Th3 Plan is a game that is all about using high-tech gadgets and stealth to pull off heists in the same vein as Ocean’s 11. You control Robert Taylor and his team of professionals in their goal to get revenge on Taylor’s ex-partner who betrayed him. Like the aforementioned movie, each person involved has a specialty such as pickpocketing, hacking, explosives, or marksmanship. Each person also has an overly descriptive nickname—can you guess what Geek and Headshot are good at? 

There are seven people total on the team, but there are never more than three during any one mission. This is where the core gameplay feature comes in, and (I suspect) where the “3” in the game’s title comes from. In Th3 Plan, the screen is split into three separate sections, one for each person taking part in that mission. These three sections include a large section for the character you are currently controlling which takes up the top 2/3rds of the screen and two smaller sections at the bottom of the screen for the other two team members. This allows you to see what is happening with all three characters at the same time no matter how far away they are from each other.  

Switching between the characters is as easy as pressing L2 or R2 to cycle through them. You can also control them without actually switching by holding down L1 or R1. This is useful because there are many situations that call for two or three simultaneous actions. Unfortunately, much of your time is spent doing only one action with one person while the other two stand around and wait, so the two extra screens become useless. The few times that you do use more than one person largely consist of mundane tasks such as using two keys or turning a couple valves at the same time. 

The gameplay in Th3 Plan consists of carrying out specific objectives in order to accomplish the mission. These objectives (ranging from pickpocketing to hacking computers to simply walking through doors among other things) are never really complex and are usually pretty clear as to what you have to do, though most of them are incredibly simple. To make it even easier, the in-game map shows you exactly where you need to go for most tasks, so objectives are quick, painless and usually pretty boring. Some, however, are very frustrating not because they are difficult but because the game is sometimes incredibly vague as to what you are supposed to do. This is often coupled with a time limit which turns many situations into trial and error. Luckily, the game uses nearly every objective as a checkpoint, and you can fail as much as you want until you accomplish the task. 

There are several gadgets at your disposal in Th3 Plan including a lockpick, item scanner, safe breaker, spy camera and more. These items are used often, but it is always a quick and easy job. The game tries to challenge you by placing guards around objects you need to pick or scan and making you use one person to talk to the guard while the other person takes care of business. Unfortunately, this is not actually challenging at all. The artificial intelligence is very simple and, in many cases, almost non-existent. Guards have a cone of vision that is visible on the map, and as long as you don’t enter it you’re good to go. You can take out another guard not more than five feet away, and they will show no signs of alarm.  

Even worse is that about halfway through, the game abandons the stealth and heist aspects almost entirely in favor of a more action-oriented approach where you basically run through killing everyone in your path. This might have been acceptable if there were more than three weapons in the game. 

Visually, this game is below average as the in-game graphics resemble early PS2 games. The environments lack detail, the character animations can be jittery and unrealistic, and the lighting and shadows are painfully dull. There are also many instances of clipping, most notably when you pickpocket a person and your character clips right through their entire body.  

The cutscenes, though, are done in a hand-drawn, multi-panel style that works out pretty well because they don’t look half bad. Unfortunately, these cutscenes deliver the game’s cliché, nonsensical story told with bad voice acting and even worse dialogue. During missions we are treated to passable sound effects and mediocre music consisting of slow orchestral strings and electronic beats. 

Overall, Th3 Plan had some pretty good ideas that were simply executed poorly. The three screen idea could have worked well if not for the lack of creativity in mission objectives. Hardcore fans of the genre might find at least a little amusement in the 5-10 hours this game offers, especially considering its $15 price tag, but for everyone else Th3 Plan is a rental at best.  

Gameplay: 6.0
Mundane objectives and odd controls keep this game from being much fun. The plot and characters are sub-par, and there is almost no reason to play it a second time.

Graphics: 5.5
Visually unimpressive compared to other current PS2 games. Bland environments, bad character animation, dull lighting and shadows.

Sound: 5.0
Bad voice acting and dialogue, mediocre sound effects and music.

Difficulty: Easy
Simple objectives, infinite continues and bad AI removes any challenge this game might have had.

Concept: 6.0
There are some good ideas here, but they are executed poorly.

Multiplayer: 4.0
Multiplayer allows you to play the exact same missions from single player but with one or two friends. Unfortunately, you first have to unlock multiplayer by completing extra objectives in single player.

Overall: 5.5
With some revising, Th3 Plan could have been a decent game. The challenge of orchestrating intricate heists sounds fun, but this game lacks the intricacy, the challenge and the fun.