Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time - PlayStation 3, PS Vita

Sly Cooper and his motley crew of four-legged thieves are back in a brand new adventure crammed with shiny treasures and intricate heists - their first for current generation consoles.

Once again the animal gang each have their strengths and weaknesses. Sly the racoon is as nimble as a double-jointed ninja, Bentley the turtle is as nerdy as a Star Trek convention, and Murry the hippo is as strong as on Ox on steroids.

Play is switched between them to utilise their skills, and execute the perfect heist. With Bentley's technical expertise, they've created a time-machine. The only catch is it needs to be powered by artefacts dating back to the time they wish to travel to.

This provides a convenient hub in the modern-day, a place for the trio to travel back to before grabbing another artefact and then travelling back in time.

There's plenty of sneaking, reconnaissance, pick-pocketing, climbing, bouncing and more.

And although some of these things may make the crew look thuggish and undesirable, that couldn't be further from the truth. The guys only steal from bad-guys in an attempt to thwart the forces of evil. It's actually a very family friendly game.

Although under the development of Sanzaru Games for the first time, Thieves in Time retains the magic, ambience, and general feel the Sly Cooper games have always been famous for. What helps to make things so special is its ability to draw players in through different theme maps which work as mini hubs to missions and collectibles.

These hubs differ in their general appearance as well as the enemies which roam within. The collectibles range from bottles to treasures, and are tallied up as percentages in each area, leading to an uncontrollable urge for players to seek and hoard.

It's a brightly coloured collector’s paradise. Cross-buy entitles anybody who purchases the PS3 version to download the Vita version for free - a bigger steal than Sly and the gang could ever come up with. Cross-play enables players to play on their PlayStation 3 whilst at home, and then continue on their Vita when on the go.

What's more, the hand-held version stands up well compared to its more powerful older brother. With aesthetics brought sneakily into the modern-day, gameplay true to the addictive style of its processors, and fantastic value in cross-play, Thieves in Time is a family-friendly gem - waiting for the taking.

SCORE: 8 / 10

Positives

Addictive because of its multitude of collectibles, fun for all the family, Cross-buy, and Cross-play.

Negatives

Some mutiplayer would have been a nice addition.