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 My favorite platformer. >>> by Trigon (08.06.2005)
The Playstation 2 is well-known for having outstanding platformer titles like Ratchet & Clank and Jak & Daxter. The less-renowned Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus very much deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as those titles. With its terrific gameplay, beautiful graphics, fun story, and memorable characters, Sly Cooper is definitely a winning franchise.
Sly Cooper is an extremely enjoyable game to play. Even by exacting platformer standards, Sly controls with fluid, buttery smoothness. Sly begins the game already a great thief, with all of the essential abilities of a cat.err, raccoon burglar. He leaps from rooftop to rooftop, slinks around in the shadows, balances on ledges, shimmies across ropes, climbs up pipes, and swings across gaps (using his cane), all with the easy grace of a professional. Sly Cooper makes most other game characters look awkward and slow. Despite the cool things Sly can do, the game's controls are very easy to learn, so intuitive that they will quickly become second-nature. As you progress through the game retrieving the pages of the Thievius Raccoonus, Sly gains almost supernatural special skills, like Rail Walk (walk on very thin rails, wires etc.), Spire Jump (balance on tiny points like the top of a flagpole), and eventually, even Invisibility. By the end of the game, you really feel you are playing a master thief of the Cooper clan.
The level design in this game is absolutely top-notch. There are five major stages; each is split into several smaller sub-stages where the game action takes place. These sub-stages are richly detailed 3D environments that allow you to make full use of Sly's numerous abilities. The skills you have available at any given time are masterfully taken into consideration in the stage design. The stages are so logical and seamless that you will find yourself overcoming challenges almost instinctively. The game focuses on successfully performing actions -- rather than a wearisome search for how to advance -- which keeps the game action fast-paced. Moreover, the game mixes up the action beautifully -- you will patiently sneak into a heavily guarded outpost, battle your way through cursed jungle, and dodge fire from your favorite policewoman while leaping across rooftops. Occasionally, there are non-platformer mini-games thrown in as well, including shooting and driving missions. A minor complaint is that these mini-games are often required and frustrating - but they are fun. Sly Cooper is a paragon of game design.
The game has a plot that is simple and a little silly, but definitely entertaining. Sly comes from a long line of master thieves who recorded their adventures and techniques, and passed them on to future generations, in a tome known as the Thievius Raccoonus. When Sly was a child, before he could inherit the book, his father was murdered by the Fiendish Five, a rival gang who stole the book and scattered its pages throughout the world. Years later, you take Sly on a quest to avenge his father and restore his family's heritage.
Sly Cooper has a colorful cast of characters. Sly himself is great in the lead role; a brash, yet smooth, rogue with a heart of gold. Sly is the personification of cool. Even though Sly only steals from other criminals, the lovely Inspector Carmelita Fox tenaciously tracks his every move. This flirtatious cat-and-mouse game between Sly and Carmelita is one of the most charming and entertaining aspects of the game. Sly grew up with a quirky pair of pals in the orphanage, who went on to become his partners in crime - the neurotic turtle genius Bentley and the burly, goofy hippo getaway driver, Murray. Both provide the game with some lighthearted comedy relief while also being essential to the completion of the heists. The villains are well-suited to the tone of the game, having a cartoon-like mix of dangerous and outlandish. The cold, maniacal Clockwerk rounds out the cast as the terrifically menacing final villain.
The graphics in this game are simply outstanding. The game uses cel-shaded graphics to achieve a cartoon appearance that sets the atmosphere of the game setting. There is an impressive level of attention to detail both in the character design and the backgrounds. The lighting and shadows are particularly remarkable; the game somehow manages to simultaneously have colorful features against a dark, nighttime setting. Rarely, you will encounter a noticeable drop in frame-rate during the game. This is the only fault in an otherwise perfect visual package.
The audio in Sly Cooper is respectable as well. The background music has a quiet, stealthy feel to it, perfect for creeping around in the shadows. This is a mixed blessing however, as the music blends in so completely that you often don't even notice it - which also means that the music is not very memorable. The music picks up its intensity during battles, but the fights are so short that it is difficult to fully appreciate the battle music. The voice-acting is exemplary; so much so that you wonder how other games could be so bad. Sly's voice is especially good, capturing his emotions and smooth personality wonderfully. That said, some of the voices have an over-the-top, cartoon quality to them that may not appeal to everyone. (Yeah, I'm talking about Bentley.) However, even if the sound of particular voices is disconcerting, the portrayal of the characters' emotions and personalities is still first-rate.
Sly Cooper has three major challenges. The first, and easiest, is the main story. Next, there are several clue bottles scattered throughout the game. Finding all the bottles allows you to open safes that contain special abilities. Collecting these bottles is moderately difficult; such that you might not find them all the first time you play the game. The most difficult challenges are the Master Thief Sprints. After you complete a stage, you can go back and try to complete it again under a very harsh time limit. The replay value of Sly Cooper depends entirely on your desire to complete these challenges.
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus is one of the best platformers ever made. The only thing that keeps it from a perfect score is that the game woefully short. Sly will steal your heart, and leave you wanting more.
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