Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves Review

“The thieving gang returns for its greatest heist ever!� SCEA raves on the cover of their demo disc. We don’t yet know if this is true, and won’t until September 27th when the game gets released, but I can certainly tell you that from the demo I played, the game will keep true to the Sly 2 formula, adding new characters, new mini-games, and a whole lot of new levels.

Let’s start with what we know about Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves. Sly and the gang return, including Bentley and Murray. There will be a ‘unique cast of playable characters’, including The Shaman, a guy that can possess enemies, and of course, Carmelita Fox. You’ll take on new enemies in exotic locations and face a new enemy in Dr. N.

The demo that I played started with the gang in a room, chugging lemonade in a competition. You need to press the triangle, circle, X, square button fast to drink the lemonade quickly. Once the lemonade is consumed, the next person in the line will begin drinking until everyone’s drunken their beer and all the beer is gone.

After Bentley finishes his, the guys you beat accuse him of cheating, spilling more than drinking. A brawl ensues between them and the gang. You’ll play as Murray first, in a wheelchair, dropping bombs, jumping, and hitting. You’ll switch to Sly for some quick hitting action. Then finally you play as Murray, the fists (and belly) of the group.

You’ll need to team up on a boss; Bentley will place bombs, and you, as Sly will need to lure him. Once stunned, you hit him. Murray will throw barrels once the boss is in a close enough proximity. Again, once you stun him, you need to hit him multiple times with Sly, and continue this until the boss is defeated.

The next level has you flying a biplane. Your goal of the level is to annihilate all thirty enemies from the sky with Sly. R1 shoots, X and square adjust its speed, circle does a barrel roll, and the left analog stick is used to move the plane on-screen. You’ll maneuver your craft around the screen, pulverizing your enemies, and collecting ammunition when you need to. The level takes place in a town setting and reminds me of World War II fighters, complimented by someone with a German accent using a speaker in the background.

The last level of the demo that I played had you take the role of one of the new characters. This person allows you to posses enemies. To do this, you have to jump on their back. When you start, you’re locked in a cell. You’ll need to transform into a plant pressing L1, then when the guard notices you’re gone, he rushes in. This is when you jump on his back, possessing him, then ram the door. You’ll need to repeat this possession procedure throughout the level to destroy drills and generators.

There’s also a multi-player element to the game. Fortunately, I had a friend handy to play me in, and we switched between the two characters. One person plays as Sly, the other as Carmalita. Sly’s job is to collect loot and store them at safe points. Carmalita’s job is to stop Sly, and hopefully shoot him with her gun to collect points. The first to five points wins.

If you’re a fan of the Sly franchise, Sly 3 is likely to be another game you’ll want in your collection. For the pessimists out there, saying that the PlayStation 2 is on its last leg, with a lineup as strong as this fall’s, the PlayStation 2 has never looked much better. Sly 3 reinforces Sony’s commitment to a platforming presence on the PS2, and in fact, has helped them overtake Nintendo as the best provider of such content. With its split-screen multi-player action, the new levels, new characters, and uncompromising fun, Sly 3 is already a contender for Game of the Year.