An interesting tidbit to start off with - Sly Cooper & The Thievious Racoonous actually ended up being a game I played way later than its sequels. Which makes for a peculiar experience, considering Sly 1 vs Sly 2 & Sly 3 is a very apples to oranges comparison. You still do a lot of the same things in the sequels (varied missions, sneaking around, collecting different valuables) but it’s in a different avenue because Sly 1 is more straightforward than it’s sequels. Going for a smaller hub in general, not really featuring Bentley/Murray much outside of the odd level once a blue moon, combat being harder, etc.
Fortunately, nobody said that because it’s a different context also must mean it’s inferior & in Sly 1’s case it still stands well on its own. It still has a lot of the Sly charm which the whole series has (the comic book-esque aesthetic & generally memorable characters) & while combat is different to its sequels it’s not a deterrent. Because enemies go down just as quickly as you - hence it makes the challenge not feel insurmountable.
Probably the biggest complaints I’ve seen is that some missions felt gimmicky & while I do see where people are coming from there were only 2 “gimmick” levels which led to personal frustration, being the chicken level & 1 of the bosses. However I felt the games deviation from more standard gameplay more often than not led to an enjoyable experience.
And that’s also how I’d rate this game - mostly enjoyable! It’s a slight outlier compared to its sequels, but it holds up fairly well with quite some years removed since it came out. I’d recommend it to any fan of 3D platformers.
Fortunately, nobody said that because it’s a different context also must mean it’s inferior & in Sly 1’s case it still stands well on its own. It still has a lot of the Sly charm which the whole series has (the comic book-esque aesthetic & generally memorable characters) & while combat is different to its sequels it’s not a deterrent. Because enemies go down just as quickly as you - hence it makes the challenge not feel insurmountable.
Probably the biggest complaints I’ve seen is that some missions felt gimmicky & while I do see where people are coming from there were only 2 “gimmick” levels which led to personal frustration, being the chicken level & 1 of the bosses. However I felt the games deviation from more standard gameplay more often than not led to an enjoyable experience.
And that’s also how I’d rate this game - mostly enjoyable! It’s a slight outlier compared to its sequels, but it holds up fairly well with quite some years removed since it came out. I’d recommend it to any fan of 3D platformers.