Thief: Deadly Shadows PC Game Review

Thief: Deadly Shadows is an action-adventure stealth video game developed by Ion Storm Inc. for Microsoft Windows and Xbox in 2004, on May 25 in North America, and on June 11 in Europe. It is the third entry in the Thief series of video games.

In Thief: Deadly Shadows the player takes the role of Garrett, a master thief. It is set in a fantasy world resembling a cross between the Late Middle Ages and the Victorian era, with more advanced technologies interspersed. One of the game's major new features was the ability to explore the City. While previous games sent Garrett straight from mission to mission, Thief: Deadly Shadows allows him to walk the City streets between missions where he can steal from passersby, spy on the townspeople's daily lives, and search for sidequests in addition to major story missions. The game also introduced an ability to switch between first and third person views, and to flatten against walls.

[KidIcarus]

Deadly Shadows was made by Ion Storm Austin, who didn't make Daikatana and a lot of them were former members of Looking Glass Studios.

[Bluehawk]

Thief 4 should've told the story of that little girl all-grown up and making the same mistakes Garrett made, rather than whatever the hell they tried to do, which was completely fuck up the City, Garrett, the pagan-hammer dichotomy and everything else.

[angelocruz]

Do you remember The Cradle? The Cradle remembers you.

[MDUmairKh]

I think the reason why people didn't like Third Person view was because they had to combine animations so they can work both in 3rd and 1st person modes. This made controls a bit clunky in the game.

Sometimes you fall from a ledge when leaning through the corners in the first person view not realizing that Garrett's one leg was in the air when he was leaning that led him to his death.

Third Person view also makes leaning completely useless because you can see everything in third person mode which makes the game less immersive. I also think that getting lost in levels is a good thing in Thief 1 and 2 because levels themselves were like your enemies, and that's brilliant. It creates more tension and drama through gameplay.

This was part of Looking Glass' design philosophy which can be found in their other games as well. Thief 1/2 were also known for their immersive atmosphere and empty corridors made you feel like someone who is alone in that area. Everything was done for some reason. That said, Deadly Shadows is still a brilliant game.

[mcgibs]

Really wanted to see a Thief game where you played Garrett's apprentice years after Deadly Shadows.

[johnwestcott]

I totally agree with this review. A worthy sequel.

[stochinblockin]

The thing I missed the most in the this Thief compared to the previous two was pre-mission cut scenes and briefings. Those really added to the mood for each mission. And even though this Thief had some very good cut scenes that looked like living paintings (like the first two) they mixed them up with rather poorly compressed game engine scenes.

[malek]

The Shalebridge Cradle was probably one of the scariest levels in any video game, i remember not being able to finish it because those undead just kept scaring the shit out of me

[AnonRanGER]

8:42 That was fucking PERFECT as an ending for the Thief Trilogy. As someone who played through all three parts when they came out, it gave me goosebumps back then. First game about Pagans, second about Hammers, third about Keepers, and the circle closes and begins anew.

[Sadin]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this game! I have played all thief games and have absolutely loved the first three (not the recent one though) but Deadly Shadows is the crown jewel of this franchise

[saranshbansal]

The first game I've played in my life and still nothing comes close to this game. Theif Deadly Shadows is without a doubt the best stealth game ever made.

The new Theif (2014) should not be counted as a part of this series. It doesn't have the heart. Like you said very aptly, the reboot is made by, "developers who have no knowledge or interest in the series they are rebooting". Absolutely 100% correct.

[lulubeloo]

it's the curse of number 4. Thief 4 felt extremely shallow compared to its predecesors. Same was with the Gothic series, the 4th game was dumbed down to a brick. It's the new guys who always want to prove themselves in the industry, but they make a mess of it in the end.

[prismaticbeetle]

i really enjoyed thief 3

a worth successor to thief 1 and 2

[scottythedawg]

The best part (for me) about this series of games was that each part focused on a different group trying to assume power. The third game completed the groups and managed to complete the story of Garrett. That end cut scene really made me grin when I got to it.
I do believe it lost something by being consol-i-fied but at this point I more interested in the story it was telling.

[GarretsShadow]

Honestly I think the only negatives of Deadly Shadows were the more claustrophobic feeling level designs and the slightly more clunky feeling first person controls (owing to the fact that you were actually controlling a third person model). The narrative and its delivery, the atmosphere, art direction, and general stealth gameplay was spot on, and in my opinion the sound design and music is the strongest in the series.

The Shalebridge Cradle is still the most intensely scary level I have played in any game (including actual horror games) to date.

[unstruckmatchstick]

I'm so glad someone is showing this entry some love. I absolutely loved Thief 3.

[KneelBBacon]

Sound design is amazing in this game. Also, different surfaces produce different levels of sound when you walk over them, with metal grates making the most noise. Fortunately, for every problem you encounter in this game, there are usually 1 or 2 items in your inventory that will help you overcome it.

[kg_canuck]

There's something about this game that looks better to me than even today's big budget titles. New games can look great but they don't look real. This game is objectivity dated and yet it somehow looks so real.

[zoxwolf]

You might be one of best reviewers on yt for fact, i just cant understand so low view rating :( You do better job than gamespot or ign for sure.
I will give a try with this title since 1 & 2 are litle outdated graphic vise for me.
keep up mate

[noobbotgaming]

This is my favorite Thief game. Yeah the areas may be smaller and divided up into smaller areas and you can be stocked up on supplies, I'm fine with that.