Starker on 14/1/2016 at 12:55

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I can only speak for myself, but as far as I'm concerned, there is no hidden agenda -- it's exactly like I said, because it's an ugly confusing maze. Getting lost is not an issue. I love maps that are big enough that you can get lost in them. The issue is that getting lost in Thieves' Guild's sewers is not fun. It's not a remarkable place like Constantine's mansion where you don't know what's around the next corner. For the most part it's just a drab sewer, exacerbated by the fact that you have to run back and forth. It's like a mouse maze with pieces of cheese at the opposite ends of it. Getting from one piece to the other is a chore and there's entirely too much of the maze between them.

It's the difference between getting lost in a city where each place is unique and interesting and getting lost in a city where all the streets and houses look the same -- boring.

WileECoyote383 on 12/3/2016 at 19:54

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WARNING: VERY LONG POST AHEAD!

15. Into the Maw of Chaos

Disappointing, short, and linear. All flash and no substance. Thief deserved a better finale than this. The only good part is Constantine's ritual, which is badass.

14. Strange Bedfellows

Another disappointing endgame level. It starts off cool, with the ominous dead bodies and the destroyed Hammer temple building the tension, but it quickly goes downhill. The environment is boring, the tasks you're given are not particularly fun or interesting, and there's almost no challenge to be had. In particular, rescuing the High Priest is an absolute joke. There's so much darkness that getting caught is next to impossible, and all the guards are conveniently standing still staring at a wall while you're given free reign of the place. Overall, a supremely disappointing mission that could have been a whole lot better.

13. Escape!

This level is an interesting beast. It comes right after the famous cutscene where the Trickster is revealed and Garrett's eye brutally ripped from its socket, when the story is at its most exciting, and the way the level plays out in this context makes a lot of sense, even if objectively it's not a great level. This is Garrett at his weakest: he is surrounded by powerful enemies and tasked with navigating a massive, confusing labyrinth, all with only a sword, 5 health, and whatever equipment you can find. You have to be resourceful and witty: scrounging for supplies, picking off enemies one by one, and only engaging in direct combat as a last resort. A lot of people criticize this level for moving the focus away from stealth, but this mission is still stealthy, just in a more aggressive sense. Instead of using stealth to avoid enemies entirely, you use it to take down your enemies more efficiently, without having to get yourself involved in direct combat. It's a very interesting style of play, and as someone who primarily enjoys ghosting, it's a nice change of pace from the rest of the game. It also introduces one of my favorite characters from the Thief games, the beastmen. Whether they're apes or rats I don't know, but the way they talk is really cool, and I was very happy to see them return in Thief 2. The mission still has a lot of problems, such as repetitive environments, frustrating difficulty, and those stupid Frogbeasts, but despite these flaws it can be fun if approached with the right mindset and liberal use of quicksaves. It is still, however, one of the game's weakest missions overall.

12. Undercover

This is easily the most unique level from Thief 1, but it is also one of the most flawed for that exact reason. In this mission you have to infiltrate the Hammer temple to steal the Air Talisman, but the temple is so heavily guarded that traditional methods of infiltration would be impossible. Instead, Garrett disguises himself as a Hammerite novice to steal the Talisman and every other Hammer-owned valuable from right under their noses. It's a neat concept, and it's quite novel to hide in plain sight and start stealing everything when their backs are turned. This is one of the tensest missions in the game, simply because you're never completely sure whether the Hammers are on to you, and you know that if they are you're as good as dead. The problem is that Thief wasn't designed with these mechanics in mind, and as such they are quite spotty and hard to predict, usually just requiring trial and error to find out what you can get away with. Once you understand how the mechanics work, the level ceases to provide any challenge at all, and can be completed fairly quickly. The best thing by far about this mission is that it gives us an opportunity to learn more about the Hammerites up-close. There are plenty of conversations to listen in on and books to read, and it's all very interesting, but once you've read them once you don't need to read them again, and that combined with the easy difficulty make this one of the least replayable missions in the game. Overall, Undercover is a nice change of pace and an excellent window into the inner workings of the Hammer religion, but it's ultimately one of the weaker missions in the game.

