Thief “Is Not Perfect” – Producer Talks About Respecting the Franchise

Eidos Montreal’s Thief is getting mixed reviews from critics. Some love it, while others are flummoxed about the nature of the entire game – including its pacing, controls and side-quests. Speaking to US radio show VGS, producer Stephane Roy has outright admitted that the game isn’t important but is a product of respect for the legacy of the series.

“I know that I told you that at the beginning of the interview but it’s not bullshit, it’s really important for us. It’s the video game industry. It’s a game. It’s not a movie. I really want to make sure you’re going to have fun. I know that the PR guy will be pissed off because I’m going to tell you something, but let’s do it anyway. The game is not perfect.

“I’m fully sure if you want you’re going to tell me that you noticed a couple of problems. Nothing is perfect. But at the end of the day, if you tell me that the problems aren’t [inaudible] because you had fun, that’s great.”

One of the core challenges was balancing the overall classic experience while still making it appeal to newer players. Nonetheless, as Roy says, “I hope if you already know this franchise, you’re going to tell me that you feel that it’s a real Thief game.

“I hope that you’re going to have the feeling that we really respect this franchise and we respect the legacy of this franchise because I think we did our homework and I think we understand what is a Thief game. But how we used to play games 10 years ago and how we play games today is different, so we worked very hard to respect both generations of players. Of course, I’m not objective, I’m the producer, but people like you will be able to tell us if it’s a success or not.”

Thief is currently available for Xbox One, PS4, PS3, Xbox 360 and PC in North America. It will release on February 28th in Europe.