The Thing

Overview

Gallery

3D Assets

Audio

The Thing
Main Features
Gender	Male (most likely)
Relationships
Enemies	Theodore Peterson, Nicky Roth, The Rescue Squad
Opinions
Likes	Destruction
Dislikes	Unknown
Abilities and Miscellaneous Features
Physical Abilities	Jumpscaring Crushing Homes
Mental Abilities	Able to project your worst fears into your mind

The Thing (also known as "The Shadow Man/Boy") is the overarching antagonist of Hello Neighbor.

Appearance

Alpha 3

In the Alpha 3 build of Hello Neighbor, prior to the full game, The Thing appeared as a two-dimensional figure that could've only be seen using cheats or certain camera angles. This rendition of The Thing seemed much shorter than the player and seemed to have a large bundle of curly/messy hair.

Beta - Full game

In the betas to the full game, The Thing has an actual model. It is all black with two bright white glowing eyes. it continuously changes its shape, as its limbs become much thinner, then on the contrary - thicker. Standing still, The Thing often moves hands, torso, legs, and head. It first appears in Alpha 4, in a cutscene with a broken phonograph, the actions of which take place on the behalf of Theodore Peterson, where he covers his eyes with his hands while The Thing comes into the room. It can also be seen in Fear Darkness behind the map. In Beta 1 - 2, it can be seen outside the window in Fear Supermarket and Factory. In Beta 3, it can be found in the basement. In the full game, after you beat the Giant Neighbor boss in the Act Finale, you go to the Fear Hall, where you see all of Theodore's fears. These fears are represented with the scenes they are resembled by, with The Thing watching nearby. In the full game, it is also in the basement, forcing you to use your Fear Supermarket ability to progress. The Thing became not only an obstacle of the player in the basement though, but it is also the final boss, from which you need to protect your younger self from being overcome by The Thing. After saving your past self from your fears, you overcome them by destroying The Thing, representative of fear itself. At the end of Hello Neighbor, you can see that Theodore locked himself away from his fears, resulting in him never being able to let go.

Secret Neighbor

In Secret Neighbor, The Thing shows up when you kill Theodore Peterson.

Biography

The Thing is supposedly a representation of fears (as hinted by the achievement "No More Fears").

Trivia

• As hinted by the achievement that you get once you defeat it, the Thing is the representation of Nicky‘s fears.
• Sometimes it's called the Shadow.
• It shares its name with the monster from the 1938 novella Who Goes There? and its subsequent film adaptations The Thing from Another World from 1951, The Thing from 1982, and The Thing prequel from 2011.
• In Act 2 and Act 3 basements, you can hear the Thing's breath in certain areas. There is also some cranking wood noises there. To hear the Thing's breath in Act 2, ignore the vent, and instead crouch under the poster near the vent and go up to the fence. The Thing will breathe loudly and crank wood there. To hear the noises in Act 3, crouch and wait for the Thing to walk by. After he goes through the hall, go up to the gate, and you can hear breathing noises. Although you can't see the Thing in Act 2, the breathing is very loud, implying that the Thing is very close.
• Interestingly, The Thing's look is quite similar to the character The Mother from the horror game Among The Sleep.