We're big fans of The Dark Mod, a fan remake of the original Thief game that won our 2013 mod of the year award. Square Enix, which will soon publish the Thief reboot, is a fan as well. It just announced a partnership with Amazon for a Thief: Gold modding competition, and has directed participants to The Dark Mod if they're looking for helpful modding resources.

Amazon and Square Enix will accept short video playthroughs or written pitches for Thief: Gold mods, whether they're creating a new heist for Garrett or reworking a classic level from the series. Square Enix and Amazon will pick the winner and award him or her:

A high-end gaming rig from AMD which includes an AMD Radeon R9 290X graphics card
An all-expenses paid trip to E3 2014 with Square Enix
Steam code for all Square Enix Games with the matching Prima Guide
An Amazon Kindle DX
A bundle of game development books on Kindle

The best part is that all entrants get a free digital version of Thief: Gold. The contest runs through April 14, and you can find more details on Amazon.

If you haven't already, The Dark Mod is obviously worth checking out, especially since the community keeps adding more heists for you to play through. The Thief reboot releases February 25 in the US and February 28 in Europe. You can watch a full mission playthrough from the game right here.

We know Garrett feels right at home in dark places. In advance of Thief's launch later this month, Eidos Montreal has released a complete mission playthrough video that shines a light on a few of the dim alleys and dangerous perches that will populate the upcoming reboot to the classic series.

The now-iconic water arrows are on display, as well as some pickpocketing, safe-cracking, and other general mischief we've come to expect from the master burglar. The footage below clocks in at over 17 minutes for the "Lockdown" level and is carefully choreographed to produce a clean, if still incomplete, run. Even if Garrett does leave some loot behind and a few torches burning brightly, the video is still compelling for its focus on the essential task of thievery and everything that's necessary in order to pull off a good heist stealth, timing, and narrowly-focused violence.

And Garrett, as well as the world in which he operates, shows an appropriately grim character during the mission. The sound of rain through an open window, a lonely woman sitting alone by the fire, and the way Garrett's fingers deftly pinch out a candlelight point to a world that asks to be explored. While previous looks we've had at the reboot point to a city that can sometimes appear lifeless, I still want to see for myself how the game actually feels. The new video, when combined with a recent view of Garrett's city, leaves me wanting to attack the level myself. Since it's clear the game's difficulty settings will accommodate a wide range of play styles, the footage below won't remain the last word on this particular mission.

Thief releases February 25 in the US and February 28 in Europe.