NEWS - Tuesday, September 10, 2002
The Thing Hits Stores
Black Label Games, Inc., a studio of the Games division of Vivendi Universal Publishing, announced today that its critically-acclaimed game, "The Thing™," a follow-up to John Carpenter's cult-classic horror movie, has been published for the Sony PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, the Xbox™ video game system from Microsoft and PC CD-ROM, and shipped to retailers nationwide. The PlayStation®2 and Xbox™ versions of the title are co-published with Konami Corporation in Japan. A video game sequel to Universal Pictures' 1982 release from master horror director John Carpenter, "The Thing" picks up where the movie's storyline ended and features an all-new cast of characters. Players assume the role of Blake, a military squad captain dispatched to Antarctica to investigate the troubling disappearance of an American scientific expedition. Before long, he discovers an alien beast with the power to transform itself into every being that it kills. Deadlier than the Antarctic chill, panic quickly threatens to consume the hero and his men: Is Blake a trustworthy leader? Are his fellow soldiers on his side? Or have they been infected by The Thing? London-based game developer Computer Artworks, Ltd. has created a trust/fear interface for the game, an innovative gameplay mechanic never before implemented in the survival/horror genre that enables the player to monitor the psychological states of the non-playing characters (NPC's) and their willingness to cooperate with their leader. Unlike most survival/horror games, "The Thing" demands that the player complete the game with his increasingly suspicious squad-mates, relying on wits and an arsenal of weaponry, including flame-throwers and machine guns, to escape infection. "'The Thing'" is a breakthrough title that has piqued the interest of sophisticated gamers worldwide," said Torrie Dorrell, general manager of Black Label Games. "Its fast-paced action and trust/fear interface reinvigorate the survival horror genre to provide fans of 'The Thing' with the video game they have been waiting for 20 years to see and play." Television actor William B. Davis ("The X-Files") provides the voice of Blake's nemesis, Whitely, in the game. The ultra-realistic 3D game also features groundbreaking snow and lighting effects, subtle sound cues and some of the most hyper-detailed and truly horrific creatures ever to grace the gaming screen. "The Thing" is difficult to see, hard to kill and seemingly impossible to evade. "The Thing" video game has been rated M by the ESRB for blood, gore and violence. Further information about "The Thing" is available at www.thethinggames.com.Source: http://www.xboxaddict.com/