11. Thieves Guild

Oh, the Thieves Guild. It's needlessly large, incredibly repetitive, aggravatingly difficult, and completely ruins the pacing of the game's first act due to its placement between Assassins and The Sword, and yet I don't hate it like everyone else does. I don't love it, certainly, and on my first go it was easily my least-favorite level, and the only one I skipped. However, once you know where to go, it can be quite satisfying to complete. Its gargantuan size gives you a greater feeling of accomplishment when you finally reach its conclusion, something that a lot of the shorter and easier levels in Thief 1 fail to provide. In terms of lore, this mission gives us a glimpse into what life for Garrett would be like if he chose to take orders from Ramirez or the City's other crime bosses, and why he rejects that lifestyle. At the end of the day, being in the guild is no different than kissing the feet of the greedy nobles that the Downwinders claim to be “free” from, and this level conveys that elegantly. The level has some of the best dialogue in the series, both in terms of humor (“hit me!”) and world-building. The environment itself may be a bit dull, but there's still plenty of memorable moments in the Thieves Guild, making it worth playing through at least once.

10. Down in the Bonehoard

This is definitely one of the more controversial missions of the Thief series, and my opinions about it have gone up and down over time. I certainly didn't like it on my first time though, as with all of the undead-infested areas of Thief 1, but such things have a way of growing on you, and Bonehoard certainly grew on me. The atmosphere here is solid, with the Horn echoing in the distance while the moans of the undead keep you on edge. Dodging traps and fighting zombies makes for a nice change of pace from the usual sneaking, and if you choose to sneak anyway this will be a very challenging mission. The two main problems I have with this level are that it is very linear and very empty. For most of the level there's only one way to go, and while you may be able to venture off the beaten path to get some loot or reading material, there's only ever one way to go in order to progress, which seriously hurts this level's replay value. In addition, much of the level simply doesn't have anything in it. Much of the early segments of the mission consist of empty corridors with no loot or enemies to be found, and many areas that look like they should have something of value simply don't. Both of these problems are fixed once you get to the Halls of Echoing Repose, which is more open-ended and has plenty of things to do, but it still doesn't change the fact that the first 10 minutes are incredibly tedious on repeat playthroughs. Overall, I enjoy Bonehoard, but it could have been a lot better.

9. Lord Bafford's Manor

This is simply everything you could ask for from a first level. It's a simple but enjoyable level, where your only task is, as Garrett puts it, to “break in, steal another fat nobleman's priceless trinket and leave quietly.” What a great line that is. Everything that is Thief and makes the Thief games fun is on display in this level. The hilarious guard conversations and Garrett's snarky one-liners, the catharsis and poetic justice of thievery, the well-hidden loot and open-ended level design, the fantastic atmosphere and ambient sounds: everything is on display in this level. I always get excited playing it, even as a Thief veteran, as it reminds me of everything I love about these games and everything that's to come in the future levels, and gets me pumped to keep playing and experience what lies ahead. This level is only the first level, and as such it's simple, short and easy, but it just does such a good job of introducing players to the world of Thief while still remaining enjoyable for veterans that I can't help but enjoy it, and feel that it's better at what it does than some of the later, more complex levels.

8. The Mage Towers

This is one of the most fun missions in the game. Taking place in a Mage compound, you must navigate the central keep and library to find clues about the location of the Earth Talisman and loot to line your pockets, and then you must scale four elemental towers where the Mages practice their magic in order to find the Talisman itself. This level in particular is extremely well-suited to the ghosting playstyle, with good pacing, perfect difficulty level, and no awkward engine exploits or object manipulation required in order to avoid alerting enemies, even when going for all the loot. It's easily one of the most fun levels to play in this style, being free of frustration but tough enough to provide an enjoyable challenge. Many people thought the gimmick of elemental towers got repetitive, but I didn't mind, since each tower looked different and presented a unique challenge, with the Earth Tower providing mazes, the Air Tower providing jumping puzzles, and the Fire Tower providing a challenging stealth obstacle course. The Fire Tower in particular is one of my favorite sections in any Thief game, providing an incredible challenge that is both fair and rewarding to complete. The little puzzles required to open the chests at the top of each tower were also a fun diversion. The only problem with this level is its lack of personality. The mages are not exceptionally interesting characters, and their cheesy voice lines can get annoying after a while. The keep itself is nothing special to look at, and the idea of elemental towers is very contrived and video game-y, like something out of Zelda rather than Thief. The mission as a whole, while very fun, is not particularly evocative or memorable. The fun factor, however, is high enough to make this mission one of my personal favorites.

