is remaining to the original Thief lore
• Many of the series' magical elements will be toned down
• "Eidos-Montreal compares game development to a high-speed train collision between art and technology."
• Team was kept small and "stayed within the concept phase of development for a longer period of time."
• The staff experimented with featuring a new character, making it a third-person game involving either tactical gameplay or environmental clambering (like Assassin's Creed)
• "At one point in development, the game had so many third-to-first-person transitions that the constant camera shifting was making people sick."

• Many experiments during first three years of development

Where does it say it's a reboot?PannicAtack

Is Thief open world? I've never played any of the games. 

Will remain true to franchise?  Judging by these pictures, it already looks too late for that.  Third person is not true to the original games.  Garrett looks more like Batman than Garrett. It's being made primarily with consoles in mind.  I could go on if you want. . .

Will remain true to franchise?  Judging by these pictures, it already looks too late for that.  Third person is not true to the original games.  Garrett looks more like Batman than Garrett. It's being made primarily with consoles in mind.  I could go on if you want. . .

Qixote

i like what the deus ex team did with human revolution. there were a few lapses in execution, but they mostly had the right idea in mind. i guess with that i'll remain optimistic about what the other team will do here.

I missed out on the Theif games but I am in love with the Deus Ex developers so this will be a day one buy for me.GodModeEnabled

Holy sh*t! Didnt even notice that. 

Day mother f*cking 1!

P.S F*ck vader for not including Deus Ex on his list.  

The large majority of stealth games in the past several years have disappointed me in one way or another in a notable way so I'm rather cautious. If I hear that the player will have x-ray vision (like practically every other stealth game lately) then I'll become pretty doubtful that I'll find the rest of the experience all too enjoyable. I suppose I'm being pretty pessimistic here, but it just gets rather annoying when so many AAA devs try to appeal to every possible gamer even if they're not too fond of serious stealth gameplay. I kind of wish that the IP was handed over to an indie dev.

Excellent news! I have been waiting for this for quite a few years, actually almost a decade now!!!

Excellent news! I have been waiting for this for quite a few years, actually almost a decade now!!!

EvilSelf

[QUOTE="EvilSelf"]

Excellent news! I have been waiting for this for quite a few years, actually almost a decade now!!!

Black_Knight_00

Yep! Still getting nightmares over Shalebridge Cradle mission. Of course, i was 10 years younger back then. I hope the Mechanists return in the new one. I loved The Metal Age. I am actually getting goosebumps just by thinking about the good old days of Thief!

My PS4 want list is slowly expanding. Loved the original Thief on PC (never plyed the others) So hell yes I want this.

Thief reboot announced, screens and interview. Will remain true to the franchise

Black_Knight_00

So, unlike most other franchises this gen, I take it? So, if you liked the previous Thief games, you will still like this one since it will remain true, yes? 

Unlike all the other reboots and changes to other series this gen, this series will still remain good?

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"][QUOTE="EvilSelf"]

Excellent news! I have been waiting for this for quite a few years, actually almost a decade now!!!

EvilSelf

Yep! Still getting nightmares over Shalebridge Cradle mission. Of course, i was 10 years younger back then. I hope the Mechanists return in the new one. I loved The Metal Age. I am actually getting goosebumps just by thinking about the good old days of Thief!

[QUOTE="EvilSelf"]

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"] omg, you're right: it's been almost 10 years since Thief Deadly Shadows. Way too longBlack_Knight_00

Yep! Still getting nightmares over Shalebridge Cradle mission. Of course, i was 10 years younger back then. I hope the Mechanists return in the new one. I loved The Metal Age. I am actually getting goosebumps just by thinking about the good old days of Thief!

Man, next gen would be...dramatic to say the least. New Thief game, a new Fallout game (rumored to be for next gen). Those two are my top 2 all time favorites!

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"][QUOTE="EvilSelf"]

Yep! Still getting nightmares over Shalebridge Cradle mission. Of course, i was 10 years younger back then. I hope the Mechanists return in the new one. I loved The Metal Age. I am actually getting goosebumps just by thinking about the good old days of Thief!

EvilSelf

Man, next gen would be...dramatic to say the least. New Thief game, a new Fallout game (rumored to be for next gen). Those two are my top 2 all time favorites!

I've never played a Thief game before. I should probably fix that.

I've never played a Thief game before. I should probably fix that.

c_rake

Absolutely. Play Thief: Deadly Shadows, it's 9,99 on steam and will run on pretty much anything.Black_Knight_00

Awesome.

