Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time

Basically, the same great PS3 title we reviewed a while back, but portable and with exemplary CrossPlay functionality. Being able to whip out your Vita and pick up from where you left off (by downloading a Cloud save) is an absolute godsend and the synching process is flawless. [June 2013, p80]

Sly's return to mainstream platforming action is a welcome one. It's a wise-cracking charm-offensive specifically designed to juxtapose the words 'madcap' and 'romp' in the same sentence.

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time is a very good adventure game that sports equal amounts of stealth, action, exploration and platforms, creating a unique experience. The amusing aesthetics and the humorous dialogue that were the trademark of the original trilogy are present as well, which, in addition to the aforementioned characteristics, lead us to say that this is a good choice for our portable consoles.

A last generation concept spruced up in higher definition, given a bit of spit and polish and sent out with a couple of new mechanics.

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time pays homage to the original game mechanics in lieu of simply starting over like many franchises have.

For the most part, though, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time is a welcome throwback.

With colourful visuals, a neat little story, and some great voice acting, the game is only hampered by its simplicity, a few minor camera issues, and some long load times. Sure, it doesn’t bring anything radically new to the genre, but it is a good game nonetheless.

Sly Cooper Thieves In Time is a well made action/platform that effectively recovers the formula that belonged to the saga at the time of PS2.

Thieves in Time resembles a mini game collection made for PlayStation 2. The rough graphics, ridiculously long loading times and at times tedious platforming moments are justified by a well told story and lovingly created mini games.

Arcade escapades of the legendary raccoon master thief Sly Cooper can be recommended to the handheld owners, even though you won't find qualities of the previous installments. Still, it is one of the best easy-to-play games on PlayStation Vita, entertaining die-hard fans as well as the newcomers.

Those looking for an enjoyable platform romp will no doubt have a blast with the game, but those looking for something new may come away disappointed.

Its game may rarely do anything you haven't seen done better elsewhere, but the developer knots a slew of disparate elements together with no little skill, leaving the whole feeling irresistibly fresh. [March 2013, p.102]

By design, Thieves in Time is a fairly simple experience, so if you want more of a challenge, maybe it’s time to graduate to something that’s going to stretch you a little more. I personally need more from a game at this stage of my life. Sorry Sly, it’s not you, it’s me.