Sly Cooper
| Sly Cooper | |
|---|---|
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| developer |
Sucker Punch Productions Sanzaru Games |
| Publisher | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| First title | Sly Raccoon (2002) |
| Last title | Sly Cooper: Chase Through Time (2013) |
| Platform (s) | PlayStation 2 , PlayStation 3 , PlayStation Vita |
| Genre (s) | Jump 'n' run , stealth computer game |
Sly Cooper (or Sly Raccoon after the first part) denotes a Jump 'n' Run - video game series , the first three parts of Sucker Punch Productions for the PlayStation 2 have been developed. The fourth part comes from the developer Sanzaru Games and was released for the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation Vita . On December 1, 2010, "The Sly Trilogy" (also "Sly Cooper Collection"), a collection of the first three Sly Cooper games, was released in Germany and some other European countries for the PlayStation 3. The main character Sly Cooper, a thief Raccoon, also appeared as a character in other PlayStation games.
Common elements of the series
scenario
The action takes place in a comic version of today's world, in which all characters are anthropomorphic animals. The main character, the raccoon Sly Cooper, comes from an old family of master thieves, who have made it their goal to only steal from other thieves and criminals. When Sly was eight years old, his parents were killed by the leaders of a criminal organization, the Devil Five , which is why he grew up in an orphanage. There he also got to know the turtle Bentley and the pink hippopotamus Murray, with whom he later founded a gang of thieves and thus continued his family tradition.
The gang's headquarters are in Paris , where the action often begins or ends. The games are divided into episodes that take place in different, often exotic locations around the world, for example in China , India or the Australian outback , but also in Prague or the Netherlands . The episodes generally have the plot and suspense of a heist movie . That is, they usually begin with reconnaissance missions that lead to a sophisticated plan. This plan entails further preparatory tasks such as switching off guards or security devices and ultimately ends in a big "coup", in which however other unexpected problems often arise.
Gameplay
The Sly Cooper series can mainly be assigned to the genre of three-dimensional jump-'n'-run games, in which the character is shown in a third-person perspective and moves around by skillfully jumping and climbing. Another essential principle of the game are stealth elements , i.e. sections in which the aim of the game is not to be detected by guards, searchlights or alarm systems. A characteristic element of the series are also various mini-games that cover a wide variety of genres from racing games to shoot-'em-ups and beat-'em-ups .
main characters
- Sly Cooper
The dexterous and daring raccoon is the only character who can climb and move around narrow ledges. He uses a stick with a hook, which he always carries with him and which he also uses as a weapon. While his ancestors amassed a considerable fortune from their thefts, friendship with the other members of his gang of thieves is more important for Sly. He also likes to flirt with Carmelita Fox, a policewoman who has been after him for years.
- Bentley
The intelligent turtle is the head of the gang and works out the mission plans for their actions. The computer specialist and technology freak is physically weak in combat, but can use bombs and shoot sleeping arrows. After a serious injury at the end of the second part, Bentley has to rely on a wheelchair, which he continues to upgrade technically, for example with a magnetic hook, with floating nozzles or with an additional pair of metal arms. In the third part of the series he gets to know the Dutch mouse Penelope, who has similar interests as him. The two discover their affection for each other and become steadfast friends. It hits Bentley all the harder that Penelope changes sides in the fourth part by working for the criminal Le Paradox. After Sly's disappearance in a time machine crash at the end of the fourth part, he devotes himself entirely to the search for clues to Sly's whereabouts and time.
- Murray
The pink hippopotamus is a muscle man who is mainly used when it comes to lifting or throwing something heavy, or when it comes to proving yourself in a fist fight. He is also the gang's driver with his beloved van , which he also races in. Murray, the only character who can defend himself physically well, is sometimes naive, clumsy and slow of mind. At times he blamed himself for Bentley's injury, but can be rebuilt by Bentley and Sly. After Sly's disappearance, he starts working as a wrestler to keep in shape.
- Carmelita Fox
The ambitious vixen is an inspector (later referred to as an agent) at Interpol . Because of her range of motion, she can jump higher and further than the others and uses a shock pistol as a weapon. As an opponent of Sly's gang, she pursues them and tries again and again to arrest Sly, which, however, sees it as a teasing game and uses it as an opportunity to flirt with the attractive Carmelita. Gradually, however, the law-abiding policewoman develops romantic feelings for the charming master thief. After the end of the third part, this leads to a steady relationship between the two, which is only possible because Sly pretends that he has lost his memory. In the fourth part she begins to understand Sly's attitudes and his approach, but without admitting this to him. After his disappearance, she returns to Interpol, but spends all of her free time looking for Sly.
