Thief dev still figuring out how garrulous Garrett should be

Thief protagonist Garrett isn't a very talkative man, at least not outwardly. But in gameplay footage that developer Eidos Montreal showed during a New York Comic Con panel today, he had plenty to say in a running internal monologue. According to the panelists, the developers are still figuring out the right balance for his narration.

"Here, Garrett is very chatty," said Daniel Windfeld Schmidt (above right), lead level designer on Thief, during the panel. "Me and Steve [Gallagher, the game's narrative director], we'll look at that later."

Garrett's comments often pointed out elements of the environment or provided information on level objectives, and the hints were strong enough that the player wouldn't have had to figure out much on their own. Windfeld Schmidt clarified that the clip was taken from a demo of Thief that was intended for members of the media, which is why Garrett gave out so many hints in his narration.

"It's already planned [for us] to limit the amount of hints," said Windfeld Schmidt, explaining that the developers may make Garrett more garrulous on lower difficulty levels. But more than hints, the main idea with the narration is to give the player backstory — both about Garrett and about the world of Thief.

"We don't want him to talk that much," said Gallagher (above left), who, while telling the basic story of Thief earlier in the panel, described Garrett as a man of few words.

"It's a fine line of giving enough of his character," Windfeld Schmidt explained, "without making him feel like a condescending person."

For more, check out our most recent hands-on impressions of Thief.