Sly Cooper and the Thievius Racoonus
PlayStation 2
I will come straight out and admit that for this review I played the HD version of Sly Cooper and the Thievius Racconus for the PS3. However, I am still going to count this as a PS2 game because most of my experiences with both this game and its sequels came on the PS2 rather than the PS3. Sure this HD version has fancier, sharper graphics, but everything else is exactly the same. It is still a PS2 game in my mind, and hence that shall be what I review it as. So there! I hope that's okay with you, pal!!
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Now that we've got that out of the way, let's begin.
If you are a fan of 3D platforming games, you probably had a great time back in the PlayStation 2 era. There was certainly a large selection of such games to choose from. Jak and Daxter, Ratchet and Clank, Psychonauts, Spyro, Rayman, the list went on and on. Most of these games spawned a large number of sequels or were themselves sequels as well. For 3D platform fanatics, it was a great time to be alive.
The Sly Cooper series was always one that stood out to me. My at-the-time girlfriend and I found the original Sly title at a Gamestop. It was new and expensive but we had seen the previews on G4 and thought that it looked super cool. We had some money to burn so we decided to give it a try. Turns out we both really liked the game. She even liked it a little bit more than I did. As a result, we ended up over the years getting all three Sly titles that came out for the PS2.
While the Sly sequels are more advanced than the original in terms of content, story line, and game play, I still have always preferred the first entry in the series. I find its simplicity charming. Plus, you aren't constantly getting bogged down with copious amounts of boring dialogue scenes in the original game. But I get ahead of myself. That is a criticism I have for the later games in the series, so I will wait until I play and review them to start ranting.
The game's main story line is nice and simple. Sly Cooper is a master thief descended from a long line of master thieves. For his birthday he is given access to the Thievius Raccoonus, a book written by his ancestors that contains all anyone needs to know about the thieving trade. Hints, tricks, special attack moves, thieving tactics. But before he can lay his hands on the book, he discovers that it has been stolen by the "Fiendish Five". This is a group of rival thieves that is jealous of Sly's success. They split the book into five equal parts before splitting up and going their separate ways. Playing as Sly, it is now up to you to track down the Fiendish Five and reclaim the Thievius Racoonus as your own.
Sly's graphics have always been a strong point even from its very first entry. This game, in addition to its eventual sequels, takes place in a fully 3D cell shaded world. Everything looks like a hand drawn cartoon rather than your typical video game graphic polygons. If you have ever played anything like The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker or Jet Set Radio, you know exactly what I am talking about with this looking like a cartoon. This HD version looks extremely sharp and crisp for the PS3 on my big TV. I am sure it was a little more muddied and not-as-nice looking on the PS2 when it first came out, but if so that would be expected.
The presentation of the game is very theatrical. Right from the get-go you feel like this is an interactive movie that you have been placed directly into. You take control of Sly Cooper in the middle of a safe robbing heist. Sly is supported remotely by his fellow thieves and partners in crime - Bentley and Murray. These two will help you by giving you tips and advice as you advance in the game. While you never directly control either character (although you get that chance in later entries to the series) they are involved in several mini games which help to break up the platforming monotony.
A few examples of these mini games involve racing levels, levels where you shoot enemies from a sniper scope, and an Asteroids-style computer hacking game. When you are not playing mini games, you are in control of Sly Cooper. Sly jumps, runs, sneaks, attacks, and grabs onto things. As you play the game you have the option of opening up safes which contain even more moves and actions for your character.
Combat is pretty straightforward. Sly swings his staff and does damage to his enemies. Earlier in the game most enemies just take one hit to kill. The deeper into the game you get, the more difficult they become. There is a stealth element to the game, as some enemies won't see your character if you keep out of their line of sight. This allows you to sneak up close to them, jump out, and eliminate them without letting them attack you or make a racket that acts as a signal that calls other enemies over to investigate.
This game can be a bit challenging in spots as Sly can't take a whole lot of damage. Normally it only takes one hit to kill our beloved raccoon, but health upgrades can be found. These upgrades take the form of a silver horseshoe. Collect the horseshoe and you can be hit an extra ONE time in battle before dying. I know just one extra hit doesn't sound like a lot, but in this game it makes a big difference.
The format of the game plays out like other games we have seen before. There are five main stages in the game, each one housing a different piece of the Thievius Raccoonus. Each main stage acts as a central hub. It is up to you to beat all the levels located within the stage. Each level you complete gives you a key which you must use to unlock an area in the stage hub that allows you to move closer to the stage's boss character. Beat the stage boss and you clear the area and move on to the next one.
Clear all five stages and regain all the pieces to your missing book and you move on to the game's final area. I won't spoil anything but it shouldn't be a surprise to you at all if I told you there was a bigger and badder boss lurking in the Fiendish Five's shadows.
This is a pretty fun game, I must admit. I like the level format of this game in comparison to later entries in the Sly series. There is a lot of jumping, fighting, evading enemies, and collecting items. This feels like a true and pure platform game at heart whereas later games in the series focus more on completing spy missions and watching story line sequences. This game is faster and it is more to the point. It's more Mario 64 while its sequels are more Beyond Good and Evil.
My main complaint deals with the whole jumping and latching on to pipes and ledges system that is so important in this game. Most of the time I am okay, but every once in a while there will be some kind of collision problem and I fall to my death, even though I knew I should have nailed the jump and I was holding the circle button. It wasn't a huge problem, but it did happen from time to time. Also, the game is extremely short and can probably be beaten in one sitting if you are very dedicated. I beat it in about two or three, but my sittings were relatively short. Its fun while it lasts, but it doesn't last long.
So all in all I find this to be a good, entertaining game. It is creative, its fun. It looks good. It has a nice cast of characters. There are lots of mini games and diversions along the way that break up the platforming monotony. I don't think it is a fabulous game though by any stretch of the imagination. Once I beat the game there was really nothing that appealed to me about coming back. Sure I could try to find all the hidden bottles in the game, but there is really no point to that. I had a fun time while I was actually playing the game, but now that I am done with it I am done with it.
Even the nostalgia factor of playing this game with my ex-girlfriend when it first came out isn't enough to make me give this game much more than a slightly above average score. Truth be told I am more of a Ratchet and Clank person. But even so, I can't deny that this is a fun game. Even if it is extremely short and doesn't keep you coming back for more. I like it. It's not my favorite 3D platformer ever, but I like it.
Overall:
B-
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