John Carpenter’s seminal horror film, The Thing, greatly influenced video games and horror as a whole after its 1982 debut. It’s no surprise that a video game adaption would happen, but nobody could have predicted it would turn out as superbly as Black Label Studios’ 2002 effort. For one, it wasn’t a lazy 1-to-1 retread of the film, but a genuine sequel. The Thing also featured some revolutionary mechanics at the time, with its single-player squad gameplay demonstrating intelligent AI. Seeing squadmates randomly transform in front of you was just as terrifying and cool as it is today, and thankfully the remaster preserves that feeling with added polish.

At the forefront of that polish is the enhanced graphics. Textures are razor sharp, as expected from the newly implemented 4K resolution. And the quirky characters all get a makeover with rebuilt facial textures and animations. Thankfully, players can actually see characters’ faces a majority of the time due to the volumetric lighting and brighter rooms in place of the original’s pitch-black areas. This effort by Nightdive Studios pretty much comprehensively renovates all the visuals of the game, and it runs at a consistently solid 144 frames per second too.

"One example of asset flipping I quite like is replacing the generic infected corpse at the beginning of the game with Nauls from the original film."

I particularly appreciate how Nightdive has added cut content from the original game along with all-new assets in certain areas. One example of asset flipping I quite like is replacing the generic infected corpse at the beginning with Nauls from the original film. If you look at side-by-sides, the original body is more exposed and gruesome, but the choice to pack some continuity from the film in place of that is an inspired and appreciated one. That said, there’s no shortage of gruesome moments in The Thing Remastered.

Transformations are still as grotesque as ever, and certain characters take desperate measures, sacrificing themselves to avoid a dreaded transformation. None of the swearing or dialogue is altered or censored, and the overall vibe and tone doesn’t feel neutered or softened up at all from the 2002 classic. The only area where I can see some players complaining about a loss of grittiness is the brightened lighting and elimination of that ubiquitous PS2-era fog. I see the improved lighting as a win, considering how difficult it could be to see in many of the original’s pitch-black hallways. One may argue the remastered version’s new arctic-flavored color filter is closer to the film than the original game, making the slightly brightened visuals even more of a win-win. That said, The Thing Remastered is still plenty dark.

"Nightdive has graced us with much-needed autosaves throughout the experience in addition to better positioning of save recorders."

Visuals aren’t the only enhancement that’s been added to The Thing though, Nightdive has graced us with much-needed autosaves throughout the experience in addition to better positioning of save recorders. Oh, and since the original was known for its severe and often unfair difficulty, four different difficulty settings were added to give players a more forgiving experience.

Helping ease that sense of unfairness is the elimination of one of the biggest flaws of the original game: squadmate infections. As a single-player squad-based shooter, The Thing emphasizes teamwork to get through the harrowing Antarctic facility. Part of the genius of the original cult classic game was the intelligent way your NPC partners reacted to encounters and served their specific role. The Thing has a unique class-based system that makes each role useful. Locked doors and terminals require an engineer, while situations in need of healing rely upon a medic. And in cases where ammo is super low, you can depend on the smart AI of the soldier to shoot enemies. But back to the original’s flaw: AI was a double-edged knife.

"Squadmates don’t randomly turn, but each has their own levels of immunity to infections and, more importantly, only become infected when in direct contact with a Thing beast (which happens a lot, as you might expect)."

You see, a major part of this game’s schtick is your squadmates getting infected and mutating into grotesque ‘Thing’ monsters in real-time. This remaster finally realizes that ingenious concept and ditches the antiquated and flawed 100% infection rate the original seemed to have. Administering a blood test amounted to nothing in the original thanks to random ‘outburst’ infections that can happen at any time. That often meant a squadmate turning on you mere minutes after having them come up negative on a blood test.

Well, that’s been mostly fixed with this remaster; squadmates don’t randomly turn, but each has their own levels of immunity to infections and, more importantly, only become infected when in direct contact with a Thing beast (which happens a lot, as you might expect). The elimination of random infection outbursts helps the concept come closer to realizing its original intent, though there’s still an issue I have with the gameplay mechanic. Don’t get me wrong, the anxiety of never quite knowing when an ally finally turns on you is fascinating, but at the end of the day your companions always whittle down to the panicked cowering state since they inevitably come into contact with infected Things sooner or later. In short, the trust/fear system is better implemented than the original, but still doesn’t quite hit its full stride.

