GMR: Thief: Deadly Shadows

The third game in the kingpin of stealth-game series on PC, Thief, is slinking its way to both PC and Xbox. Veterans of the previous two games know that Thief is all about the sneaking and the robbing. Thief: Deadly Shadows promises more of the same. Ion Storm wouldn't comment on the plot, but we do know it involves master thief Garrett (again), some forces of darkness, and much stealing from rich people.

Since Garrett isn't much of a fighter, he still has an arsenal of arrows and tools (such as flash bombs) designed to either incapacitate guards or cover his tracks to avoid detection in the first place. Sure, he's got a dagger to fight 1-on-1, but he's better off just cracking the back of someone's head with a blackjack.

The most surprising addition to the Thief franchise? A third-person mode. The previous two games were strictly first person, but now players have the option to switch to a new third-person setting. You can easily change your perspective on the fly or just stick to one and play the entire game that way. With the new third-person option, you can actually see Garrett do his slick leans, stealthy climbs, and guard blackjacking. You still have the handy visibility gem that dims when you're hidden and lights up when you're visible.

Other additions include dynamic shadows (Garrett can fuss with the lighting to create shadows that are advantageous for hiding), ruthless A.I. that will call for help and investigate suspicious places, and a wider variety of mission types (including stealing, sabotaging, assassinating, and even setting up ambushes). All of this uses the same engine that powers Deus Ex: Invisible War, so besides playing well, it'll look snazzy, too. We hope the effort to make Thief more console and newbie friendly (cough, Deus Ex, cough) doesn't involve dumbing it down, though.

GMR SAYS Looks and sneaks good—we'll have to see if the kingpin of PC stealth games stays a kingpin once it enters the stealth-filled console arena.