When this game first released, I was pretty excited because this looked to be the Ghostbusters game I always dreamed of. Furthermore, it was promising the return of the original cast which sold me on the concept even more. And while I was mostly satisfied with my initial playthrough, I will say I was disappointed that I had to settle for a downgraded, cartoonish looking version of the game to play on my Wii. The PS3 and Xbox 360 versions look amazing by comparison.
A remastered version of the game was released on PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch about two years ago. I was somewhat excited by this prospect to have the chance to play the version I never did. After buying it on sale a few months back, I played through it once again, even before I knew we were talking about it here. And to break down how I feel about the game as a whole and the remastered version, I will need to separate a few elements.
Calling a re-release of older games a remaster feels like something that’s becoming more commonplace, even though I don’t feel the term is used as accurately as they’d like you to think. Ok so the developers increased the image resolution and framerate for the gameplay. But cut scenes look dated as hell as do the character models. It feels like a rush job to make a buck. I’ve seen hobbyists create more detailed versions of older games in their spare time. But that’s a gripe that isn’t about the game itself so let’s move on.
First and foremost, the fact they were able to secure most of the original cast is impressive. That alone helps elevate the game to another level. If only Sigourney Weaver would have initially signed on, we could have had a proper sequel. Regarding that, the story featured in the game was apparently an unused draft for a third movie. Although I would say with some adjustments to adapt to gameplay and to include throwbacks to original films, like getting to battle the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.
Since we haven’t yet gotten that third flick, this is as close as we’ve gotten until Afterlife. And with most fans of the series embracing this game’s story as a true sequel, the question now becomes will Afterlife make reference to this game as canon or ignore it? It only takes one little reference to confirm it. That said, I imagine it won’t, considering the plot of this game leans heavily on the legacy of Ivo Shandor which Afterlife seems to be referencing as well. Even if it will no longer be viewed as canon, it’s still a solid story in my opinion.
The gameplay itself is pretty fun, if not a little dated. Even today, the game feels older despite how it may look. But you get to play as a Ghostbuster and capture ghosts! And I was actually ok with the character we play being a nameless avatar for us. It would have been even cooler had they let us design said avatar so we could see ourselves as a Ghostbuster, but I digress. I do enjoy the different gadgets you get to test out. It helps the gameplay from getting too monotonous which does happen from time to time.
Most, if not all, of the music in the game is pulled from Elmer Bernstein’s original score which makes the experience feel much more genuine. There are some great Easter eggs in the game as well, from blatant ones like Vigo’s painting to less obvious one like the misspelled message from the end of the original NES game that can be found on Egon’s PC. Even deeper and much more time consuming is finding a message on the answering machine that sounds alot like a completely unrelated character from another franchise stating that the Vigo painting, “belongs in a museum.” Overall, it’s definitely a fun time if you love the franchise. Casual fans could have fun but certain story elements could leave them a bit lost.
Pencil & Paper Productions 