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Thief's XP system culled due to negative fan feedback

"In the old games, let's say you were detected; it was really, really tough to survive. You know? It was unforgiving. Game over. People told us that it's ten years later, that kind of gameplay doesn't work"

I'm speechless.

What can you even say to something as stupid as that? And who are those people. I want names and addresses so I can slap some goddamn sense into those ass clowns.

They still think they can win the old Thief fans over as well.

As someone who grew up playing this series, I couldn't be more disgusted with what Square have done.
 
wtf are they trying to use xp in a stealth/action game. splinter cell conviction used it alright...but shit. can't they just follow in the footsteps of previous thief games ?

instead of xp, just use challenges in missions or extra objectives, and in the end you'll get extra cash or maybe ability points to use.

ugh. thinking for game devs. too much.
 
How about a game where you start with 100000xp and loose xp with every kill, you get slower and weaker and need to become better as a player!

permanent savegame, and you only have one savefile
 
"In the old games, let's say you were detected; it was really, really tough to survive. You know? It was unforgiving. Game over. People told us that it's ten years later, that kind of gameplay doesn't work"

I'm speechless.

What can you even say to something as stupid as that? And who are those people. I want names and addresses so I can slap some goddamn sense into those ass clowns.

Why? Why won't it work? At least give us an answer. Who are these people?
People who demand to be spoon fed and have their hands held throughout their life?
 
I think there's nothing wrong with trying to make the game interesting to play for other people beyond a niche of pure stealth games fans which probably doesn't even warrant enough sales to recoup costs.
Dishonored was amazing and it's not a pure stealth game.
But they need a clear direction, the XP system encouraging an action approach was really stupid and I'm glad they're taking it away.
But if they start to make compromises and changes in the design fundamentals so close to the release just to please the fans who said 'we're not interested in this', they're just ruining the game.
Many Tomb Raider fans said no to the 2013 reboot as well and the game turned out great in its genre.
The dev team should be really careful about what they're doing.
 
Ehhhh.... darn it I like XP. Can we get XP from looting then instead??
This is such a shit post.

So you like XP even if its implementation is shallow as fuck? Thief has never been an RPG. It has never featured an XP system. First and foremost, Thief is a first-person stealth game where your accrued wealth (achieved through stealing) determines how much progress you make. That's all a Thief game needs as far as player progression is concerned. Why the fuck would Garrett need to level up or some shit? He's a master thief.
 
I think there's nothing wrong with trying to make the game interesting to play for other people beyond a niche of pure stealth games fans which probably doesn't even warrant enough sales to recoup costs.

Agreed, but it's the implementation that counts. So far, the game design this gen falls into 2 categories: Appeal to the masses or appeal to the niche. Secondly, you don't need an exceedingly high budget to make a good game so even a "niche-of-pure-stealth-game-fans" should be more than suffice to make return if it means no compromise to the game design.

Dishonored was amazing and it's not a pure stealth game.

I don't think it was touted as one, it was simply an option.

But they need a clear direction, the XP system encouraging an action approach was really stupid and I'm glad they're taking it away.
But if they start to make compromises and changes in the design fundamentals so close to the release just to please the fans who said 'we're not interested in this', they're just ruining the game.

All the more reason not to believe this was a result of "fan feedback". Nobody can literally make so huge design choice nearing the release of the game. Maybe something happened in the middle of the playtesting period and figured the XP ended up breaking the game. Now, it seems their recent decision just so happens to mirror that of "pure fans" and use them as an excuse for their drawback.

Many Tomb Raider fans said no to the 2013 reboot as well and the game turned out great in its genre.
The dev team should be really careful about what they're doing.

And "many" Tomb Raider fans are just as dissuaded by the recent release. Let's not be too picky of what conveniently applies to the reboot argument. In short, developers are more interested in being the next COD so they can be superstars in the eyes of their publishers. That's why I think so many modern game designs fall into getting the biggest array of gamers even if it means turning a niche title into something else.
 
You guys should check out this interview with a lot of new gameplay. Made a thread about it:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=698728

I'm seconding this. The platforming and exploring looks good, and the city itself looks very dense and full of nooks and crannies to investigate. The developer says a lot of the right things, too. And it sounds as though finding leads to other jobs will be done organically through the world itself by exploring. Other jobs given by Basso?

This video paints a much better picture than a lot of coverage has.
 
I'm seconding this. The platforming and exploring looks good, and the city itself looks very dense and full of nooks and crannies to investigate. The developer says a lot of the right things, too. And it sounds as though finding leads to other jobs will be done organically through the world itself by exploring. Other jobs given by Basso?

This video paints a much better picture than a lot of coverage has.

I actually agree, but I still choose to remain sceptical. I'll say it again: This game will very likely rise and fall with its level design, much more so than other games. If they can manage to ignite that Life of the Party and Shalebridge Cradle fire, it will likely be a success, despite the other design crutches. If not, it's doomed. Let's also hope that Square-Enix does some proper, sensible marketing for this. If they were to pull a Capcom on that, it'll fail no matter what.
 
No doubt this has been mocked over and over in this thread.

But it looks like they failed to overcome that fan resistance.


Also : GOOD, filling bars adds absolutely nothing to games other than turning it into a skinnerbox and manipulating people's most base instincts.

99 percent of the time it is used as a crutch to keep people playing because their gameplay fails to achieve the same.

Too bad their game is probably still a fundamentally shit mess, no free rope arrows so the levels weren't designed around free movement , which is unfixable unless they start over from scratch. Same goes for scripted jumping.


Their game will bomba, they will think it's because they took out the skinnerbox, noone will have learned anything, thief IP will be tainted, fans will despair over the loss of their franchise.
 
I don't really get it.

Keep the main objective as stealing, hide the XP system behind currency, use side-objectives as a way to make more currency, and then use weapons and tools as the upgrades.

Master Thief still needs tools, right?
 
I don't really get it.

Keep the main objective as stealing, hide the XP system behind currency, use side-objectives as a way to make more currency, and then use weapons and tools as the upgrades.

Master Thief still needs tools, right?


Just like the original Thief. Yeah, this formula works.
 
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