When a game has been as anticipated as this, it’s hard to be subjective. Well until you play it of course.
From the very beginning this game just oozes Eighties charm thanks to the voice talents of the main actors and the catchy theme tune that everyone and their granny should know by now. The game starts nicely enough with a trip to the firehouse in order to gain the tools of your trade and a small introduction to your generic newbie character. Unfortunately the game does not allow you to play as one of the original Ghostbusters crew which I think is a massive error on the part of the designers, however you do get to knock around as any of the Ghostbusters including your story mode rookie in the (dare I say it) rather disappointing multiplayer mode, but more on that later.
The story mode as I say starts of nicely taking you through the Sedgewick hotel in order to capture a rather familiar slimy green blob like ghost and continues (in a rather long) training session with which to familiarise yourself with the new weapons and general game play by pitting you against the Stay Puft marshmallow man and the grey lady librarian ghost from the library (remember her?) until letting you loose against the newer ghosts and ghoulies (heh heh heh) that the writers have conceived especially for those of us who demanded a new movie and got this instead. The problem lies here however as after the nostalgia trip the game quickly becomes repetitive with only the cut scenes and voice acting keeping you playing for any length of time if you are an experienced gamer. That’s not to say it’s not a fun jaunt and I know I’m being conflicting but that’s how the game makes me feel…conflicted. I want to love it but at the same time I feel mildly let down by the lack of foresight by the developers. I mean come on, how hard would it have been to allow you to play as one of the main characters? I really hope they bring out some half decent DLC with more to do within the game, perhaps options to defeat some more of the main ghosts from the first two movies.
Now I know I mentioned multiplayer earlier, from a game like this I would have expected it to be a little story driven with co-op game play being a main factor, but mostly it’s just beat the clock with other players stealing your hard earned ghost catching points. A big hit and miss for what could have been an amazing experience, the only reason I would suggest even considering the multiplayer section is to bump up your gamerscore.
Anyway back to the main story section. As you play through the game you’ll start off by giggling with glee at the use of the fabled proton pack (I honestly wish there had been a light gun style controller for the full feeling) but soon you will become a little miffed at the inaccuracy of the beam, even after you upgrade it, it feels like you’re randomly throwing out streams of ionic particles hoping they will at some point hit one of the ghosts your trying to catch. At no point does it feel intuitive, you have to constantly check where your firing and the upgrades to the guns are used only for boss battles or for moving scenery in order to help you progress. Oh you can use them against the various ghosts but it feel like cheaply tacked on bonus weapons. There is plenty to see and do in this game but for the length of time it took to finally come out it could really have done with a bit more love and care from the developers. The story itself is a strong one that would have been great as a movie but as a game it’s a little below par.
Mind you as a complete nostalgia freak I get lost in the moment every time I hear the lazy carefree tones of Bill Murray and the sceptical comedic drawl of Harold Ramis. Dan Aykroyd sounds as childlike as ever, his enthusiasm shines through as per usual letting you know that even after all these years he hasn’t lost any of his love for the franchise. The rest of the voice actors including Ernie Hudson seem a little bit disjointed from the main flow of the game this is a little disappointing as even Bill Murray sounds as though he cares (odd I know). The characters looks are amazingly detailed with all of the original actors designed to look as they should have if the movie had been released on the games timeline, the ghosts themselves are a little disappointing in terms of looking very generic, the bosses aside who have been painstakingly designed to try and recapture not only the movies but the cartoon, however this does not save them from ridicule (mine not the games) as they are typical boss fights with incredibly obvious weak spots which even if you don’t notice the other busters will tell you about repeatedly in very loud voices. I could go on about the high and low points of this game for hours but I won’t.
This game is one for the nostalgia freaks only I would say, with little to keep those unfamiliar with the movies coming back for more. All in all I would say the wait was more exciting than the end result and I would heartily recommend that if you want to get your Ghostbusters fix that you go an buy the double box-set now. If you haven’t seen the films…..why not? And if you have wait till this comes down in price or rent it before you buy it, make sure you know what your getting into because otherwise you’ll be left feeling like Venkman after his first encounter with Slimer.
VideogameUK verdict: 5/10
