Why so many fans want Sly Cooper back?
, by Quentin
If you had a controller in your hands more than twenty years ago, this franchise will undoubtedly ring a bell. Even though we've been met with total radio silence since 2013, many are hoping to see Sucker Punch take back the reins of the famous raccoon that made PlayStation's heyday. Unfortunately, the very way the development studio operates may compromise its return for several years to come.
A recent statement that has the merit of being clear
In an interview with VGC, the company's CEO, Brian Fleming, spoke about the studio's ambitions and how it operates, which is very different from other players in the video game industry.
He explained that he wants to keep the team relatively small, despite big-budget projects. With around 240 employees at present, the studio claims that it cannot really produce several titles simultaneously.
But it is another part of the interview that has caught the attention of Sly Cooper fans. Fleming stated:
"The truth is, whatever the next step is, whether it's a Ghost sequel or a return to Sly, the decision is more limited by, again, our concern for focus and time to iterate, which means we can really only do one thing at a time.
If we were able to juggle four projects, yes, we would have a remaster, and we would make one game, and another, and we would honor fan requests, it would be really popular... But we can only do one thing at a time."
This is a double-edged admission: if they had the human resources to tackle several projects at once, a return of Sly Cooper could already be in the works. But the studio remains true to its philosophy: one game at a time, no more.
So we'll have to be patient. Sucker Punch's next project is not expected to be revealed for several years, probably on the future PlayStation 6.
Why did this franchise make such an impact?
When Sly Cooper first arrived on PlayStation 2 in 2002, it was love at first sight for gamers and the gaming press alike. Sony was looking to diversify its offering, as it had done in the era of the first PlayStation.
At the time, the console already offered memorable games for both children and adults: Crash Bandicoot, Spyro the Dragon, MediEvil*... The PlayStation 2 continued in this vein with Ratchet & Clank, Jak and Daxter and, of course, Sly Cooper.
Of these titles, only Crash Bandicoot and Ratchet & Clank continue to shine on modern consoles. Jak and Daxter and Sly Cooper have gradually disappeared. However, many gamers miss our anthropomorphic raccoon and dream of seeing him return with his band of thieves.
In 2004, a second installment was released: Sly 2: Band of Thieves. It featured our friends Bentley the turtle and Murray the hippopotamus, with a more open world and an artistic direction still marked by cel shading, a visual style reminiscent of cartoons.
In 2005, the studio released a third installment: Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves, which concluded the trilogy. New playable characters joined the adventure, including The Guru, Penelope, The Panda King, Dimitri, and Carmelita Fox.
After that, the series went into hibernation, except for a few remasters on PS Vita and PlayStation 3. Sucker Punch then turned its attention to other projects: the inFAMOUS saga, followed by Ghost of Tsushima and Ghost of Yōtei.
The latest episode, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, was done by Sanzaru Games. It was a decent installment, but it struggled to fully convince early fans, who were disappointed by the less polished writing. Since its release in 2013, Sly Cooper has never resurfaced.
In terms of figures, the only reliable data indicates 2.2 million copies sold for the first three games... but only in the US, and that was in July 2006. Since then, nothing more has been communicated.
In any case, if Sly Cooper has managed to touch so many players, it is undoubtedly because of its unique offering: a striking universe, a singular artistic direction, and a distinctive tone. For many, it embodies a true childhood memory. Those who were children at the time are now parents and dream of passing on this experience to their own children.
Despite everything, the original studio may not have turned the page for good. Who knows what the future holds? A comeback is still possible... as long as we're patient.