Thief II, Mission #2: "Shipping...and Receving" (a.k.a. "Docks")

            As the first mission is just a brief training level, this is the first real mission of Thief II: The Metal Age. It is a large level full of opportunity for exploration, with lots of readables and conversations for story development. This mission is key for the story development of Thief II because it introduces the Mechanists. Through AI conversations, the first appearances of Mechanist security machines, and ominous ambient noises, this mission sets the tone and mood of the major new character group in Thief II, the Mechanists.

            Near where the player starts, a Hammerite, on business in the docks, strikes up a conversation with a docks worker. The topic of the new group in town, the Mechanists, comes up, and the Hammerite is none too pleased to hear anything well said of these “heretics.” As Garrett enters all the areas of the docks—store rooms, offices, and even a docked ship that’s secretly run by pirates—he’ll encounter other foreshadows of these Mechanists. The introductions to this group will be picked up again later in the game, when the Mechanists are more fully fleshed out.

            In an area tucked away between some of the main buildings, players may overhear another conversation on the Mechanists. In this case, a guard is talking to one of the staff. He describes how the City has changed since the Mechanists began rising to power, noting the appearance of several more smoke stacks and mechanical structures than usual. The staff replies by describing a visit of his to the Mechanist tower in Dayport. He was going there to deliver some packages, and noticed the Mechanists’ security cameras—mechanical faces that watched him as he went in. These made him realize that there’s more to the Mechanists’ than just new technology. Indeed, the Mechanists’ are, at heart, a crazed religious order.

            The player gets a subtle taste of the Mechanists via visuals in two places in this mission. The first is when Garrett encounters a Mechanist security camera, or “mechanical watcher” as they’re called in the game, in one of the inner storage areas. Per the conversation overheard between a guard and a Docks worker earlier, the Mechanist camera is creepy, and denotes that there is “more to the Mechanists than just new technology.” Both its face and the placement of the camera lens over one of the eyes are ominous.

            The player also gets a peek at a Mechanist security robot. The Mechanists call these “children of Karras"; Karras is the leader of the Mechanists. One of these robots can be seen through a slat in a large crate, should players chance across it. A glimpse at its face and some of its front body is all that can be seen, and thus this serves as a sneak preview for when the player begins to encounter these metal monstrosities in full, beginning in the fifth mission.

            But the Mechanists’ introduction is not the only part of “Shipping and Receiving’s” backstories. There’s also a fun side-story about a pirate operation going on. Players may overhear one conversation between two pedestrians about spice prices going up in the city, and whispered words about a smuggling ring bringing in affordable spices. Certain readables clue players into the details of the illegal operation going on. At the back side of the docks, players can even go aboard the pirate ship, if they wish—sneaking on board is tough, though. But, once inside, players may find the captain’s journal, hidden treasures, and a dead body tucked away in a crate below decks. (Who knows the story behind that?)

            “Shipping and Receiving’s” premise is that Garrett just needs to steal some quick cash from the dockyards. But our thief’s little errand is an opportunity to be introduced to the game’s new group, the Mechanists, and to enjoy several other backstories, such as the pirate’s smuggling ring. As in the first Thief game, the player is gradually introduced to characters and elements in Thief's fascinating world, and in Thief II this world is undergoing some changes.

Thief II, Mission #5: "Eavesdropping"

           The Mechanists are first introduced in mission #2, and their introduction to players will continue again in mission #5, “Eavesdropping.” The Keepers have tipped Garrett off to a meeting between the Mechanists’ leader, Karras, and the City’s sheriff, Gorman Truart, that will take place at a Mechanists Seminary, at midnight. The Keepers let Garrett know that overhearing this conversation is in Garrett’s best interest, as the Sheriff has been hired to kill Garrett and so Garrett should find out as much about his business as possible. For the purposes of this post, all that needs to be known is that Garrett has an excuse to visit a Mechanist Seminary.

            The Seminary has been converted from an old Hammerite Cathedral. This allows for a dichotomy in the mission between the ‘old’ story of the first Thief game and the new story of this sequel. Old Hammerite relics lie in corners while new Mechanist décor stands proudly in the forefront. Beneath the seminary is a small catacomb system, tread by Hammer-Haunts (the vicious undead beings Garret met in the Haunted Cathedral from Thief I). The graveyard is full of ghostly voices and whispers. But this, again, is in contrast with the bright electric lights of the Mechanists’, and their security robots, pounding the ground with their large mechanical feet and playing Mechanist propaganda. The new story of Thief II is one of technological progress, and this is seen in the forefront of the Seminary; the old, magic-riddled story of Thief I lies beneath the grounds in the catacombs, dead and passed by the wayside.