Series title
Sly Raccoon
| Sly Raccoon | |||
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| Studio | Sucker Punch Productions | ||
| Publisher | Sony Computer Entertainment | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
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| platform | PlayStation 2 | ||
| genre | Jump 'n' run | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Gamepad | ||
| medium | 1 DVD-ROM | ||
| language | German | ||
| Age rating |
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Sly Raccoon (original title: Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus ) is a by Sucker Punch Productions developed Jump 'n' Run , which in September 2002 in the US and early 2003 in Europe by Sony Computer Entertainment on the game console PlayStation 2 was released .
action
Sly Cooper, with the help of his friends, breaks into Paris Police Headquarters to steal a secret file containing information on the Devilish Five , five criminals who killed Sly's parents when he was a child. They also stole a family treasure of the Cooper clan, the master thief's book , which contains all the records of the adventures of Sly's ancestors and their secrets about the art of theft. With the help of the files, Sly hopes to track down the Devilish Five, to steal back the pages of the book that they shared between themselves, and thus to avenge his parents. After successfully stealing the file from the office of the policewoman Carmelita Fox, an inspector at Interpol, Sly is surprised by her, but with the help of his friends, he escapes with the file.
With the information stolen, Sly and his gang can track down the first four members of the Fel Five in the most remote parts of the world. One after the other, they succeed in defeating the frog Sir Raleigh on the Welsh coast, the bulldog Muggshot in a desert city in Utah , the female alligator Miss Ruby in the swamps of Haiti and finally the panda king, a panda bear , in the Chinese Kunlun Mountains and their sides of the master thief's book . Carmelita Fox always follows them and tries again and again in vain to arrest the raccoon.
Finally, the gang breaks up, still pursued by Carmelita, for the final confrontation with the leader of the Devilish Five, the owl Clockwerk, who is holed up in an active volcano in Russia . Clockwerk is a cyborg who has gradually replaced his body parts with mechanical components in order to be able to live out his hatred of the Cooper family beyond his natural lifespan. The gang manages to penetrate the interior of the volcano, where Sly, however, already finds Carmelita in Clockwerk's captivity. While trying to free her he falls into the trap himself, but is saved by Bentley, who manages to hack Clockwerk's security system. Sly and Carmelita decide to work together for the time of the fight against the robot owl.
With the help of Carmelita's rocket backpack , Sly can finally defeat and destroy Clockwerk. In gratitude for her liberation, the policewoman grants the raccoon a ten-second lead for his escape, which the raccoon lets slip by. Instead, he surprises the vixen at the last second with a kiss. When Sly then flees, the perplexed Carmelita cannot pursue him because he has handcuffed her to a railing. The last scene shows Clockwerk's glowing eye as a sign that Sly's archenemy is still alive.
Gameplay
Although Sly Raccoon is basically a platform game, there are numerous so-called stealth passages that cannot be mastered successfully by using weapons, but only by being skilful and silent. After each victory over a member of the Devilish Five in one of the final boss battles, Sly learns a new special ability - a so-called master thief trick - which must be used in the following levels in order to progress in certain areas.
Awards
In the gaming press, Sly Raccoon was praised above all for the varied gameplay , the lovable characters and the excellent cel shading graphics. On the other hand, the very short playing time of only about ten hours was criticized. In 2002 the game received two Interactive Achievement Awards from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) for animation and art direction. In the same year, Sly Cooper was named character of the year by the International Game Developers Association (IGDA).
Sly 2: Band of Thieves
| Sly 2: Band of Thieves | |||
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| Studio | Sucker Punch Productions | ||
| Publisher | Sony Computer Entertainment | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
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| platform | PlayStation 2 | ||
| genre | Jump 'n' run | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Gamepad | ||
| medium | 1 DVD-ROM | ||
| language | German | ||
| Age rating |
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Sly 2: Band of Thieves is the 2004 successor to Sly Raccoon. The game was also developed by Sucker Punch Productions and published by Sony Computer Entertainment.
action
The backstory of the game is about the fact that members of a criminal organization, the Klaww Gang , stole the remains of the mechanical owl Clockwerk , defeated in the first part, in order to use them for their own criminal purposes. Sly Cooper and his gang members Bentley and Murray therefore have to steal back the stolen individual parts in order to prevent Clockwerk from being reassembled. The policewoman Carmelita Fox is again on their heels, but this time she also has to fight off the intrigues of Constable Neyla , who was also put on the gang. As in the predecessor, the story is told through funny cartoon-style cutscenes.
Gameplay
The main difference to the predecessor is that in many missions the player no longer only controls Sly Cooper, but in some missions also controls his gang members Bentley and Murray. Bentley specializes in placing explosive charges in strategically important locations and penetrating computer systems. Murray, on the other hand, is always used when his muscle strength is required.
Instead of self-contained, linear levels, Sly 2: Band of Thieves plays most of the time in eight large outlying areas with numerous guards patrolling them. The short missions, of which there are around 80 pieces, take place both in these outlying areas and in connected smaller levels, which you can gain access to, for example, by entering a house. With this change in the structure of the levels, stealth elements, where you have to steal keys from the pockets of patrolling guards, for example, are more emphasized than in Sly Raccoon . As in its predecessor, Sly 2: Band of Thieves also features numerous mini-games with game graphics as well as a simple action game in the retro style of the 1980s that is integrated into the gameplay and that is played whenever Bentley hacks into a computer.
