Sly Cooper (character)
Encyclopedia
Sly Cooper is the main protagonist
of the Sly Cooper video game series
and hero
of three platform games developed by Sucker Punch Productions
for the Sony PlayStation 2. Sly is voiced by Kevin Miller
. Sly is a raccoon
who is descended from a long line of master thieves, and uses his skills and the help of his friends, Bentley and Murray, to pull off heist
s.
who is descended from a long line of master thieves coming from medieval Europe, feudal Japan, and the American Western frontier
, tracing all the way back to Ancient Egypt
as well as pirates. When Sly was eight years old, his father was killed by a gang called the Fiendish Five. The gang stole the "Thievius Raccoonus," a book containing the Cooper family's thieving techniques and moves. Sly was sent to an orphanage
. There he met Bentley, a genius turtle
, and Murray, a comically self-confident and brawny hippopotamus
.
Sly is extremely agile and decides to use his skills and enlists the help of his two allies Bentley and Murray to assist him in illegal activities or even when infiltrating
and intercepting other convicts. Sly carries a cane which is a long-standing family heirloom
he inherited, and he uses it in many of his maneuvers, also using it as a blunt weapon. Sly also has abilities such as walking on ropes, climbing pipes, and sneaking around in order to pickpocket guards for keys or loot. He is voiced by Kevin Miller
.
. The game starts out by telling his back-story
. Sly breaks into detective Carmelita Fox's office and takes a case file about him. Sly and his friends, Bentley, and Murray then set out on a journey to collect all of the stolen pages of the book. In the end, Sly defeats Clockwerk, the leader of the gang who killed his father and stole the book.
The second game, Sly 2: Band of Thieves
, focuses on a new set of villains: the Klaww Gang. The gang is revealed to have stolen the pieces of Clockwerk. Sly and the gang then seek out the members of the Klaww Gang and steal back the parts. However, the real villain of the game is revealed to be Constable Neyla, who seems to be Sly's ally until she betrays them, and merges with the Clockwerk parts to become Clockla. Sly then fights Clockla, and as Bentley goes to get the chip
which lets Clockwerk live, the mouth closes down and cripples him.
The third game, Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves
, takes place roughly a year after Sly 2. Sly's main enemy is now Dr. M, a mysterious mandrill
scientist who attempts to claim the Cooper family vault for himself. Sly and Bentley recover Murray, who has been in hiding ever since Bentley's accident, which he blames on himself. The gang then goes to find new members of the gang to help them in the heist of the Cooper vault.
Sly appeared along side Bentley in PlayStation Move Heroes, along with Jak and Daxter
from the Jak and Daxter
franchise and Ratchet
and Clank from the Ratchet & Clank
franchise.
listed Sly on their list of "The 25 best new characters of the decade", stating that "'Gentleman thief' is an archetype that’s woefully underrepresented in videogames". They also listed him on their list of "The sexiest new characters of the decade", saying "Sly’s the kind of character romance-novelists wish they could write". Sly won an award at the Game Developer's Conference for the best "Original Game Character of the Year" in 2002.
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of the Sly Cooper video game series
Sly Cooper (series)
Sly Cooper is a series of platform stealth video games for the Sony PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3. The series was developed by Sucker Punch Productions for the first three games, and then it was passed on to Sanzaru Games while Sucker Punch continued work on the Infamous series...
and hero
Hero
A hero , in Greek mythology and folklore, was originally a demigod, their cult being one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion...
of three platform games developed by Sucker Punch Productions
Sucker Punch Productions
Sucker Punch Productions is an American production company founded in 1997 and based in Bellevue, Washington. It was an independent company until August 2011, but had worked exclusively with Sony Computer Entertainment since 2000. Sony acquired Sucker Punch on August 2, 2011.-History:In late 1999,...
for the Sony PlayStation 2. Sly is voiced by Kevin Miller
Kevin Miller (voice actor)
Kevin Miller is an American voice actor. Miller moved to San Jose, California in 1997, starting his business in voice acting there. Miller is famously known as the voice of Sly Cooper, a main character from the video game series of the same name. He had also worked for Sega, Namco, The Learning...
. Sly is a raccoon
Raccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
who is descended from a long line of master thieves, and uses his skills and the help of his friends, Bentley and Murray, to pull off heist
Heist
A heist is a term used to describe a robbery from an institution such as a bank or a museum, or any robbery in which there is a large haul of loot.Heist in fiction may refer to:*Heist , directed by David Mamet...
s.
Characteristics
Sly is a thief raccoonRaccoon
Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most familiar species, the common raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are...
who is descended from a long line of master thieves coming from medieval Europe, feudal Japan, and the American Western frontier
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
, tracing all the way back to Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
as well as pirates. When Sly was eight years old, his father was killed by a gang called the Fiendish Five. The gang stole the "Thievius Raccoonus," a book containing the Cooper family's thieving techniques and moves. Sly was sent to an orphanage
Orphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
. There he met Bentley, a genius turtle
Turtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...
, and Murray, a comically self-confident and brawny hippopotamus
Hippopotamus
The hippopotamus , or hippo, from the ancient Greek for "river horse" , is a large, mostly herbivorous mammal in sub-Saharan Africa, and one of only two extant species in the family Hippopotamidae After the elephant and rhinoceros, the hippopotamus is the third largest land mammal and the heaviest...