Would you recommend the other two games as well?

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"] Absolutely. Play Thief: Deadly Shadows, it's 9,99 on steam and will run on pretty much anything.c_rake

Awesome.

Would you recommend the other two games as well?

Thief 2 is pretty much the best of the bunch - I'd even call it the best stealth game of all time - so if you can look past the graphics and don't mind slower-paced gameplay, I'd recommend that.

Still...Deadly Shadows is the most accessible.

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"] Absolutely. Play Thief: Deadly Shadows, it's 9,99 on steam and will run on pretty much anything.c_rake

Awesome.

Would you recommend the other two games as well?

The other two games are (vastly) superior, but they're also older and much harder to get into nowadays.

Thief 2 is pretty much the best of the bunch - I'd even call it the best stealth game of all time - so if you can look past the graphics and don't mind slower-paced gameplay, I'd recommend that.

Still...Deadly Shadows is the most accessible.

Planeforger

Cool. Graphics don't matter to me (wouldn't consider checking them out, otherwise), so I'm sure I'd enjoy them.

Yes I would, although they feel their age a bit by nowBlack_Knight_00

Doesn't matter. I'm sure they still hold up enough to still be just as playable as before.

So, in other words, this game will be closer to Thief 2 than Thief 1 because of little-to-no magical elements. I guess that's fine with me, but I still am skeptical about how everything will work, after hearing about the focus mechanic. I understand the importance of visual cues, but most of the time they aren't necessary. We've been playing games long enough without them and we're doing just fine. Sometimes I feel like developers and publishers are overly concerned and over-analyzing a lot of things, if not trying to reach out to a wider audience for an already well established franchise.

So, in other words, this game will be closer to Thief 2 than Thief 1 because of little-to-no magical elements. I guess that's fine with me, but I still am skeptical about how everything will work, after hearing about the focus mechanic. Mawy_Golomb

[QUOTE="Mawy_Golomb"]So, in other words, this game will be closer to Thief 2 than Thief 1 because of little-to-no magical elements. I guess that's fine with me, but I still am skeptical about how everything will work, after hearing about the focus mechanic. LoG-Sacrament

He does have the eye.

That eye does wonders.

[QUOTE="Mawy_Golomb"]So, in other words, this game will be closer to Thief 2 than Thief 1 because of little-to-no magical elements. I guess that's fine with me, but I still am skeptical about how everything will work, after hearing about the focus mechanic. LoG-Sacrament

[QUOTE="LoG-Sacrament"][QUOTE="Mawy_Golomb"]So, in other words, this game will be closer to Thief 2 than Thief 1 because of little-to-no magical elements. I guess that's fine with me, but I still am skeptical about how everything will work, after hearing about the focus mechanic. Black_Knight_00

Hope your right.

I also hope they scrap the idea of focusing on combat; that's not what Thief was all about. In fact, the games DISCOURAGED that kind of thinking that you could take on even one or two guards unless of course you were clever about it. Just focus on what Thief really is: pure, dark, blissful, stealth.

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"]

[QUOTE="LoG-Sacrament"] honestly, focus sounds like magic to me. i'll wait to see how it's implemented, but they might as well just call it magic if it becomes really useful.Goyoshi12

Hope your right.

I also hope they scrap the idea of focusing on combat; that's not what Thief was all about. In fact, the games DISCOURAGED that kind of thinking that you could take on even one or two guards unless of course you were clever about it. Just focus on what Thief really is: pure, dark, blissful, stealth.

[QUOTE="Goyoshi12"]

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"] It's going to be the equivalent of the red pipes in Mirror's Edge / yellow bricks in Uncharted, simply to indicate the player where Garret can climb and make movement more fluid by eliminating trial and error. The good news is the Focus function seems to be optional, as it needs to be activated manually.

Black_Knight_00

Hope your right.

I also hope they scrap the idea of focusing on combat; that's not what Thief was all about. In fact, the games DISCOURAGED that kind of thinking that you could take on even one or two guards unless of course you were clever about it. Just focus on what Thief really is: pure, dark, blissful, stealth.

Except what about one guard or two or three?

[QUOTE="Goyoshi12"]

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"] It's going to be the equivalent of the red pipes in Mirror's Edge / yellow bricks in Uncharted, simply to indicate the player where Garret can climb and make movement more fluid by eliminating trial and error. The good news is the Focus function seems to be optional, as it needs to be activated manually.

Black_Knight_00

Hope your right.

