The Thing. Something from the past.
The rarest chain and evidence that the charge in the original work was given so powerful that it was enough to launch a chain reaction. And although all the adventures of Geralt from Rivia, the witcher of the Wolf school (not to be confused with Harold from Rybia, the Witcher of the Rat School,!) ..
… but there is a work that has done naturally Odyssey – from a fairly small short story and to our monitors. And took this journey much more time than the creation of Pan Sapkovsky. It will not be so much a review of the game (although he too!), how many excursions along a long and winding path, which began a long time ago ..
ORIGIN.
Perhaps you have to start from the very beginning.
USA, 1938. Young, but giving hope, the writer writes his story “Who Goes??” – where we are talking about a certain alien form of life, which was frozen many years ago in the eternal snow of the South Pole. And then the polar explorers came, they dug up the creature – and it started ..
John Wood Campbell Jr. (1910-1971)-this is a gloss-man, one of those who created the Golden Age of American Fiction, contributed a lot to the development of the genre-for being the creator of his own magazine Unknown, he published works of young authors.
For example, a certain Heinline began there – another Titan NF, the author of Star Troatza. The work is strictly recommended for familiarization.
Later, however, Campbell went somewhere wrong-he began to be interested in occultism, made close acquaintances with racists and frank obscurantists. But then it was – in the meantime we are interested in his work. The story itself is a little reminiscent of the “Ranks of madness” – polar explorers, ice, incomprehensible creatures and atmosphere of gloom and doom. The creature is a metamorph that can take someone else’s appearance and physiology, and thanks to the gift of telepathy – it is able to copy and the mind of a devoured creature.
True, there is a problem: unlike Lovecraft, here we have a small form. Accordingly, everything looks somehow crumpled and torn. Three dozen characters, but we know them only by names and fragmentary descriptions of appearance. Where Lovecraft falls out on us gradually a portion behind a portion of “cosmic horror and unknown images”, this is not the case.
Well, read now about a spaceship, which has a casing from magnesium alloy, and who caught fire when people tried to cut his side – this is a little hard for any person, at least a slightly knowing chemistry and physics. In the sense – but how he did not fire about the atmosphere?
In general, this is one of the problems with which I come across, reading the works of the same Lovecraft: “The Shadow above the Insmus” impressed me little, and I kept thinking myself that the characters were too verbose and lay out the exposition just as in Nolan films.
The most striking example is when some kind of ticket seller in the long-i-Innic monologue talks about how suspicious the inhabitants of the Insmouth are, scary and otherworldly. In general, he tells everything as if in fact he is a historian of the status of at least a professor, and the sale of tickets for a bus simply earnings.
In the 30th such a long, viscous syllable he probably fulfilled his task: he bothered the reader, wrapped it up and forced him to be nervous. But now it looks naive. “Who is coming?»Has exactly the same problems, only exacerbated by small form and crumpled.
Suddenly in 2018, the manuscript “Ice Hell” was found in the writer’s archives, which is a full -fledged novel. At the moment, the book has already been published in English, and it seems that there is an amateur translation somewhere on the network-but this.
The most important of the arts.
The work “fired”: in the tales of the peoples of the world, there used to be stories about werewolves, doppelgangers and other doubles who take someone else’s appearance, but “who is coming?»Due to the science fiction component, it made it possible to impress the Western reader. Do not forget-the beginning of the 20th century, the rapid progress in all areas, it seemed that the golden age of mankind seemed close to … Well, then an obvious question arose-why not make a film?
In 1951, the first attempt to film adaptation was made. You can try to see for general education. The creature here is now not an animal, but a plant, for some reason there is a love line (calmly-just a woman appeared among the staff of the station), the main monster looks frankly funny.
Mr. X from 51. In search of a lost hat.
Well, then the 80s came.
Violent and neon.
Sit down, my friend! Sit down – and listen to the story of the films of the 80s that I, born in 1990, watched with a sagging jaw … These were films where they were not shy about showing blood, female charms, matules carefully translated by our nasal translators, and the cartridges in weapons never ended!
“Jaws”, “Friday 13”, “Nightmare on Vyazov Street”, “Robokop”, “Terminator”, “Commando” – all films were full of blood, horror, trash, fumes and neon lights! However, the film “Something” against their background stood out as a tombstone among cream cakes. Perhaps it was he who forced me to fidget on the couch and thirsty to turn it off immediately – due to his atmosphere and doom. Honestly, even more than “strangers”. Because a spaceship, robots and monsters from space is a matter of a very distant future, but the polar explorers winter at the South Pole now ..
