NightFalcon on 13/5/2006 at 18:56
Thief: Deadly Shadows is supposedly a great game, but I fail to see this.
DS is way to linear, after playing the first misssion. I quickly hungered for the ability to be able to go MY ways, not have to go through tight-corridors where I must go. In addition, the movement of Garett is just to lackluster and montomous. The running speed of Garett is equivalent to the walking speed of Garett in T1 and T2. I was highly disappointed how Ion Storm did not manage to follow the footsteps of Through The Looking Glass's design elements. When I play T2 and T1, there is a lot of atmotsphere, I am able to go where I am, and overall it somewhat immerses you into the game as actually being a part of the mission, but this is the completely opposite for DS. When I play DS, I feel as though I am controlling Garett, not myself. The immersion factor is much lower. I also missed the great random things the guards would say. Most of the guards just walk, and appear as do not have much life in them. It is if they are drones.
This is why I favor T1 and T2 over DS. I think Thief: Deadly Shadows was a failure.
Komag on 13/5/2006 at 19:04
I agree with some of those things, but I found the AI in TDS to be much more lively and interactive than T1G2.
Ziemanskye on 13/5/2006 at 19:10
Could this not have joined one of the hundreds of other threads bashing TDS?
Beyond that, after the training mission you do get more freedom - remember this was designed as an entry game to the series for the Xbox, and the npcs have more random things they say and are more aware of the world (though that's not easy to tell in the OMs).
Sadly though, for the moment, we're still stuck with the stacatto movement imposed by having a 3d body with pivotable head.
(And as for supposedly being a great game, who've you been listening too? Every review I've seen has said it's only average and not what it could/should have been - and around here it's practically a swear word to some people)
Gore_Torn on 13/5/2006 at 19:53
Quote Posted by Ziemanskye
Could this not have joined one of the hundreds of other threads bashing TDS?
Beyond that, after the training mission you do get more freedom - remember this was designed as an entry game to the series for the Xbox, and the npcs have more random things they say and are more aware of the world (though that's not easy to tell in the OMs).
Sadly though, for the moment, we're still stuck with the stacatto movement imposed by having a 3d body with pivotable head.
(And as for supposedly being a great game, who've you been listening too? Every review I've seen has said it's only average and not what it could/should have been - and around here it's practically a swear word to some people)
Which reminds me........I need to get past misson 2 :laff: :laff:
kidding of course :joke:
tiger@sound.net on 13/5/2006 at 20:49
Sorry, NightFalcon, but if you don't consider T3's "The Shalebridge Cradle" as having some pretty good "atmosphere", or perhaps more likely "At-Most-Fear", then what can I say dude?
Like, maybe, just try something like Silent Hill 2, instead? :cheeky:
Domarius on 14/5/2006 at 06:04
Way too linear? The guards were drones? Explain the logic underlying those conclusions, please.
Even if you ignore the city hub concept completely, each mission I played was pretty much as linear/non-linear as any T1 or T2 missions. There were parts where it was obvious where to go, and there were parts where you could go anywhere.
The castle (the first mission after the training mission), you have 2 secret entrances to go into, ignoring the front doors of course, and after that you have access to all the floors of the castle and the load zones entering the courtyard area (the one with the elevator)
The hammerite cathedral, right after that, after you get in the secret entrance, you have access to upstairs, downstairs, all the rooms, and the only thing locked off is the factory below, which is like that for plot reasons, and when you get down there you have just as much variety of ways to go.
As for NPC behaviour, they call out things like "What's over by the door?" or "He's on the stairs!!", and "I saw something, come quickly!" "Alright, I'm coming" "I swear, he was right here!" "Well, let's look around for a bit then..."
You've only played the training mission, haven't you?
Goldmoon Dawn on 14/5/2006 at 06:35
Quote Posted by NightFalcon
The running speed of Garett is equivalent to the walking speed of Garett in T1 and T2. I was highly disappointed how Ion Storm did not manage to follow the footsteps of Through The Looking Glass's design elements. When I play T2 and T1, there is a lot of atmotsphere, I am able to go where I am, and overall it somewhat immerses you into the game as actually being a part of the mission, but this is the completely opposite for DS. When I play DS, I feel as though I am controlling Garett, not myself.
It is always painful for me to read comparisons between 1 and 3. Remember that even though Warren "promised" us that his intentions were noble, he of course ended up letting the game become a console endeavor. That is probably why it feels more like controlling a character rather than being immersed. Third Person. :(
I think one of the most important reasons part 3 didn't have many largely open areas was because of the lack of water and rope arrows. If those two things were present, open areas would be a natural design choice. Let's face it, the wall gloves are in no way a substitute for rope arrows, like many had suggested.
The game may have been perceived as a good game by many new and old fans, but it just didn't have the story build up like Dark Project. By the time you got to Return To Cathedral, you barely had any wits left, let alone being able to deal with that initial entry to The Cathedral. After opening the Talisman door, I remember sitting inside entryway for minutes, just listening to the Haunts and Zombies roaming around before I could figure out what to do next. That wasn't because of the Mission alone, but the buildup throughout the game. Part 3 did not have this at all. By the time I got to The Cradle, I was barely able to keep a straight face, let alone be "scared" by this highly touted Mission.
However; I personally do not regret my purchase of the PC version simply for the music, sound, and voice resources.
In closing, I wish they had just said right from the start, we are making the next Thief game a third person console kinda-rpg, and followed it through...
OrbWeaver on 14/5/2006 at 09:41
Quote Posted by Goldmoon Dawn
I think one of the most important reasons part 3 didn't have many largely open areas was because of the lack of water and rope arrows. If those two things were present, open areas would be a natural design choice.
No, it was due to engine performance limitations.
I am sure the level designers would have loved to create open areas if the game had been able to cope with it (on the XBox as well as the PC).
Bho on 14/5/2006 at 11:26
Lack of Water Arrows? I always thought TDS had a veritable glut of them, especially towards the end!
Emerald Wolf on 14/5/2006 at 12:17
Goldmoon Dawn meant actual swimable water (should have been phrased as "lack of rope arrows and water"). Of course I might as well add that the over-abundance of elemental arrows in the city hub really ruined the whole point of the shops, as there's not much reason to cash in on your loot if you're not even going to buy anything with it (apart from the climbing gloves and maybe the practice locks).