I also hope they scrap the idea of focusing on combat; that's not what Thief was all about. In fact, the games DISCOURAGED that kind of thinking that you could take on even one or two guards unless of course you were clever about it. Just focus on what Thief really is: pure, dark, blissful, stealth.

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"][QUOTE="Goyoshi12"]

Hope your right.

I also hope they scrap the idea of focusing on combat; that's not what Thief was all about. In fact, the games DISCOURAGED that kind of thinking that you could take on even one or two guards unless of course you were clever about it. Just focus on what Thief really is: pure, dark, blissful, stealth.

PannicAtack

[QUOTE="PannicAtack"][QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"] Rest easy then: the game will discourage combat. If you read the bullet points I added to the opening post, developers specifically say that "Garret is not a fighter" and "Fighting against four or more guards in combat won't go well"Black_Knight_00

Wow, you're a lot more postive about this than what I've seen of others.

I'm gonna be honest though, I'll remain SEMI-skeptic. Many a stealth games went to a more...casual and consumer friendly route and there is still time for them to f*ck it up but I'll remain optimistic for what it's worth.

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"][QUOTE="PannicAtack"] Of course, people complained about that last point because it said "four" and not "two."Goyoshi12

Wow, you're a lot more postive about this than what I've seen of others.

I'm gonna be honest though, I'll remain SEMI-skeptic. Many a stealth games went to a more...casual and consumer friendly route and there is still time for them to f*ck it up but I'll remain optimistic for what it's worth.

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"]Rest easy then: the game will discourage combat. If you read the bullet points I added to the opening post, developers specifically say that "Garret is not a fighter" and "Fighting against four or more guards in combat won't go well"Goyoshi12

Except what about one guard or two or three?

To be fair, Garret could always take on multiple guards at a time, even on the harder difficulties. It was simply discouraged, especially by the inclusion of all of the undead/magical/mechanical enemies that couldn't be killed with conventional weaponry.

Still...quotes like "We want you to play as a thief but we dont want to force you to play as a thief" aren't doing a great job of convincing me on this one.

Plus, it's a reboot of a saga that has always treated its backstory well. With fewer magical elements...how much of Thief is actually going to be left in this game?

[QUOTE="Goyoshi12"]

[QUOTE="Black_Knight_00"]Rest easy then: the game will discourage combat. If you read the bullet points I added to the opening post, developers specifically say that "Garret is not a fighter" and "Fighting against four or more guards in combat won't go well"Planeforger

Except what about one guard or two or three?

To be fair, Garret could always take on multiple guards at a time, even on the harder difficulties. It was simply discouraged, especially by the inclusion of all of the undead/magical/mechanical enemies that couldn't be killed with conventional weaponry.

Still...quotes like "We want you to play as a thief but we dont want to force you to play as a thief" aren't doing a great job of convincing me on this one.

Plus, it's a reboot of a saga that has always treated its backstory well. With fewer magical elements...how much of Thief is actually going to be left in this game?

I remember hearing in an early summer 2012 article that the new Thief game would offer some kind of multiplayer or online functionality. Did Eidos Montreal keep it or take it out of the game? If it were to give us a tacked-on multiplayer feature, I certainly will feel less optimistic than I am right now. And what exactly will happen with the different lead devs leaving the team? How has that affected the whole game?

Source: http://www.gamespot.com/news/lead-thief-4-devs-exit-project-report-6382509

Moreover, with Eidos Montreal's boss Stephane D'Astous, what exactly is meant by a "different play style" or "more than just stealth"? That leaves me concerned about the franchise as a whole. Not to mention the focus mechanic, which seems like it will make stealth kills and finding artifacts/gold too easy. And can we really expect to see levels as huge as those in the first two Thief games, instead of the much smaller environments (hampered by loading times) found in Thief 3: DS?

Source: http://www.oxm.co.uk/42730/thief-4-needs-to-be-as-good-as-or-better-than-deus-ex-eidos-montreal/

[QUOTE="Planeforger"]

[QUOTE="Goyoshi12"]

Except what about one guard or two or three?

PannicAtack

To be fair, Garret could always take on multiple guards at a time, even on the harder difficulties. It was simply discouraged, especially by the inclusion of all of the undead/magical/mechanical enemies that couldn't be killed with conventional weaponry.

Still...quotes like "We want you to play as a thief but we dont want to force you to play as a thief" aren't doing a great job of convincing me on this one.

Plus, it's a reboot of a saga that has always treated its backstory well. With fewer magical elements...how much of Thief is actually going to be left in this game?