"You can command squadmates to follow, stop, and head to a set direction using a traditional four-way wheel."

The rest of the squad controls work wonderfully. Up to three squad members join you intermittently throughout the campaign, fulfilling the mechanic, medic, and soldier roles as they follow commands and banter among themselves. The personalities these NPC squadmates exhibit are fun to witness in action, thanks to great voice acting and the somewhat campy tone the game brilliantly adapts from the film. You can command squadmates to follow, stop, and head to a set direction using a traditional four-way wheel. The wheel shows you the squadmates’ facial expressions too, so it’s easy to see what state they’re in at-a-glance.

You also have a wheel for utility items and weapons, of which the game does a good job varying up. I appreciate how this game makes you actually use most utility items; after all, not every survival horror game makes your repertoire of items useful. I had fun collecting and conveniently placing flares in dark corners and blind spots, for example, and equally enjoyed divvying up medpacks between squadmates.

The range of guns here are balanced nicely so that each monster type is weak to something distinct; you’ll be using the shotgun and msg in equal measure. Unlike Resident Evil or Silent Hill, ammo isn’t so scarce; however, a lot of it gets dispersed between your squadmates so careful conservation is still advised. Shooting is improved from the janky original thanks to the auto-aim assist and enhanced sensitivity settings, but targeting Things still lacks the accuracy of other third-person shooters, feeling every bit like the early 2000s title it is. The flamethrower weapons are improved as well, with hitboxes that more accurately represent where you’re pointing the weapon.

"The flamethrower weapons are improved as well, with hitboxes that more accurately represent where you’re pointing the weapon."

Despite all the improvements to weapon controls, the gunplay still ends up feeling outdated and arcady, though it can hardly be considered bad or terrible. One aspect of gameplay that I still struggled with this time around was occasionally getting stuck on terrain, but again, it’s nowhere near as bad as it was in the original. The bevy of bug fixes and little quality of life improvements on the gameplay front are very welcome, but can only lift up the game’s age to a certain degree.

That brings me to one of the game’s greatest strengths: level design. There’s actually quite a lot of variety in levels despite the limitations inherent in the solitary Antarctic environment. Lesser film-based games of the 2000s would’ve been content merely recycling doodads and rearranging the dark rooms of the outpost, but The Thing successfully manages to surprise with unique environments around every corner. And the remaster ups the ante with some newly added objects to give the locations even more flavor. For example, some corpses now resemble side characters from the film instead of generic bodies, and some creature design assets were redone to look more detailed. The unique layouts in tandem with how distinct each location’s lighting are make Outpost 31 feel all the more memorable and enticing to explore. You’re not just running from room to room; the game has you walking atop vent systems, exploring small cavern outcroppings, or more commonly, battling the cold outside.

"The Thing successfully manages to surprise with unique environments around every corner."

I simply ate up the survival elements in this game, light though they are. You’ll be forced to journey out in the cold with your squadmates in tow throughout the experience, each second draining the characters’ temperature meter. When the meter reaches zero for you or your teammates, it’s paramount to get inside a building unless you want to be a Thing’s frozen desert. The game’s great level design accommodates these harsh outdoor conditions with well-placed indoor zones that replenish the temperature meter just enough to scrape past the harsh outdoor jaunts. My only complaint is that squadmates occasionally get hung up on geometry or lag behind you after closing a door, potentially keeping them out to freeze.

Overall, I really enjoyed my return back to this cult classic and feel that this remaster finally meets the lofty potential the original set up. The super dark areas of the original are lit up to see better, controls are improved, and the flawed random infections have been gutted to make the fear/trust system really work. The tone perfectly captures the original film, with a gritty and isolating atmosphere that simply begs to be explored. The Thing Remastered is absolutely worth the survival horror fan’s time, and if you like the original game or games from the era, it’s a clear must-have.

This game was reviewed on the PC.

Mass Effect Trilogy

The much-acclaimed Mass Effect trilogy needs no introduction, these action RPGs ushering a new standard for narrative-heavy third person shooting that other space-faring shooters have struggled to match. The series’ central antagonist are the Reapers, a race of sentient star-ships who originated one-billion years prior when the galaxy controlling Leviathans created the synthetic lifeform the Catalyst which then turned on its creators, absorbing their genetic material to create the Reapers. The Reapers awaken every 50,000 years to conduct galactic-level mass destruction with the trilogy centring on Commander Shepard and his crew stopping them.

