Thief: The Dark Project is a premium role-playing game that puts you in the shoes of a master thief. Set in a fantasy metropolis only known as the City, you follow Garrett from simple robberies to complex missions. He soon fights for his survival as he gets embroiled in a massive conspiracy.

This is notable for its heavy focus on stealth instead of outright combat, with a first-person perspective set against a 3D environment. Some elements from Thief: The Dark Project would go on to inspire other stealth games such as Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction or Hitman: Blood Money.

Guide a master thief

Thief: The Dark Project follows Garnett, a master thief trained by a secret society operating in a fantasy-steampunk world. In each level, the player is given a set of objectives and chooses from three difficulty settings. Higher difficulties add modifiers and requirements, such as extra loot or not killing any NPCs. There are also missions whose objectives change depending on how the player progresses, such as making certain encounters.

Unlike other stealth games like the Assassin’s Creed series, Thief heavily relies on hiding. The disadvantage in outright confrontation is overwhelming, with difficult combat mechanics and punishing opponent movesets. Instead, players should learn to evade, misdirect, or quickly eliminate enemies. For a game released in 1998, it has a pretty impressive AI system. Enemies can detect visual and audio cues, such as walking on wood or tripping over items.

While the game has a limited inventory for the player, most of them are exceptionally useful when used correctly. For example, the arrow can be used to take out enemies or create rope arrows to gain access to new areas of the stage. One key problem of the game is that while you amass loot as you go along, you can’t carry them to the next level.

Stealthy, nonconfrontational, and definitely challenging

Thief: The Dark Project offers a gripping stealth experience set in a richly detailed fantasy-steampunk world. Unlike its contemporaries, it emphasizes evasion and subterfuge over direct confrontation, with challenging enemy encounters and a rewarding AI system. Despite some limitations, such as the inability to carry loot between levels, its innovative gameplay mechanics and immersive atmosphere ensure an enduring appeal for players seeking a true test of cunning and skill.