Interesting Observations about the Sly Cooper Franchise

Because of the limited library I got for the PlayStation 2 back when I had it, my outlook towards PS2 games was very narrow. I didn’t play too many exclusive franchises. But one exclusive and popular franchise I frequently played on the PlayStation 2 was Sly Cooper. Because of all the times I replayed the original PS2 trilogy, and all the times I read about it on TV Tropes, I found many interesting observations about it.

Today’s entry will be about 19 different observations I noticed. Some may have more details and explanation, but they’ll all have some interesting facts.

If you don’t know what Sly Cooper is about, it’s a series of games on the PlayStation 2 about a raccoon thief named Sly Cooper. In the beginning, he was taught to study the family book, The Thievius Raccoonus. But when he was a kid, his parents were killed, and the book was stolen and torn in five parts. Sly was sent to an orphanage, where he also met a smart turtle named Bentley and a strong hippo named Murray. Together, they worked to look for the pages to preserve the Cooper Clan’s legacy. This included taking back the Thievius Raccoonus, destroying the Clockwerk parts, and getting into the Cooper Vault.

Observations:

As previously stated, I have 19 different observations to point out about the entire series, whether it includes Sly 4 or not. Personally, I think it was better to stick to the first three games because of how the story went in the fourth game. This time, there are no spoilers since most of the stuff are about simple descriptions. But I recommend playing Sly Cooper before reading this, if you haven’t played it.

