In November 2001, Terry Pratchett lived in Chester, a city in the north-west of England known for preserving many intact Roman ruins and medieval architecture. In a hotel in the heart of the city, Pratchett opens the window of her room and looks out over the skyline in the distance. "I realized that I could jump on the roof and see rows of roofs, ropes and ledges stretching all the way to the end of the street or beyond, and there were even small doors and enticing attic windows on the road... Oh, I can't play this game anymore. ”
Rather than contemplating becoming a snitch, Pratchett is reminiscing about her favorite video game, Thief II: The Metal Age.
Known for his "Discworld" series of novels, Pratchett specializes in fantasy literature, and his works are humorous and witty, with allegorical endings that are often surprising and thought-provoking. He is known as one of the most influential satirists in english literature, "the sharp-cut, satirical Tolkien."
Terry Pratchett (1948–2015)
Pratchett also enjoys playing games, having played Doom, Deus Ex, and Call of Duty, and even worked on the Elder Scrolls IV: Annihilation mod, writing dialogue for a character. Pratchett has a special affection for the "Thief" series, not only playing the first 3 games in the entire series, but also often posting online to talk about his feelings.
Pratchett died in 2015, but all of his posts are kept in Google groups, and from these archives, one can gain a deeper understanding of his changing relationship with the "Thief" series, as well as video games.
The play impressions of an "ordinary netizen"
The "Thief" series is considered one of the originators of 3D stealth games, in which players control the masked thief Garrett to break into medieval mansions, banks, churches, and even police stations in a Gothic fantasy world, stealing treasures while avoiding patrolling guards. The original Thief: Dark Project came out in 1998, Thief 2 was released in 2000, and the third Thief: Shadows of Death was completed in 2004. These 3 titles are one of the most famous games of Eidos Interactive as a publisher, and the developers are Two well-known studios, Looking Glass Studios and Ion Storm.
From today's point of view, the "Thief" series does not have much outstanding graphic expression, but what will never be lost is the creation of atmosphere in it
Pratchett first went to the forum in August 2001 to post when he was stuck and was asking for help from other players. In an article titled "Help! In the post, Pratchett said he had trouble doing the "Tracking Messenger" mission for Thief 2. In this mission, the player must track a female NPC who will bring secret information to an unknown recipient. "No matter what I do, the game ends with me being discovered, even if I run down a slope that I certainly won't see... Can someone help me? Pratchett wrote.
After that, Pratchett began to share his thoughts on the game. In a post titled "Favorite Thief 2 Levels," he voted for the "Life of the Party" mission. This quest requires Garrett to sneak into a lavish reception held in a huge tower-like building where the player finds a way through the roof of the city to enter the tower.
"It seems to me that the process before arriving at the tower is exactly interpreting the theme of 'thief'. The sky above the city is like another world, you need to keep trying, there is no other target except to steal something, and the sound of the guard patrol echoes below..."
In the roof world of the "Party Life" level, the level itself is semi-open and has a relatively large degree of freedom
Arrive at the destination
Pratchett particularly liked Thief 2 because the player could complete the level even without killing anyone, which was in line with his personal morality. "In games where killing is the goal, it's easy for me to get impatient." In July 2002 he wrote, "But sometimes avoiding the eyes and ears of keen guards is a talent in itself. ”
Pratchett also praised Another feature of Thief 2, which is that it allows players to solve problems in their own way and at their own pace. "I think when you start playing against programmers and not games, something is not right." The 'Thief' series does a good job of this: there are a lot of problems in the game, but you can solve them in a variety of ways, think it through, and then creep forward, use your imagination, or even run desperately. ”
In a sense, "The Thief" bears a lot of resemblance to Pratchett's "Discworld" series of novels. Both use popular fantasy bridges, reconstructing them in a more human world and boldly exploring the boundaries of fantasy. The clumsy, grumbling guards in "The Thief" share some of the same characteristics with the various city watchmen in Pratchett's work.
The rich and unique atmosphere of the "Thief" series attracted Pratchett. "I often wonder, what is the essence of 'thief'? Is it the immersive feeling, or the feeling of freedom to explore? He wrote in 2003, "There are many moments in the game that I will never forget, such as climbing a roof beam with a rope, walking through the bank lobby, and the guards patrolling below are completely unaware... No other game can provide that feeling. Of course, there are similar moments in "Breaking Bad". ”
Pratchett and her daughter were at home, filmed in the early 1990s
Influence and tribute
Pratchett posted under his own name on the forum, so it attracted the attention of many players. "Interacting with Terry was a cool experience." David Gran, an associate professor at Griffith University in Australia and who visited the Thieves forum at the same time as Pratchett, said, "This is one of the early examples of a writer sharing a common hobby with his loyal readers. ”
Another forum user, Mika Ratokatano, felt the same way. "As a big fan of the DiscWorld novel, it was amazing when I met Pratchett on a forum and had the opportunity to chat with the world-famous writer."