Opinion of the gaming press
Just like the first part, Sly 2: Band of Thieves was given good to very good ratings by the gaming press, for example the game was named the best jump 'n' run of 2004 by IGN . While Sly Raccoon was mainly criticized for its too short playing time, the second part is about 20 to 25 hours within the usual range. Many of the strengths of the predecessor, such as the coherent presentation, have been expanded. However, criticism was raised of the sometimes similar mission goals and outlying areas as well as the not always convincing German voice actors.
Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves
| Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves | |||
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| Studio | Sucker Punch Productions | ||
| Publisher | Sony Computer Entertainment | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
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| platform | PlayStation 2 | ||
| genre | Jump 'n' run | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Gamepad | ||
| medium | 1 DVD-ROM | ||
| language | German | ||
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The third part in the series Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves was released at the end of 2005.
action
After Sly finally has peace in front of the robot owl Clockwerk, he has to face his next adventure and open the Coopertafe on Kaine Island (which was occupied by Dr. M). Here he needs the help of true master thieves, who include his friends Bentley and Murray, now also ex-forger Dimitri, an Australian guru, RC specialist Penelope and Sly's former archenemy, the panda king. As usual, Carmelita Fox should not be missing either. After the grand finale and the death of Dr. M (buried under the collapsing Cooper vault) pretends to Sly Carmelita that he's lost his memory so they can be reasonably normal together.
Gameplay
As in Sly 2: Band of Thieves , the player can control Sly as well as his other friends, each of whom has different skills. Sly and Murray can still use almost all movements, Bentley's skills have been expanded despite a wheelchair and he can now e.g. B. make several jumps in a row. Murray can now use the spherical shape and throw valuables out of his pocket while holding on to opponents. Most of all, the guru can turn into dead objects to hide, but he cannot fight. Carmelita Fox can also be controlled in some missions. She can jump well, but she cannot see because she has no visual communicator. In this game there are also no more bottles with combination hints, as the combination of the safe is shown in the picture behind which it is hidden.
For the first time, the game came with cardboard 3D glasses with red and blue color filters. Some special passages in the game can therefore be played in 3D.
Sly Cooper: Chasing Time
| Sly Cooper: Chasing Time | |||
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| Studio | Sanzaru Games | ||
| Publisher | Sony Computer Entertainment | ||
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , PlayStation Vita | ||
| genre | Jump 'n' run | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | Gamepad | ||
| medium | 1 Blu-ray disc | ||
| language | German | ||
| Age rating |
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Sly Cooper: Hunt through the time (English title Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time ) is the fourth part of the series, which was released on February 5, 2013 and on March 28, 2013 for the Playstation 3 and the PlayStation Vita . In this game, the pages from the book of the master thief, which still had to be collected in the first game Sly Raccoon, are scattered over different epochs of time. That is why Bentley is adding a time machine to the Teamvan so that it can now be used for time travel. Here again the safe combinations hidden in bottles are available. There are also new panels based on epochs. In addition to Sly, Bentley, Murray and Carmelita Fox, Sly's ancestors Rioichi Cooper, Tennessee Kid Cooper, Bob Cooper, Sir Galleth Cooper and Salim Al-Kupar can also be driven.
action
Bentley notices that something is wrong with the Master Thief's book: the pages are literally dissolving. After picking up Murray, he goes to Sly to ask for help. Sly takes this chance, because he has already planned to get active again. After breaking into a museum to steal an important piece of the plan (an item from the time it's supposed to go) (with Carmelita showing up and discovering that Sly hasn't lost his memory at all) they travel through time, where they meet Carmelita in the Wild West, who was sent here by LeParadox to kill them. After a brief argument, Carmelita joins Sly's gang to come back. As the journey continues, she begins to understand Sly's attitude and drive, but does not admit it. In the grand finale, Bentley and Sly's ancestors save Carmelita (who was kidnapped by LeParadox in ancient Arabia) and Sly (who was also caught trying to free Carmelita). During the fight with LeParadox, this Slys steals a paraglider and hits a jumbo jet with it, whereupon he crashes and is arrested by Carmelita, while Sly stays behind in the crashing time machine (which LeParadox has built into a zeppelin) and falls into the Seine . At the crash site, however, the others only find fragments of the zeppelin and a photo of Carmelita and Sly, which the latter was carrying when the crash occurred. In the end, the remaining members of Sly's gang split up, but stay in contact. In the end, it is revealed that Sly was stranded in ancient Egypt.
More games
Playstation Move Heroes
Playstation Move Heroes is a video game released for the Playstation 3 in 2011 . In this game, Sly and Bentley have to take part in an intergalactic tournament together with Ratchet & Clank , as well as Jak and Daxter and pass numerous mini-games. Murray can only be seen here in short film scenes. PlayStation Move motion controller is required for this game .
Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale
Playstation All-Stars Battle Royale is a fighting game produced by SuperBot Entertainment for the Playstation 3. In the game, fight various characters who previously celebrated their performance in games on the Playstation, against each other, what a resemblance to the Nintendo series in different stages Super Smash Bros. has. In addition to characters like Kratos ( God of War ), Spike ( Ape Escape ), Ratchet & Clank, Jak and Daxter and Sackboy ( Little Big Planet ), Sly is also playable. The game was released on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita in November 2012 .