Square Enix’s “Thief” Available For Purchase Today

The anticipated reboot of the old franchise known as Thief is for sale today, 2/25.  Unfortunately it hasn’t opened up to favorable reviews, earning Metascores of 70 on both the PS4 and XB1 consoles and a 69 on PC platforms.  That kind of review reception could hurt the game’s popularity and sales since $60 isn’t exactly easy to cough up for gamers that aren’t always able to wastefully spend money.  Here’s what some of the early reviewers are saying:

“At times, the developer seems ill-fitted for the franchise, but the studio has padded out this selection of classic stealth challenges with crafty cat-and-mouse moments that help intensify Thief’s ­slow ­pacing.” (Game Informer – 8/10)

“Thief maintains the strengths of its stealth-centric predecessors and offers plenty in the way of actual thievery, but don’t expect any fun, new gameplay mechanics or an enchanting story in this reboot.” (GamesRadar – 7/10)

“As Thief seesawed up and down, my enjoyment of it followed suit. Each time I thought I might fall in love, the game doused my passions with a new annoyance.” (GameSpot – 6/10)

“There are elements of a better game in Thief — maybe even a great one. I enjoyed Garrett’s adventure when it was about stealing, when it was about getting into a structure creatively and sneaking away, about accumulating and spending loot. But I wanted much more of that breaking and entering than it was willing to give me” (Polygon – 6/10)

If your console is stirring for a new game, perhaps Thief will suffice until something big like TitanFall or Watch Dogs comes around in the next few weeks or months.  But if you’re someone who’s very careful to spend cash and doesn’t want to waste their money on a lackluster experience, there’s still Tomb Raider, Need For Speed: Rivals, and Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag out there if you haven’t yet played any of those titles.

Another Square Enix Failure Like Final Fantasy XIV Would Destroy Company

Naoki Yoshida, the head of Square Enix and Final Fantasy, admits that Final Fantasy XIV (14) is essentially a disaster – an utter failure of an MMORPG that launches this year on PCs and PS4.  In an interview with Kotaku, Yoshida said

“I think it would’ve been good if they tried seeing what happened if they turned World of Warcraft into Final Fantasy. So, because they tried only to make something that was ‘different from FFXI,’ they ended up with not much of anything.”

Not exactly inspiring words considering Final Fantasy is a cornerstone for dramatic and beautiful RPG gaming and has been around for a decade and a half now.  If anyone who owned just an Xbox One was a little jealous of an MMORPG Final Fantasy: A Realm Reborn only being on the PS4 and PC, be jealous no more.  According to the guy that is in charge, FFXIV is a bust before it even launches.  Final Fantasy XV is still set to be a multiplatform title, but now the stakes are higher than ever.  Putting that much development into Final Fantasy and knowing it busted is a hurtful truth.  If Square Enix wish to stick around, they’re going to have to improve their Final Fantasy series enough to garner excitement back.  Indeed, a World of Warcraft-like Final Fantasy would be very interesting to come to life.  Looking at a game like Star Wars: The Old Republic is proof that a near-copycat can still be successful, even if it’s not as successful.  Maybe the powers that be should consider that before making another MMORPG for Final Fantasy. 

Yoshida admits to the faults of the company and the importance of coming through with their next game or two in the pipeline, stating:

“We won’t make a mistake like FFXIV again…If we did, it would be like at the level of destroying the company.”

Final Fantasy XIV launched a while back to generally good critic reviews (79/83 metascore on PS3/PC), but its port to PS4 is due this year.  PS4 gamers shouldn’t expect it anytime soon.  But the burning question here is obvious: can a rehash of a game that never really got off the ground succeed when pulled onto a still-young console platform?  The recently-released Final Fantasy XIII released to modest reviews, garnering metascores of just 66/69 (PS3/X360).  Square Enix’s Tomb Raider took us by surprise in 2013, and its Definitive Edition on XB1 and PS4 certainly remains every bit as good, but Tomb Raider still hasn’t achieved critical mass like Halo, Mass Effect, or Zelda have.  Square Enix’s new Thief game is due out late February and could be another off-shoot that keeps things floating for the company should it prove to be a great game and sell well, but there’s no denying that the name of Final Fantasy is the company’s bread and butter which has gotten seemingly soft and lost a bit of its form as of late.  Being a big fan of Final Fantasy II and VIII, and liking XIII, I can only hope the once great franchise will see smoother sailing the future.  There are no guarantees though.