Regardless of it's stealth-oriented nature Thief isn't without combat. There is a fairly large arsenal at your disposal, ranging from the quiet and efficient blackjack through to the explosive fire arrows. Even with all this weaponry Garret is still a thief, not a soldier, and so combat is risky. Often a lone opponent can be dispatched successfully, however two or more and you don't stand much of a chance. As a result the non-combat items in your arsenal – such as water or rope arrows – are often the most useful.

This may sound a little daunting at first, as the style of play is very different to the classic FPS, however Thief does ease you in gently: the controls are easy to pick up; the training mission teaches you the basics of the stealth skills you require, and equipment is introduces gradually throughout the game. The first mission - raid Lord Bafford's manor to steal his sceptre - picks up where the training mission leaves off, allowing you to get used to using the various tools and tricks before the difficulty is cranked up an notch in later missions.

There are fourteen missions in total, and each one of these can take quite a while, depending on how thorough you are. In normal mode you can sweep through a mission fairly quickly, concentrating only on your main objective, however in the harder difficultly modes you must be far more thorough and complete several secondary tasks. Additionally, as Thief has been around for a while there is quite a fan base, and several fan made missions and add-ons available.

The down-side of Thief being an older game is that it's graphics engine is quite dated. The visual environment is wonderful, the lighting handled well, and the textures highly detailed. Where the age shows is the characters; the models are quite clunky compared to today's games, and with the amount of time you spend watching them you do notice it.

This can be forgiven though as the sound effects are used masterfully, and are what really create the atmosphere in the game. Footsteps echoing as a guard approaches, or worse a mutter of “where are you taffer” build up the tension, and more importantly the noises you make – footsteps, dropping things, and so on – let you know how likely you are to be detected. Also you'll often overhear conversations between characters, mostly just trivia. This and other touches, such as letters left about which you can read, all help to add depth to the game and build the story.

Overall Thief is a great game, and quite easily lost hours playing it; always wanting to do just one more mission.