One thing I realized every Thief game but 2 has. - by Bucky Seifert
Bucky Seifert on 26/7/2017 at 06:38
A horror level. Every other Thief game, even Thief 4, has a horror themed level, but Thief 2 really doesn't. It has some horror elements with the haunted library, and you could argue that there was horror in the concept of what the Servants are, but other than that there really isn't anything that deals with super natural horror. The closest it gets is Trail of Blood but even then there isn't anything scary in that level.
Not saying it's a bad thing, nor am I saying it doesn't make sense since that game is more about industry and mechanical innovation used for evil purposes, where all the others do deal in super natural elements in their main story themes.
Purgator on 26/7/2017 at 07:25
There was a horror level planned for Thief 2 Gold, I believe.
Quite a few gamers were annoyed that TDP wasn't quite the 'thief' simulator they were hoping for, even though it wasn't marketed as such. LGS addressed this feedback by removing a lot of these horror elements in TMA, and had Garrett acting more like a burglar and less like a 'Sneaky' ghostbuster. Hey, they even had Garrett 'case' a joint before the actual burglary, very thief like behaviour indeed! However, an inordinate amount of fedoras were flung at PC monitors in disgust over that level, and 'Casing the Joint' now ranks as one of the least favourite amongst fans. Hmmmm.
There were whispers of an 'Urkel' themed level, which would have been terrifying.
zajazd on 26/7/2017 at 08:36
That's a good observation. Thief 2 is my least favorite of the trilogy, but I really don't like horror.
Grandmauden on 26/7/2017 at 09:17
Funnily enough, Thief II's intended horror level, Waking the Dead, would've been one of several missions that divided Casing the Joint and Masks. After all, according to in-game text, Garrett cases Gervaisius's mansion a couple of weeks before the actual exhibition takes place. With some side-story missions to do in the meantime, Casing the Joint might not have felt as pointless as it does.
And going off of Abysmal's point, I also like to think of Sabotage at Soulforge as a horror mission in its own way, but with horrors that are of mechanical origin instead of supernatural. Soulforge is easily the largest building in the series, and definitely among the most dangerous and challenging, and here you are, forced to infiltrate and navigate this giant fortress with no map, no plan, and no allies. You don't even have the element of surprise, as the mission begins with Karras spotting you and sending a pair of combat bots after you, then spending the rest of the mission taunting you over the loudspeakers. Previous missions would usually reserve loud surfaces, undousable lights, and difficult guards for their most secure areas, but in Soulforge, they're all over the place, creating the sense that the architecture itself is dead set on thwarting you. The various factories, workshops, and engines are the culmination of Karras's genius and madness, offering you a glimpse of what the Builder's Paradise would look like should you fail. Everything about Soulforge is a master thief's worst nightmare.
As a bonus, the mission even follows the pattern of Return to the Cathedral and Robbing the Cradle, where you're required to cover nearly every inch of the map to find and utilize the items you need to accomplish your goal.
zoog on 26/7/2017 at 09:32
To Buccura
Well, if you mean thc and bjnehoard, they're not horror but are most beautiful levels for me, and if you mean Shalebridge Cradle - it's just boring and annoying (i don't understand that humour in bro Murus and dead little girl) ;)
In fact, i see another witness that feedback from players is wrong. Produsers are glad to castrate games completely to make'em more friendly, and safe, and funny. And safe ©South Park. So we get not an object of art today but merry-go-round. Safe one.
marbleman on 26/7/2017 at 09:36
Quote Posted by Grandmauden
And going off of Abysmal's point, I also like to think of Sabotage at Soulforge as a horror mission in its own way, but with horrors that are of mechanical origin instead of supernatural. Soulforge is easily the largest building in the series, and definitely among the most dangerous and challenging, and here you are, forced to infiltrate and navigate this giant fortress with no map, no plan, and no allies. You don't even have the element of surprise, as the mission begins with Karras spotting you and sending a pair of combat bots after you, then spending the rest of the mission taunting you over the loudspeakers. Previous missions would usually reserve loud surfaces, undousable lights, and difficult guards for their most secure areas, but in Soulforge, they're all over the place, creating the sense that the architecture itself is dead set on thwarting you. The various factories, workshops, and engines are the culmination of Karras's genius and madness, offering you a glimpse of what the Builder's Paradise would look like should you fail. Everything about Soulforge is a master thief's worst nightmare.
I coudn't agree more. To me, Soulforge is actually scarier than RttC and Bonehoard.
I'll just add that masked mechanists definitely add to the "creepy" factor as well. Before, you were just meeting masked servants, who weren't really scary, just a little disturbing. But here, you encounter masked guards, who fight you relentlessly against their own will and whisper "kill me" and "thank you" when you do, which is really unsettling.
ZylonBane on 26/7/2017 at 15:30
Quote Posted by Grandmauden
Funnily enough, Thief II's intended horror level, Waking the Dead, would've been one of several missions that divided Casing the Joint and Masks. After all, according to in-game text, Garrett cases Gervaisius's mansion a couple of weeks before the actual exhibition takes place. With some side-story missions to do in the meantime, Casing the Joint might not have felt as pointless as it does.
Hey Grandma, none of your links work.
Ryan Smith on 26/7/2017 at 20:19
Blackmail wasn't exactly pictured as a horror level but there's a section of it that I could classify as horror.
Thief 2 didn't have a dedicated horror level but it had pockets of horror throughout several.
Bucky Seifert on 26/7/2017 at 20:40
I suppose it's more accurate to say that Thief 2 doesn't have any, for lack of a better term, "traditional" horror levels the way 1 3 and 4 did. After all haunted cathedrals and insane asylums are tropes that have existed well before Thief used them.
Aside fun fact: When I was a kid and played DS for the first time I though it was the first to ever use the concept of a haunted asylum. Ahh the joys of ignorant youth :laff:
I can see what some of you are getting at with Soul Forge, but I find it more kind of unnerving than scary, which you can certainly debate counts as horror. Plus, like I said, the concept of what the servants are is kind of horrifying. But again I never found Soul Forge scary per se. That's not to say it doesn't have amazing atmosphere of course.
Jax64 on 27/7/2017 at 05:44
I definitely found parts of each of the Thief games scary to some extent. A level can have major horror elements without relying on zombies or haunts. This is not to say I dislike such missions, quite the contrary in fact. I appreciate the variety the Thief games took with their horror themes.
