As with the previous games in the series, players must use stealth to overcome challenges, while violence is left as a minimally effective last resort.

The developers have stated that the game's artificial intelligence is aware of the level design, and as such, guards will know in advance of potential hiding spots that the player may utilize.

Garrett, a master thief who has been away from his hometown for a long time, returns to it, a place known only as The City, and finds it ruled with an iron grip by a tyrant called the Baron.

While The City is ravaged by a plague, the rich continue to live in isolation and good fortune while the poor are forming numerous mobs against the authorities.

[12][16] A reboot of the series, the story is set several hundreds of years after the original events in the same universe, with clues to the backstory being hidden among documents, letters and plaques.

[17] Other references to the original series include the Keepers, Hammerites and the Old Gods, with ruins relating to them being visitable locations throughout the City and beneath.

Atop the manor's roof, the pair witness Northcrest inside leading a group of men into conducting a magical ritual.

Returning to his hideout, Garret receives a message from Basso, who hires Garrett to steal a ring from a noble's corpse at a foundry used to dispose of victims of the Gloom.

Agreeing to help Orion, Garrett ventures to a hidden brothel to find a unique book, visiting Erin's hideout in the process and experiencing a vision of her mentioning a place called Moira Asylum.

During this, numerous experimental design changes were proposed, such as having a third-person perspective, having a new protagonist, or environmental clambering similar to the Assassin's Creed series of games.

"[21] After some gossip that several major members of Eidos Montréal left their jobs, D'Astous countered these claims by saying, "We will be able to be a little more communicative later on, hopefully before the year's end.

Eidos-Montréal was expanded in 2010 with a separate team for multiplayer development, and when MP producer Joe Khoury was asked if they would also work on their next project, Thief 4, he did not deny or confirm.

"[30] However, this decision has upset some fans of the series who initiated an online petition requesting Eidos-Montréal to bring back Stephen Russell as lead voice actor.

[33][35][34] Most reviewers praised its stealth gameplay, level design, graphics, and replay value, but criticized its map layout, technical issues, and story.

GameZone's Mike Splechta gave the PlayStation 4 version a 6.5/10, stating "Some might be able to look past Thief's shortcomings and instead only focus on the moments of brilliance.

"[43] Giving the reboot a score of 6.8, IGN's Dan Stapleton criticized the decision to replace the voice actor for Garrett, saying that the new actor, Romano Orzari, made the protagonist seem "flat" and "poorly lip-synced"; Stapleton also took issue with the sub-par AI, lack of variety or creativity in Garrett's choice of weapons, the poorly designed and cumbersome layout of The city, and the story, calling it "bland" and "supernatural-driven".

[44] The Telegraph's Tim Martin was much more scathing in his review, giving the game 2 stars out of 5 and lambasting the rote manner in which each level plays out, forcing the player to conform to one set path through the maps and very rarely allowing him a sense of freedom and challenge.

The review also pointed out that increasing the game's difficulty will do little to heighten any sense of danger or unpredictability; overall, Martin thought to be a half-hearted disaster.

[52] Digital Spy gave it a glowing review, stating: "While the game does have its faults - particularly falling apart when Garrett is spotted - Thief excels in the shadows as a pure stealth title, becoming increasingly enjoyable as your skills improve.