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This game of mine wasnt in the database, so I thought that this was the best place to post my review on it. Hope you like it.
--------
Introduction
Fed up with huge explosions, senseless shooting, and inane plot lines in first-person action games? Unreal Tournament and Quake III Arena have been at the bottom of my pile of games for some time now, and Thief 2 was a pleasant change.
Gameplay
Throw away all the blatant strutting around bearing large weapons of mass destruction. Throw away the monotony of 'Kill everything to win' plot lines. Thief 2 has you playing the part of Garrett, a master at sneak-thievery. Infiltration, burglary, and other stealthy pursuits are the name of the game. Instead of charging at people with blazing guns, you sneak up on them and give them a hard whack on the back of the head. Sure, you can chop at people with your sword if some blood-letting seems in order, but stealth is encouraged, and in some cases is essential to the success of the mission.
Graphics
The graphics are slick, smooth, and look great. A large choice of resolutions is available, so people with low-end graphics cards need not despair, whilst those with high-end cards can bask in some excellent visuals. Since you tend to creep around rather than sprint, you do get to take in and appreciate the quality and quantity of the various areas you travel through, and the attention to detail in places is amazing.
The 'enemies' have life-like behaviours (as well as you can expect for a computer game), ranging from their walking as they patrol their area through to their slow creep forwards, looking to either side, as they approach to investigate the accidental flash of light or heavy footstep.
Sound
The sound is also excellent, and is a crucial part of the game. You will often hear someone before you see them, and this can give you crucial early warning of someone's impending approach. The EAX support is excellent; you can tell exactly what direction someone is approaching from, and exactly how far away they are, just by using your ears.
The game in depth
There are fifteen missions which fit together to form a complete campaign. Things start off fairly 'run of the mill', with a simple mission to help a friend rescue his damsel in distress. Later, the plot thickens, and you find yourself combating a large and complex foe.
There are three difficulty levels, which mostly affect the strength and/or numbers of enemies. Also, higher difficulty levels make larger demands of you in the missions (kill less people, steal more loot, don't let the alarm be sounded, etc.)
The various areas in which the missions are based are huge. In many missions, you can get by with exploring less than half of the total area, at least if you play the 'normal' difficulty level. At the end of each level, you are told how much of the loot you stole, and how many secret areas you found; this is a challenge to try to meet if you have the patience, since it can lengthen the overall game considerably; a good thing if you don't have much else to do! This is optional though, and gives you some control of the longevity of the game. Me, I'm playing the game once on the 'normal' difficulty, to follow the story, and if time allows, I'll go back and try to empty each level.
You have a reasonably large selection of tools with which to perform your missions. As well as your trusty blackjack - excellent for those knock-out blows to the back of the head - you have a sword and a bow. The sword really is a last resort, but the bow has some cunning uses. Rope arrows allow you to fire an arrow into, for example, a wooden ceiling beam, and then climb up the rope to reach an otherwise inaccessible ledge. A water arrow can be used to clean up tell-tale blood stains (so that other 'enemies' don't discover them and become suspicious or even raise the alarm) and also to put out fires (such as burning torches; shadows are you friends). Noisemaker arrows are unsubtle, but can make your enemies move out of position to investigate, giving you a clear route to wherever you want to get to. Finally, moss arrows can cover the ground in, well, moss; this gives an otherwise noisy floor a nice carpet for you to creep across.
Other tools are lock-picks, flash-bombs (not subtle, but sufficient to help you escape by blinding your enemies - but be careful lest you blind yourself too, and look very stupid), and something that resembles a remote eye-ball, allowing you to investigate an area up ahead without actually having to go there first.
Make no mistake, this game is very tactical. Most other first-person games fall into the pattern of 'run-shoot-dodge', and once you have mastered the controls, there's nothing to think about. Thief 2 has you assessing each situation. How much noise will I make? Where are the shadows? Will any of my tools help? Should I try a different route? Should I knock out the guard, or sneak round him? Also, you have to consider the consequences of your actions; leaving doors open may well assist you in beating a hasty retreat should the situation arise, but it's also going to alert your enemy to your presence, particularly if you leave a normally-locked door to a private area sitting wide open. Knocking someone out is all well and good, but you have to hide the body in case someone spots it and raises the alarm.
