PlanetQuake: "10"
With 1998 now officially over, Thief is without a doubt my Game of The Year. Where other games like Unreal and Half-Life promised revolutionary gameplay, Thief delivers. It's quite unlike anything else out there at the moment, both in terms of gameplay and style.
Best Adventure Game
Thief has been named Best Adventure Game of 1998, by the poll taken at Game Asylum. It beat the Adventure & RGP giants, Fallout 2, Kings Quest 8, Grim Fandango, and Final Fantasy 7 in a landslide victory.
PCGameworld:
Perhaps this might seem too good to be true. Maybe I just happened to have booted this game up at the right time. I doubt it. I've been playing for over fifteen hours and am not even the least bit bored. The game keeps calling you back, beckoning you.
Thief, which involves a lot of careful planning and on the fly strategy, is a welcome addition to the world of FPS. You can't go into it thinking like a space marine but if you take the time to think like a rogue you'll be rewarded by hours of intense, addictive gameplay.
eXscape: "97%"
In the end, I feel I can safely say that Thief is one of the best games available. With its incredible focus on gameplay, innovative sound, fun theme, originality, and great style, Thief is a game that I have even seen warezers buy to support Looking Glass's incredible efforts. Thief is, simply, a must-have for just about any gamer out there.
2nd Opinion at GamesDomain:
Regardless, you can't go wrong buying Thief. It gets my nod as the game of 1998, edging out Half-Life thanks to both the fully-realized gameplay and the balls of the design team. Let's face it, guiding Gordon Freeman through the Black Mesa complex is thoroughly addictive, but it's still a shooter. Thief isn't. It uses the first-person perspective and some of the trappings of the genre, but, in its entirety, is nothing like we have ever seen before The Looking Glass designers threw out all the blueprints, giving us something truly new and innovative, and I can't commend them enough for this.
Groundwire: "91%"
The AI is extremely good, with the characters being able to "hear" you movements, forcing you to watch each step you make. If a guard gets into a trouble he will run for help, or if he hears a noise he may shrug it off a few times then come to investigate. If you havn't yet tried the demo I urge you to do so, it gives you access to the training mission and the games first level, and by then you will have a good feel for how the game plays. There is much more than that to it though, the full game incorporating an interesting plot and more varied enemies.
Adrenaline Vault: "5/5"
If you're looking for another brainless shooter, look elsewhere. Thief: The Dark Project is an intelligent, engrossing action/adventure experience that pushes the gamer to use his brain as much as his broadsword, and offers the type of gameplay this industry hasn't seen in a long, long time. Whether this will be the catalyst for some kind of single-player gaming Renaissance or is just some kind of incredible computer gaming anomaly I can't say. What's important is that we recognize Thief: The Dark Project for what it is -- a very, very special game created by one incredibly talented group of developers.
PC Fan: "96%"
In my opinion, Thief is a role-playing game in the purest sense. Without a doubt, it is one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences I've ever had.
Games Domain: "Gold"
So, jaded to the use of this label, I bought Thief: The Dark Project with some hesitation. I have never been a fan of thief characters in RPG games, I'm just not that subtle. If I have to stick to shadows I would much rather be something exciting like a ninja - not boring, like some stupid thief. Little did I know that I would be eating those words - this game is one of the best games I have ever played. Taking the strongest qualities from adventure, role playing, and action games, Thief: The Dark Project places the gamer in a realistic and immersive world full of intrigue and suspense. It is challenging, addictive, and just plain fun.
Gamer's Central:
I've been playing Thief for some days now and I found out there are new surprises in each new mission you come to. You can't be sure of what's waiting around the corner.
GameCenter: "5/5"
If you consider yourself a gamer (no matter what genre you prefer), go out and pick up a copy of this game. Beg, borrow, or steal, if you have to. Then slip away on some dark night, get a cup of hot cocoa (this really isn't a beer-and-pretzels game), and prepare to become immersed. You certainly won't regret it.
Happy Puppy: "9/10"
Thief: The Dark Project doesn't raise the bar for first-person action games, it creates a genre all its own. You'll find the gameplay tight, intense, suspenseful, and unique. It has already stolen my heart, take a risk and don't overlook it, it may steal yours as well.
GamesFirst: "5/5"
A 3D game that emphasizes fast thinking over firepower, in Thief, you'll take role of Garrett, a street punk turned master thief. In this amazingly atmospheric and tense game, you'll use your bow, blackjack, and brains to rob from the rich and give to yourself. And you'll also experience some of the best use of sound in a game ever.
VuP3D: "92"
From the screenshots we could all have been mistaken for thinking it looked disturbingly rather like Quake: dark, dimly-lit corridors, gothic style, mounted flames for light, hell-spawned minions to batter. Though fortunately in reality Thief is nothing of the sort. In fact, it is what can truly be described as an 'original' game."
PCZone: "90"
While giving it an overall score of 90, and commenting "Thief is a bloody good game" on several occasions and loading on the praise for the overall concept and most of the gameplay, PC Zone's Paul Presley's review mixes the praise with extreme dislike for the undead enemies and the fantasy flavor of the game in general: "... spends the first couple of levels setting up something creative and unique to the world of first-person 3D action games, then spoils it all by resorting to the usual array of zombies, spider creatures, demons, and so on that inhabit every other game set in a pseudo-medieval fantasy world." The one-line versions of the review are, "Very, very enjoyable, if somewhat clichéd", and "If you can live with the undead, you're in for a treat."
GamesMania: "9/10"
... I'm completely in love with the game as it stands. This game gives you a real feeling of immersion. You don't just play it, you discover it. There's no end of atmosphere and moments that you tell your friends about the next day.
3DGaming: "A"
Everyone sat waiting for a game to revolutionize the first person shooter genre while tons of games claming to do so were released. Then the biggest rebel of them all, Looking Glass, popped their head out of the girls' locker room and released one of the hottest sleeper hits in a long time. 3DGN has the full scoop on their new baby, Thief: The Dark Project.
CDMAG's: 4.5 Stars
Thief is the kind of game that makes it hard to keep a grin off your face. You constantly feel like you're getting away with something you shouldn't. It appeals to the mischievous fifth grader in us all.
GameSpot: "9.1"
Its emphasis on stealth, strategy, and ingenuity, coupled with its strong narrative structure and excellent mission design, adds up to a game that's stylish, serious, rewarding, and unique.
OGR: "88%"
Thief really has great Artificial Intelligence; the guards fight very well and hear everything. The programming for the lighting effects is efficient and realistic: moonlit levels are beautiful. The models in Thief are designed very well they look and move fluidly and realistically. The sound is also realistic, environments are designed very well and inside environments look great.
