(Singleplayer)
For many The Sly Collection is a return to one of there favorite series in an enhanced form, but for others it is there introduction to the lovable characters of the cooper gang and the dastardly misunderstood villains of various devious organizations, I fall into the second category. Being a newcomer that insists on playing games in order my first experience with the series was obviously with the Thievus Racoonus, and while I was immediately infatuated with the characters and the setting annoying features like one hit deaths, dull collect 7 keys progression system, and the absence of any replay value left me with fairly low expectations for the rest of the series. Fortunately the series really hit its stride with the second entry by introducing a better combat system, open levels, heists that make you more involved in the much improved story, the ability to play as teammates, collectibles that are actually fun to collect, purchasable upgrades, and actually making stealth important; though nostalgia will be your only real reason to comeback the initial experience more than makes up for it. For the most part the gameplay of Sly 3 is identical to 2, but the plot is less focused and episodes don't link well, new antagonists (except for Dr. M) and gang members are considerably weaker in terms of personality, clues and major loot are gone so the only way to get upgrades is to grind pick-pocketing or boat battles and any reason to explore is lost, and mini games are generally quite tedious and playing as new gang members feel tacked on.
The Sly series has an outstanding cast of characters, entertaining plot, beautiful art style, and enjoyable core gameplay and should be purchased by any big fans of the platforming genre.