Summary
Both the graphics and sound really immerse you in the game. I found myself straining my ears to hear footsteps, rather than turning up the volume, and leaning in my seat to peer round corners, which is quite ridiculous. This engrossing gameplay is one of the game's strongest features, along with some excellent design; the graphics, sound, and area layout must have had a great deal of time spent on them.
If you like first-person games but fancy a variation on the usual, or perhaps normally abhor the violence of such games but are intrigued by the thought of sneaking rather than killing, then give this game a shot.
Also, if you liked the first game (Thief - The Dark Project), then this is more of the same. Little has apparently changed in the game engine itself, but there are plenty of new places to explore and missions to complete. Having played (and completed) the original game myself, I don't believe this either adds or removes value from playing Thief 2. Arguably, Thief 2 could have been released as an expansion pack, but being released separately has the advantage to others of not needing the original game to play it.
An original twist to an otherwise dull genre, this game stands high in my games collection. Why not add it to yours?
--------
Introduction
Fed up with huge explosions, senseless shooting, and inane plot lines in first-person action games? Unreal Tournament and Quake III Arena have been at the bottom of my pile of games for some time now, and Thief 2 was a pleasant change.
Gameplay
Throw away all the blatant strutting around bearing large weapons of mass destruction. Throw away the monotony of 'Kill everything to win' plot lines. Thief 2 has you playing the part of Garrett, a master at sneak-thievery. Infiltration, burglary, and other stealthy pursuits are the name of the game. Instead of charging at people with blazing guns, you sneak up on them and give them a hard whack on the back of the head. Sure, you can chop at people with your sword if some blood-letting seems in order, but stealth is encouraged, and in some cases is essential to the success of the mission.
Graphics
The graphics are slick, smooth, and look great. A large choice of resolutions is available, so people with low-end graphics cards need not despair, whilst those with high-end cards can bask in some excellent visuals. Since you tend to creep around rather than sprint, you do get to take in and appreciate the quality and quantity of the various areas you travel through, and the attention to detail in places is amazing.
The 'enemies' have life-like behaviours (as well as you can expect for a computer game), ranging from their walking as they patrol their area through to their slow creep forwards, looking to either side, as they approach to investigate the accidental flash of light or heavy footstep.
Sound
The sound is also excellent, and is a crucial part of the game. You will often hear someone before you see them, and this can give you crucial early warning of someone's impending approach. The EAX support is excellent; you can tell exactly what direction someone is approaching from, and exactly how far away they are, just by using your ears.
The game in depth
There are fifteen missions which fit together to form a complete campaign. Things start off fairly 'run of the mill', with a simple mission to help a friend rescue his damsel in distress. Later, the plot thickens, and you find yourself combating a large and complex foe.
There are three difficulty levels, which mostly affect the strength and/or numbers of enemies. Also, higher difficulty levels make larger demands of you in the missions (kill less people, steal more loot, don't let the alarm be sounded, etc.)
The various areas in which the missions are based are huge. In many missions, you can get by with exploring less than half of the total area, at least if you play the 'normal' difficulty level. At the end of each level, you are told how much of the loot you stole, and how many secret areas you found; this is a challenge to try to meet if you have the patience, since it can lengthen the overall game considerably; a good thing if you don't have much else to do! This is optional though, and gives you some control of the longevity of the game. Me, I'm playing the game once on the 'normal' difficulty, to follow the story, and if time allows, I'll go back and try to empty each level.
You have a reasonably large selection of tools with which to perform your missions. As well as your trusty blackjack - excellent for those knock-out blows to the back of the head - you have a sword and a bow. The sword really is a last resort, but the bow has some cunning uses. Rope arrows allow you to fire an arrow into, for example, a wooden ceiling beam, and then climb up the rope to reach an otherwise inaccessible ledge. A water arrow can be used to clean up tell-tale blood stains (so that other 'enemies' don't discover them and become suspicious or even raise the alarm) and also to put out fires (such as burning torches; shadows are you friends). Noisemaker arrows are unsubtle, but can make your enemies move out of position to investigate, giving you a clear route to wherever you want to get to. Finally, moss arrows can cover the ground in, well, moss; this gives an otherwise noisy floor a nice carpet for you to creep across.
