In an interview on the official Eidos Montréal Blog, Game Director Nic Cantin explained that the XP system seen in previous gameplay footage is no longer in the game.

Thief is a reboot of the classic PC series, in which players guide master thief Garret around dark mansions and stealing the most precious loot he can find. Previous gameplay footage showing an XP system, in which players were rewarded by scoring a headshot, drew negative feedback from fans.

Cantin explained why during the interview:

“At first, we wanted to outline the progression of the player with XP, but it was reducing our motivation to steal. The main goal of a thief should be to gain loot. Garrett is already the Master Thief, so we saw no need to have XP as a core mechanic. The goal is to use gold to buy elements to progress, to encourage the player to steal. The player will be able to choose how to spend money, for more stealthy or more aggressive tools.”

It seems as though modern-day XP systems neend’t be in every reboot. It looks as though Eidos Montréal is moving away from the “play it how you like” style seen in other modern-day stealth games such as Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Dishonored and is really focusing on the fact that this is a pure stealth game, where you must avoid combat and pass by undetected. 

What do you think? Are you a fan of classic Thief and pleased to hear this news? Let us know in the comments below.