 The Thief series had been planned as a trilogy , and work on Thief III was " in a fairly advanced stage " when Looking Glass closed , according to PC Zone 's Keith Pullin . Randy Smith and Terri Brosius were appointed as lead designers , and they developed the game 's concept over several months . In an open letter published after the company 's bankruptcy , Smith wrote that the third game would have taken place in an " open @-@ ended , self @-@ directed city " , and that its plot would have centered on the Keepers . Brosius suggested that Thief III would have seen Garrett " accept [ ing ] that there are consequences to his actions " , and that he would likely have become " ready to give , rather than always take . " The player would have uncovered the game 's story gradually , while exploring a free @-@ roam environment . Serious plans had been made to include co @-@ operative multiplayer , and a new engine , Siege , had been in production . When Looking Glass closed , its assets were liquidated and the Thief intellectual property was sold at auction . This raised doubts that the Thief trilogy would be completed , a situation that Salon.com writer Wagner James Au compared to Lucasfilm closing after the release of The Empire Strikes Back . However , following rumors , Eidos announced on August 9 , 2000 that it had purchased the rights to Thief . 