Other tools are lock-picks, flash-bombs (not subtle, but sufficient to help you escape by blinding your enemies - but be careful lest you blind yourself too, and look very stupid), and something that resembles a remote eye-ball, allowing you to investigate an area up ahead without actually having to go there first.
Make no mistake, this game is very tactical. Most other first-person games fall into the pattern of 'run-shoot-dodge', and once you have mastered the controls, there's nothing to think about. Thief 2 has you assessing each situation. How much noise will I make? Where are the shadows? Will any of my tools help? Should I try a different route? Should I knock out the guard, or sneak round him? Also, you have to consider the consequences of your actions; leaving doors open may well assist you in beating a hasty retreat should the situation arise, but it's also going to alert your enemy to your presence, particularly if you leave a normally-locked door to a private area sitting wide open. Knocking someone out is all well and good, but you have to hide the body in case someone spots it and raises the alarm.
Summary
Both the graphics and sound really immerse you in the game. I found myself straining my ears to hear footsteps, rather than turning up the volume, and leaning in my seat to peer round corners, which is quite ridiculous. This engrossing gameplay is one of the game's strongest features, along with some excellent design; the graphics, sound, and area layout must have had a great deal of time spent on them.
If you like first-person games but fancy a variation on the usual, or perhaps normally abhor the violence of such games but are intrigued by the thought of sneaking rather than killing, then give this game a shot.
Also, if you liked the first game (Thief - The Dark Project), then this is more of the same. Little has apparently changed in the game engine itself, but there are plenty of new places to explore and missions to complete. Having played (and completed) the original game myself, I don't believe this either adds or removes value from playing Thief 2. Arguably, Thief 2 could have been released as an expansion pack, but being released separately has the advantage to others of not needing the original game to play it.
An original twist to an otherwise dull genre, this game stands high in my games collection. Why not add it to yours?
There have been no replies to this thread yet.
This game of mine wasnt in the database, so I thought that this was the best place to post my review on it. Hope you like it.
--------
Introduction
Fed up with huge explosions, senseless shooting, and inane plot lines in first-person action games? Unreal Tournament and Quake III Arena have been at the bottom of my pile of games for some time now, and Thief 2 was a pleasant change.
Gameplay
Throw away all the blatant strutting around bearing large weapons of mass destruction. Throw away the monotony of 'Kill everything to win' plot lines. Thief 2 has you playing the part of Garrett, a master at sneak-thievery. Infiltration, burglary, and other stealthy pursuits are the name of the game. Instead of charging at people with blazing guns, you sneak up on them and give them a hard whack on the back of the head. Sure, you can chop at people with your sword if some blood-letting seems in order, but stealth is encouraged, and in some cases is essential to the success of the mission.
Graphics
The graphics are slick, smooth, and look great. A large choice of resolutions is available, so people with low-end graphics cards need not despair, whilst those with high-end cards can bask in some excellent visuals. Since you tend to creep around rather than sprint, you do get to take in and appreciate the quality and quantity of the various areas you travel through, and the attention to detail in places is amazing.
The 'enemies' have life-like behaviours (as well as you can expect for a computer game), ranging from their walking as they patrol their area through to their slow creep forwards, looking to either side, as they approach to investigate the accidental flash of light or heavy footstep.
Sound
The sound is also excellent, and is a crucial part of the game. You will often hear someone before you see them, and this can give you crucial early warning of someone's impending approach. The EAX support is excellent; you can tell exactly what direction someone is approaching from, and exactly how far away they are, just by using your ears.
The game in depth
There are fifteen missions which fit together to form a complete campaign. Things start off fairly 'run of the mill', with a simple mission to help a friend rescue his damsel in distress. Later, the plot thickens, and you find yourself combating a large and complex foe.
There are three difficulty levels, which mostly affect the strength and/or numbers of enemies. Also, higher difficulty levels make larger demands of you in the missions (kill less people, steal more loot, don't let the alarm be sounded, etc.)
