Better than many claim. Rightfully bears the Thief name.
Story:
Nothing special. You start off in an inn where Garret is trying to steal a "fat nobleman's treasure."
He then hears about a mysterious object called the Bloodline Opal. Garret thinks it sounds valuable enough, so you must break in to a manor. This sets off a chain of events that eventually has Garret finding out who the heck the Gray Lady is and helping the Keepers save the world. (Or, in this case, just the City.) 7/10
Graphics:
A mixed bag. The character mobels all look the same, except for Garret's. However, there is some really nice atmosphere in the game. (Shalebridge Cradle comes to mind.) There are some legitimatley eerie and nerve wracking levels, even when you wouldn't expect there to be. The lighting is extremely well done and the levels really look like what they're supposed to be. The abysmal gale looks like a haunted ship, the prison looks like the last place you would want to be and the Hammerite Cathedral looks like the inner confines of a factory. (you'll know what I'm talking about.) The city is also fairly well done, really feeling like a wide open playground for theivery. 8/10
Sound:
The sound and graphics really work well together to create a game absolutley dripping with atmosphere. Needless to say, the sound is the one of the best parts of the game. It's also one of the most important parts as well. It tells you how loud you are, tells the enemie's alertness level and can provide some back story, sidequests and details relevant to the current mission. The best, sound work, by far is in the Shalebridge Cradle, an orphanage turned asylum that also had a fire in it. For instance, you walk into a very tall room and look up. No way to climb, so you must take the elevator to the patient's room. As you ascend you suddenly hear this very disturbing laughter/ yell/ scream. You reach the top and turn around to see a long shadow cast on the wall that looks like a hanged man. The laughter suddenly stops. This is one of the many examples where the graphics and sound work together to create a dark and chilling atmosphere. Again the best sound work is most definitley in the cradle. Also the voice work is fairly well done. 10/10
Gameplay:
The basic layout is like this: find out where to go for next mission, make your way through the free roaming city, maybe rob some places along the way, start mission, complete objectives, reappear at your house, sell your loot from previous mission, repeat. This may sound boring, but I actually like the idea of going where ever tou want at your own pace. I can see some of peoples' complaints about the city, but I like it. You can break into buildings and ransack and then make a quick exit through a window. However, something I don't get is that how can guards be alerted when you walk when there's a citizen walking right next to him/ her? Any way, you must be on constant alert for enemies. A way to lighten the load is to complete faction missions. By doing certain things, you can be allied with the hammerites or pagans. This makes it so they will fight for you and allow you into their safe havens freely. Trust me, you'll want to become allied with at least one faction or else the later parts of the game will be really difficult. A downside is that of you play in third person, the framerate will drop or skip. So play in first person; it has a better framerate, and it's much more immersive. As far as missions go, expect the same old Theif goodness. Finnally, combat is sloppy and there is poor hit detection. Of course, if you sneak around like you're supposed to, you shouldn't even get into a fight. 9/10
I definitley enjoyed this game and can not wait for Theif 4. There will hopefully be a new character, judging by the ending...
Anyway, thanks for reading my Theif: Deadly Shadows reveiw.