7. Break from Cragscleft Prison

A Thief classic. This mission is our first encounter with the Hammerites, and there could not have been a better introduction. This mission starts with a trek through some zombie-infested mines, which are a fun diversion but ultimately not the mission's highlight. The good part comes when you get to the factory and the prison itself. The atmosphere here is absolutely fantastic. The dank green walls and the cramped corridors, the drone of factory machines and the tortured wails of the prisoners; all of it creates a foreboding, claustrophobic ambiance that is very compelling. There are also a lot of objectives to complete if you play on higher difficulties, making this a long and satisfying mission to complete. The only bad thing about this mission, like other missions early in the campaign, is its low replay value. A lot of the mission's length relies on you not knowing where to go and where the objectives are, so once you know what to do and where to go the mission becomes much shorter and less satisfying, which is a real shame, because this is one of the most compelling locales from the Thief universe. I know I'd rather spend an hour here than slogging through sewers in the Thieves Guild. Overall, Cragscleft is a superb mission that, despite its low difficulty, never fails to entertain.

6. The Haunted Cathedral

The Haunted Cathedral is a fantastic level that I did not enjoy one bit on my first playthrough for one simple reason: darkness. I like to play Thief on my laptop when I can't access my main machine, and on my laptop this mission is unplayable without turning on the power grids, since even with both the game's and the machine's brightness on full I can't see a damn thing. Initially I didn't even consider turning on the power grids, since why would you want to turn on the lights in a stealth game? However, once I did, I enjoyed the mission a lot more, since not only did it allow me to actually see, but it also made some of the previously easy areas more challenging to sneak through, which I very much appreciated (admittedly there's some bits that you can't sneak through if you turn on the lights, but the early areas still have enough shadows to make due). The atmosphere of this mission is fantastic, and it's very open-ended, to the point of being somewhat confusing initially, but ultimately rewarding. I love parkouring my way across and through the destroyed buildings, each structure naturally flowing to the next in an organic, believable way. I also find the Old Quarter to be one of the most interesting bits of the Thief universe. An abandoned city, ravaged by an unknown disaster, now infested with restless undead and hideous beasts. Who wouldn't find that interesting? This mission also earns the “most well-hidden loot” award for having some of the most deviously hidden loot in the entire series. The loot is scattered in bushes, on top of rafters, on rooftops; nearly anywhere you can think of that's reachable probably has something of value, and this makes exploration very rewarding. Overall, The Haunted Cathedral has gripping atmosphere, open-ended design, and entertaining set pieces that unfold organically, making it one of the best levels in the game.

5. The Lost City

The Lost City, while quite flawed, is one of my personal favorite levels in the game. There are a lot of problems with this level, such as the somewhat dull architecture (YELLOW!!!), the vast quantities of empty space, and the linearity, but despite all that I just have a blast with this mission. It presents some of the most interesting stealth set pieces in the game, from taking to the rooftops to dodge burricks to darting in and out of shadows to steal gemstones while the fire elementals aren't looking. Speaking of them, they're one of the coolest enemies in Thief 1. The fact that they emit light when alerted makes hiding from them much harder, and can lead to some pretty tense moments (more so for me since I choose not to kill them with water arrows). It's a great concept that I wish was explored more. Another thing I like is that this level gives you lots and lots of loot to steal, and makes it feel valuable. It's easily the most cathartic level in the game in this regard other than Assassins, and it's a nice contrast from the scattered, well-hidden loot of The Haunted Cathedral. The best part, though, is the lore. There's a lot of reading material in this level, and all of it sucks me in more than anything else in the game. From the kind emperor dying and being replaced by an incompetent cheapskate, to the entire city and presumably all its citizens being burnt alive Pompeii style, to the downright horrific accounts of the failed Keeper expedition, this mission's lore just drops bomb after bomb and really brings life to what could have been a very dull and empty mission.