]]> 604774 https://gamingbolt.com/the-thing-announcement-teased-by-nightdive-studios-for-june-7th Fri, 07 Jun 2024 09:38:54 +0000 https://gamingbolt.com/?p=589338 Nightdive Studios’ System Shock remake is available for consoles, but it’s not slowing down anytime soon. In a new tweet, it teased a new announcement on June 7th during IGN Live, which airs at 1 PM PST. Based on the image, it could be Computer Artworks’ The Thing, potentially meaning a remaster.

Launching in 2002 for PC, PS2 and Xbox as a follow-up to John Carpenter’s film, The Thing focused on a US Special Forces team fighting for their lives against the same alien. The twist is that the latter is a shape-shifter, making it difficult to trust your allies. Depending on an NPC’s trust and fear, they may “crack up”, suffering various consequences (including suicide).

Building trust is important, but your allies also have a chance to get infected by The Thing, transforming into one of its minions and attacking you. The Thing received praise for production values and action, though some felt it could have been mechanically better. If a remaster is on the cards, it should be interesting to see how Nightdive approaches it. Stay tuned for further updates in the meantime.

Who wants to guess the game we’ll be announcing this Friday at @IGN Live? 👀

Hint: pic.twitter.com/qmdtyJII2n

— Nightdive Studios (@NightdiveStudio) June 5, 2024

Resident Evil 2 Remake

Resident Evil 2 Remake is an excellent re-imagining of the survival horror classic, and it stands tall as one of the best remakes of recent memory. The game presents a striking rendition of the familiar Raccoon City, complete with new puzzles and third-person shooting mechanics that make this experience a lot different than the original. While the campaign is definitely on the shorter side, plenty of side content, including but not limited to Ghost Survivors, should keep you occupied for a long time.

However, several other titles, some underrated and others outright ignored, deserve to be remembered. It could be the port of a PC title or that one legendary movie tie-in that no one else remembers. Let’s dive into them.

The Thing

Trying to make an impact in the survival horror genre, especially with juggernauts like Silent Hill and Resident Evil around, is no easy task. Nevertheless, The Thing had interesting hooks, like the Fear/Trust system. If an NPC believes you were The Thing, they could attack, but even if unsure, they’d remain distrustful and ignore orders. They can also become scared, lash out, commit suicide or die from heart attacks. It wasn’t perfect, but The Thing presented a tense atmosphere with strong environmental variety.

RETURNAL

One of the more recent releases in this feature, and also one of the more obvious entries. Housemarque has always been known for developing old school arcade bullet hell shooters that aren’t afraid of testing the skills of their players and pushing them to the absolute limits, and Returnal translates that formula into a full blown AAA 3D experience perfectly. From the very first second right until the last, this is a game that can be extremely punishing- but overcoming the challenges it throws at you never fails to delight, thanks to its tight shooting and movement mechanics, its perfectly balanced roguelike structure, and its progression mechanics, which strike the perfect balance between progress resets and permanent upgrades. It’s not for the faint of heart, no, but if you do like a little bit of challenge in you games, Returnal is unmissable.

The Evil Within

Tango Gameworks made a splashing debut with The Evil Within back in 2014, which went down as one of the best horror games of the generation. While the game is still playable by modern standards, the graphics and gameplay have started to show some noticeable cracks. As such, a modern remake with updated graphics and smoothed-out gameplay mechanics would really make fans want to re-experience the classic all over again.

The game that I am talking about is The Thing, which was based upon the movie by the same name which itself was based on a short story by the name, Who Goes There? The story revolves around a group of soldiers investigating a strange alien force which has the ability to take on the form of anyone that it comes in contact with, which means that no one can be entirely trusted in these circumstances. The Thing was released on the big screen in 1982, and the John Carpenter-directed sci-fi horror was initially lambasted by critics as a run-of-the-mill horror movie with nothing interesting going for it. But when the movie was released on TV and VCR, it gained a brand new audience that absolutely lapped it up and as a result – became a cult classic.

