Sly 2:Band of Theives Revew

The good thing about sequels is that even if the first game wasn't the best, the will be better and boy is this on better. Everything has been improved, from the stealth and platforming to the art and presentation. In short, this was the game where Sly found his identity.

Story
Two years after Sly destroyed Clockwerk, his gang found out his remains were found and stored in a museum. With Bently and Murray now out on the field with him, they plan to take the parts to stop Clockwerks return... Only to find Carmelita and her new partner Neyla saying that the Klaww Gang got them first. Now Sly and the gang must find the Klaww Gang and get the parts back before anyone gets the idea to revive Clockwerk.
The best part about the story is not just the better writing but how the episodes feel more like episodes. The villains are more involved in the plots and the finales feel like they've been built up, not to mention the villains actually have a massive drug operation going on. I also like that Murray and Bently are more useful now, especially Murray as he was just the driver last time. Now he's the driver and brawn.
If there's one thing I don't like it's the main villain. The person is very bland with zero motivation besides being backstabber.

Gameplay
While still a platformer, the game is no longer a get to the exit kind of game. now you have a hub to sneak around. You have to do several small jobs in order to get ready for a big heist which range from following some, shooting down air security, pickpocket goons for keys or shoving several people into a water pump. The game also use a simple beat-em up system for taking out enemies, which varies depending on the character
Beside sly, you also get to control Bently and Murray now. Sly plays mostly the same only with a few new moves, like pickpocketing and wall hooks, and while he can hold his own in a fight, you better run when the big guys show up. Bently uses bombs and a dartgun to take one foes but he can't get into a straight fight as he's the weakest of the three. He can also get into a pretty fun hack mini-game which I believe was based on one of the final levels from the last game. Murray is the strongest of the gang, what he lack agility and stealth, he makes up for it in pure brawn, able to take even the biggest enemy in two hits. And if you want to which ones my favorite, it's Sly's.

Presentation
Just like everything else, the graphics and style is better. the character models look sharper and more polish while the cutscenes look like a better comic, or at least one I'll look at. Some of the hubs are very nice to look at or explore, my favorite being lumber mill in Canada.
Music is more mood fitting this time with some nice tracks for when things get tense or fighting one of the Klaww Gang.

Verdict
a great example of a squeal and finding a comfort zone. Sly 2 is recommendation for stealth or platforming fan.
9/10