• The number of vaults to unlock in Sly 1, as well as the number of Master Thief Sprints, is the exact same number as episodes throughout the entire PS2 trilogy.
  • “Tide of Terror” had six vaults and six sprints, “Sunset Snake Eyes” had five vaults and five sprints, and both “Vicious Voodoo” and “Fire in the Sky” had four vaults and four sprints each. Together, the sum is 19.
  • Sly 1 had five episodes, Sly 2 had eight episodes, and Sly 3 had six episodes. Together, the sum is 19.
• The two bosses from the same episodes to have a Carmelita chase level, a racing level, and a shootout level in Sly 1 were also the same two members of the Fiendish Five to appear in Sly 3.
  • In both “Sunset Snake Eyes” and “Fire in the Sky”, there was at least one level where you protect Murray as he runs for the treasure key, one level where Murray has to race with the van, and one level where Carmelita would chase after Sly. The bosses in both episodes are Muggshot and Panda King, respectively.
  • Muggshot and Panda King would later return in Sly 3. The other members of the Fiendish Five do not appear in Sly 3.
• The only member of the Klaww Gang to not show up at Rajan’s Dance Party in Sly 2 was also the only Klaww Gang member to appear in Sly 3.
  • The dance party was in “A Starry-Eyed Encounter”. Before that episode in Sly 2, Dimitri already got arrested and put in jail. He does reappear in Sly 3 where he got released and joined the Cooper Gang, while the rest of the Klaww Gang don’t return in Sly 3.
• The number of members in the Cooper Gang is the same number of Sly Cooper games on the PS2. Likewise, the number of characters to appear in all Sly Cooper games is the same number of Sly Cooper games in the series.
  • Right now, there are four Sly Cooper games. The only characters to appear in every game are Sly, Bentley, Murray, and Carmelita. But the Cooper Gang only had three members, and the PS2 only had three Sly Cooper games.
• Within the PS2 trilogy, the more organized the bosses are, the less vicious and less dangerous they are.
  • The Fiendish Five in Sly 1 were part of a gang, but they have no master plan. Between them, the Klaww Gang, and the Sly 3 bosses, they are only in the middle of the road in terms of how dangerous they are to the rest of the world.
  • The Klaww Gang in Sly 2 was a well-organized gang with a dangerous master plan, which was the spice operation. With the exception of the Contessa, the members of the Klaww Gang weren’t as evil as the ones from the Fiendish Five. Not even Arpeggio.
  • The bosses in Sly 3 (Octavio, Black Baron, General Tsao, Captain LeFwee, and Dr. M) do not even know each other. However, they are the most vicious and the most dangerous of the Sly Cooper villains. This is especially true for Octavio (whose crimes were the very definition of terrorism) and General Tsao (who appeared to be the most hatable character in the entire series).
• The treasure key scheme in Sly 1 had a similar format to the different waves of jobs in each episode of Sly 2 and Sly 3.
  • In Sly 2 and Sly 3, the four waves of jobs was the introduction job, the first wave, the second wave, and the operation job. Sly 1 had a similarity involving treasure keys.
  • In every episode in Sly 1 (save for “A Cold Heart of Hate”), you start at a regular level, where you can’t even access the hub until you get the first treasure key.
  • Once you unlock the hub, there are three or four other levels to collect at least two more treasure keys. Get at least three treasure keys, you can go further into the hub.
  • The next step is to get all seven treasure keys from every level in the episode.
  • One you have all seven treasure keys, you are ready to fight the boss.
• All eight episodes of Sly 2 had some oddities about the jobs and episodes not shared with others.
  • “The Black Chateau” had two introductory jobs rather than one.
  • “A Starry-Eyed Encounter” had one job that lasted three different jobs.
  • “The Predator Awakes” had a turning point between the first and second waves of jobs.
  • “Jailbreak!” had only three waves of jobs, which were freeing Sly, preparing to free Murray, and the operation job.
  • “A Tangled Web” had exactly one job for Sly, one job for Bentley, and one job for Murray each in both waves of jobs. The two jobs each individual had were even related to each other.
  • “He Who Tamed the Iron Horse” had three Clockwerk parts, where you have to collect at least one part from the first wave, one from the second wave, and one from the operation job.
  • “Menace in the North, eh?” had two issues of focus instead of one. They were getting the Clockwerk talons and draining the northern light battery.
  • “Anatomy for Disaster” didn’t even have an operation job.
• Every episode in Sly 3 had a change in plot after the halfway point.
  • “An Opera of Fear” was the only one that resembled a Sly 2 episode, though Octavio did get angered when Bentley destroyed his Ferris Wheel and Sly spied on him.
  • The first half of “Rumble Down Under” was about freeing the Guru. The second half was about clearing the outback.
  • The first half of “Flight of Fancy” was about semifinals preparation. The second half was about preparing for the finals.
  • In the first half of “A Cold Alliance”, Bentley originally planned on having the Cooper Gang get a job at the wedding so they can take Jing King during the wedding. But after the laptop incident, they focused on getting back at General Tsao and freeing Jing King before the wedding.
  • The first half of “Dead Men Tell No Tales” was about retrieving Remy’s diving gear for Dimitri. The second half was about freeing Penelope after being kidnapped.
  • The first half of “Honor Among Thieves” was about taking back Sly’s cane. The second half was about exploring the Cooper Vault.
• The miners in Sly 3 are the only guards to not have a leader.
  • Although the Mask of Dark Earth was the boss of the level, it was not the leader of the miners, but rather a byproduct of their ignorance of aboriginal culture.
• Operation: Hippo Drop was the only “operation job” out of all 12 operation jobs where everything went according to Bentley’s plan.
  • While Operation: Thunder Beak went well for the most part, one thing Bentley didn’t take into consideration was that the rat guards would attempt destroying the truck as they drag the peacock head statue down.
  • In Operation: Wet Tiger, Sly does get hurt, and then he gets arrested, along with Murray and Carmelita.
  • In Operation: Trojan Tank, the Cooper Gang successfully frees Murray, but then the Contessa catches them and runs away.
  • Operation: High Road took twice as long as Bentley expected since Neyla took one of the eyes. Sly and Bentley even lampshaded that this wasn’t part of the plan.
  • In Operation: Choo-Choo, Neyla tried to disrupt Sly when he attempted to get the Clockwerk stomach.
  • In Operation: Canada Games, Jean Bison took all of the Clockwerk parts the Cooper Gang stole and sold them to Arpeggio. This was a total failure.
  • In Operation: Tar Be Gone, Carmelita destroys the chandelier before it hits Octavio, foiling Bentley’s plan.
  • In Operation: Moon Crash, Carmelita disrupts the Cooper Gang’s plan again since the Mask of Dark Earth caught onto her.
  • In Operation: Turbo Dominant Eagle, The Black Baron refused to concede even after he lost.
  • In Operation: Wedding Crasher, General Tsao summoned a stone dragon and captured Penelope.
  • Even though Bentley thought through in Operation: Reverse Double-Cross, Sly did get hurt, and Penelope was the one who outsmarted LeFwee.
• Every member of the Fiendish Five had a Klaww Gang counterpart.
  • Raleigh is most like Jean Bison because of their knowledge on transportation and their tampering with the environment for personal gain.
  • Muggshot is most like Dimitri since both ran a resort geared towards adults (casino and nightclub).
  • Mz Ruby is most like The Contessa since both are scary and used dark magic.
  • Panda King is most like Rajan since they grew up poorly and then produced illegal substances in a historical-looking place.
  • Clockwerk is most like Arpeggio since both are the leaders of their respective gangs.
• Every member of the Fiendish Five also had a Sly 3 counterpart.
  • Raleigh is most like Captain LeFwee since both are highly intelligent and have experience with pirate ships and treasure.
  • Muggshot is most like the Black Baron since both were in the ACES tournament.
  • Mz Ruby is most like General Tsao since both used dark magic to spawn zombies.
  • Panda King is most like Octavio since both were highly destructive.
  • Clockwerk is most like Dr. M since both had strong ties to the Cooper Family.
• Every member of the Klaww Gang also had a Sly 3 counterpart.
  • Dimitri is most like Black Baron since both joined the Cooper Gang and aren’t as mean as the others.
  • Rajan is most like Octavio since they’re both big cats Murray fought and tried to run or hide from the Cooper Gang.
  • The Contessa is most like Dr. M since both used dangerous technology and had advanced security.
  • Jean Bison is most like General Tsao since both have went into the Cooper Gang’s safehouse and stole from them.
  • Arpeggio is most like Captain LeFwee since both are smart parrots that are very weak.
• The first episode of every game in the PS2 trilogy was always set in Europe.
  • “Tide of Terror” was set in the UK, “The Black Chateau” was set in France, and “An Opera of Fear” was set in Italy. All three countries are European countries.
• The second episode of every game in the PS2 trilogy was always set in the evening.
  • You can even see the sunset skies in “Sunset Snake Eyes”, “A Starry-Eyed Encounter”, and “Rumble Down Under”.
• The only country Sly visited twice in two non-consecutive episodes in the PS2 trilogy was China.
  • In both “Fire in the Sky” and “A Cold Alliance” (which are in two different games), Sly went to China.
  • Even though two episodes were set in India, two in Czech Republic, and two in Canada, they were consecutive episodes.
• In the two episodes where one of the villains went into the Cooper Gang’s safehouse and stole from them, the gang lost the van and then got it back.
  • In “Menace in the North, Eh?”, Jean Bison stole all of the Clockwerk parts while the Cooper Gang were kept in a holding chamber. At the end, the van drifted away.
  • In “A Cold Alliance”, General Tsao stole Bentley’s laptop. That same episode was also about breaking free the Cooper Van and making it operational.
• “Menace in the North, Eh?” is the only episode in the PS2 trilogy to not have any female character present in the cutscenes or episode.
  • The only major female characters were Carmelita, Mz Ruby, Constable Neyla, The Contessa, and Penelope, none of which appeared in that episode.
• Stun/Temporal Lock was the only move all three members of the Cooper Gang have used.
  • Sly learned it in Sly 1, Bentley learned it in Sly 2, and Murray learned it in Sly 3.