The various areas in which the missions are based are huge. In many missions, you can get by with exploring less than half of the total area, at least if you play the 'normal' difficulty level. At the end of each level, you are told how much of the loot you stole, and how many secret areas you found; this is a challenge to try to meet if you have the patience, since it can lengthen the overall game considerably; a good thing if you don't have much else to do! This is optional though, and gives you some control of the longevity of the game. Me, I'm playing the game once on the 'normal' difficulty, to follow the story, and if time allows, I'll go back and try to empty each level.
You have a reasonably large selection of tools with which to perform your missions. As well as your trusty blackjack - excellent for those knock-out blows to the back of the head - you have a sword and a bow. The sword really is a last resort, but the bow has some cunning uses. Rope arrows allow you to fire an arrow into, for example, a wooden ceiling beam, and then climb up the rope to reach an otherwise inaccessible ledge. A water arrow can be used to clean up tell-tale blood stains (so that other 'enemies' don't discover them and become suspicious or even raise the alarm) and also to put out fires (such as burning torches; shadows are you friends). Noisemaker arrows are unsubtle, but can make your enemies move out of position to investigate, giving you a clear route to wherever you want to get to. Finally, moss arrows can cover the ground in, well, moss; this gives an otherwise noisy floor a nice carpet for you to creep across.
Other tools are lock-picks, flash-bombs (not subtle, but sufficient to help you escape by blinding your enemies - but be careful lest you blind yourself too, and look very stupid), and something that resembles a remote eye-ball, allowing you to investigate an area up ahead without actually having to go there first.
Make no mistake, this game is very tactical. Most other first-person games fall into the pattern of 'run-shoot-dodge', and once you have mastered the controls, there's nothing to think about. Thief 2 has you assessing each situation. How much noise will I make? Where are the shadows? Will any of my tools help? Should I try a different route? Should I knock out the guard, or sneak round him? Also, you have to consider the consequences of your actions; leaving doors open may well assist you in beating a hasty retreat should the situation arise, but it's also going to alert your enemy to your presence, particularly if you leave a normally-locked door to a private area sitting wide open. Knocking someone out is all well and good, but you have to hide the body in case someone spots it and raises the alarm.
Summary
Both the graphics and sound really immerse you in the game. I found myself straining my ears to hear footsteps, rather than turning up the volume, and leaning in my seat to peer round corners, which is quite ridiculous. This engrossing gameplay is one of the game's strongest features, along with some excellent design; the graphics, sound, and area layout must have had a great deal of time spent on them.
If you like first-person games but fancy a variation on the usual, or perhaps normally abhor the violence of such games but are intrigued by the thought of sneaking rather than killing, then give this game a shot.
Also, if you liked the first game (Thief - The Dark Project), then this is more of the same. Little has apparently changed in the game engine itself, but there are plenty of new places to explore and missions to complete. Having played (and completed) the original game myself, I don't believe this either adds or removes value from playing Thief 2. Arguably, Thief 2 could have been released as an expansion pack, but being released separately has the advantage to others of not needing the original game to play it.
An original twist to an otherwise dull genre, this game stands high in my games collection. Why not add it to yours?
--------
Introduction
Fed up with huge explosions, senseless shooting, and inane plot lines in first-person action games? Unreal Tournament and Quake III Arena have been at the bottom of my pile of games for some time now, and Thief 2 was a pleasant change.
Gameplay
Throw away all the blatant strutting around bearing large weapons of mass destruction. Throw away the monotony of 'Kill everything to win' plot lines. Thief 2 has you playing the part of Garrett, a master at sneak-thievery. Infiltration, burglary, and other stealthy pursuits are the name of the game. Instead of charging at people with blazing guns, you sneak up on them and give them a hard whack on the back of the head. Sure, you can chop at people with your sword if some blood-letting seems in order, but stealth is encouraged, and in some cases is essential to the success of the mission.
Graphics
The graphics are slick, smooth, and look great. A large choice of resolutions is available, so people with low-end graphics cards need not despair, whilst those with high-end cards can bask in some excellent visuals. Since you tend to creep around rather than sprint, you do get to take in and appreciate the quality and quantity of the various areas you travel through, and the attention to detail in places is amazing.
