The Thing takes on new form

John Carpenter's The Thing has taken new shape at this year's E3. After a slew of less than impressive PlayStation 2 shots, mostly from the less than impressive PlayStation 2 video of the game released at last year's ECTS, punters looking forward to the film adaptation will be able to look upon the new PC screenshots with a smile. Locations reminiscent of those from Silent Hill 2 and graphics approaching those seen in the Cube version of Resident Evil look set to do the film's eerie, often sickening visuals justice. This is in stark contrast to the PlayStation 2 footage and screenshots of the game. In the ECTS video, characters slid along the ground unrealistically and the various incarnations of The Thing were blocky and not scary in the slightest. If anything, they were scarily simple models. In these latest screenshots characters appear to be much more detailed, and there are clear signs of the vaunted relationship-based gameplay falling apart in spectacular fashion, with one shot of a showdown between three would-be conspirators and a fourth, slightly puzzled member of the salvage expedition. Other shots show enormous flamethrowers and dank and dirty sections of the snow-buried research post. The question of how well The Thing can work as a game remains, but these are encouraging signs. One has to wonder why Vivendi were so keen to show it off at ECTS. Related Feature - The Thing PC screenshots