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Reviews
(2008-04-01) Hillariously Stupid A.I.
sure this game is kinda fun if you're into the movie but really not all that great. The only thing I found entertaining about it is how hilariously stupid the A.I. is.

I even have a story to tell...

Upon the point where you have to crawl into the ventilation shafts outside into the underground levels, I realized I couldn't bring my AI helpers with me since they do not know how to crouch.

So rather than leaving them out in the cold to freeze to death, I decided to take them out of their misery. So after a good half an hour of trying to command them to walk into a corner, eventually having to physically push them slowly into that corner.

Upon doing so, I backed up a good distance and equipped the grenade launcher, switched the first person view and right as I raised the cross hair to their general location, one of my team members said the most random, yet most hilariously appropriate thing ever...!

"I have a bad feeling about this..."
(2008-02-16) A great game that finishes one of the greatest horror movies
This game is a awesome game. The story takes place after the movie and it stays close to the movie also and brings in alot more. You just have to install the mouse look patch and you are good to go. I also really enjoyed the squad fear mechanics. Graphics are good for how old the game is, and it is a really good game if you loved the movie.
(2007-10-27) Really Good Video Game
I HAVE WAITED 2 WEEKS UNTIL I GET THIS LOVELY VIDEO GAME , I HAVE COMPLETED THIS GAME UNTIL THE FINAL BOSS BUT THEN AFTER I KILLED HIM IT SHOW ME THE DESKTOP MENU , I DIDN'T SAW THE END OF THE GAME I HAVE TRYED MANY TIMES ITS SAME PROBLEM , MY PC IS NEW SO I DONT THINK SO THE PROBLEM FROM MY PC , BUT ITS A REALLY COOL HORROR VIDEO GAME .
(2006-07-05) More gross than scary, more tedious than fun
*For anyone about to play The Thing for PC, please visit the official website and download the patches. You will be able to use a mouselook function which greatly aids gameplay.*

"The Thing" successfully re-creates the mood and visual atmosphere of the original film, but fails in some very basic areas of gameplay. The developers clearly dreamed big with their attempt at squad based gameplay, but ran out of either time or talent before realizing their dream.

The communication interface is clumsy, and often feels superfluous given that every single NPC you collect as a squadmate will either burst into a Thing, die horribly, or simply disappear at the end of a level. There is even a command ("Go To") that's never used. Other opportunities are wasted as well. The hypodermic test needle, for example, (remember the alien blood fire test from the film) could have been a great strategic resource, but its implementation in the gameplay is a failure: NPCs become Things at random intervals independent of blood tests. Oh well.

My last major gripe is the lack of pacing and suspense. Clearly, The Thing was intended as an action/survival horror style of game. But the indroduction of a horde of small and easy to kill Things early in the game evaporates any sense of tension, and it's difficult to reclaim with only a small variety of Things thrown out in large numbers. The developers missed a grand opportunity to capitalize on the film's themes of abduction and mistrust. The game is also buggy, with enemies falling through floors and some really erratic hit detection, particularly with flame.

However, it's still worth playing. Borrowing from many staples of successful franchises (RE's typewriter save-stations for example), the game does enough right to encourage futher exploration. And the visuals don't discourage at all. By playing on a resolution of 1024 or higher, it's apparent how much care went into the level detail. The programmers did succeed in one very difficult task: making a dull outpost surrounded by Arctic nothingness seem varied and colorful. I played with the walk function toggled on primarily, creeping forward and enjoying the sights and atmosphere. Voices and sound effects, the crunching snow particularly, are nicely done.

So, for folks who enjoy the action/horror type of game, or dedicated Thing fans, this will mostly please. But it's tough to recommend taking time away from so many other superior action titles currently available.
(2005-11-08) Creative, realstic and scary!
This game has so many great qualities - the monsters are cool, the weapons logical and effective, and, probably most importantly, the characters are realistic and believable. There are no annoyingly complex puzzles to solve; no repetitive scenarios; no predictable outcome. There are challenging battles, scary situations and lots of surprises. I didn't experience any runtime errors (as stated by other reviewers) and even without the in-game save feature (which can be activated by editing the registry) there are enough save terminals placed strategically throughout the game to prevent the need to play the same sections over and over again.

Nevermind the fact that you have to switch to "look mode" to see what's above or below you - it's an interesting change from the same-old peripherals, and makes for a more challenging experience.

One problem. In the movie, the Thing never looks the same, because when it's observed, it's in various stages of copying a victim. In the game, the programmers introduce "types" of monsters, then use them over and over again in various situations. For instance, one type of monster has a claw that extends from its abdomen. Later in the game, a similar monster extends a tube from its abdomen that spawns little crab monsters (called scuttlers). There is no major differences in these enemies other than the extensions from their abdomens. Though I think the monsters were rendered well and are generally quite creative, they could have created more variants.

This game will scare you, and, if it doesn't, I'd suggest you've been desensitized. I mean, hey, I've played lots of different games, and I'm certainly no wimp, but this game did one thing that no other game has done. It scared me.
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