It’s been a week since “Ghostbusters: The Video Game” was released and we at AW are going to tell this to you straight out – If you haven’t purchased this for the Playstation 3 or XBox 360 by now, do it. If you don’t want to pay the $60, please rent it.
“Ghostbusters: The Video Game” is indeed the ultimate Ghostbusters game that fans have all been waiting for. Having played through it twice already, this is certainly a game that does not become repetitive over time or lose its replay value. First off, let’s talk about the graphics:
The graphics in this game are impressive, despite a few minor setbacks. You might’ve stumbled upon numerous PS3 vs. XBox 360 splitscreen comparisons with bloggers constantly claiming that the XBox 360’s graphics are much sharper and detailed. Well, let me tell you this. Who really cares? Having done a comparison myself, the graphics on the PS3 release actually look sharper than the images you’ll find on these blog posts. Sure, maybe I’m wrong, but the truth is, you will not notice a decline at all, if any, and might even be impressed by the graphics regardless of the system because for a “Ghostbusters” game adaptation, this is quite promising. The Ghostbusting team is modeled almost exactly the way as they appeared in the first 2 films and just look brilliant. With 17 cinematic scenes which are visually stunning, this really does look like the third installment in the franchise. What I was not particularly bothered with, unlike other reviewers, was the constant interchange between the cinema and in-game cutscenes, which feature graphics you’d normally see during the gameplay. There are, however, occasional mechanical movements and off-sync dialogue from the characters which might distract some gamers, but honestly, I could really care less about these minor setbacks. It looks and feels like Ghostbusters, and it plays like a Ghostbusters game should.
Some cons to note about this game is that there are a few bugs here and there that may frustrate some gamers. In a few rare instances, the game might freeze at the beginning of a level, but restart itself back to the latest checkpoint. There is also a bit of a slowdown, sometimes a game freeze, in the third level at the Library as you chase Eleanor Twiddy, the ghost librarian through a basement of moving bookshelves. Other things to note is that while your save data is retained, the game sometimes fails to load the data, preventing you from viewing extra features such as Artwork and Videos. A simple entering and exiting of Multiplayer mode or a restart of the game will fix the issue. In addition, while finishing a career will allow you to replay any mission in the game, starting a new career will clear the list of replayable missions. Hopefully, Atari is currently working on a patch to fix all of these issues. Make no mistake though; this game plays very well, which we’ll now talk about.
In “Ghostbusters: The Video Game”, you play as a new, nameless recruit for the Ghostbusters working alongside Ray Stanz, Peter Venkman, Egon Spengler, and Winston Zeddemore. As you begin the game, you are equipped with a PKE meter for scanning ghosts, a ghost trap, and a proton pack that fires your basic blast stream. Over time, you continue to make money busting ghosts while purchasing weapon upgrades. You get to collect these nifty artifacts as well, which each offer a comedic little story bit probably written by Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd. What keeps the game fresh is the introduction of new weapons which you are given as you progress throughout the game, such as the stasis stream, the slime blower, and the meson collider, each of which are used for different purposes. Each weapon also features a secondary fire; the blast stream fires boson darts, the stasis stream fires shock blasts, the slime blower fires slime tethers, and the meson collider fires an overload pulse. By scanning ghosts with your PKE meter and adding them to your bestiary (Tobin’s Spirit Guide), you’ll find that certain ghosts are more vulnerable to different weapons. You’ll also find that luckily not all ghosts need to be captured, but are rather dispersible, meaning you can just kill them off. With such a wide arsenal of weapons at your disposal, you will definitely feel like the ultimate Ghostbuster.
The control system is generally well-configured, but there can be some improvements made. The firing controls are conveniently located on the L and R buttons and the game even takes advantage of the PS3’s motion sensing feature on the controller, so that you really feel like you’re wrangling a ghost into a trap. As for the negatives, the character’s back is constantly facing the screen, which sometimes makes it a hassle to turn yourself around, which is especially crucial during some intense boss battles. The walking/running system is also a bit tedious as your default movement is to walk, while to run, you need to hold a button down, which does take a fraction of a second to respond. I also don’t know if this was intended to reflect the athletic ability of the Ghostbusters, but after running for a certain distance, you eventually return back to a walking pace and will have to wait a brief while before running again. Other minor gripes I had, but mostly on the Professional (Hard) mode, was how damage is taken in the game. Rather than being directly killed by an enemy, you are knocked down to the ground and when that happens enough, approximately 3 times, you must rely on a teammate to revive you. If all teammates are completely knocked out, you officially die. At times, I would have to constantly revive my pathetic teammates instead who you’d have to basically walk up to and press a button to revive. Therefore, it is possible to not die in this game if your teammates always get to you in time, which probably won’t always be the case.
The game consists of 7 levels, most of them nostalgically taking you back to scenes from the movies such as the Sedgewick Hotel, the Public Library, and the History Museum; other areas you’ll visit are Times Square, Shandor Island, and Central Park. I was actually surprised at how interactive and richly detailed the environments were, as I found myself blasting through Civil War artifacts, ancient Mesopotamian statues, classical paintings, and even opening up refrigerator doors to find trays of bread, coffee pots, hams, you name it. There is seriously an endless amount of fun exploring the environments and I’m sure you’ll spend a few extra hours doing so. The environments are also creatively mapped out as you travel through narrow hotel corridors, bookshelf labyrinths, alleyways and streetsides, and dark sewer tunnels. Oftentimes, you’ll also need to use your weapons to navigate your way through certain parts. The amount of attention and detail is, therefore, what I particularly loved about this game.
“Ghostbusters: The Video Game” is playable in three different levels of difficulty: Casual, Experienced, Professional. I have personally played through Professional already, and I’ll tell you guys that it is, in fact, doable. While I have not played through Casual, I can tell you that through the Experienced and Professional modes, I actually faced a similar amount of difficulties at certain parts of the game. Bottom line is, you need to be quicker on your heels, patient in the boss battles, and consider reviving your teammates as a first priority. The game also offers an incredibly fun multiplayer mode where you can play several different mini-games with fellow gamers such as Slime Dunk, where you must trap as many Slimers as you can before the timer runs out. Other games include survival mode, protecting artifacts from ghosts as they try to steal them, and killing as many ghosts as you can within a time limit, to describe a few. There is also a campaign mode, where you can play in teams in enclosed environments featured in the game.
Whether or not you’re a fan of the franchise, “Ghostbusters: The Video Game” is a must-play game, whether you purchase or rent it. A lot of the cons I mentioned in this review are really minor, and only slightly detracted from my gaming experience. That certainly didn’t prevent me from beating the game twice; I may even play it a third time just to add some remaining trophies to my collection. The multiplayer feature significantly adds to the replay value and is definitely one of the most enjoyable aspects of the game. This is without a doubt, a worthy and satisfactory addition to the “Ghostbusters” franchise that fans and gamers alike will thoroughly enjoy.
Who you gonna call? GHOSTBUSTERS!
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