Thief reviews rolling in...you may want to cancel that pre-order

You will never know how a game really is until you play it.

And I very strongly disagree with this. By watching a stream of Thief, you can get a reasonably accurate idea of what the level design is like, what the AI is like, what the stealth is like, what the gameplay is like, etc. It's not a 100% accurate view of how the game plays, but it gets close enough that you shouldn't have to actually play the game to know whether you're going to enjoy it or not.

I don't agree with this notion that you absolutely have to play a game yourself before you know whether you're going to enjoy it or not.
 
I suppose it's easier for someone who plays very few games to tell if he/she will like a game or no without hands on. The more games and more variety you play, the harder it gets to make assumptions. That's true in my case anyway.
 
I completely agree with you here. For example Gothic 2 is one of my all time favourite RPG's even though it's average review scores were in the 60's, for me there we elements in the game that absolutely gelled with me.

That's because you're reading scores, not reviews. Scores are not an accurate portrayal of reviews and I really wish more sites would adopt Kotaku's Yes/No system, because too many people obsess over scores instead of reading the content of the actual review. Gothic 2 was a great game and one of the greatest RPGs I've played, but maybe if you read the reviews attached to those 60% scores, you would realise why those scores were given to the game?

Gothic 2 was hardly flawless and it hails from an era where 60 was not considered a bad score. Back then, 50% was considered 'average', now 70% is bordering on 'bad'. Metacritic has ruined an entire generation of reviews.
 
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And I very strongly disagree with this. By watching a stream of Thief, you can get a reasonably accurate idea of what the level design is like, what the AI is like, what the stealth is like, what the gameplay is like, etc. It's not a 100% accurate view of how the game plays, but it gets close enough that you shouldn't have to actually play the game to know whether you're going to enjoy it or not.

I don't agree with this notion that you absolutely have to play a game yourself before you know whether you're going to enjoy it or not.

Well then all I can say is....

Your time is coming.
 
Hehe. Dat AI.

Thief: A Guard's Patrol Log

8:15

It's my first night as a guard here at Plot Point Manor, but I can already tell this is going to be a sweet gig. There's only one path that a criminal could possibly take through the property. Once you get past certain checkpoints, it's physically impossible to go backwards. How? Beats me. There must be some magic at work protecting this place. Even the act of climbing onto ledges and windowsills is limited to specific anchor points.

8:53

Well that was an interesting start. My route took me past a door where two people were having very explicit sex. They kept describing the act in detail, and seemed to repeat the conversation as if on a loop. Well, I suppose no one can say this manor isn't mature.

Curiously, the volume of their conversation didn't lower as I walked away. I need to get my mind off them. Think I'll go find another guard and talk about penis piercings. No, I am actually going to do that in great detail and if a thief happens to be nearby they will hear the conversation.

10:01

Huh. That was weird. I was just standing with my back to a door when it opened, slowly pushing me aside. I let it happen, my feet sliding and my posture not changing at all as I continued to stare straight ahead. While the view changed I thought about how odd it was, since no one should have been in that room.

Going to continue my rounds, though I am slightly troubled by the incident.

10:13

Saw someone. Pretty sure it was a thief. He was crouched and wearing a thief's clothing. Bugger wandered out of a shadow directly in front of me. I began to yell, but he stepped back. No harm done. Back to my route.

10:39

Stood still while a cutscene happened somewhere else in the manor.

It was odd, the entire world freezing like that. I get to relax, though, and still get paid by the hour. Even better, these things supposedly happen all the time. One of the other guards say that for every ten minutes that a thief might be prowling through the manor there's another fifteen minutes of cutscene time.

11:10

More suspicious activity. I keep hearing someone walking around. The strange thing is, their footfalls make exactly the same noise whether they seem to be coming from outside on the stone, inside on a carpet, or on wood. Exactly the same sound. If I didn't know better I'd think the universe is lazy and/or broken.

11:42

My patrol route took me through a darkened area. I'm no scaredy cat, but in the shadows I experience an eerie sensation.