Developer Computer Artworks sought to replicate the movie’s chilly atmosphere and unnerving survival horror gameplay in video game form, and The Thing was formally announced in 2000 with Konami backing the project as a publisher alongside Black Label Games. Of course, fans had their fair share of skepticism regarding the game – particularly due to the game being based on a movie. That said, The Thing was a great candidate for a video game adaptation since the story’s main hook of not knowing who the real alien is is too enchanting to pass out on. Additionally, the developers also reassured fans that the game would serve as a sort of a sequel to the events in the movie, which would allow for a more open approach to storytelling and morphing ideas for gameplay.

The Thing finally released for PC, PS2, and Xbox in 2000, and was subject to a somewhat of a mixed reception at the time. Some critics had a really fun time with the game, while others didn’t approve of the game’s mechanics and found them to be frustrating and highly scripted. But either way, most would definitely agree that the game wasn’t just another survival horror game but a game that had its fair share of original ideas that helped it stand out from the pack.

The Thing sees players taking the role of player character Blake who is a member of the U.S. Special Forces sent to the frigid conditions of Antarctica to investigate the strange disappearance of a research team. As the team lands, they slowly get acquainted with the hostile force that is The Thing as turned creatures and enemy soldiers pose an immediate threat to your existence. While the game is technically survival horror with a focus on resource management and the like, it also features action-packed third-person combat with weapons ranging from sniper rifles to flamethrowers to machine guns and many more.

Much like the movies, your player character will meet many comrades along the way who will join you for the ride. These companions can belong to one of many classes such as a medic, an engineer, or a soldier – each of which has some special utilities attached to them. You will have to recruit these NPCs since fixing broken circuits isn’t exactly one of Blake’s strongest suits. Since The Thing can take the form of anyone and everyone, it’s not easy to trust anyone wholeheartedly.

The game features an innovative trust-fear AI system for NPCs, which governs how promptly your companions will follow your orders. If a companion’s faith in Blake gets too low, they will suspect him of being The Thing and start shooting at him. On the flip side, if it’s adequately high – they will follow your orders in an instant. There’s also a fear gauge for companions, which is affected by entering rooms with corpses and having close encounters with turned creatures. If the fear level drops too low, you will need to inject your companions with a shot of adrenaline or an electric shock to make them rejoin your cause. In case the fear gets low beyond a certain point, NPCs may also commit suicide or die of a heart attack.

The trust-fear system works differently for different NPC classes and forms the basis of replicating the ominous vibe of the movie. In addition to this, there are sections where you are split up from your teammates which will then result in one of them turning into The Thing. Of course, having to gun down a virtual buddy that you spent hours with is a depressing prospect, but elements such as these help the game stand out amongst the crowd of generic survival horror shooters.

The Thing combined ideas from a multitude of sources and combined it into something that was truly special. Elements such as the trust-fear system can make for some frustrating moments, but looking at the complete picture – elements like these made for an engaging experience through and through. As such, it’s no surprise that The Thing stands at a rating of 77 on Metacritic, and sold over 1 million copies. While that’s not a lot, we have to consider that the game was a new IP and likely recouped development costs with these sales – so that means it was a commercial success.

An ambitious sequel was in the works at Computer Artworks following the first game’s release, and the team was working on elements like dynamic infections and burst-outs and a whole lot of jargon – but fate had other plans. You see, the developer hadn’t received payments from publishers for some of its other projects – which took a toll on the company’s finances. There were other undisclosed reasons of course, but in the face of these adverse circumstances – most of the staff left the company one by one, and Computer Artworks went into receivership.

Following this, all of the studio’s projects were promptly canceled – including The Thing’s sequel and the only semblance of the game that we got was a few concept arts showcasing the aforementioned description of ideas that the developer had for the game. The Thing’s downfall is an unfortunate one, because the game had already proven itself as a potent mix of survival horror and tactical shooter – but before the formula could be refined and expanded further, the franchise met a premature end due to the company’s circumstances. As it stands now, The Thing is a forgotten gem that could have been so much more – but ended up fizzling out despite all the right moves.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

Ico

Are you tired about hearing how underrated Ico was (and still is)? Well, we’re not tired of saying it. Developed by Sony Japan Studio and Team Ico, the story of Ico and Yorda – told deftly through minimalist dialogue and incredible aesthetics – is still underappreciated. In terms of animation, presentation and puzzles, Ico was ahead of its time in 2001. It’s still a shame that it only sold 700,000 copies worldwide as of 2009.