Introduce me to the Thief series

i come from Dishonored and i was interested on the last Thief game. but then i saw the reviews... so now i'm aiming to the first 2 games. how are those like?

They're like Dishonored but with worse graphics, better levels, more stealth, and a more archaic control scheme that you can rebind to something more modern.

Play on hardest difficulty and rebind controls or you're going to have a bad time; there is a steam guide with some tips how your keybindings can be set up

interesting. and how is the lore, setting and atmosphere?

1 and 2 are like the most immersive games ever

top tier, among the best PC games ever

>setting

The City is one of my favorite places in all of gaming.

>atmosphere

Off the fucking charts 20/10.

how much did the last game fucked it up?

A more strictly stealth game with focus on immersion.
It's an older style of game design but once you get into it it's fantastic.
Getting the audio set up properly with a hrtf and reverb is essential imo.
The lore is simple and gets the job done, characters are alright and the atmosphere is top tier.

THEY BEST
SOUND
DESIGN

In video games

Its complete shit but its not like we were ever getting another real thief game anyway

I got into them the same way you did, fell in love with Dishonored and wanted to play the predecessors.

First game wasn't what I expect, about half the levels are crawling through ruins and caves rather than proper thieving. There are monsters and shit too which keeps it interesting.

Second game is more what you'll expect, the majority of it is sneaking and thieving through interesting urban landmarks.

Both are a great deal harder than Dishonored which you probably expected.

PLAY IT WITH HEADPHONES

THIS IS HIGHLY ADVISED IT ACTUALLY IMPROVES THE GAME BECAUSE IT'S EASIER TO HEAR EXACTLY WHERE EVERYTHING IS COMING FROM

Thief 1 & 2 are great contenders for the best atmosphere in video games ever. It's fantastic.

PS:T is better IMO.

I just played through Thief Gold, it's great. And Apparently Thief 2 is even better. TG wasn't perfect, though. some levels are kind of shit and the A.I. fucks up in those levels (escape, air talisman mission) but overall it's a good game.

Just finishing up Thief 2 after playing through both for the first time.

1 starts out really promising but kind of let me down because it ends up leaning too hard into the dungeon crawler standard action-adventure fare. When it's about stealth, it's fantastic, but there's just not enough of it.

2 took everything that was great about the first game, cut out the worst stuff and focused on the stealth. It's a bit more linear but it's one of the best examples of a sequel being more focused without streamlining or dumbing down.

Incredible atmosphere in both games. 2 is better overall but 1 has a better story.

I'm of the opinion that Thief 1 benefits from not being a "pure" stealth game and having a lot of just exploring and shit in it.

reminder that you that monsters follow the same stealth mechanics as humans.
The only reason you can't sneak past them is your own brain not letting you.

Mostly agree with you, but you have to keep in mind it also depends on where your tastes lie.

I personally loved all the exploring and adventuring immensely: the Bonehoard, Trail of Blood, The Sword, the Cathedral. I didn't mind at all it sometimes wasn't stealth-focused.

Definitely understands how to use a minimal mechanics approach with great level design unlike most other stealth games.

The best missions in 1 weren't 100% stealth focused.

The game was 2spooky4me most of the time

>1 starts out really promising but kind of let me down because it ends up leaning too hard into the dungeon crawler standard action-adventure fare

go fuck yourself

The spooky parts besides the skeletons were running into guards unexpectedly