Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves [PS2]

A question has been brewing: Are games finally developing the narrative clout to involve players in deep, continuing storylines? Generally speaking, the answer is no. But the Oregon-based Sucker Punch Productions is trying to change that. Beginning with Sly Cooper and the Thievious Racoonus, the studio has built a unique world rich in history and character. As one third of Sony's tent pole character triumvirate (rounded out by Jak and Ratchet), Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves offers a continuing tale of action and thievery, and a new look at character-based gaming.

When we last saw Sly and his friends, the strongman hippo Murray had fled on sabbatical, believing himself responsible for the maiming of the brainy turtle Bentley. While he's off on a spiritual quest, Sly and Bentley seek and find the Cooper family vault, rumored to contain untold riches. Someone else found it first, though. The devious Dr. M won't be rebuffed in his efforts to crack the safe, so Sly heads off to assemble his biggest team ever before returning to claim his inheritance.

A key rule of sequel design for platforming games is that the hero must always gain new abilities. Sly 3 chucks that tenet right out the window. Instead of piling new skills onto Sly's already capable shoulders, we're given more characters and more mini-games with which to put them to use.

Much as in Sly 2, the story here is organized around a number of large missions, each of which is clearly divided into many small segments. Frequently in each mission, players will have to visit a new city, recruit a new gang member, gain some intel, and battle some of the local criminal element. Between small tasks, a safehouse provides refuge and a place to convert collected cash into gadgets.

The series' classic roof-climbing and platforming is here in abundance, but there's also a lot more variation to enjoy. Many of the best bits are in mini-games which take place in boats, airplanes, and even on stage. A superbly simple waypoint system is always available to keep objectives in view, which means players never have to be confused about where to go next.

Extensive cutscenes and dialogue introduce missions and many sub-missions, which keeps the story flowing. In established Sly tradition, the dialogue is smart and often funny, though often tailored for younger viewers. (On the other hand, Sly's "I hope that manhole goes both ways" when he meets Murray again is slightly suspect.) The flash animated cutscenes look as good as the rest of the game, which is among the most recognizable titles available today.

Perhaps the best thing about Sly 3 is a wonderfully flawless control scheme. The series has always been friendly, but at this point controlling Sly feels like some form of telepathy. There's no wrangling at all when trying to run Sly up a pipe, over a roof, and across a river on a one-inch rope. This is the most elegant control scheme in any platform series, and is obviously the product of a long process of refinement and experimentation.

There's a downside to Sucker Punch's continuing exploration of Sly's adventures, however. At times it seems like the whole thing has become too comfortable. With the studio's emphasis on character, there's really not much that can do real damage to Sly. The greenest platform player will slide through much of the game unscathed. That lack of danger counteracts the story's assertion that there's an urgency to the situations. The game just isn't as exciting as it should be, until the last couple of levels where the difficulty level and tension finally elevate.

A further addition to Sly's world is 3D, which comes into play during a handful of tasks, and can be used to enhance many levels once each has been completed. But as anyone who's seen a recent Robert Rodriguez movie knows, 3D frequently boils down to a headache inducing gimmick, and Sly 3 doesn't advance the technology. After donning the included glasses, a few elements will pop out of the screen, sure, but the effect doesn't alter the gameplay in any measurable way. Fortunately, the 3D sequences can all be played in 2D as well, so once the novelty wears off (assuming it was there at all) players can just explore as normal.

For the first time, multiplayer levels have also been added to the mix. The action is basically one-on-one, with both chase scenes and mini-games to investigate. The best is the Sly vs. Carmelita chase, which really exploits the traits of each character, not to mention the great level design. But none of the multiplayer modes are more than slight extensions of the single-player game.

The passable multiplayer doesn't really matter, though. Neither does the overall difficulty level, which is set to be compatible with the younger audience targeted by the dialogue and characters. Sly 3 is a wholly successful attempt to create a fully character-based game. It's fun and engrossing, and more than strong enough to stand against darker, more difficult games aimed to please a jaded, older audience. Call that stealing the show.