Why do players believe that he is the real Terry Pratchett, and not some ordinary netizen impersonating him? Gran noted that Pratchett did not put himself on the shelf because of his identity, but always sincerely communicated with others, "I can discern his 'voice' from his novels and various interviews". But the strongest evidence is the email address associated with Pratchett's account, to which readers have been sending emails since the early 1990s to communicate with Pratchett.
"I try to stay calm and talk to him like a player rather than a fan." Gran said. But there are still many players who wonder if there is a connection between DiscWorld and Thief. For example, when a player once asked Pratchett if he had found anything similar to Saucer World in The Thief, he replied, "I've been careful not to deliberately look for references to Saucer World in some place." The city has some similarities with ancamobok, but that's because they both borrow from certain universal traditions. ”
Another player asks him if he was inspired by the "Thief" series when he portrayed the city of Ankamobok, and Pratchett ironically says, "Well, of course. From now on, I intend to use a quasi-medieval city with modern 'traversal' elements (such as a police force) as the background of the novel, and also let these guys sneak around the roof in black. ”
A total of 41 novels were published in the DiscWorld series, the first of which came out in 1983 and the last after Pratchett's death in 2015, many of which were adapted into films
Pratchett did, though, pay homage to the Thief through works from the "DiscWorld" series like Night Watch. In July 2002, a few months before the official publication of The Night's Watch, Pratchett referred to a scene in the book that "references Taffers"—"Taffer" is an insulting slang term used by guards to address players. "A corridor, a lamp, almost no shadow... You'll know when the time comes. He said at the time.
Thief 2 is Pratchett's first game into the pit and his favorite. He described the original Thief as "Tomb Raider with sharp weapons," while the third, Thief: Deadly Shadows, didn't come out until 2004. "Of course I wish Thief 3 was the same as Thief 2." He wrote in December 2001, "The essence of the 'Thief' world is fully reflected in levels such as 'Bank' and 'Party Life', which is to allow players to experience pure theft." ”
Thief 3 ultimately failed to meet Pratchett's psychological expectations, but he still praised the game's most famous "Robbing the Cradle" mission, believing that the development team created tension and made very clever use of horror elements. "I always say I played Thief to get immersion, but in that mission, I was not only immersed, I almost drowned..." Pratchett said of the game's orphanage turned into a madhouse, "In terms of setting off the horror atmosphere, it's a great level." ”
The "Looting of the Madhouse" level creates an atmosphere of extreme terror
Pratchett also likes some of the player's homemade quests. Thief 2 players created hundreds of custom maps for the game, a considerable number of which received ratt from Pratchett, such as "Durant," "Lord Alan's Fortress," and "Calendra's Legacy." "I'm amazed at the level of many player-made levels." He wrote in July 2003, "I recently opened Up Thief 2 and found that some of the quests in the game couldn't compare to them. ”
"Empathy"
Until the end of 2006, Pratchett regularly posted on forums. At that time, he had already been exposed to the just-released fantasy RPG The Elder Scrolls 4, which had a stealth system similar to the "Thief" series, but with a much larger worldview and a more diverse gameplay. Interestingly, it was a "thief" player who recommended Pratchett on the forum to play The Elder Scrolls 4.
In April 2006, Mika Ratokartano asked Pratchett, "Have you tried The Elder Scrolls IV?" Pratchett replied, "No, but I have already ordered it." Two days later he posted again: "Ah! What have you done to me? I bought the game at your recommendation and now I can only watch my life pass. ”
Pratchett's posts on the "Thief" forum are unique, not only detailing an artist's heartfelt love for another art form, but also reflecting the pattern of interaction between creators and fans that are unlikely to be repeated in the age of social media. Gran had often seen William Gibson post on a cyberpunk forum, which was considered the founder of "cyberpunk," and Gran said that would not be the case today. "Nowadays, on the Internet, there are millions or even tens of millions of fans who want to interact with idols, which is very difficult... Back in the mid-90s, authors could be active in a web forum or Usenet newsgroup, directly facing very few people. ”
In 2014, the fourth game in the series was released, and can the gorgeous graphics make people get back to the feeling of "Thief 2"?
In the "Thief" forum, Pratchett posts as a player, sharing her love of the game, her obsession with details, and participating in various discussions and even debates with other players. In June 2002, Pratchett wrote in a post titled "Back in the Dark": "Brothers and sisters, I am guilty. I gave up the real path and chose Medal of Honor, Return to Wehrmacht Headquarters, or even Alien vs Predator 2 because they were all new games. ”
"It wasn't until one night that I reloaded Thief 2 that I felt the beauty and calm of it all again. I walked alone at night, occasionally hearing the sound of keys, or the sound of metal tapping on my helmet. That's what I love stealth games, and I'm back. ”
This article is compiled from: theguardian.com
原文标题：《‘Help! I’ve been spotted!’ Terry Pratchett on Thief, his favourite video game》
Originally written by Rick Lane