Sly has evolved from his platforming roots. There are still plenty of props to smash which bestow the destruction-minded gamer with coins to collect, but it hardly seems worthwhile when careful pickpocketing is more viable. The various thief moves make a return (including my favorite, Paraglider) and navigating the levels as Sly is as joyous as ever.

Sly and the gang must trot the globe to hunt down the anthropomorphic mafia. Each combination of location and villain is an "episode." The development team stated that their goal was to realize places they'd like to visit. They did an excellent job of capturing international flavor while making levels that were great fun to navigate. The game started in Paris, where the Eiffel Tower in the distance pointed at the moon and jazzy background music inspired my sneaky efforts.

My overall reaction to Sly Cooper was almost the same as James, the difference being that I enjoyed the game just a bit more than he did. Sly Cooper certainly isn't the most original or innovative platformer to come along in recent memory, but it's one of the few titles that really stand out in my mind. In keeping with the 'thieving' theme, the developers at Sucker Punch went about 'stealing' all sorts of good ideas from Metal Gear Solid and infused them into one of the most charming new platformers to come out this year.