It's a shame we get to see so little of the Hand Brotherhood, because they added a stronger dynamic to the city. One of less extremism and more mystique. The towers feel empty and lacking in detail, as many rightfully claim. However, a brotherhood that clearly values the spiritual above the material has every reason to not indulge in these things. Most of the loot found in this mission comes from coin meant for the guards.

Despite the lack of detail, the atmosphere in this mission is very strong. This is largely due to the amazing sound design at play. The four elemental towers are especially mysterious and thought-provoking. What kind of experiments would be held in such a strange place? The mages are, in a sense, scientists. They strive to test the physical in order to understand the spiritual.

The gameplay works well. Taking out mages is satisfying. They aren't much of a threat outside of the elemental towers. Inside, they become much more nefarious thanks to tighter corridors and more marble/metal flooring. That said, enough tools are provided (Moss Arrows) to make places like the Fire Tower less of an issue to traverse. The platforming is, at times, wonky. I did manage to get by with little issue though, using my own save system (save when transitioning to another part of the map). This meant I could only save when entering or exiting the elemental towers.

The linearity might turn people away, but for me, it's a fresh change of pace. This unique and atmospheric mission still stands as one of my favorites in Thief Gold.