You know how it feels when you know you're all alone, but you'd swear someone was watching your every move? It was like that, but I was also getting smashed in the face by a blackjack dozens of times. As the blows rained down upon my face I stood perfectly still and watched for intruders.

Didn't see anyone, though.

12:01

Holy shit, I saw a thief! Chased the scoundrel to a dead end containing a single closet. I saw the closet door shut.

Scratched my head and walked away. This place is full of mysteries.

3:11

I just spoke to one of the guards from the upper level. He says a thief came through here. Hardly took anything. Just made a beeline through the only entrance, fought every guard he saw along the way, slowed down time to execute cinematic kills, and left through the only exit.

That doesn't sound right to me. Is someone that does all that even a thief?
 
That's because you're reading scores, not reviews. Scores are not an accurate portrayal of reviews and I really wish more sites would adopt Kotaku's Yes/No system, because too many people obsess over scores instead of reading the content of the actual review. Gothic 2 was a great game and one of the greatest RPGs I've played, but maybe if you read the reviews attached to those 60% scores, you would realise why those scores were given to the game?

Gothic 2 was hardly flawless and it hails from an era where 60 was not considered a bad score. Back then, 50% was considered 'average', now 70% is bordering on 'bad'. Metacritic has ruined an entire generation of reviews.

You assume I read scores, I absolutely do not. The content of any review is what helps me decide if a game is for me or not. I used the score as an shorthand example of the average opinion about the game (this being an average of the reviews I read at the time I considered getting the game).

Regardless of what 60% might have meant at the time, the game was taken to task in most reviews for it's numerous flaws. My point is that even taking all these flaws into account (of which there are many and most people wouldn't put up with it) I still loved every second of that game, more so than most games that are today considered near perfect.
 
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You assume I read scores, I absolutely do not. The content of any review is what helps me decide if a game is for me or not. I used the score as an shorthand example of the average opinion about the game (this being an average of the reviews I read at the time I considered getting the game).

Regardless of what 60% might have meant at the time, the game was taken to task in most reviews for it's numerous flaws. My point is that even taking all these flaws into account (of which there are many and most people wouldn't put up with it) I still loved every second of that game, more so than most games that are today considered near perfect.

But why point out the score at all if you don't 'read' scores? :p

Gothic 2 (and its expansion) is widely regarded as one of the best RPGs ever made. It has/had a massive fanbase.
 
HAHA!:D

The time when you are let down after playing a game you assumed would be great based on reviews and vids.

It happens often. I never claimed you can get a 100% accurate indication of whether you'll like a game or not (you'll notice this if you read my posts). You should still be able to avoid turds the majority of the time by just using your healthy judgement.
 
It happens often. I never claimed you can get a 100% accurate indication of whether you'll like a game or not (you'll notice this if you read my posts). You should still be able to avoid turds the majority of the time by just using your healthy judgement.

oh ok. didn't read all the posts, who has time for that right?
 
If you think some of the worst AI we've seen in years is something to rejoice about, I guess it explains a lot. :p

I'll be playing Dishonored in the other side of the room.
 
If you think some of the worst AI we've seen in years is something to rejoice about, I guess it explains a lot. :p

I'll be playing Dishonored in the other side of the room.

Yeah I'm going to have to agree with Clive. This looks like a step backwards :/. Is it out in SA yet? Does anyone have any user impressions to give?

There were PLENTY of moments like those in the previous Thief games. And it was so much fun!

So to me it feels like they have recreated and old classic, yet also keeping the essence that made it Thief. That's why I am going to enjoy it.
 
speaking of Dishonoured....I wanted to like it, i really did. but the "tracking" mechanic was just frustrating. compare it to a game like Far Cry 3. in FC3 you use your "special ability vision" near a camp and it detects enemies and you mark them and when you exit that vision mode, you can still see the enemies. this makes the stealth approach much more pleasant as you know where they are. with Dishonoured, you can only see them when in the special visual mode. it just didn't click for me :(
 
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