Thief is a stealth and tactics first person style game. The console companies have already jumped on these types of games and it's time for the PC to start. First person games these days are boring because such a huge number of games are already using the first person view and most of them consist only of mindless killing. Some people may find this fun but most seem to be getting fed up with the same old trend. Unlike any other PC game, Thief involves stealth action and adventure. Stealing/Theft is also involved which you probably already figured by the name of the game. Your name is Garrett and you are set in a medieval, but magical world. As a master thief you must use your skills and complete missions with your stealth ability. If you are caught then in most cases it will be very difficult to complete the mission.

When one is a good Thief certain types of individuals take notice of the skills shown. The premise of the game is that a certain someone has hired you to steal a massive gem. As a reward you will get more than enough money to retire. You have the moonlit night to conceal you and your professional skills to rely upon, but the task is not as easy as anticipated. Just to name two basic problems, there are lights and guards around, which can reveal you not to mention what's awaiting you later on. You will get the opportunity to travel in a plethora of different places such as moon-lit city streets, guarded mansions, secure prisons, blazing factories, haunted cathedrals, abandoned ruins, grim catacombs and subterranean lost cities.

Thief is not about being a notorious cutthroat madman who steals; it's about completing your mission without anyone noticing you. The only method to achieve this goal consists of perfect use of your professional thief skills, namely your stealth tactics. On metal platforms or stone floors your shoes make distinct noises, which can bring the guards to your position. In order to avoid this you must chose the appropriate surfaces that will not create noise and give you away. Even if you only slightly walk into just a small section of light there is a large chance that you will be spotted. Even though it is best to complete your mission with the use of stealth that doesn't mean you can't kill anyone. So you can still kill people but it may get you caught, it's quite a risk.

There are a lot of great weapons you can use in this game. You can use your "Blackjack" weapon to knock out guards with ease, but you must do it with stealth. I really liked how using your blackjack is so much easier than a sword fight. Noise arrows can throw guards off your trail and cause them to go look somewhere else, which gives you another opportunity. Moss bombs allow you to walk with stealth over stone ground and other noisy floors. As a last resort if you have to kill, you can use your Fire Arrow or Sword. 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. It's also funny how guards talk on their own and sometimes sound drunk.

The textures in Thief are extremely well detailed and the inside of buildings looks very realistic and outside lights and particle effects of water sprouts (such as fountains) look excellent. Blood is not exaggerated in Thief, but it's very visible. From what I have seen so far, it is not possible to cut off limbs in Thief. When you're in combat with your sword it's an experience that you will remember for a while. You are able to shield yourself from attacks with your sword just as in a real sword fight and if you draw your sword near a guard he will immediately react by unsheathing his. Sometimes he will not attempt to fight unless you are hostile and attack someone. If a guard sees you aim your arrow then he will attack you. You also have to be attentive of who sees you as guards can inform more guards and they can team up on you. When you're outnumbered you can make a run for it and try to lose them using your stealth ability. A sword icon at the bottom of the screen indicates stealth; when it is not visible it means that you can't be seen. The icon also changes color, yellow meaning you can be heard and red meaning you've been spotted.

The sounds used in Thief are engrossing and help create a very immersive game environment. The sheathing and clashing sound of swords are quite accurate. There are also numerous footstep sounds, which are accurate as well. Basically all the sounds are as accurate as real life. If you're near a bar or someone's house and there is a window nearby you can actually here them conversing and laughing. Not only can guards hear your footsteps but you can also hear theirs. There is also 3D sound support for this game so it will sound excellent if you have that type of hardware.

Control is quite easy to this game once you get used to it and configure your own settings. If you use a Mouse and Keyboard combo it might be a good idea to change the sensitivity settings so it is more responsive. There are 3 difficulty settings for Thief, the first one being "Normal Difficulty", which I find hard already, I can't imagine how gameplay would be on the hardest. Thief also has a very good training option for you to get started. Additionally, when you're in a mission and haven't done anything bad yet you are just greeted by the guards and also if you steal with stealth the guards will suspect nothing and still greet you. You must steal at the right time though: it must be dark and the guard must not see you at all. Thief: The Dark Project is really great and innovative with great graphics, sound and gameplay. I'm definitely hooked and I will be playing it for weeks, (which for me is a LONG time).