The Thing Is One OF The Best Movie To Game Game's That I Have Played. Although It Is More Of A Sequal.
Maybe not all of us remember ''John Carpenters The Thing'' the 1982 remake of the original ''The Thing from another World''. The movie toke place in the Arctic as the men in an American research outpost discover a shape-shifting alien, capable of perfectly imitating people or animals. The movie was not a great success at the time due to another alien ''E.T'', but over the course of years since the film was made it has developed more than a little cult following. With graphic intense special effects and paranoia elements thrown in the movie was awesome to say the least and a must see for Horror/Scifi fans. Now 20 years after the film was made a sequel is made.... in the form of The Thing for the PS2.
Honestly the only reason I gave the story a 10 is merely because I loved the movie since I was 4-5 years old. The game starts three months after the film ends. You are the leader of the Military rescue squad sent to what is left of the now destroyed U.S. Outpost#31 to find out what happened. It was and always has been one of my favorite films, and for someone to do and exact continuation of the original story...it was a must have. If you loved the movie, BUY THIS GAME!
Graphics : I have seen better graphics before on the PS2, but not many times. All the character models are more than decently done and move realistically, they're lips even move in game while speaking...although not always in sync lol. Blood and gore are done more than effectively, blood splatters on walls floors and ceilings and Things can be blown into little pieces and of course set on fire. The attention the developers gave to the game is almost staggering. You can tell by simply playing through the first level that at least one of the developers is a fan of the movie. Scenes buildings and even the placement of items are ripped directly from the film, making the ambience and feel of the game so much more real. Snow and fog effects are done so well that you can almost feel the cold when outside a building. Fire effects are done pretty well, but the explosions could of used just a little work. I almost forgot to mention the ''Things'' themselves. As I expected, if you want to see some grotesque almost stomach turning monsters look no further. One or two of the ''Things'' are taken from the film, the others look like Rob Bottin and Pinhead from Hellrasier had a field day on the drawing broad.
With a squad based game the controls are more than just important. This is the area where most squad games go off the deep end, but TT was done justice. The controls themselves are so smooth at times they almost seem simple. I'll admit it takes some time to get used to, and changing weapons while surrounded by blood-thirsty aliens is a pain. I would have gave the controls a 10 if the game had featured a method of laying out your own controls. But as a squad based game, the controls are certainly above average.
Sound : The sound in the game is one of its best qualities, I'll also add that there is no music in the game. But that simply adds to the dark edge The Thing has to offer. Some of the best voice acting I've seen in a video game is present in the thing, by hearing the voices you can actually believe that these are real people. Although I have heard better as well, the voices are top notch. Gun fire and explosions are done very nice, not to mention the creepy sound of the Arctic wind all around you outside. The screaming of the monsters as you set them a blaze with your trusty flame thrower, confuses you on rather you wanna laugh in their face for getting what they deserve...or cringe in disgust. Also in some parts of the game the classic John Carpenter theme from the movie is played in key situations. (Yes John Carpenter created the theme song, Ennio Marconnie did all the other music in the movie.)
Gameplay : I figured before I ordered the game that this section may slum a little, boy was I wrong. The Thing brings enough fast paced shooting action, puzzle solving, and story to the screen that any fan of Resident Evil or Silent Hill would know and love. But TT stands on its own ground bringing new elements into play, like the innovative Fear/Trust system. You must keep the level of your squad members fear down, and trust up at all times. If your buddies get to scared, they quiver up in a corner and piss themselves, or vomit, or in some cases blow their heads off! If they don't trust you, they will refuse to follow your commands maybe even attack you. The fact that the thing can imitate ANYTHING perfectly down to the personality is what causes such paranoia. The only way to tell who is infected is by a blood test, which actually helps at times. You can do a blood test on yourself to prove to your squad members your not the thing, or test your buddies to see if one of them might have a lil secret. Some infections are scripted and you can't avoid them, and sometimes it just happens at random, either way your gonna loose some friends while playing this game. As far as action goes, the only way to explain the game would be, Resident evil meets Rainbow Six meets Syphon Filter. You are swarmed for all directions at random by smaller spider legged Things which can be killed with regular bullets. As well as the much larger Thing Beasts which must be weakened with regular fire power before being set on fire. With the amount of action and puzzle-solving involved, as well as story detail.....how could you go wrong.
I honestly can't say, I haven't beaten the game yet, and the game itself is quite long from what I've heard. But even if there is nothing that can be unlocked or found as extras, the games itself deserves at least one more run around just for the fun of it.
Though frustrating at times with its difficulty, The Thing is a amazingly fun game to play. Its more fluid than the past few games to have been released on the PS2. The controls, the design, everything. If your a fan of the movie, the story alone makes this game worth while.
Of course if you liked the movie, no questions asked this game is a must have! No way can you allow yourself to be robbed of such a fun moody experience based on such a great film! On the other hand, Rent it and try it out first, even though I'm sure anyone that actually plays the game will love it.
I'm more than happy with the way this game came out. When I first heard about them making a game based on the thing, I'll admit I got nervous. The thought of them making a sequel to the movie as a game and screwing it up scared me. But they did it more than justice. I would have been happy with just an average game, but instead we wound up with something worth more wild and worth the stamp John Carpenter himself put on the case.
''This is one intense action/horror game. You gotta play this one, man - It'll blast you against the wall.'' -John Carpenter