4. Assassins

Of all the missions across the first two games, this is probably the one most definitive of Thief, both in terms of both gameplay and style. Right out of the gate there's a twist (which was kind of spoiled by the mission's title if you were paying attention) and the tension grows, as you follow your would-be killers through the city streets, watching their movements carefully and scrambling for shadows whenever they turn around. It's fast-paced and atmopsheric, and it perfectly compliments the more open-ended mansion robbing bit of the mission that comes after. You eventually you find that the assassins work for Ramirez, the corrupt City Warden Garrett turned down multiple times, and you make it your personal goal to humiliate him as much as possible and line your pockets in the process by stealing the purse off his belt. The mansion itself is a big step up from Bafford's, with multiple points of entry and exit (including the front door), a tougher set of guards, and more loot to find. The sheer catharsis and poetic justice of thievery is nailed to a tee here. Ramirez is an absolutely reprehensible human being in every respect, who cares about nothing but money, and getting to take from him everything that he values is an absolute joy. Robbing his personal quarters and bathroom is one of the highlights of the series. The only problem with this mission is that it's a bit too easy. There's too much reward and not enough risk to make the experience as satisfying as it could have been. This arguably isn't even a flaw, since the level is meant to make you feel empowered so that The Sword can take you down a peg, but I personally prefer more difficult levels, and for that reason Assassins falls just short of the top 3, while still being an incredibly fun and memorable mission.

3. Song of the Caverns

This mission alone makes the Gold edition of Thief 1 worth it for me. This is everything I want out of a Thief mission: fantastic dialogue, beautiful architecture, open-ended level design, and challenging stealth gameplay. Beyond that, however, Song of the Caverns is just an incredibly creative premise. At the start it looks to be another dungeon crawl, as Garrett is hunting the Water Talisman in an underground cavern excavated and booby-trapped by the Keepers, butting heads with Craymen along the way, only the find the Talisman missing after reaching the temple well before schedule. You then learn from the hilarious ramblings of a crazy hermit named Raoul that the Talisman has been moved to the local opera house (which he used to own) above the caverns, and the mission takes a complete 180 that I did not see coming my first time through. What follows it some of the most satisfying and challenging thievery in the entire series as you ascend from the caverns to rob the opera house instead. The mission is fairly difficult, with a greater quantity of loud tile floors and electric lights than any other mission in the game, making for an engaging and rewarding challenge. The mission is also one of the few that makes the game world feel truly alive, letting you interact with the world of Thief and the people in it in a way that few other levels allow. Song of the Caverns is not the most important, engaging or atmospheric level from Thief 1, but it is by far the most fun, and I always look forward to revisiting it.

2. Return to the Cathedral

Two words: Hammer Haunt. These enemies are the scariest fucking things on the planet, and they make an already great mission into a fantastic one. While the stock zombies are more of an annoyance than anything else, the Haunts are downright terrifying. Their idle noises make my hair stand on end, they're about twice as fast as a normal guard, and they're very proficient swordsmen. If one of these things sees you, you're in trouble, and if two or more of them see you you're as good as dead, so you have to be stealthy, making this a more stealth-focused mission than the other undead levels. Other than the haunts, what makes this mission amazing is the atmosphere. This mission breathes death, despair, and fear, and you feel truly trapped, unable to escape and severely outnumbered, with only your wits to guide you. It is for this reason that I refrain from grabbing the eye and summoning Brother Murus until the very end of the mission, after I've done his fetchquests, because frankly he kind of ruins this atmosphere of loneliness. I like him as a character, and it's cool how their uneasy alliance against a common enemy foreshadows Garrett teaming up with the entire Hammer faction later on in the story, but he ultimately hurts the experience and should have been implemented differently. I like the idea of making him not a friendly character but rather a restless spirit, who you cannot kill and who will attack you attack you on sight, and can only be “defeated” by collecting his most treasured items and performing his burial rites, at which point he will finally be given peace and become friendly, rewarding you with the armory key like he does normally (oh and btw exiting out of the Cloister gate by blowing it up is easily the most badass ending to any mission in this game). Regardless of Murus, however, Return to the Cathedral remains a spectacular mission, and in my opinion the last truly great mission in Thief 1, before the game descends into pagan-y weirdness and ultimately becomes tedious.

