Thing!

Thing! is a video game in the action genre and published by Players Software originally released in 1988. It is currently playable on Amstrad CPC.

Thing! is a side-view game that combines the genres of puzzle solving and shooting. The game has adventure and RPG elements, and is anime-style comic. Both the Thing and the Ball characters are controlled by the player. The Thing is responsible for transporting and using objects, while the Ball is responsible for firepower. Objects can be accessed and managed through various options in the menu by pressing the respective number keys. Objects can be examined, used and replaced.

To complete a task or restore a character's health or ammunition, the player must have one or more compatible objects and use the correct one. The status of both characters can also be accessed from the menu by pressing the number 4 key. The strength and remaining ammunition (BALL) of both characters will be displayed. Whenever a Thing takes serious damage due to the extent of its wounds, its body will shut down for 24 hours to be repaired.

The synopsis of the game is that the Thing, an intergalactic mailman genetically created on the planet Crazy, has been given a diplomatic mission by the Astral Harmony Council to serve as a political advisor to the lords of Dingalinger. The advisor is an inhabitant of the planet Rombo, and is shaped like a ball. In recent months, tensions between the Dingalinger have risen, negotiations have failed, and the planet is on the brink of nuclear war. The lord of the Dingalinger goes into hiding and agrees to meet with the advisors only if the Thing completes ten tasks in seven days. The reason is that the 26 districts of the planet where the Overlord is hiding are home to many roving bands of Dingalinger, who are very hostile to the Thing invading their lands. You can travel to these districts via a teleportation system called Telenex.

To move to other districts via Telenex, you must use a phone book, which is the only tool the Thing has at the beginning of the game, placed in front of a phone booth. These movement points are called kiosks. The player must manage the stamina and ammunition of both characters, make sure they overcome the many dangers they encounter on their journey, and complete their missions sequentially before the week is up. If they fail to do so, the Overlord will bombard their planet and it will be game over.

It is possible that we have multiple downloads available when different versions exist.