THICK AS THIEVES Review

Warren Spector and Paul Neurath likely need no introduction to the PC gaming community, having been responsible for legendary titles in the platform’s history, such as Deus Ex and THIEF (the old, orthodox one, not the reboot from over 10+ years ago that has largely been forgotten even by those who worked on it). Given that both of the above games are still remembered today as unsurpassed milestones in the history of stealth games and immersive sims, when news broke last year that these developers' current company, OtherSide Entertainment, would be working on a new stealth game titled Thick As Thieves, it was no surprise that the news sparked interest. The excitement, of course, cooled off significantly once it became clear that this particular game was intended to be… a multiplayer PvPvE game, with its official announcement trailer giving off major Fortnite vibes.

Almost a year after the initial announcement, the developers released a new announcement stating that Thick As Thieves, which was scheduled for release in late May 2026, would completely change direction and shift from PvPvE to a traditional single-player game with an optional co-op mode. But to what extent did this sudden change of direction succeed, given the minimal time remaining until the official release?

From a purely literary perspective, it should be noted that Thick As Thieves is set in a pseudo-Victorian world that blends elements of our own historical reality with steampunk and low-fantasy touches. As a result, the game’s atmosphere is quite reminiscent of Dishonored, with the action taking place in a fictional/alternate-reality Scottish city named Kilcairn.

As for the plot and the main characters, the truth is I can’t say much, at least not at this stage. And that’s because… there isn’t really much to say. The game’s protagonist is essentially one of the four playable characters left over from the game’s multiplayer phase, who's been given no real literary depth beyond being a thief who pulls off heists (as the game progresses, we’ll be able to unlock the other characters, each with a different special ability that aids stealth navigation). As for the plot, there appears to be a rudimentary thread of information that thematically connects the game’s missions so that there is at least some coherence between them, but the available information is sparse given that at this stage there are only 2 (!) available maps in the game.

It’s clear that the main thing we can discuss at this stage of the game, aside from the background on its development, is the gameplay on these two maps (it’s worth noting that the game's missions are replayable, and in fact the secondary objectives and loot placement change from run to run, offering a fair amount of variety). Things are actually a bit more enjoyable here, as the stealth gameplay is reminiscent in some ways of the good old Thief. There’s the visibility gem at the bottom of the screen, there are guards patrolling, there are surfaces that create different noise levels, there’s plenty of loot to collect, there are ladders, air vents, windows, and rooftops that offer infiltration options, there are cameras, traps, and turrets… If anyone has been missing this particular style of gameplay, Thick As Thieves has the potential to be a sight for sore eyes, even in its current version.

That’s not to say there aren’t any flaws worth pointing out. At first glance, the game seems too easy, and the AI isn’t particularly sophisticated. Theoretically, this is because only the “novice” difficulty level is initially available, with higher levels unlockable in the future, so perhaps increasing the difficulty will also enhance the enemies’ capabilities. But in any case, whenever a guard spots you but stops chasing you as soon as you run around a corner, and then returns to his patrol route unconcerned as if nothing had happened, the whole experience can't help but feel rather lackluster compared to games like Thief.

Then there are certain fundamental design choices that have carried over from the game’s PvPvE phase but seem somewhat out of place and odd for a single-player stealth game. The first of these is that there is essentially no option for the player to use violence in the game. Obviously, there is the ability to knock out the guards (without using a blackjack or anything like that, the mechanic is “Hold F for takedown”), but: 1) even if we knock them out, after a few minutes they come back to life and continue their patrol unconcerned, without raising any alarms, 2) we cannot hide or move their bodies while they are unconscious, 3) if they spot us, there is absolutely no way to deal with them other than to run away or be killed!

Even if we die, of course, we don’t get a game over screen. Instead, the main and secondary loot we’re carrying drops at the “death” location, and after a few seconds we respawn in a “safe” area of the map, allowing us to continue the mission right away. Also, there is no option for manual saving in the game, so the logic of “I got killed, so I’ll just reload” doesn’t apply.

Lastly, it’s worth noting a design choice that might surprise quite a few people: the game features TIMERS. Oh yes. Each mission has a 30 to 45-minute timer within which we must complete our objectives, and as soon as we successfully complete them (regardless of whether this happens in 5 or 45 minutes) then ANOTHER 8-minute timer appears, within which we must reach the magical portal that opens at a random point on the map and teleports us back to our hideout to successfully complete the mission. If we don’t make it back to the portal in time, the mission is considered a failure and must be repeated.

It’s clear that Thick As Thieves is a strange release, to put it mildly. In terms of content, it could be described as more of a glorified demo than a full game, while its gameplay contains several mismatched elements that clearly feel like leftovers from its previous, PvPvE development phase. Even so, however, it has its redeeming qualities, such as the stealth gameplay that manages, at times (certainly not consistently) to evoke the legendary games on which it is based, while the co-op element is definitely an original idea for a stealth game that might appeal to those interested in such a concept.

The biggest redeeming factor, of course, is probably the game’s price tag of just 5 euros. The truth is that if someone had to pay a higher amount for 2 maps (plus a tutorial) and 3 hours of gameplay (it took me 2.2 hours to complete the current content, according to Steam) the term “Thieves” in the title would take on a particularly meta significance. At this point, for 5 euros, you get to spend a pleasant afternoon, and you also have the feeling of “investing in the future” if the game is ever expanded.

Another redeeming factor might be that the game made me want to replay the original THIEF games and Dishonored. Man, we’ve really missed good stealth games.

Go to discussion...