Thing-Thing

Thing-Thing is a series of two-dimensional action games. Its initial continuity spanning four games with at least three spin-offs, developed by Diseased Productions founder Sean "Weasel" McGee. The games are written in Adobe ActionScript. Thing Thing 3 was awarded the ATi CrossFire People's Choice Award in 2007.
Overview
The Thing Thing series is four games long as far as story. Its three spinoffs, Thing Thing Arena, Thing Thing Arena 2 and Thing Thing Arena 3, are unrelated to the continuity of the game's storyline, as are their other spinoffs, The Chronicles of Stinky Bean and The Chronicles of Stinky Bean 2.
The first iteration of the series was designed as a tech demo<ref name=autogenerated2 />, displaying the game's customizability. A tenet of the Thing Thing series is that all characters are visually customizable, able to choose from several variants of hair, clothing and in the later games shoes, facial features and hands. The first game also set the game's focus on weapons, the series using for the most part all real-world firearms, save for when not applicable, such as the experimental Brain Drill or Laser Cannon, or in the case of Thing-Thing Arena 3, where there is a large amount of non-existent usable weapons.
The three Arena games are based largely on the games that preceded them; despite being unrelated, Arena uses the Thing Thing 2 engine, and Arena 2 loosely uses Thing Thing 3's code. Arena 3 uses Thing Thing 4's code, but with a refined health bar that regenerates over time, an improvement from the previous game, and actual reloading sequences, increasing the level of realism in the game. The three games are focused mostly on survival modes, in which swarms of endless enemies spawn and leave ammo and power ups on death, the objective being to rack up a high kill count. Players are able to submit their scores, which are tracked by best daily score and overall records - a feature which made its way into the later games in the series.
Though not officially linked to Thing Thing, The Chronicles of Stinky Bean features a Stinky Bean, a character found in one of the survival modes of Thing Thing Arena and Thing Thing Arena 2 as well as a survival mode in Thing Thing 3. Stinky Bean is tasked by Scatmonkey to fetch numerous items and defeat bosses, and his last task is to fight and destroy a rogue Thing Thing character in a city covered in Systems Corp billboards. The The Chronicles of Stinky Bean 2 features Stinky Bean moving Scatmonkey statues onto appropriate pedestals in a puzzle game similar to Sokoban.
There are special features available only in the versions of Thing Thing hosted at Diseased Productions and Crazy Monkey Games, a sponsor of the Thing Thing series. As is the case for Thing Thing 4, where if the game is hosted elsewhere or saved to a computer there is a limited amount of character appearance options.
Plot synopsis
Thing Thing follows the Gamma Class Bio-Weapon, Project #154, as he awakens in a containment cell. He escapes from the cell by killing a doctor, taking his pistol and shooting out a ceiling vent. He fights his way upwards through the building, killing many guards. When he arrives on the second floor he is halted by Poseidon, a biomechanical experiment. 154 defeats Poseidon and makes his exit into open air. During his escape, he learns of the identity of the faction that held him - Systems Corp - and two other bioweapons, Zeus and Hades, which have been sent to terminate him.
Thing Thing 2 begins with 154 wandering into a city. Here he encounters Systems Corp mercenaries but he is able to escape, fleeing into a desert. The desert is inhabited by the undead - creatures who are later inferred to be individuals reanimated as a part of Systems Corp's experiments. Battling his way to an industrial sector, 154 fights and defeats Zeus. 154's default weapon is the Heckler & Koch Mark 23 handgun in SOCOM spec.
In Thing Thing 3, 154 begins in exile. He receives an anonymous communication from someone who is aware of his origins. Following instructions, 154 fights his way through Sunset City, a housing development for Systems Corp employees. 154 meets his contact, who is revealed to be Project 153. 153 was developed as an mobile armor pilot with heightened senses. He reveals that 154 is a form of advanced infantry designed to be resistant to hydrostatic shock. The two clash, resulting in the destruction of 153's powered armor. He casts 154 into a sub-zero Systems Corp service tunnel filled with Systems Corp mercenaries. 154 manages to fight his way back towards the top, only to be cornered by 153 again. 154 has now been trapped in a biowaste disposal facility and 153 has revived the Hades prototype, Vahl Dreig. Thing Thing 3 ends with 154 defeating Vahl Dreig but still trapped in the containment chamber. In this installment, 154's default weapon is the SV Infinity 1911 handgun, which is a remodeled version of the Colt 1911.
