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Martian Gothic

Martian Gothic: Unification
Martian Gothic - Unification Coverart.png
Developer(s) Creative Reality
Coyote Developments (PS)
Publisher(s) TalonSoft (PC)
Take-Two Interactive (PS)
Programmer(s) Neil Dodwell
Martin Wong
Artist(s) David Dew
Julian Holtom
Paul Oglesby
Writer(s) Stephen Marley
Composer(s) Jeremy Taylor
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, PlayStation
Release Microsoft Windows
  • EU: 2000
  • NA: April 30, 2000
PlayStation
  • EU: October 5, 2001
  • NA: November 4, 2001
Genre(s) Survival horror
Mode(s) Single-player
Aggregate scores
Aggregator Score
GameRankings (PS) 64.75%
(PC) 58.65%
Metacritic (PS) 64/100

Martian Gothic: Unification (also known as just Martian Gothic) is a survival horror video game developed by Creative Reality for Microsoft Windows and Coyote Developments for the PlayStation and published by TalonSoft for Microsoft Windows and Take-Two Interactive for the PlayStation. The PlayStation version was one of a number of "budget titles" released near the end of the system's lifespan.

The game is very similar to the Resident Evil series: third-person perspective; fixed camera angle; tank controls; “Vac-Tubes” in the place of item boxes; and colored key-cards. The game focus heavily on puzzle solving and exploration, rather than combat. However the combat system focuses on crowd control or dispatching small and weak enemies as it is easy to become overwhelmed by enemies such as the non-dead who walk at exactly the same pace as the player. The game is centered on three playable characters that are separated. This separate trio gimmick is similar to Day of the Tentacle. One of the unique features of the game is that if the characters ever meet face-to-face, it will result in a game over. However the player can easily and quickly switch to any character at any moment. A radio is used for easy communication. It is recommended that the player finds a ‘safe area’ before switching characters. The characters have a very limited inventory. Because the characters cannot meet they can trade items using the Vac-Tubes that are scattered throughout the base. The Vac-Tubes can carry up to four items to another hatch connected to the Vac-Tubes anywhere in the base. If the player needs to leave behind items the Vac-Tubes can hold up six items. If the player is unsure where they left an item, it can be checked using any in-game computer to bring up the list of contents of any hatch, including ones that have not been accessed yet.

The purpose of the game is to unravel the events before the characters arrival. To do this the player may search dead bodies for letters or micro-recorders which may contains information about the character, plot, passwords, and the method in which they might have died. Many recordings have been stored on some of the base’s computers, which also contain information about the characters, plot and further the player’s progress.

Another unique feature of the game is that the non-dead enemies cannot be killed permanently. Shooting an enemy enough times will incapacitate it temporarily, but it will reanimate if the player re-enters the area later and comes to close to the enemy’s fallen model.


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