Yeah I can kinda see why this wasn't exactly everyone's cup of tea, but I mean as a game, this is very much well put together, and it's clear the developers were very passionate about it.
The PS2 games are better, but this is still decent
The PS2 games are better, but this is still decent
Sly Cooper is one of the most important game series to me, but I try to be completely objective about any game and not let things like nostalgia cloud my mind too much. But all of the Sly Cooper games, and especially Thieves in Time, are absolutely the strongest platformer series. Narratively, gameplay, aesthetic.
Sanzaru which took over on this one followed in Sucker Punch's trail with building a platformer that has a variety of gameplay styles and characters that have their own feel, and while several were variants on sly's core gameplay, they did make you have to think at least a little about how to approach each of them. And I hate minigames(at least most of them) in any given platformer. Usually they're such a shift that you can end up beating your head against the wall or get stuck in drudgery around it. Not so. You get them well-spaced, a huge variety, and genuinely fun. The hacking got to be a little bit much, but overall they really do complement the core game rather than pull you out of it.
Narratively, I wouldn't have thought that I would've been struck emotionally but 2 vital scenes did get to me, if only a little. And the character development across all 4 games that's consistent and meaningful, which shows as challenges they overcome, with some rather realistic consequences in such a cartoony game. The actual dialogue usually wasn't anything to write home about, just video game talk and a few puns, but the cutscenes and the overall characters within the plot were impressive.
I will say while the art style is still top notch, the graphics looked a little muddier in this. All the animation is still wonderful but it felt like they tried to stretch the cel shaded look into something a little bit nicer for the PS3 without it really working right.
The music in it has always been a wonderful enhancement, with spy/jailbreak jazziness with motifs from whatever level design, but it did fall flat a bit in this one at times. Still some great moments, but a bit middling.
Overall, despite a pretty huge bias, I don't think anything I've said is so disagreeable as to be pure nostalgia. If I spoke to Mr. or Ms. Sony, I would beg and plead with them to find some studio if not Sucker Punch to revive Sly Cooper. Preferably if not them, have sanzaru do it again.
Sanzaru which took over on this one followed in Sucker Punch's trail with building a platformer that has a variety of gameplay styles and characters that have their own feel, and while several were variants on sly's core gameplay, they did make you have to think at least a little about how to approach each of them. And I hate minigames(at least most of them) in any given platformer. Usually they're such a shift that you can end up beating your head against the wall or get stuck in drudgery around it. Not so. You get them well-spaced, a huge variety, and genuinely fun. The hacking got to be a little bit much, but overall they really do complement the core game rather than pull you out of it.
Narratively, I wouldn't have thought that I would've been struck emotionally but 2 vital scenes did get to me, if only a little. And the character development across all 4 games that's consistent and meaningful, which shows as challenges they overcome, with some rather realistic consequences in such a cartoony game. The actual dialogue usually wasn't anything to write home about, just video game talk and a few puns, but the cutscenes and the overall characters within the plot were impressive.
I will say while the art style is still top notch, the graphics looked a little muddier in this. All the animation is still wonderful but it felt like they tried to stretch the cel shaded look into something a little bit nicer for the PS3 without it really working right.
The music in it has always been a wonderful enhancement, with spy/jailbreak jazziness with motifs from whatever level design, but it did fall flat a bit in this one at times. Still some great moments, but a bit middling.
Overall, despite a pretty huge bias, I don't think anything I've said is so disagreeable as to be pure nostalgia. If I spoke to Mr. or Ms. Sony, I would beg and plead with them to find some studio if not Sucker Punch to revive Sly Cooper. Preferably if not them, have sanzaru do it again.