You don’t even need to think critically to observe this. If you were super-observant and paid attention to the story (and the facts), you would’ve found this. And by the way, Sly 4 was the only Sly Cooper game that I never played. I don’t know if the gameplay is any better or worse, but Sly Cooper is one of those few games that are better for the story than for the gameplay. It took two bad moments in the plot to ruin the entire game.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Each Game:

Since I won’t discuss Sly Cooper as much going forward, I would also like to point out what each game did right and what each game did wrong. There’s at least one or two standouts that put the game at the top, and two that put it right to the bottom:

• Sly 1:
  • For being a completely different game, the one thing Sly 1 was the best in were the clue bottles. You not only had more vaults to open, but also some vaults reveal the “blueprints” for the world. It also had better levels. Sunset Snake Eyes was the only level set in the United States, Vicious Voodoo was a perfect horror-themed level for a child’s game, and Fire in the Sky gives you the feel that you’re almost done with the game.
  • The two worst parts of the game were the one-hit kills and the alarms. If you were used to health meters from Nintendo 64 games, Sly 1 gets too cheesy regarding taking damage. You can collect lucky charms, but the most you can have at once are two. And if you lose one, you’ll have to do a lot of backtracking to find them or collect 100 coins. The alarms and tripping security aren’t too bad, but they will hurt you during Master Thief Sprints.
• Sly 2:
  • Sly 2 had the perfect gameplay for a Sly Cooper game. The job mechanic was better than Sly 1’s treasure keys. It had proper health meters. You can play as Bentley and Murray. And there are a bunch of cool moves. Plus, the vaults and clue bottles were still in Sly 2. The other thing Sly 2 is the best in is story. Sly 1’s A sublot is strong (getting the Thievius Raccoonus), but the B subplots (each conflict surrounding the Fiendish Five members) was weak. Sly 3 had strong B subplots (the conflicts of each level), but a weak A subplot (getting more members to join). But Sly 2 balanced both the A subplot and B subplots.
  • Even the best can be the worst in some areas. The biggest drawback in Sly 2 is that you cannot replay a job. Once you have completed the job, it’s over. The game may be long, but once it’s all done, there’s nothing left you can do. It also had my least favorite ending of the Sly Cooper Trilogy. Poor Bentley.
• Sly 3:
  • Even though it’s the weakest of the Sly Cooper trilogy, it did better than both Sly 1 and Sly 2 in the mission replays. You can replay any job once you completed it. If you have unlocked any more moves later, you can replay the jobs with better performance. It was also the only Sly Cooper game to have multiplayer games, as there’s a Sly vs Carmelita battle in Venice, a biplane duel, a pirate ship battle, and a co-op game. Even though the multiplayer game selection is small, it’s still better.
  • Sly 3 is a pretty good game, but it doesn’t do better than the other two. The biggest flaw is that the clue bottles and vaults were removed. This means that only the main jobs count in each level. Once you finish them all, there’s nothing left to do. The other problem is the 3-D feature. If you wear 3-D glasses and have the 3-D filters turned on, nothing really popped out, making it a huge disappointment of a cool feature.