Review | Ghostbusters: The Video Game

Format: Xbox360/PS3/Wii/DS | Genre: Action | Publisher: Atari | Developer: Terminal Reality | Out now: £44.99

By Daniel Lipscombe

Are you troubled by strange noises in the middle of the night? Do you experience feelings of dread in your basement or attic? Have you or your family ever seen a spook, spectre or ghost? Who ya gonna call? Well, in the case of the new Ghostbusters game, Terminal Reality. For a company with only a very small handful of “hits” - Bloodrayne, Metal Slug Anthology, Monster Truck Madness - this Texan developer has a weight on its shoulders the size of a big Twinkie.

Any well-loved movie franchise brings trepidation. So many before have fallen, and a series like Ghostbusters holds a position so high that the fall would surely kill. So it was just as well that the game had full backing from the original creators of the acclaimed movies. With Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis writing the story and script for this entry into the famous canon, Ghostbusters the videogame is billed as the true sequel to the 1989 movie Ghostbusters 2.

//Playing the part
This game would have fallen at the first fence if it weren’t for the original cast stepping up to reprise their roles. Bill Murray and Ernie Hudson picked up their proton packs and lent their voices to a well-written and genuinely witty and intelligent script. Backing them up are William Atherton (Walter Peck) and Annie Potts (Janine Melnitz), each as funny as ever, and although Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis are absent, they aren’t missed. Each of these actors brings great nostalgia to the game and Terminal Reality has really nailed the memories.

Playing as a nameless recruit to the Ghostbusters, you’re effectively the guinea pig for new equipment. This gives you a unique viewpoint for the mayhem of this version of New York. Exploring the Firehouse HQ, you’ll discover the loving detail that the developer has put in place for fans. You’ll find an Employee of the Month chart with pictures of Venkman taken straight from the films; newspaper cuttings shown in the movie are on the wall behind the desk; the containment unit in the basement looks just as dangerous as ever, and Ecto 1 sits proudly in the lobby. With the cutting but charming dialogue of Janine playing in the background, you truly feel part of the team.

Starting your journey with the ‘Busters will see you exploring a familiar environment: the Sedgewick Hotel. The opening chapter takes you through basic training, and you’ll be out to catch Slimer from his original dwelling. This leads you onto Stay Puft Marshmallow Man and the Grey Lady from the library in the first movie. Although there’s a great sense of contentment to be busting these famous ghosts, it feels like something of a cop-out to be playing out these familiar situations, particularly considering the strength of the script. This sense of a lack of effort can also be found in the game’s design. Though each area of the game looks nice, it’s all disappointingly linear, and each stage plays out as a maze of corridors leading to the inevitable ghost that needs catching.

Each of these ghost-catching endings is considered a boss fight, which causes something of a problem. As each ghost tends to appear at the middle or end of the level, each of the endless corridors needs to be filled with something to shoot. Ghostbusters becomes a Gears of War clone minus the glorious cover mechanic. Ghostbusters isn’t Aliens, nor is it not Starship Troopers, and thus shoehorning minions of the larger ghosts to be shot at is tedious. Since when does Stay Puft have small marshmallow monsters that do his bidding?

It’s just as well that the weapons you wield to destroy these otherworldly beings are interesting and bring refreshing mechanics to the proceedings. Starting with the classic Proton Pack, you move up to a Stasis Gun that acts like a shotgun; a Slime Gun, which helps dispatch certain enemies and also can be used to solve puzzles; and the Meson Gun, acting as an energy weapon. Each is unique and can be used in many ways. The Slime Gun is possibly the best in the arsenal; not only does it dispatch many enemies, but it can also be used to tether objects and organisms in the surroundings, which add another level to the action.

//Uncooperative
Although Ghostbusters is a genuinely fun game, one does wonder whether it would be as much fun without the skins of these familiar actors delivering such witty lines. Take out the ghosts, actors and memory-sparking surroundings and you’re left with an average action game that will almost certainly leave you wanting more - unless you want to trawl through each difficulty and collect every trophy or achievement.

Which leads to one of my biggest problems with Ghostbusters. The movie has four characters; the game has five. This is screaming out for a full four-player co-op career mode, but what we have is a convoluted side-mission setup a la Ghost Recon 2. It’s such a crying shame. Busting ghosts with your friends and catching Slimer et al would be a dream, but this basic, tacked-on multiplayer falls short. The result is a game you’re unlikely to want to return to, when this simple inclusion would have added so much.

Despite some low points, Terminal Reality has crafted a world that feels like home, and fans of the movies will be delighted with what’s on offer here. But others will simply see another action game - and not a particularly solid one at that. Some of Ghostbusters’ shortcomings can be overlooked due to the subject matter, but taken on face value you’re left with a heart-warming but ultimately lifeless shooter. Ghostbusting still makes you feel good – just not as good as it should.

6/10

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