TheRetroArcade
Veteran
Posts: 13,031
Joined: Feb 2026
Joined: Feb 2026
The injustice of it all.
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Preorders are opening up for physical editions of Nightdive's Thief Remaster, and at the high end, the studio is offering an homage to Thief's iconic original PC big box packaging in that shape we all know and love, the trapezoid. The only problem? Nightdive and partner Clear River Games are only offering it for Switch/Switch 2 and PS5.
It doesn't really, at least not as much as war and death and politics or whatever. But Thief's original '90s big box edition came in a jaunty little trapezoidal box unlike anything else on the market. It remains a visually striking, highly sought-after collector's item. It's fun, it's memorable, and it's a piece of PC gaming history. I've had to settle for my version of Thief Gold that came in a plain Jane regular box as a reissue.
It's not super surprising that Night Dive and Clear River eschewed a PC version of this physical release—that's fairly common these days, even in boutique indie special editions. I had a similar "we're so back, it's so over" reaction when I saw that indie RPG heater Dread Delusion's limited physical edition had skipped PC.
But the hurt feels new all over again when it's a PC gaming icon like Thief, and a PC gaming phenomenon like the big box. I would have dropped a fat hundo on a physical PC version of Thief Remastered in a heartbeat—it's why I live in an apartment and not a house.
And studios still do come out with physical editions of their PC games: My Baldur's Gate 3 big box has pride of place in my office. All told, it's just a slight bummer and frustration trying to drag down one of my most anticipated games. I'm still going to play the hell out of it when it comes out on December 3, though.
I'm rooting for GOG's proposal to bring back the big box. The company seems to be considering a boutique service where you can purchase physical versions of the games in your library, which sounds pretty rad to me.
2026 games: All the upcoming gamesBest PC games: Our all-time favoritesFree PC games: Freebie festBest FPS games: Finest gunplayBest RPGs: Grand adventuresBest co-op games: Better together
Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
Ted has been thinking about PC games and bothering anyone who would listen with his thoughts on them ever since he booted up his sister's copy of Neverwinter Nights on the family computer. He is obsessed with all things CRPG and CRPG-adjacent, but has also covered esports, modding, and rare game collecting. When he's not playing or writing about games, you can find Ted lifting weights on his back porch. You can follow Ted on Bluesky.
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Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
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When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
Preorders are opening up for physical editions of Nightdive's Thief Remaster, and at the high end, the studio is offering an homage to Thief's iconic original PC big box packaging in that shape we all know and love, the trapezoid. The only problem? Nightdive and partner Clear River Games are only offering it for Switch/Switch 2 and PS5.
It doesn't really, at least not as much as war and death and politics or whatever. But Thief's original '90s big box edition came in a jaunty little trapezoidal box unlike anything else on the market. It remains a visually striking, highly sought-after collector's item. It's fun, it's memorable, and it's a piece of PC gaming history. I've had to settle for my version of Thief Gold that came in a plain Jane regular box as a reissue.
It's not super surprising that Night Dive and Clear River eschewed a PC version of this physical release—that's fairly common these days, even in boutique indie special editions. I had a similar "we're so back, it's so over" reaction when I saw that indie RPG heater Dread Delusion's limited physical edition had skipped PC.
But the hurt feels new all over again when it's a PC gaming icon like Thief, and a PC gaming phenomenon like the big box. I would have dropped a fat hundo on a physical PC version of Thief Remastered in a heartbeat—it's why I live in an apartment and not a house.
And studios still do come out with physical editions of their PC games: My Baldur's Gate 3 big box has pride of place in my office. All told, it's just a slight bummer and frustration trying to drag down one of my most anticipated games. I'm still going to play the hell out of it when it comes out on December 3, though.
I'm rooting for GOG's proposal to bring back the big box. The company seems to be considering a boutique service where you can purchase physical versions of the games in your library, which sounds pretty rad to me.
2026 games: All the upcoming gamesBest PC games: Our all-time favoritesFree PC games: Freebie festBest FPS games: Finest gunplayBest RPGs: Grand adventuresBest co-op games: Better together
Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.
Ted has been thinking about PC games and bothering anyone who would listen with his thoughts on them ever since he booted up his sister's copy of Neverwinter Nights on the family computer. He is obsessed with all things CRPG and CRPG-adjacent, but has also covered esports, modding, and rare game collecting. When he's not playing or writing about games, you can find Ted lifting weights on his back porch. You can follow Ted on Bluesky.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.Read more: Full article on www.pcgamer.com
What do you think about this?