A creepy sci-fi thriller with Lovecraftian influences, but mediocre gameplay and uninspired graphics.
Obviously, if you have played the game through, you'll pick up the somewhat robust story expressed here. The script was well-done in part to the kung-fu fantasy writer Stephen Marley, as the dialogue provided by the characters, especially the sentient-computer MOOD, or the deranged lunatic called Ben Gunn, is often inspiring or mood-setting. Also, the game borrows some Lovecraftian elements and/or influences, especially in regards to the atmosphere and plot elements involved. Thanks to these areas of the game, it not only keeps you playing the game in any way, but it actually redeems itself in contrast to the to-be-mentioned flaws, like the broken gameplay.
The creepy parts of the game are pronounced with sound. As you venture along the base, scanning the corpses for items you need, you will find notes or micro-corders. These are the major story-developing elements of MG, and they are some of the creepiest elements as well. Micro-corders operate as a journal or diary device used by the once-alive members of the Martian base. Many of them contain the latest recording of the members' doomed lives, and in them, you'll often hear their death throes, or the screeching of monsters, or other creepy sounds. If there is one thing that MG does well, it is the voice acting, as well as the journal devices mentioned here. Enemies make some neat sounds, namely the somewhat ugly but yet fearsome TriMorph enemies, as you can hear their roars when in the same room as them, or just outside of the room they're in. The "Nondead" are somewhat corny, but may make you jump.
It would be a crime to miss the musical part of the game. Throughout many of the base's corridors or rooms, the only music to be heard is the sound of wind, and that definitely lends a disturbing hand to the atmosphere. In other places, various orchestra tracks play in the background, and many of these are just as mood setting. They are ominous and loud, and some parts of these tracks will easily make you remember the sound clips played when an enemy would pop out and grab you, like in Resident Evil.
However, the game gets bogged down by the sluggish and very irritating gameplay. Your characters bump into the objects littered throughout the environments, and this gets repetitive. They also react slowly to your movements, and running looks like they couldn't hold in their urges, not to mention their 180-degree spin animation being lame (they all move in the exact same manner). The weapons feel like tools rather than weapons at all, and only two of them actually do much of anything. Zombies will rise back into battle to make your life even worse after you pop a few rounds into them, so the game is really out to make you waste your lifeline. And although the puzzles are sometimes an interesting endeavor, as they are uniquely designed, they just seem to inconveniently stretch the amount of time that you play this slow and often boring game. MG attempts to cause an utterly frustrating game over by having an enemy, TriMorphs, chase after you and grab you, resulting in the game ending abruptly albeit horribly.
Aesthetically, MG is a real mixed bag of sorts. The pre-rendered backgrounds often create an air of chaos that once occurred in the base, but they are often cluttered and present a gameplay flaw. The camera, just like the early Resident Evil series' camera system, is placed in various angles in each shot, but sometimes, an enemy will be in the way of your vision, often giving other enemies a good way to pick you off. None of these measure down as much as the character models, which look terrible and REALLY outdated. They are blocks; it is blatantly clear of it when you are aiming your weapons. They also animate poorly, something mentioned above. The TriMorphs look, in a way, fearsome, but that is accidental in my opinion.
Another flaw is the difficulty. This is a game that is only recommended for the patient AND the clever, because the puzzles span lengths of time that may make up one or two quarters of a whole Resident Evil run and consist of lots of looking for objects and item management. The game also deceptively describes it as non-linear, when it is far from that. This also creates a huge amount of confusion, since there are not many clues to find, or they are not that accurately portrayed. I'll also mention, for the sake of a player with the PSOne console, that this game is FILLED with nasty bugs. I've encountered a few so far, and they are sometimes quite absurd, or really weird in nature. For instance, a widely-known bug (if you can say that really) can freeze your console due to a camera angle in a room. The Playstation doesn't seem to go through this, but the PSOne always does. Also, it may have just been a case of clipping through a wall due to odd movements I made, but I'll describe the weirdest bug I've seen in my days of gaming: In the corridor with the floating nondead, there is a hatch behind it. After you open it with a screw driver, you can see inside the hatch. Now, probably in my first run with it, I ran towards the hatch, and the camera shifted to a strange angle. I was inside of the hatch where a TriMorph lurks. While in this strange spot, I can't move at all, but the TriMorph inside crawls around, albeit in a messy manner. It was downright odd and like the other one, stopped my progress. Another bug, more easily encountered in the PC version, also takes place in this area and can also stop your progress. I think the only way to try and avoid these bugs is to use the original Playstation, and not the PSOne; otherwise, you'll have to deal with them.
If you can stomach some of the rather redeeming qualities of Martian Gothic, then you might consider merely checking this out. It'll give you a thrill, namely along the lines of atmosphere, a confusing but creepy plot, and chilly music. Yet in the end, Martian Gothic: Unification, is a creepy sci-fi thriller with Lovecraftian influences, but mediocre gameplay and uninspired graphics.