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 THE THING (PS2)
Things just got better on the PS2
By TOM FAHEY
 This
latest concoction from the Konami recipe book consists of a tablespoon
of survival, a cup of horror, stirred well, with about 278-litres of blood!
The Thing is the
PS2's newest survival horror, and my-oh-my - it is bloody horrific!
The Thing started life as a
movie, and game starts off where the movie finished. Anyone seen it? Well
if not, here's a quick summary:
A weird-arse alien life form,
which can live inside any living organism, takes the form of a dog in
a Norwegian base camp in Antarctica.
The "thing" inside
the dog starts to spread amongst other dogs, and then people, so the witty
Kurt Russell blood tests everyone to find the culprits. From here on in,
you witness some real nasties, blood, lots of guts, and evil alien scum.
So, as a search and rescue
team, your mission is to find out what the F@#% happened!!
Your team consists of a soldier,
a medic, an engineer and yourself. Each have their own AI, and areas of
expertise.
Your medic will automatically
heal you and your other men (just like the medics in StarCraft: Brood
Wars), the engineer will sort out mechanical difficulties, and the soldier
will successfully blow the crap out of everything! These three troopers
all follow orders, and are faithful to you in your battle against... things.
 However, the 'trust/fear'
system must be taken into consideration here. There are a lot of weird
things going on in this place, some of which can affect your teams train
of thought.
For example, if you walk into
a room full of blood, with several people who are resting in pieces, your
men may just feel a little sick to the stomach (they even throw up sometimes)
and to the mind. So, in effect, their trust in you lowers purely because
they're scared.
Seems fare enough! It is funny
though when you think that you can cheer them up with a clip of ammo for
their machine gun. Simple things for the simple minded.
There are three levels to the
important fear meter. If it's green, then you team will follow orders,
shoot "things", and gather on Sundays to drink beer, eat pizza,
and watch the footy - or whatever they play in Norway (clog throwing -
Ed). So, in other words,
they really trust you.
The second stage is yellow.
Your men will not follow orders, but they will defend you against alien
scum. If the fear meter is in the red area, then you're as good as gone.
Your team will think you have turned into a "thing" and will
take it upon themselves as their personal duty to blow you away. No more
beer and pizza!!
One of the really cool aspects
of the gameplay is the fact that the bitter Antarctic temperatures do
affect you and your team. You have a freeze meter, which slowly fills
up when outdoors, and it lets you know that your character is (and please
excuse the Dr. Evil quote) freckin freezin! In such an event, seek shelter
before you become the latest icy pole flavour.
 The other part
of the gameplay I particularly enjoyed was blood testing. You can give
people blood tests to test their loyalty, as "things" these
days can be particularly deceiving.
However, most times, people
fail the test miserably, and become the enemy! So the moral of this story:
That which he does not know, can't hurt him!!
The graphics aren't too shabby
in The Thing, but thankfully not too good either, otherwise we may have
had some vommit chunks on the PS2 from the many gore scenes, which are
already gory enough.
But like I said, the graphics
are very pleasing. You can have in great detail the four team members
and a herd of "things" on screen at the one time. And as the
bullets fly, the people die, and plenty of blood spills. It's a nice game
world. Really nice...
As for the gory stuff? Well
I'm still trying to forget about the image of that guy I blood tested
who failed big time. What followed was a gory mutation where this guy's
skin tore apart as the pulpy growth of an alien pupae and other assorted
scum and mucus emerged from beneath. Thanks to the game's artists for
that graphical insight of a mutating "thing".
If you're a little squeamish,
or don't like the sight of parasitic aliens bursting out of people, then
stop reading now, because this game sure as hell isn't for you! But for
those who are searching for an all new survival horror title, which -
mind you - feels nothing like any other of the Resident Evil rip offs,
then I recommend The Thing.
Those who watched and enjoyed
the movie will also appreciate the sequel-style plot. It's got the "b"
and the triple "g": Blood, Guts, Gore and Guns... What more
could a gamer ask for?
Horror seekers: Enjoy.
ORIGINALITY 75%
SOUND/GRAPHICS 85%
PLAYABILITY 75%
ADDICTION 80%
ENJOYMENT 85%
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