Warren Spector's Thick as Thieves just took a dive into the pussy pit, ditching its balls-to-the-wall PvPvE setup for limp-dick solo and two-player co-op. Yeah, you read that right – the spiritual successor to Thief, that shadowy masterpiece of stealth savagery, was gonna let thieves backstab each other in real-time heists on the same goddamn map. Now? It's buddy-cop bullshit where you hold hands with your Steam friend while sneaking past guards in Kilcairn's gloomy 1910s magic-industrial hellscape. OtherSide Entertainment dropped the bomb in their Steam update yesterday, admitting the multiplayer dream died because 'we were having more fun with solo and co-op.' Translation: the PvPvE was a clusterfuck nightmare they couldn't polish into gold.

This pivot screams 'we saw the live service graveyard – Hunt: Showdown knockoffs rotting in player-count purgatory – and ran like bitches.' Devs say it lets them 'double down on dynamic stealth gameplay,' but let's call it what it is: scope creep cowardice. Originally every thief for themselves in extraction-style chaos? Sounded like Thief meets Tarkov with Spector's god-tier sim brains. Now it's Payday-lite for casuals who can't handle real betrayal. Trailer drops April 9 at Triple-I Initiative – better show some co-op backstabs or this is deader than System Shock's launch.

X and Reddit are lighting up with immersive sim nerds mourning the lost ambition – one post from @Sinnoware got 1k likes calling it a pivot, but the vibes are pure disappointment. 'From PvPvE glory to co-op snoozefest,' they cry in r/ImmersiveSim and r/pcgaming. Smart survival move in this era of multiplayer flops owing dev teams child support, but fuck, Warren – you hyped us for Thief multiplayer mayhem and delivered a safety-net sequel. Kill the hype or thrill us next week, but this nerf job stinks like a failed heist.