The poster of the film was beaten many times, was shown in many films on the walls of the heroes, and indeed looks incredibly stylish and concise.
Despite the fact that the action of the novel was transferred to the modern director – 1982 – most of the cinema is much closer to the story than the film 51 years, I will not paint the plot in details. Antarctica, cold and winter create a depressive atmosphere. Someone drinks, someone drives a roller station, someone watches quizzes’ videos on a warm and light video recorder.
And this boredom of American polar explorers decides to dilute an alien creature with a craving for mimicry. Terling music resembles a quiet knock of drops of blood falling on the floor – a soundtrack in “something” as it were, but it is like an acute seasoning to the dish: you are unlikely to want to listen to it separately from the film.
The cast is chic – however, against its background, as a supernova, among the rest, the charismatic beard of Kurt Russell shines.
Carpenter launched his career Kurt Russell.
… in the film “Elvis” (1981). But soon “something” and “escape from New York” came out, who shot much louder. Although they failed at the box office.
Separately, it is worth noting special effects – which you had to do manually. Dolls, costumes, makeup – only so! Moreover, even the adoptive name of the film is a practical effect.
We take the film, draw letters on it. Behind her put an aquarium filled with smoke. Between the aquarium and the film with letters we put the film – black polyethylene. And put a powerful lamp behind the aquarium. Polyethylene is set on fire – and the effect of “burning out” letters is obtained.
Genius – what to take from him? Who else could inspire another genius?!
Rob Bottin -Specialist in special effects began his career in 1976, working on King Cong, continued in Star Wars, three parts of the Robot-Police, Fight Club, Seven and other films that we love and remember. In short – there is nothing more reliable than old school. And Mr. Bottin in it director.
Well, in his assistants he had someone Stanley Winston – who will later work in “Alien”, “Predator”, “Transformers”, “Iron Man”.
The shooting took place with difficulty, it was summer – and in the pavilions, on the contrary, it was cold. Carries from the hot Los Anjelsky summer in the cold exhausted the film crew, and specialists in special effects pretty torn their health.
Unfortunately, the cash success of the film turned out to be comparable to the success of the film “Billion” against the background of the premiere of “Avengers”. Stevens Spielberg came out at the same time as “something”. Despite the fact that with a direct clashes from the “Yeti” there would be a wet place and he would be used without a side dish, financially “something” lost in financial terms. Plus, then the “Runner on the blade” came out, so the metamorph hit between the hammer and the anvil.
However, having left the cassettes – he broke everyone. And is quite capable of impressing even now the younger generation.
By the way … My sister born in 2001 did Bingo Bonga Casino review not watch “something”, nor “Terminator” 1 and 2, nor “Nightmare on Vyazov Street”. But I corrected this – it is very interesting to watch how the current generation perceives those films.
She got used to CGI, and she treated old films with some neglect. Unless the “stranger” respected. However, a couple of times she naturally jumped on an armchair – this is not a figure of speech, but in fact. Когда в «Нечто» доктору отгрызают руки — так вообще взвизгнула и выпучила глаза.
Film game? Sho, again.
We all love, appreciate and remember a large number of wonderful films games!
There are, of course, the rarest exceptions – but for the most part, with the phrase “based on the film”, the expectations bar falls faster than the “Game of Thrones” rating during season 8. In the case of p The Thing The situation looks good. Very.
The detailed story of the creation of the game was described by a friend D0lphin in his blog, which I strongly advise you to read:
Stopgame.ru/blogs/topic/74121
Now let’s see what the game is from the point of view of the player.
One of the things that you regularly stumble when you begin to recall any old game. You remember her more beautiful than it is – and it is a little tearing the template. The Thing, however, still looks like … well – normal.
Of course, in some places square pipes, triangular tentacles are visible, there is no talk of destruction, and locations do not differ in variety: the snow surface of Antarctica, abandoned polar stations, still snow, corridors, snow, laboratory, hangars, snow ..
On the other hand, it would be strange if a jungle appeared in the game about Antarctica. With crocodiles. So for locations in their place: polar stations look just as they should. These are buildings created by people – but these same people are not frequent. And after the appearance of alien creatures, an already sad and gloomy place turned into a monument to itself, dotted with torn bodies.
