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POSTED
27/3/13
SLY COOPER: THIEVES IN TIME
Sony
PS3/Vita
Meet
the new Sly. Same as the old Sly...
In all the best ways.
Imagine being super-fans of a game series and having the wherewithal
to create a shiny new episode. It’s happened here as Sucker Punch
are busy being all InFamous,
and upstarts Sanzaru Games certainly haven’t let Slyphiles down.
Old pals Sly, Bentley and Murray are back in the actiontastic
fray, zippety-doodahing through time to save the Cooper family
bible, the Thievius Raccoonus, which has been snaffled by a
nefarious skunk who stinks. Probably. He is, after all, a skunk.
Hmm, thieves thieving from thieves.
It’s no De Lorean,
but the trusty Cooper equivalent of the Mystery Machine serves well
for doing the time warp. The gang variously shoom to places ranging
from prehistoric times to the Wild West, each boasting a new
sub-minion (even baddies follow the corporate model nowadays) and
their assorted sub-sub minions (should that now be ‘Doves
minions’?). Not only will you bounce between the raccoon, turtle and
hippo for portions of each sprawling era, often minigaming from
rhythm action to a Tapper rip-off and several retro-styled
Bentley excursions, each period also features a native Cooper and a
skill-boostinating costume.
Fans young and old (it’s very kid
friendly, while not being adult unfriendly) will be comfy slippersy
instantly, going all Assassin’s Creed in free-roaming bits,
with the stealthy jumpiness, pickpocketing, smashing stuff to gain
coinage to buy weapon upgrades and collecting collectibles. Many of
the latter are bastardly hidden, but intrepidness yields rewards.
It’s hard to level much criticism as, while barely evolutionary,
SC:TiT’s a near-perfect slice of funny fun fan service. You
can even cloud save and bounce between Vita and PS3. Loading times
are insanely stultifying on both formats though, and boss battles
also veer toward the boring grind side of the ledger.
Take a
bow for the new raccoonution!
  
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