Thing Thing 4 starts with 154 retrieving Vahl Dreig's power core, using it to destroy a wall of the containment chamber. He escapes into the incinerators, where he fights many trained Systems Corp soldiers. Having resolved to take revenge against the management of Systems Corp, he storms the building's offices. However, there he is confronted by 153 again and a small army. 154 escapes the building by jumping out of a window, with 153 in pursuit in an assault helicopter. 154 commandeers a nearby vehicle and shoots out 153's fuel tank, destroying the helicopter. 154 goes to the genetic research laboratory in search of System Corp's CEO. There he learns of experimental Systems Corp weapon systems including undead and synthetic lifeforms. He finds cell he was created in, now empty and covered with warning tape. Fighting through a heavily-defended quarantine elevator, 154 finally encounters Hades. Hades is a disheveled and meek individual, capable only of weak melee attacks but with great physical endurance. After defeat, Hades transforms into a large spider-like mechanical being, armed with a slow-firing, penetrating rifle. 154 kills Hades, taking his weapon and storming the final room. There he discovers multiple screen images of the CEO, who reveals that 154 is but one clone in an army of hundreds. The CEO sends a legion of soldiers to confront 154, who is shot dead. 154's remains are recovered and used to refine the genetic splicing process. At the beginning of the game, 154's primary weapon is a custom Colt 1911 handgun.
Gameplay
The gameplay of the Thing Thing series has remained fundamentally faithful to its roots throughout its installments, with all games featuring side-scrolling two dimensional shooting. However, there have been drastic internal changes to this system between sections. The first game was a series of screens, which the player would progress through by walking over the edge of each. Players would start the game initially unarmed, and would have to rely on scavenged firearms (consisting of multiple real world pistols, submachine guns, and assault rifles) from fallen enemies for ranged attacks (unless the player implemented the "All Weapons" cheat from the start menu. However, ammo was difficult to come by, and the game was too short to build up a sufficient arsenal. Health was measured units (ranging from 0 to 100) that could be replenished by health packs found in the game.
The second game refined the first games concepts and augmented them with new features, the chief being the full color format (the first game was mostly sepia toned), the unlockable weapons, the kill count, and the stamina meter. In this installment, players would navigate their player forward while facing hordes of relentless (but unarmed) enemies, who now swarm the player in large numbers and attack using melee. The player now starts out with a basic pistol, with a wide range of more pistols, submachine guns, shotguns, and magnums that could be unlocked by killing enough enemies within each level. Bullets can now travel at real world velocities, but weapon recoil plays a major factor in combat; based on the type of weapon, the reticule will reset and begin to climb after a certain number of shots, forcing players to either wait for the reticule to reset or compensate by physically adjusting their aim. While the environments are entirely linear, obstacles such as crates, locked doors, collapsing bridges, bottomless pits, and sand dunes must now be navigated, but can also be used to subvert pursuing enemies.
Thing Thing Arena, a completely arcade based expansion to the series, introduced the score based survival modes, where players, after logging in their name, selecting an avatar, and choosing the type of survival (normal, zombie, super, or stinky bean), would be onslaught by waves of enemies, with the only objective to survive long enough to compile a high score, which can be posted online. Players start out with a pistol (Thing Thing's signature 1911-style handgun). More weapons (including the infamous Thompson SMG) can be picked up from fallen enemies. Thing-Thing 2's rebounding health meter has been replaced with the original "100 unit" type.
Thing Thing 3, the third chronological installment in the series, introduced a whole host of new technical and gameplay advents. Players are dropped into a massive multi level area, and must navigate through large groups of well armed enemies. Finding the exit to the next area usually requires killing a required number of enemies, but may also consist of defeating a boss, obtaining a key card, or locating the exit in the area's, which offer multiple styles of play. Weapons can be earned from the kill score introduced in T-T 2, but some special weapons are hidden throughout the levels. Assault rifles (such as the HK G36 and FAMAS) have been reintroduced, and some handguns and machine pistols can now be dual wielded. The game is also much more story driven, with a Metal Gear Solid Codec style cutscene preceding many of the games areas.

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