Reflection in the mirrors. Now this is not everywhere, and if there is, it is not always competently implemented, but in 2003.
If you think, then The Thing It could well have become a focus on the Resident Evil – we even have a giant laboratory complex underground here. True, not as pathos as the laboratory of Ambrell from “Code: Veronica”, Yes, and the Transvestite chief was not brought-but what are rich, and even happy.
When artists are given the task of arranging something called in the intelligent circles “Blood-slying-grunts *** asylovo”, they honestly work out their bread. The intensity of the dismemberment is kept at the level, while without leaving for a defamed caricature.
In the menu of the detachment (about it below), the blanks twist their heads and shake properly if they are scared. The fire burns, frankly, not with 146% realism-but in my opinion the most beautiful fire was in Alone in the Dark: At the last line.
As mentioned above, this is a branch from the film. It continues it, but the characters are others. Although there are old acquaintances-the path and episodically, and some are not quite alive ..
North 31 post is silent, which raises logical questions. US Army soldiers go there in order to find out what happened. Also, soldiers go to the Norwegian post-for there was also something incomprehensible there, and we must figure out. Our hero is Captain John Blake. Since Makridi took himself the only notarized hat of the protagonist, the captain decided – “Everything or nothing!”. Therefore, the whole game he staggers along Antarctica without a hat, with bare ears and even mittens not on his ropes, but just like that ..
Having found the consequences of a party using dynamite from the film there, he finds out that the entire guilt of the creatures, thawed from eternal ice.
Then he is in a hurry to the rescue of his other subordinates who were ambushed at a neighboring post. In the course of endless transition from one cemetery to another, it turns out that his direct boss, Colonel Whitley, specifically shaved, caught Albert Wesker’s syndrome. Well, you know-this is when the main villain believes that the infection with incomprehensible hyper-nan-syphilis and transformation into ugly creature is a new stage of evolution. And wants to “make happy” the rest of humanity with the help of aircraft loaded with the virus.
Well, Blake – which is also expected – has immunity, which answers the question “Why, after so many wounds by creature, it was not covered with tentacles?”
By the way, here the similarity with the “resident” is already becoming some kind of awkward … In the sense-where are there such hefty underground laboratories to study creatures, several military bases and an airfield if the creatures recently dug up?
At this stage, the game already resembles Half-Life-well, because we have two sides of the conflict here, and we are between them. We have to fight with Witley soldiers, who are more dangerous than the creatures because of the firearm-but on the other hand a certain tactical component appears. You can open some doors, and allow you to exhaust each other to two sides of the conflict, and later finish off the survivors.
Flapping and losing his subordinates, Blake eventually arranges a helicopter carousel, shooting a finally raging chief of a crucian-bonded machine gun and frying with standard exploding barrels.
And flies to the sunset by helicopter, piloted by R Ga Macridi – which is the hero of the 1981 film. And it is incomprehensible – this is a real Macridi, or the creature that has been burnt?
The second part was planned, and there are even concepts of creatures for it – but alas, the studio closed, and all the sketches remained sketches.
Game mechanics.
The Thing does not shine with some fantastic revelation in terms of gameplay. Auto -framework of the game is configured depending on the level of complexity – we choose a sector (from the wide – “light”, to a narrow – “complex” level of complexity), in which Blake is able to bring weapons to the enemy. There is a first-person sight, turned on by a separate button-but then for some reason Blake can only move by one step. No, I’m not joking: when you turn on the “exact sight” we can only move left and right one step. It feels like this regime was shut up purely for consolers-so that they can shoot up with the soldiers when a zaruba with enemies-loves begin, and the player will squat behind the boxes.
Yes, Blake knows how to squat – in this case, the accuracy of fire seems to increase, but this. And the squat also affects the work with a flamethrower (more on that later). Blake does not know how to jump and climb – and you will have to look for a roundabout a couple of times simply because Blake cannot take a step wider and climb onto the ledge ..
Speaking of navigation: around – a polar night, and accordingly, our enemy becomes cold. On the street the “cold scale” is activated: when it reaches zero, health will begin to decrease and in the end we can freeze. The scale is very gentle, I have never died of the cold, but as an element of the atmosphere it is in its place: it does not allow me to clap my ears and makes you first go out, evaluate the situation – and then go back, and think about the route.
