Ghostbusters: The Video Game Review

The Ghostbusters Video Game might reach the right nostalgic notes, but it'll likely fall short for gamers.

Like seemingly the vast majority of '80s children, I love the Ghostbusters. After watching the first film at the tender age of four I became hooked on ghostbusting; a feeling that, some would say tragically, remains to this day.

This love stayed with me all the way until Ghostbusters 2 was released several years later. In fact, back in the early '90s I not only loved the movies but I also owned pretty much every piece of Ghostbusters paraphernalia available.

Proton pack; full ghostbusting suit; original NES and Gameboy games (both of which were fairly terrible); action figures: the works. I spent my days running around the local park pretending to be Bill Murray: yes, I really was that cool.

Thanks to the much-delayed and snappily titled Ghostbusters: The Video Game, I thought my time had finally come, with the chance to fulfil my childhood dreams.

It's been three long years since work began on a new Ghostbusters title, with everyone from Activision, Sierra Entertainment, Atari and Sony getting involved with the Terminal Reality developed game, but has it been worth the wait?

Well, my first disappointment came within seconds of starting career mode. Unfortunately, rather than taking on the role of one of the four Ghostbusters, you instead play as a new recruit to the team who is mainly referred to throughout the game as 'the rookie.'


However, this isn't as big a deal as it sound for fans of the films, since it instead provides the opportunity to interact with the original Ghostbusters, while also adding depth and new blood to the series.

Although the rookie remains silent, the rest of the team are in fine voice. Bill Murray, Ernie Hudson, Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis are back proving the vocal talent.

The four, as expected, deliver the material superbly, with all of the charisma and wit that made the film series such a monster success. It's not just the big hitters that return either, with the Janine Melnitz and Walter Peck characters also contributing to the feeling of authenticity and familiarity.

Further familiarity and euphoria for fans is added by the fact that Aykroyd and Ramis helped out the game's script, ensuring that the dialogue and plot hit the right notes.

The game is a fairly straightforward over-the-shoulder third person shooter. Think Resident Evil 5, but replace guns with proton packs and substitute dubious racial stereotypes for ghosts.

It benefits from a gentle learning curve and functional control system that allows you to just dive straight in without the need for hours of training and adjustment, giving it a nice pick-up-and-play feel. Meanwhile, the elements that do require some practice are well explained by Aykroyd and Ramis, aka Ray and Egon, right from the kick off.


The story centres on yet more ghouls and ghosts in New York. Taking place in 1991, two years after the events of Ghostbusters 2, the plot revolves around a new Gozer exhibit at the New York Museum.

It quickly becomes apparent that all is not right with the exhibit and its contents, leading the Ghostbusters to trek across the city to prevent a force even greater than Gozer being summoned to earth.

The plot ensures that there's plenty of appeal for lovers of the films, with neat touches in character interaction and familiar New York landmarks giving fans extra treats. Moreover, newcomers are unlikely to miss out by being ignorant of the franchise's back-story.

However, it's not all good news. I wanted to love this game, I really, really did. But, I just couldn't.

My major gripe is that the game just isn't nearly as fun as it should be. For a huge fan of the films this game should be absolute gold dust; however, at times it felt like a chore to play.

The primary problem is that the act of ghostbusting is repetitive and at times downright dull. Each time you want to zap a ghost you must first drain its energy with a blast from your proton pack, before slamming it around the screen to further diminish resistance, with the process ending as the trap is thrown out and the ghoul's evaporated from sight.


While this may sound fun, it quickly becomes laborious. Having said that, there is a sense of achievement when a ghost finally succumbs to your efforts and is safely stored in a trap. Still, the process might seem worthwhile, but it's not particularly fun.

It's not just the enemies that become repetitive. The gameplay, particularly in the early levels, follows a pattern of wandering around corridors, finding a ghost that subsequently flees, locating it once again with the PKE meter, before going through the aforementioned ghostbusting sequences.

There are also a few graphical gripes. While the game looks impressive enough on the surface and the characters actually do bear a strong resemblance to their real-life counterparts, there are some cases of the speech and animation being out of synch during cut scenes, while comparisons between the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game suggest that the title certainly looks better on Microsoft's machine.

The real shame is that with a little more time given to polishing the graphical problems and more thought being put into the combat, this could have been a great game. As it stands, Ghostbusters remains decent enough to please fans of the movies, but thanks to its pitfalls the game fails to reach its potential.

The game's co-operative multiplayer does somewhat address the balance, with the opportunity to play as one of the four ghostbusters finally on offer. Players are faced with several tasks, including trapping as many ghosts as possible, and protecting some of the team's important (and highly volatile) equipment.

These modes do add extra depth to the game, but my previous gameplay gripes still remain, in addition to some buggy online play.


All in all, Ghostbusters: The Video Game is a decent attempt, but little more. In its favour the game does have an interesting and at times engaging story that'll appeal to fans of the films. There's enjoyment to be had from the multiplayer, which allows a short burst of ghostbusting for those who find the main campaign a little on the repetitive side.

If you manage to play through the opening levels without the annoyance at the repetition I felt, you may well get plenty of fun from the game. However, those who aren't so lucky, you might have to dust off that Ghostbusters suit for one more run around the park.

6.5/10

Richard Chamberlain

---

Second Opinion

Ghostbusters: The Video Game has quite a lot going for it, with original cast members and script writers coming along for a ride that features classic filmic moments.

The nostalgic feel is expertly captured in the game, with ghost capturing being as easy and enjoyable as you might expect. But then comes the repetition. Capturing ghosts remains predominately similar throughout, with larger enemies only requiring a lengthened stream of proton or slime until they get knocked out.

Some enemies are unnaturally difficult to weaken, with no other tactics other than spraying some more to knock them down. Of course, you can scan the ghouls to find out what particular spray is best, but each and every excretion from your proton pack is basically the same.

Oh and then there's your Ghostbusters buddies. Their lines might be expertly delivered, but they're often knocked down by the ghosties, leaving you (the newb) to go and tap them on the shoulder to wake them up. Often your success in a boss battle depends on you running around to save your buddies, rather than actually shooting the ghost yourself.

Co-op certainly is fun and the game has its charm, but its just missing that little something for gamers that'd rocket it to a favourite in your collection. Fans and non-gamers will surely love it though.

Patrick Steen