DISCLAIMER: one of the authors is working on The Black Parade and is one of my close friends. I tried to review the mission with an objective mind.

Feast of Pilgrims is one of the best Life of the Party-like rooftop missions (where you can't get off the streets). In that sense it pulls off several thieves' highway trails quite masterfully, with a great mix of locations to visit: several posh mansions — including one styled after Rumford's with opulent marble and yellow wood paneling and another with dark brown wood, drapes, glass domes and soothing music —, rooftop greenhouses, warehouses, shops, a party of foreign Mages in a high garden and finally the huge cathedral.

The visual style of Thief 2 is executed to perfection here, with a cleaner vision of The City that is 100% in line with what the base game depicts. Some of the buildings, while blocky, are very nice to look at and one section in particular that is all white stone is a highlight. The cathedral looks absolutely fantastic and has a weird mix of textures that works very well. Its structure is very imposing and is a clear landmark throughout the mission.

Traversal is usually not frustrating since great care was taken to ensure climbing into windowsills doesn't result in a painful death, though there are times where one or two little hanging flowers could've facilitated moving around. Enemies are well positioned and bowmen can be quite deadly if you aren't careful. The church itself is quite nice if a bit simple, but that can be attributed to the limits of the engine being almost smashed. The cemetery and catacombs are overall a very nice addition and the sheer amount of secrets encourages multiple playthroughs, in addition to the circular design of the layout.

Story is the weakest aspect of the mission but it is still filled with good background plots and absolutely hilarious readables. What is really great however is that The City feels like a breathing, living world thanks to the various sounds of guards doing their rounds and complaining, and of couse the crazy guy yelling and breaking things around the quarter.

It is hard not to recommend Feast of Pilgrims. It is a highly polished and tight experience that represents everything Thief 2 is about. If you like rooftops missions, you owe it yourself to play this one ASAP.

Rating: 28/30