.
Sly is extremely agile and decides to use his skills and enlists the help of his two allies Bentley and Murray to assist him in illegal activities or even when infiltrating
Espionage
Espionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, lest the legitimate holder of the information change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
and intercepting other convicts. Sly carries a cane which is a long-standing family heirloom
Heirloom
In popular usage, an heirloom is something, perhaps an antique or some kind of jewelry, that has been passed down for generations through family members....
he inherited, and he uses it in many of his maneuvers, also using it as a blunt weapon. Sly also has abilities such as walking on ropes, climbing pipes, and sneaking around in order to pickpocket guards for keys or loot. He is voiced by Kevin Miller
Kevin Miller
Kevin Miller is a conservative American talk radio host and political pundit who has been featured on many national news programs, including The Today Show, Leeza Gibbons, CNN, and MSNBC...
.
Appearances
Sly's first appearance is as the main character of Sly Cooper and the Thievius RaccoonusSly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus is a platform stealth video game created by Sucker Punch Productions, and released on the Sony PlayStation 2 in 2002, subsequently republished as a "Greatest Hits" title. The game was followed by two sequels, Sly 2: Band of Thieves and Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves...
. The game starts out by telling his back-story
Back-story
A back-story, background story, or backstory is the literary device of a narrative chronologically earlier than, and related to, a narrative of primary interest. Generally, it is the history of characters or other elements that underlie the situation existing at the main narrative's start...
. Sly breaks into detective Carmelita Fox's office and takes a case file about him. Sly and his friends, Bentley, and Murray then set out on a journey to collect all of the stolen pages of the book. In the end, Sly defeats Clockwerk, the leader of the gang who killed his father and stole the book.
The second game, Sly 2: Band of Thieves
Sly 2: Band of Thieves
Sly 2 Band of Thieves is a platform stealth video game develpoed by Sucker Punch and published by Sony Computer Entertainment released in 2004 for the PlayStation 2...
, focuses on a new set of villains: the Klaww Gang. The gang is revealed to have stolen the pieces of Clockwerk. Sly and the gang then seek out the members of the Klaww Gang and steal back the parts. However, the real villain of the game is revealed to be Constable Neyla, who seems to be Sly's ally until she betrays them, and merges with the Clockwerk parts to become Clockla. Sly then fights Clockla, and as Bentley goes to get the chip
Microprocessor
A microprocessor incorporates the functions of a computer's central processing unit on a single integrated circuit, or at most a few integrated circuits. It is a multipurpose, programmable device that accepts digital data as input, processes it according to instructions stored in its memory, and...
which lets Clockwerk live, the mouth closes down and cripples him.
The third game, Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves
Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves
Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves is a platform stealth video game developed by Sucker Punch Productions for the PlayStation 2 in 2005. It is the third game in the Sly Cooper franchise. Sly 3 has optional 3-D stages, and it comes with a pair of specially designed 3-D glasses inside the manual...
, takes place roughly a year after Sly 2. Sly's main enemy is now Dr. M, a mysterious mandrill
Mandrill
The mandrill is a primate of the Old World monkey family, closely related to the baboons and even more closely to the drill. Both the mandrill and the drill were once classified as baboons in genus Papio, but recent research has determined they should be separated into their own genus, Mandrillus...
scientist who attempts to claim the Cooper family vault for himself. Sly and Bentley recover Murray, who has been in hiding ever since Bentley's accident, which he blames on himself. The gang then goes to find new members of the gang to help them in the heist of the Cooper vault.
Sly appeared along side Bentley in PlayStation Move Heroes, along with Jak and Daxter
Daxter
Daxter is a fictional character and a protagonist of the Jak and Daxter series. First introduced in Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy, Daxter is Jak's best friend, and was accidentally transformed into an ottsel . Daxter is voiced by Max Casella and Richard McGonagle . Daxter stars in his own...
from the Jak and Daxter
Jak and Daxter
Jak and Daxter is a critically acclaimed video game franchise created by Naughty Dog for the PlayStation 2.The series consists of four main games and two spin-offs,though they are also considered to be part of the main series...
franchise and Ratchet
Ratchet (Ratchet & Clank)
Ratchet is the main character of the Ratchet & Clank series of video games. Ratchet is tall, 15 years old and weighs 151 lbs . In the English versions of the games, Ratchet is voiced by Mikey Kelley in the first Ratchet & Clank and by James Arnold Taylor in all the others...
and Clank from the Ratchet & Clank
Ratchet & Clank
Ratchet & Clank is a 3D platformer/shooter video game for the PlayStation 2, developed by Insomniac Games and published by Sony Computer Entertainment. Released in 2002, it is the first game in the Ratchet & Clank series....
franchise.
Reception
GamesRadarGamesRadar
GamesRadar is a multi-format video game website featuring regular news, previews, reviews, videos, and guides. It is owned and operated simultaneously in the UK and US by worldwide publisher Future Publishing...
listed Sly on their list of "The 25 best new characters of the decade", stating that "'Gentleman thief' is an archetype that’s woefully underrepresented in videogames". They also listed him on their list of "The sexiest new characters of the decade", saying "Sly’s the kind of character romance-novelists wish they could write". Sly won an award at the Game Developer's Conference for the best "Original Game Character of the Year" in 2002.