            Suffice it to say, the Mechanists’ introduction is well continued here from where it had been left off at the Docks. Once the mission begins players walk under and hear the slow, squeaky spin of a Mechanist gear, set up above the front entrance to the Seminary. A Mechanist robot patrols by as two Mechanist guards discuss the robots’ frightful visage. And, once inside the Mechanist seminary, the player sees the full aesthetics of the Mechanists: bright lights; large, futuristic statues; and metal floors and art deco design. The ambient sound combines a new electric guitar riff with old noises that played in the background of Thief’s cathedral mission. Even in the ambient sound, the dichotomy between the first Thief and this sequel is demonstrated.

            The design of the mission is well-balanced. There’s the Seminary up top, the catacombs beneath; the overall level size is smaller than usual, but there’s intricacy that adds depth. Then there’s the already noted dichotomy between Hammerite relics and new Mechanist stuff.

            On a first playthrough, this mission is very satisfying, because the player finally gets to meet the Mechanists in person after having heard about them in the Docks and since. It’s also the first time players get a look at the Mechanists’ eerie security robots, which will remain a staple of the game.

Thief II, Mission #10: "Life of the Party"

            This mission is a favorite among fans, many calling it the best official Thief mission and all agreeing it’s at least one of the best. It accomplishes to near-perfect degree everything that a Thief mission should be. It starts out in a place no other Thief mission does—high atop the roofs.
             In the following briefing, Garrett is speaking with another character: Victoria. If you remember, she is the one who contacted Garrett about getting the sword from Constantine's manor (see Thief I, Mission #5: The Sword). She would go on to play a big role in Thief I's story. I won't go over that here. In short, she and Garrett end up meeting in Thief II and working together, and are an unlikely alliance. They share a common enemy in the Mechanists.
             The later briefing scenes in Thief II are the only ones in which Garrett is not speaking by himself. I enjoy the banter between Garrett and Victoria. Victoria is voiced by Terri Brosius, an excellent voice actor who also voiced the evil artificial intelligence 'Shodan' in System Shock 2.

                                      

            “The City looks almost bearable from up here,” Garrett says at the start of the mission. It is a long way up. The rooftops themselves, as the briefing notes, are the “thieves’ highway.". It is a practice of thieves in the City to get from different places by jumping and running across the rooftops. Garrett is trying to infiltrate a high society ball that the Mechanists are throwing at their tower, called “Angelwatch,” in Dayport. With tight security on the ground, Garrett will head there via the rooftops.

            A la Cragscleft, there are two distinct worlds to this mission that blend together: the rooftops, and the tower Angelwatch. The player travels across the rooftops, enters the tower, and, when done inside, will then leave the tower and travel back across the rooftops. It’s quite an adventure, with lots of areas to explore off the beaten path—i.e., plenty of open windows—and lots of story development once in the tower. It’s a Thief fan’s dream.
             In the following video, Garrett starts out at the belltower, enters some open windows, overhears a rather heated argument between some private guards, and comes across some housebreakers (how quaint!).

            While exploring the rooftops, the player can take different directions. There is no set path, though all paths will eventually lead to Angelwatch. Open windows and any doorways the player can lockpick lead to new nooks to explore and treasure to pick up. There are interesting story elements as well. One secret passage players may discover leads into an old “star gazers’” private room. In addition to a telescope and star charts, there is also a journal in the room, from which players may read of the star gazers’ endeavors to travel to another world—another planet—he’s been seeing through his telescope. A large explosive device, a box, and a fire arrow (for ignition) are what he’s decided on for interstellar travel—very crude, of course.

            Another area the player may discover is an old mages’ study. The player may read a tome he has laying out as they would any readable in a Thief mission. But reading this tome causes two zombies to spawn nearby; one of the rare appearances of the undead in Thief II. The player may also read in this place of a powerful book, “The Book of Ash.” This book originally was to be part of a mission for this game, but was cut and so here is simply a brief side story.

