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Aliens: Thanatos Encounter is a 2001 top-down shooter video game developed by Crawfish Interactive and published by THQ for the Game Boy Color.

Box Summary[]

A group of Marines are returning home to Earth from a training mission. Along the way they receive a distress signal from the large freighter, THANATOS. After failing to establish communications, they decide to dock and board the massive ship.

Join the elite Marine battalion on a mission to blast Xenomorphs in the first Aliens game for Game Boy Color!

Plot[]

Thanatos Distress Beacon

Distress beacon detected

As directed by Marine HQ, a Marine battalion takes a detour from their return trip home to investigate a distress beacon from the space freighter Thanatos. The Marines set up a command post in the ship’s docking bay, rescuing survivors and destroying Xenomorphs as they progress toward the cargo bay.

After rescuing a trapped survivor in the cargo bay, an elevator malfunction interrupts their journey to the main body of the freighter. The Marines lose contact with Mother as they make their way to the main body on foot.

Once Mother reestablishes communication, Marine HQ orders the rescue of a scientist on deck eight in possession of vital information. With the scientist in hand, the Marines make their way to the living quarters, where Mother has detected something massive.

As the battalion reaches the ship’s living quarters, the rescued scientist reveals the presence of a hidden, prototype weapon. Rescuing all survivors and locating the prototype Smartgun, the Marines are then tasked with clearing out the Xenomorph nest while the ship’s evacuation is underway.

Thanatos Escape

Thanatos explodes in the distance

The evacuation complete, Thanatos is set to self-destruct, and Mother detects the presence of an Alien Queen ahead. Following a ferocious battle against the Alien Queen and waves of Xenomorphs, the Marines race back through the docking bay to reach their dropship before the freighter explodes.

Reaching the dropship in time, Thanatos explodes behind them as they make their final escape into space. The surviving members of the Marine battalion, having eliminated the Xenomorph threat and rescued as many survivors as they could, resume their journey to Earth.

Characters[]

The Marine battalion includes five Marines at the start of the game, and players may select one as their playable character at the beginning of each stage.

Corporal Brooke. Age: 26. Sex: Male. Speed: 4. Stamina: 4.

Corporal Brooke

Cadet Jorell. Age: 21. Sex: Male. Speed: 2. Stamina: 2.

Cadet Jorell

Private Shiro. Age: 19. Sex: Male. Speed: 5. Stamina: 3.

Private Shiro

Private Vanora. Age: 19. Sex: Female. Speed: 3. Stamina: 5.

Private Vanora

Private Chayton. Age: 22. Sex: Male. Speed: 3. Stamina: 4.

Private Chayton

If a Marine is defeated in combat, the player may attempt a rescue with their replacement. To complete the rescue, the player must save the captured Marine from Xenomorph-infested aqueducts within the time limit. The player fails the mission and must restart the game if all five Marines are defeated.

Gameplay[]

Progressing through four areas across multiple stages, players complete stage objectives that allow for continued progress into Thanatos. Common objectives include eliminating enemies, rescuing survivors and locating colored key cards to unlock doors.

Using a variety of weapons, players engage in top-down, ranged combat with Facehuggers, Chestbursters and Xenomorphs. Equipping items and weapons to one or both hands, the player will encounter a Motion Tracker, handgun, shotgun, Pulse Rifle, grenade launcher, incinerator, Power Loader and Smartgun over the course of the game.

Players may select "Strafe", "Free" or "Locked" gun fire settings, which allow for different types of combat movement, as well as Easy, Normal and Hard difficulty settings. Passwords are also provided at the end of each stage, which the player may enter from the main menu to continue on from their last completed stage.

Behind the scenes[]

  • In Greek mythology, as established by the poet Hesiod in Theogony, Thanatos was the son of Nyx[1], and was a minor figure who personified death.[2]
  • Crawfish Interactive closed its doors in November 2002[3], less than two years after the release of Aliens: Thanatos Encounter.
  • Aliens: Thanatos Encounter was the last Alien video game released on a handheld console until the release of Aliens: Infestation on the Nintendo DS in 2011.

References[]

  1. "Theogony - The genealogies - Descendants of Nyx". Wikipedia.
  2. "Thanatos". Wikipedia.
  3. "Crawfish Interactive". IGN. (archived link)


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