Gagan Gupta mirrorfeedback@indiatimes.com
Developer: Sucker Punch
Publisher: Sony
Platform: PS3
Price: Rs 1,899
The current trend in older games making a comeback is absolutely ingenious in my opinion.There's a lot of good content out there,which didn't get the right treatment during its time.Plus there are always a bunch of nostalgic gamers who'll willingly pay again for a game they had so many fond memories with.The thing is,I don't remember too many people having fond memories with Sly Cooper games.
That said,the Sly Collection does bring a lot to the table that makes it a much better buy this time round,than it ever was in its prime.
The first game out of the trilogy,Sly cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus,can be easily considered a learning curve for the developers.It plays very differently,has ridiculous enemy AI and is tough to the level of frustrating.The fact that you instantly die by just touching an enemy or anything that can be hazardous was never a trait I liked in any game.Plus having limited lives to use just adds to the problem.
Thankfully,the other two games are nothing like this.They work better on the "thief" aspect of your character and everything that goes along with it,like stealth,multi-character plotting,platforming and even action.The reason I'm talking about both games together is because they are very similar in gameplay and design.
All three games use cell shaded animation,which looks great when upscaled to high definition.The textures seem to not have taken the transition too well,but nothing really pops out as ugly.The 2D cutscenes use the 4:3 aspect ratio,giving you black bands on the side of your widescreen TV.But they look great,especially compared to some of the 3D cutscenes in the game that didn't make the transition well.
The score and voice acting works great.The characters are meant to be an exaggeration of themselves,which comes across pretty well.Some highpitched sound effects come across as slightly dull,but that was the limitation when the game was mastered.
If you have a 3D TV,then this game is perfectly capable of making good use of that as well.The art and animation style of the series is striking and unique.It helps the series stand out from other cartoon-based platformers and that's a good thing.
Along with the main games there are also 4 mini games added as bonus on the disc.Though the games don't really contribute to the series,they are fun shooters,especially if you have PlayStation Move at home.I recommend you try them out only in multiplayer,since they're all aiming/ shooting based games.
At its great price,the Sly Trilogy is an undeniably fun package.Each game in the series has a limitation by itself.But when bundled together and offered at less than full-price,it's a brilliant deal.There's a lot of content to explore here and the games will keep you busy for quite a while.Perfect for this year-end break.