Thief 4 may be released for Xbox 720 and other next-gen consoles

The Thief series has had some of the best stealth games in gaming history. The first person stealth game was one of the first games that had a first person perspective and where fighting enemies was actively discouraged to the point where the main protagonist, Garrett, always had a disadvantage against enemies. The latest game in the series, Thief 4 - dubbed Thi4f, was announced in 2009 - five years after Thief: Deadly Shadows.

According to a report in the latest issue of OXM UK, Thi4f is likely to release late next year, when the Xbox 720 is expected to launch. The report is said to be accurate by CVG’s sources. Thi4f is said to have been in development for four years.  The game has seen many problems during development with the audio director and lead level designer recently leaving the studio, along with many other concept artists and designers.

The Thief series is based in an ancient unnamed city that is a mix between medieval and steampunk. Each game consists of a series of missions that begin with little or no connection to each other but eventually become part of an over-arching plot that revolves around the main character, Garrett, saving the world from a great evil.

Thi4f may be released for the Xbox 720

The series is notable for the free exploration that the game allows within the boundaries of each scenario. The games also have multiple ways to accomplish each mission. The Thief series has a strong following and many elaborate fan-made scenarios have been created.

So far, the Thief series has had three installments. The first installment being Thief: The Dark Project which was released in 1998. The Dark Project was later rereleased as Thief Gold in 1999 and added three new missions and additional goodies. The second installment was Thief II: The Metal Age released in 2000. The rereleased, dubbed Thief II Gold was cancelled when the developers, Looking Glass Studio, went under. The third game in the series was Thief: Deadly Shadows released in 2004.

For those interested, the Thief collection, featuring Thief Gold, Thief II: The Metal Age and Thief: Deadly Shadows is available on Steam for $26.99 (roughly Rs. 1,500). All the games are also available separately on both Steam and Gog.com.

Thief Gold was the first game to use light and sound gameplay mechanics – different surfaces cause varying noise (for example carpets are quiet and ceramic tiles are very loud). You can use sound to your advantage - it’s not only your main source of information on how close your enemies are but you can use it to distract them, for example by throwing objects.