Revisiting a Classic: Doomed from the Start, The Sly Cooper Trilogy and its Tragic Fourth Installment…
Bring that ring tail back
By Yoyo
Sony has a lot of practice when it comes to killing beloved media. If they aren't killing physical media, then they're most definitely axing your favorite franchise.
There was once a time when every studio wanted their own furry little mascot, and Sony had a couple to play around with --- Ratchet from Ratchet & Clank, PaRappa the Rapper, Cash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon --- but none of them ever felt "personal" to Sony. Spyro and Crash Bandicoot were available on other consoles and PaRappa had a cult following but Sony never did anything with their commercial success after 2001. Sly Cooper though...that was something special and Sony managed to fumble those titles so bad.
Sly Cooper, an action-stealth platformer made by Sucker Punch Productions for the PlayStation 2. The first installment came out in North America on Sept 24, 2002 exclusively for PS2, with Sly 2 and Sly 3 releasing in 2004/2005. Now, I might be biased but I loved these games. Everything about them were perfect and they perfectly captured the vibe that gaming had during the early 2000s. They weren't anything super groundbreaking but they were simple, fun and silly --- plus the voice acting in these games were top notch, on par with Kingdom Hearts.
I have nothing but fond memories about the trilogy. Sly 1 is the perfect introduction to the franchise with an easy to follow story, fun mini-games, great level design and some really decent boss fights (my personal favorite is Muggshot). Sly 2, which arguably has the best characters in all three games, continues to deliver the hype with QoL changes like a HP bar, costumes and most importantly, power-ups.
Sly 3, although rushed during production, continued with the trend of disguises and power-ups but introduced a magic bar (SP bar if you will) and special missions which allowed you to control new commers in the Cooper Gang like The Guru and Carmalita.
If you played Sly 3, then you know the best level is in Australia and it's the lemonade drinking game that ends with Murray in a bar fight --- absolute cinema.
You're probably reading this wondering "wow the title is so harsh but these games sound fun, what happened?" and trust me...I'm wondering the same thing.
After Sly 3 the popularity was at an all-time high. The game ended on a cliffhanger and I thought for sure that within the next few years a fourth installment would be on the horizon and we would finally see if Bentley made his time machine...I guess we did in 2013.
Sly Cooper 4: Thieves in Time is such a disappointment to the Cooper name.
First of all, the game wasn't made by the same team that worked on the previous three titles, second it came out at the end of the PlayStation 3's lifecycle which killed their sales and finally, the game's story, plot and boss fights are so poorly executed and boring.
Sly fakes having amnesia in order to be with his lady lover, Carmalita. But in reality, that wouldn't have lasted as long as it did because Carmalita is a very smart fox. Instead, her entire character is reduced to being a hot headed "Latina" who runs after Sly and the Gang.
Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time is a stealth platformer developed by Sanzaru Games and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. Released in 2013 for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita, it is the fourth main entry in the Sly Cooper series. The game follows Sly and his gang as they travel through different historical periods to restore the Thievius Raccoonus, which is being erased from existence. Players control Sly and various characters, each with unique abilities while completing stealth-based missions, platforming challenges, and puzzles. The game retains the series’ signature cel-shaded art style and humour while introducing new mechanics, including time-travelling settings and costumes with special abilities.
You remember Penelope from the third game? If you don't, Penelope was a bunny who ended up being a boss that turned good, fell in love with Bentley and joined the gang (short version). In the fourth game however, she actually hates the entire gang (that saved her like 3 times mind you) and thinks they're all holding Bentley back academically. So what does she do? Goes back in time and plans to wipe out the Cooper family name, she isn't even the main antagonist yet they were able to use her twice as a "shock factor" boss. Also the main antagonist in Sly 4 is some random skunk that got thrown into jail by Sly's dad ages ago and now he wants the entire bloodline dead...as the player you don't know any of this information until the final fight.
Sly 4 tries to pull of the Dr. M approach to a boss fight but in Sly 3, we get sprinkles of lore drops throughout the game of who Dr. M is. So when the final boss fight happens, it makes sense that someone from the original Cooper Gang feels cheated from wealth and millions. That's what makes Dr. M the best boss in the entire series, he isn't some rando that just shows up --- he has a purpose, a connection with the Cooper family name.
Sly 4 is a worse Sly 3 because no one will ever be Dr. M and El Jefe (the best antagonist in Sly 4) deserved to be in the original trilogy.
If I could go back in time myself and ask the Sucker Punch team to hold off on making InFamous 2 for just a couple of years so we could have a decent ending to Sly Cooper...I probably wouldn't do that because I actually really love InFamous 2 and Second Son deserved a better chance (a rant for another time).
The Sly Cooper franchise is almost on their 25th anniversary (in 2027) and I already know that Sony will end up paying it dust, so here I am asking...BEGGING you all to give the og trilogy a chance.
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