To facilitate navigation at the stations, there are storms. These are such sticks with burning lights that go from one building to another. It looks authentic. However, we still have a shooter here, and not a survival simulator in Antarctica, so let’s move on to the methods of repose of enemies.
Depending on the health of the enemy, the sight changes the color from green to red. Smalred creatures can be crushed from ordinary weapons, you need to hunt in two stages on the creatures of the thorough: first we bring them to condition – so that the sight becomes red. Then – we finish from the flamethrower.
The weapon with which we will crumble evil spirits is very simple and canonical for most shooters:
– Shocker. For some reason … Apparently, he was introduced in the early stages and, according to the idea, if one of the subordinates began to alode and go crazy, then the player could reassure him with a life-giving discharge. Theoretically, a creature can be shrew so that it falls into a stupor and it could be calmly and thoroughly processed from all trunks.
– Gun. I used a couple of times. Then he gave it to someone and forgot. Similar to Beretta.
– Machine. Fast, accurate, with a large store and good slaughter. One of the best trunks in the game. One trouble: eats cartridges in packs. On the other hand – they are spread very generously here. Similar to MP-5.
– Shotgun. Bahahs loudly, it hurts. You can carry cartridges with you much less, but their sophistication is higher. The most thing for cleaning the premises. I could not install the brand ..
– Burner. Yes, a burner with a forced fuel supply. Eats the same fuel. If you use it just standing, it is better to “puff” and run back: a cracking bonfire will appear on the floor. But if you spin and open the fire, then there will be a stream.
It can be useful-the creatures shy away of the fiery barrier, and you will have time to heal, get reloaded, or do something else useful. After the appearance of the flamethrower, it is almost useless.
– Flamethrower. The burner of the larger. More slaughter, fuel consumption is also. The rules are all the same: if you are standing “puff” – make a barrier from the fire on the floor, which you yourself can burn. Start in the squat to “pinch the gashter” – you will have a fiery stream.
Allows you to feel like a colonel Kilgor.
– Sniper rifle. By and large, in one mission is needed – to undermine bombs for a while. As expected, it takes people out of one shot, from two brings large creatures to the Red Line.
– Grenade launcher. Oh, yes! Grenades throw. In the literal sense – hand grenades that you can throw your hand, now fly further and more precisely. The nomenclature of ammunition pleases, rate of fire – sadden.
Blake Hero of the Old School, because he wears the trunks at once. And not in one copy: you can carry each barrel with you in the amount of 2 pieces. Yourself – and a combat comrade. The more powerful the trunk you give him – the calmer he will feel. True, the cartridges will also have to be given out – there will be no effect from weapons without cartridges. Which is logical, by the way.
In addition to weapons in the game there is also equipment. It is also diverse in the game, even though some objects are clearly more useful than others:
– Patch. Heals your ko. Doctors use first -aid kits much more effective. If you treat partners, they trust you more.
– Injections of adrenaline. If someone begins to panic, the injection of adrenaline will bring him to his senses. Somehow. Maybe this is a mistake of the translation – but in the original it is “adrenaline hpos”, which translates as “adrenaline hippo”. How “adrenaline hippo” will help with fright I do not know, let’s leave ..
– Fire. Allows you to disperse the polar darkness – but when the flashlight appears, it does not need. On the other hand – if you throw it into barrels, they will explode, so it can be used just to set fire to barrels in a room with creatures to save grenades.
– Flashlight. Gives steepness to the hero, allows you to see an ice night in the dark.
– FIRE EXTINGUISHER! Fire extinguisher – your bro. After a party with a flamethrower, sometimes you need to do something or to put out someone. Or open the passage through burning ruins. Quest item.
– Grenades. There are high -explosive (bahayat), blinding (make the enemies fall into a stupor) or incendiary (the most useful and rare, as a rule, most enemies take out from one hit).
– Blood injectors. Again – introduced until the moment when it became clear that the simulation of infection would not come out. If you use this, then Blake will check for himself or someone from the detachment, which will increase confidence and calm his subordinates-“all of their own, there are no strangers here, Hydra Dominatus“. Once it will be necessary for the quest.
The preservation in the game is made with a reference to the film – we persist using cassette tape recorders, on one of which you can listen to a message from Macridi.