            In addition to interesting places, the player may also overhear intriguing, and funny, conversations. One such is in the video above. It complements Thief I’s “bear pits” conversation as this game’s “funny guard conversation.” In it, guards engage in a light-hearted argument about who is the better of their respective nobles: Lady Van Vernon, or Master Willey. The horseplay ends in arrows being fired, though.

            Another humorous conversation relates to the party at Angelwatch. From an open window players may hear a nobleman complaining to his wife: “They invited the Bumblesons! The Bumblesons!” And he, as a “Rothschild,” is offended, to no end, that he was not invited. Players may also read a note in the Angelwatch tower, though, that one of the Mechanists accidentally misplaced the invite for the Rothschilds. Oops.

            Adventures like these and more are to be had during Garrett’s memorable rooftop escapade, but eventually players will reach, and must infiltrate, Angelwatch. Infiltration from so high up is as easy as sneaking into a ventilation shaft. Garrett remarks, “That wasn’t so tough. I guess tower security isn’t as tight as I thought.”

            Security is a bit tighter inside, as plenty of well-lit areas with patrolling Mechanists and security robots test Garrett. Karras, the Mechanists’ leader, and the reason why Garrett is there—to spy on him—isn’t even at the party. In his stead, Karras has placed several viktrolas with pre-recorded messages on them for the guests to listen to. Garrett must listen to each of these as he sneaks through the towers’ six massive floors.

            Players eventually make their way into Karras’ office, where a viktrola with a message for the evening’s “special guest” sits. The message is addressed to Garrett—indeed, he was the anticipated “special guest.” Karras warns Garrett to say his prayers; and after Garrett steals some detailed blue prints from Karras’ office, the security alarm is activated and players understand why Garrett needed to say his prayers. With alarms ringing and Mechanist guards on high alert, Garrett must make his way back out of the Angelwatch tower and across the rooftops to the bell tower he had started out on. It’s a great ending to a great mission.

            (It is possible to avoid setting off the alarm. A secret area in the tower has a switch which shuts off the alarm trigger in Karras’ office. The keen-eyed player, then, can leave the tower in peace and quiet.)

Thief II in Review

-Thief II, in review

Below I include quotes from the Gamespot and IGN reviews of Thief II: The Metal Age. The segments I selected are the parts that echo moreso the points I’ve made in this project.

-from the Gamespot review, by Ron Dulin

"In the game's best mission, Life of the Party, you must sneak across the rooftops of a city, break into a high-security building, gather information and loot, and then sneak back across the city again. The mission is filled with funny moments, and you'll overhear all manner of conversations during the course of the heist, such as two sets of guards shouting insults across the rooftops about one another's employers. Looking Glass has done a remarkable job of making the city seem alive, as almost every mission contains conversations to eavesdrop on and people going about their business who are unaware of your presence. The only element that slightly weakens the otherwise excellent ambiance is the occasionally poor voice acting."

[…]

"There are very few moments in Thief II where there's a single correct path to take, and the beauty of the mission design is that it's left to your ingenuity to use the tools provided to overcome the obstacles in your path. Do you shoot out the torches and sneak down a hallway? Or should you use a rope arrow to hoist yourself up to the rafters and ambush the guards from above? It's a testament to the quality of the design that when you complete a mission in Thief II, you'll actually feel as if you've accomplished something and not just executed a series of predetermined tasks."

-from the IGN review, by Vincent Lopez

"For instance, the game opens with a mission involving clearing a path in a mansion to a woman so that her lover can sneak through the guards and get her out, a task which not only involves finding the woman, but insuring that all guards on the route are out of commission or safely out of view. What route is the best? That's up to you. I diverted from the designated path completely and found myself in some interesting areas I would have otherwise never ventured into. Another mission has you sneaking through the city streets avoiding the guards in order to get a special item from your house, a process that shows just how much wider the gameplay has gotten in the sequel. Not only are there a myriad of routes available to you, from city streets to the underground tunnels of the canals, but there are entire areas that will bring you gold and information that aren't needed to complete the game. Secrets abound in every mission, and rather than just providing a joke or two, the special notes or items that you find really add a depth to the storyline, especially when you keep track of all the connections between the characters involved."

[…]

"The sound once again shines in Thief II, from the dark but ambient score to the myriad of sound effects and voices that you'll hear in the game. It's really one of the first times in a game that your ears are equally as important as your eyes, and the Looking Glass team has emphasized that in the sequel."