TR_Wolf on 24/6/2006 at 09:37
So list your favourite 3 things, and 3 things you hated most about Thief 3?
Likes
1) Streets felt more like real streets, more people etc.
2) New lockpicking system is a little more challenging than in T1+2
3) General graphics.
Dislikes
1) Map doesnt tell you where you are or where you've been.
2) The ragdoll system is terrible. If I blackjack someone from behind, they shouldnt fold up on themselves. Also when you throw someone down they tend to land with arms and legs bent in funny ways.
3) Some of the NPC's... the fact that there werent many townspeople models... fat man with moustache, woman in red dress, generic guy, that seemed to be it. My second part of this peeve is the really bad English accent done by the higher-pitched-voiced guy, does a few townspeople, was the guy dealing with "fake" Garrett etc, his accent's awful. It like with Mary Poppins, if you arent English, Dick Van Dyke's "Bert" sounds fine, but if you're English, it's horrendous! Same with this voice actor.
So what are yours?
Vigil on 24/6/2006 at 11:26
- The lockpicking system is one of my top likes, once the onscreen readout is turned off - which is likely how it was originally intended. This way you need to judge by sound, hand position and (if you have a suitable gamepad) vibration rather than by clear visual cues, and memorisation of the sweet spots based on lock style becomes more important. After this tiny change the lockpicking minigame is involving and challenging rather than tedious.
- Another thing I particularly liked was the more nuanced AI behaviour - the most obvious aspect of this being that guards will go investigating without shouting blue murder, and in general have more lifelike behaviour while they're not yet suspicious. Another aspect of this is the location-aware alerts they shout to each other ("There he is! In the [hall/corridor/etc]!) which are quite a nice touch I think. Last but not least, the little unscripted mini-interactions that AIs will occasionally have with one another when passing.
- Finally, I realise I'll be going to hell for this, but I am very fond of the third-person mode. A tossup between this and the three unique pieces of loot in each mission, which added a nice bit of character.
The dislikes I have will undoubtedly be covered better and in minute detail by everyone else who posts, so I'll just post my #1: the readables are fucking awful.
Tony on 24/6/2006 at 11:44
Wow, where to start? Likes are voice acting and lighting effects; I cannot think of a third. My top three dislikes - oh, which shall I choose - are probably the animations (including the mentioned ragdoll "physics," wall climbing gloves replacing rope arrows, and blue shadows.
henke on 24/6/2006 at 12:00
Dislikes:
-Spineless ragdoll model
-Clunky interface
-Small levels
Likes:
-Graphics
-The X-Box version - I can bring it with me, on the road. Or play it in the couch. Whenever I like, without having to bother with reinstalls and patches n shit. INSTANT THIEF ACTION JUST PRESS START BUTTON - Ideal for the Casual Thief (Yeah that's right I don't have Thief installed at all times WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO???)
-Despite many flaws, it still felt like Thief
Morrgan on 24/6/2006 at 12:34
Likes:
- The ambient music and sounds of zombies and haunts.
- The lockpicking system.
- This will probably send me to hell (hi Vig), but I liked the new HUD (except the lightgem, which I still can't read correctly).
Dislikes:
- The stiff animations, which somehow are so unnatural they break immersion for me. Included here the strange movements of Garrett in 1st person.
- Shitty writing, which pretty much only served the purpose of SECRET LOOT IS HIDDEN HERE. Grrarrrrrgggh.
- Lack of briefing movies. :(
I'd want to list small size of levels as well, as I dislike that about as much as the lack of briefings.
Werewolfintheshadows on 24/6/2006 at 12:46
Three loves:
Amazing graphics/including awesome lighting and shadows/facial expressions
Ability of free roam in the city quarters in between missions is awesome
/Great AI and npc interaction
Storyline consistent with TDP rather than TTMA, more house breaking, pagan involvement, insight into the role of the keepers, more undead etc, just more essential thief factors back in action. Especially no crappy mechanical drones stomping around like something out of the matrix.
Three hates:
Small levels/causing too many loading intersections
Lack of /rope arrows/holy water arrows/sword/new weaponry. Lack of consistent weaponry in general
Poor co-ordination of garretts body when moving, stumbling sort of run, excessive head bob, awkward body turning/3rd person totally unnecessary though quite good for screenshots
Tony on 24/6/2006 at 13:12
Amazing graphics? Garrett's belt is a texture, there is no three dimensional model for it! I've seen real time strategy games do better than that. Textures for three dimensional models went out around 1999.
New Horizon on 24/6/2006 at 13:23
Quote Posted by Tony
Amazing graphics? Garrett's belt is a texture, there is no three dimensional model for it! I've seen real time strategy games do better than that. Textures for three dimensional models went out around 1999.
I haven't looked at Garrett in great detail, since I don't play in third person...but it must be normal mapped, is it not? They would have modeled the belt in the high res version but since there were poly constraints, they likely had to trim it down quite a bit.
Okay, time for my likes.
Lockpicking, mantling was well done, guess that's about it.
Dislikes
Sloppy anims, no rope arrows, small levels
Spitter on 24/6/2006 at 14:59
Likes: Lockpicking, Cradle level, decent conclusion to the story
Dislikes: Cartoonish models, clunky 1st person movement, overall a bit boring level design
OrbWeaver on 24/6/2006 at 15:37
Quote Posted by Tony
Amazing graphics? Garrett's belt is a texture, there is no three dimensional model for it! I've seen real time strategy games do better than that. Textures for three dimensional models went out around 1999.
No they didn't. Try playing Doom 3/Quake 4/Prey with normal mapping disabled (r_skipBump 1) and see how good it looks.