Enemies in “something” are made with an eye on the film. The fact is that each part of the alien organism is an independent creature. So the most numerous enemies – “spiders” – these are torn heads with legs attached to them.
Sometimes they can spit with acid. Dumb, numerous, are taken out by ordinary weapons. Diverse, bustling and screaming loudly.
Next are large creatures, which, after softening with a shotgun, are finished with fire.
1. Turning people.
Each transformation is crept in, and that you used an injector a minute ago – this means nothing. Two -legged, two -armed, with whole beams tentacles. They know how to break the doors.
2. Shades.
Lost their human appearance, after death they give rise to several “spiders”. Very tenacious and vile creatures. Have different variations.
3. Something incomprehensible.
It seems to be a dog before. But it’s not exactly. Moves funny jumps, sometimes can spit with acid. I called such a thing “PUMBO”: when moving, it somehow jumps very strangely, and the shape of the body resembles a cartoon wart.
There are still several varieties of motionless enemies. A small tentacle tilted to the ceiling, some incomprehensible jaws the size of a person hanging on the wall and boils with acid. And to be honest, looking at it is now difficult to get rid of the thought that it is almost impossible to come up with unique and new enemies, because in Dead Space we saw all the same after 6 years. Only polished to shine.
Boss spider, spider huge … k-km ..
No, the spider boss is not here. But there are several bosses of almost transferred from the film and the final form of Colonel Witley. Bosses are fat, biting, but not complex. This one:
so it was generally passed without a single damage. The fact is that between the boxes that stand at the door (in the background), there is a clearance. Turn on the “exact sight”, shoot several stores from a machine gun or shotgun at the gap, then quickly run out and finish off with flamethrower. Development of developers or features? I don’t know.
Meshain from people, animals and generally incomprehensible something – everything is according to the classics!
I also do not know if automatic turrets need to be attributed to enemies, which we will have to smash a couple of times and manage them once.
Each clash with creatures is unexpected and suddenly. They can crawl out of the corpse behind them, or from somewhere from the boxes, or from the toilet cabin, a swaying person will come out. Finally, a ruthless script can turn our partners to the monsters – and we will have to fight with them ..
Social interaction.
For your time The Thing stood out with such an unprecedented thing as team interaction. Often we run not alone, but in the company.
Soldiers are divided into several classes:
– Soldier. Just guys who shoot aptly. Love machines and shotgun.
– Engineer. Critical for passing. According to the plot, we will have to repair the distribution shields – and if the usual Blake can fix it himself, albeit slowly, then only an engineer can repair “special” shields (often plot). If the engineer perishes in front of such a shield, the game is over.
Also, special shields can lead into a room with specially trained retaining tape recorders, or at a warehouse with equipment.
– Medic. Heals. Your ko.
In the first mission, we are taught to command the detachment – the banal “Stop here/Follow me” few people are impressive. But the scale of trust and fear is already more interesting. Our enemies are capable of mimicry. And now the recent ally can grow claws, tentacles and with a bad intention to head towards the detachment. How to be in such a nervous environment? The answer is simple:
1. Look where you aim. If you get into an ally, he will remember this and can decide that you are an enemy. Then you have to kill him.
2. Weapons and ammunition – a subject of trust. If a doctor with a lousy pistol begins to get nervous – yes he is a machine gun and cartridges. Weapons in the hands – the key to calm nerves.
3. Blood tests that can be made to yourself and other members of the detachment also soothe the detachment. “All of their own is nothing to be afraid of”.
Moreover, if the subordinate reaches the extreme, then it can go crazy and attack. Or to embroider your brains – what can lead to the end of the game.
Unfortunately, all moments with infection and sudden transformation of friends into enemies are screeching: the studio was not able to simulate this process. However, this becomes clear only with repeated passage: for the first time, the sight of the deformed body of the recent physician who has just treated you makes you howl and swear.
Fortunately, after the destruction of the infected weapons and cartridges that were with him, they do not disappear anywhere – they can be selected and … and it seems we just found a way to transmit infection. O_O
The game was warmly met by critics and players, and the developers from the Computer Artworks, sensing the smell of the franchise, began to develop a continuation … Alas, then the concepts did not go after the concepts. And it’s a pity-for the fantasy of the artists has just dispersed, the technical capabilities have grown up, and there are more varieties of creatures!