1. The Sword

What can be said about The Sword? It is the first mission in the game that is part of the main story. It is a turning point for the game, both in terms of theme and challenge. It's the first mission where, on Normal difficulty, you have to get back out after you complete your objective. The mansion is difficult to navigate, filled with loud tile floors, tough guards, and hidden loot everywhere. The size of the mission is massive, at least compared to what's come before: it makes Ramirez's estate look like a shack by comparison. And it is WEIRD. The mansion seems normal at first, but you soon realize that things are not what they seem. Doors appear in the ceiling, rooms are upside-down, hallways twist and turn and doors lead nowhere. Everything you know is wrong. You feel a simultaneous sense of awe and panic as you skitter through the corridors, trying to get your bearings. What is going on? Where am I? What kind of madman would live in a place like this and how much is he paying those guards to keep quiet about it? As it turns out, the kind of madman who would hire a thief to steal his own sword as a test of his abilities, as we find out after we complete the mission. It's a far better introduction to the character of Constantine than any cutscene could be, and immediately lets us know that this man is not what he seems and not to be trusted. If Assassins was the moment when Thief went from good to great, than The Sword is the moment when it goes from great to legendary. This is a glimpse into the future: what games could be. How they can grip us, enthrall us, take us away from the real world and into a new one that seems just as tangible. Even over 15 years later, it can still take us there just like it did in 1998. The Sword, for me, is the defining mission of the original Thief, and by far my favorite.

WileECoyote383 on 13/3/2016 at 13:15

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I actually think you're right about that to an extent. I didn't like Bonehoard on the first time through but loved it the second time. It's just every other time after that that it becomes less interesting. The atmosphere becomes a lot less tense once you realize that nothing can actually kill you and you're just walking down an empty corridor. I do like reading the notes from the dead thieves and piecing together their disaster of an expedition, but the environment itself is quite dull, particularly in the burrick caves. Just to clarify, I still like the level, it's just that I think most of the other levels are better. The only levels I actively dislike are Strange Bedfellows and Maw of Chaos. Every other level is enjoyable or is at the very least interesting and unique.

Jax64 on 13/3/2016 at 15:57

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I agree. I have never owned The Dark Project version, but I always look forward to this level during my playthroughs.

ultravioletu on 29/3/2016 at 08:01

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I am replaying Thief Gold (actually "Gold" for the first time, since 17 yrs ago I did only TDP) and I am at the Lost City. I cannot comment on SoC, since I never played it, but I have no fond memories of the later TDP missions. I did not like being forced into combat and I was bought into this game by Bafford's (demo mission) - all this monster-infested levels simply did not tick for me.

I'm probaly letting a blasphemy out, but I did not like RTC at all, in fact I was so frustrated that I restarted the mission and then used the known "trick" of finishing in five minutes. Now the undead do not scare me anymore like they did back then, and anyway the cheat is not possible anymore in TG, so I'll probably (have to) enjoy it more.

So:
Unrated (yet): Song of the Caverns

14. Into the Maw of Chaos
13. Escape!
12. Strange Bedfellows
11. Return to the Cathedral
10. The Lost City
9. Undercover
8. Assassins - a bit of injustice to this mission, I actually liked it, but there is not much replay value in it and there are greater ones
7. The Mage Towers - okayish, having just played it for the first time, I couldn't shake the "I know it" feeling (I played Dracula Reloaded long ago)
6. The Haunted Cathedral
5. Break from Cragscleft Prison -
4. Lord Bafford's Manor
3. Thieves' Guild
2. Down in the Bonehoard
1. The Sword