Sneaky Is Fun

My slow gaming week is growing, fungus-like, into a slow gaming month. This is a traditionally slow time of year for PC gaming, the release of Splinter Cell notwithstanding, and there's just not a hell of a lot to do - or say.

Splinter Cell is, of course, the big news of the moment. Tremendously popular game, extremely playable by all accounts (I'm waiting to upgrade my system before I pick it up), graphically gorgeous, and so forth. I've seen the demo, and I must admit it looks mighty sweet.

I was talking to a particular idiot I know earlier today, and asked if I was playing Splinter Cell yet. I told him no, explained the "lack of sufficient hardware" situation, and told him I was still getting my quality stealth fix on by way of Thief 2, a classic from a few years back that I, for one reason or another, have never played.

And he sez to me. "That game sucks!"

Fighting down the urge to demonstrate the Thiefly art of clubbing someone over the head with a heavy object, I diplomatically asked him to explain such a stupid-ass comment. He couldn't narrow it down to anything specific, but seemed to feel the game was boring, unengaging, and just generally "stupid."

While there's no doubt in my mind that a certain amount of stupid was involved in his opinion, it seems to me that the stupid here is less the game and more... him. Not that I'm one to deny people their right to an opinion, but sometimes opinions are so poorly-formed that stupid is the only word to describe them. And when a person can rant and rave about Splinter Cell, and then in the next breath blow off the Thief games as crap, I cannot help but wonder just how much wind is whistling through the space between that person's ears.

Thief and Thief 2, in case you didn't know, were the precursors to Splinter Cell. They were the first FPS titles, as far as I know, where the point was to not kill people. The manual, in fact, made a point of noting that engaging in combat was the surest way to get yourself killed. You're a thief - you're here for the money. And in case you doubted such sentiments, all you had to do was make some noise and wait for a guard or two to track you down. Ass-kicking would commence soon after, with your ass, unfortunately, being the kickee.

The original Thief was without question one of the finest games I have ever played. A big statement, but true. This game was sheer, mind-blowing genius. It was tough making the transition from over-armed killing machine to "please don't hit me" sneaky guy, but once I got the proper feel for the game, I was in heaven. I'm a pretty well-rounded FPS veteran, but Thief was an entirely new experience for me, and one I wallowed in.

Thief 2 is proving to be more of the same. Bigger, more refined, maybe not quite as atmospheric as the original, but a much tighter and more compelling story. The only knock against it is that it lacked the originality of the first game - obviously - so that feeling of a wholly new experience wasn't there. Even so, it's one of the finest sequels ever made, and a brilliant game in it's own right.

But this opinion remained hanging in the air, like an unintentionally-exposed wang at the breakfast table after a sleepover at your friend's house when you're 10 years old. Why is Thief sux0r while Splinter Cell is r0x0r?

I can't figure it out myself. People are stupid, I suppose that's the simplest approach, but I don't think it can be blown off quite so easily. Let's face it, Splinter Cell is doing gangbusters business, while the Thief games, from what I hear, barely broke even. The technology in Splinter Cell is greatly advanced over Thief, but the gameplay experience is what matters here. Splinter Cell has all sorts of gadgets and guns to play with, but Thief has no small amount of fun-and-useful toys itself. And while Sam Fisher may be a dangerous dude, no way does he come close to the uber-coolness that is Garrett. So what the hell?

Gimme some reasons. Send me an email and tell me what you think. First off, if Splinter Cell is your bag, have you ever played Thief? If so, how do you think they compare? And if not, why not? This is something I'd honestly like some feedback on, and maybe something we can talk about in greater depth in the future.

In the meantime, take some advice: if you're enjoying Splinter Cell, go out and get yourself a copy of Thief. Finding the originals is tricky, especially Thief 2, but Eidos was smart enough (for once) to release both Thief Gold and Thief 2: The Metal Age in a combo pack, which can be had on the serious cheap. I'm talking serious stealth fun here, people, in a game that has aged remarkably well. This game is pure magic, and deserves to be experienced.

Email if you dare!