The 'enemies' have life-like behaviours (as well as you can expect for a computer game), ranging from their walking as they patrol their area through to their slow creep forwards, looking to either side, as they approach to investigate the accidental flash of light or heavy footstep.
Sound
The sound is also excellent, and is a crucial part of the game. You will often hear someone before you see them, and this can give you crucial early warning of someone's impending approach. The EAX support is excellent; you can tell exactly what direction someone is approaching from, and exactly how far away they are, just by using your ears.
The game in depth
There are fifteen missions which fit together to form a complete campaign. Things start off fairly 'run of the mill', with a simple mission to help a friend rescue his damsel in distress. Later, the plot thickens, and you find yourself combating a large and complex foe.
There are three difficulty levels, which mostly affect the strength and/or numbers of enemies. Also, higher difficulty levels make larger demands of you in the missions (kill less people, steal more loot, don't let the alarm be sounded, etc.)
The various areas in which the missions are based are huge. In many missions, you can get by with exploring less than half of the total area, at least if you play the 'normal' difficulty level. At the end of each level, you are told how much of the loot you stole, and how many secret areas you found; this is a challenge to try to meet if you have the patience, since it can lengthen the overall game considerably; a good thing if you don't have much else to do! This is optional though, and gives you some control of the longevity of the game. Me, I'm playing the game once on the 'normal' difficulty, to follow the story, and if time allows, I'll go back and try to empty each level.
You have a reasonably large selection of tools with which to perform your missions. As well as your trusty blackjack - excellent for those knock-out blows to the back of the head - you have a sword and a bow. The sword really is a last resort, but the bow has some cunning uses. Rope arrows allow you to fire an arrow into, for example, a wooden ceiling beam, and then climb up the rope to reach an otherwise inaccessible ledge. A water arrow can be used to clean up tell-tale blood stains (so that other 'enemies' don't discover them and become suspicious or even raise the alarm) and also to put out fires (such as burning torches; shadows are you friends). Noisemaker arrows are unsubtle, but can make your enemies move out of position to investigate, giving you a clear route to wherever you want to get to. Finally, moss arrows can cover the ground in, well, moss; this gives an otherwise noisy floor a nice carpet for you to creep across.
Other tools are lock-picks, flash-bombs (not subtle, but sufficient to help you escape by blinding your enemies - but be careful lest you blind yourself too, and look very stupid), and something that resembles a remote eye-ball, allowing you to investigate an area up ahead without actually having to go there first.
Make no mistake, this game is very tactical. Most other first-person games fall into the pattern of 'run-shoot-dodge', and once you have mastered the controls, there's nothing to think about. Thief 2 has you assessing each situation. How much noise will I make? Where are the shadows? Will any of my tools help? Should I try a different route? Should I knock out the guard, or sneak round him? Also, you have to consider the consequences of your actions; leaving doors open may well assist you in beating a hasty retreat should the situation arise, but it's also going to alert your enemy to your presence, particularly if you leave a normally-locked door to a private area sitting wide open. Knocking someone out is all well and good, but you have to hide the body in case someone spots it and raises the alarm.
Summary
Both the graphics and sound really immerse you in the game. I found myself straining my ears to hear footsteps, rather than turning up the volume, and leaning in my seat to peer round corners, which is quite ridiculous. This engrossing gameplay is one of the game's strongest features, along with some excellent design; the graphics, sound, and area layout must have had a great deal of time spent on them.
If you like first-person games but fancy a variation on the usual, or perhaps normally abhor the violence of such games but are intrigued by the thought of sneaking rather than killing, then give this game a shot.
Also, if you liked the first game (Thief - The Dark Project), then this is more of the same. Little has apparently changed in the game engine itself, but there are plenty of new places to explore and missions to complete. Having played (and completed) the original game myself, I don't believe this either adds or removes value from playing Thief 2. Arguably, Thief 2 could have been released as an expansion pack, but being released separately has the advantage to others of not needing the original game to play it.
An original twist to an otherwise dull genre, this game stands high in my games collection. Why not add it to yours?