Fresh off the debut game of one of the most legendary franchises of the PS2 generation, it’s time to exit the lofty heights of the Solana Galaxy and play something a little more down to Earth. Let’s play as one cunning, devious, Sly Cooper and the Thevius Raccoonus.
The first thing to notice with Sly Cooper is how snappy the opening is. It feels like the intro to a heist movie with the way it’s shot and edited, opening directly into the gameplay the moment we hit Start (which was uncommon at the time). We spent no more than 10 minutes from the time we hit start to the end of the introduction level, and in that time the game has already told us all we need to know about our protagonist, his supporting cast, our goal, and the world this game is set in. The brevity must be commended.
And as a turns out, a world ripe with thievery is also a world that enables a ton of diverse platforming challenges. Most of what a player would do in a typical platformer can integrate the flavor of pulling off a heist or sneaking into a securely guarded location almost effortlessly. The presentation goes a long way in that respect since Sly’s design looks like a typically masked burglar and his voice actor’s performance reminds one of something like George Clooney in Ocean’s 11. There’s also an environmental presentation, with the alarm systems that act as platforming obstacles and music that fades out when sneaking undetected and turns frantic when we’ve been caught.
It’s a shame that the series is in limbo right now because even today it still looks and plays unbelievably well.
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