I should inform you that this review is incredibly biased. I'm a Ghostbuster junkie; I can't get enough of `em. I grew up with the Ghostbusters movies, cartoons, toys, and the crappy 8-bit video games. I loved every bit of it--even the terrible games. Even so, I was a bit skeptical of developer Terminal Reality's attempt to revive the Ghostbusters franchise. How could a video game capture what Terminal Reality promised: a third movie in video game form?
I'm happy to report that Ghostbusters the Video Game is precisely that: a playable Ghostbusters 3 for your PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360. It's got everything you'd want in a new movie: ghosts, spooky visuals, great music, and the full Ghostbusters cast (with two exceptions, which I'll note later). If you've been dreaming of a new Ghostbusters movie, you can't do much better than this for the time being.
If however you're hoping for a fun gameplay experience, you might be a bit disappointed. Ghostbusters contains one of the neatest but wonkiest combat control schemes in gaming history. Players, taking on the role of a new recruit to the expanding Ghostbusters team, get to strap on a proton pack and blast, freeze, and slime all manner of spectral enemies, just like in the movies but with a few new additions, such as the Stasis Stream (freeze ray) and Meson Collider (kind of like short bursts from an assault rifle). Players will need everything at their disposal to make through the rather short but often difficult story mode.
What makes the game so difficult at times is the chaotic mess that results in every ghostly encounter. There unfortunately is never just one ghost. Two, three, or more show up on each occasion, each needing wrangling, slamming, and eventual dunking into a trap. The game's capture-and-trap mechanic is fun, and works well enough, but succeeding in this endeavor is hampered by the insanity unleashed by each ghost. Spooks will toss furniture, blast otherworldly goo, launch energy waves, and generally beat the crap out of players. This results in constant knockdowns and the need to revive teammates, especially on higher difficulty settings. It also doesn't help that the game's AI--both teammates and enemies--is terribly stupid. By the time players reach the final boss, these issues may drive some into a downward spiral of frustration and rage.
Thankfully, the story makes up for every issue. Every actor except Sigourney Weaver (Dana Barrett) and Rick Moranis (Louis Tulley) returns to reprise their original Ghostbusters roles. Bill Murray, Dan Ackroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts, and even William Atherton (the venomous Walter Peck) return to voice their iconic characters, and Ackroyd and Ramis helped pen the game's script. The Ghostbusters sound like their old selves, despite two decades between their last outing and the video game. Atherton isn't quite as sharp as he used to be, and Brian Doyle-Murray (Bill's brother) is bit tacky as the mayor, but the other actors bring their A game. The story uses a lot of references to the old films, and plenty of familiar faces (human and otherwise) show up, but the new stuff is fantastic. I found myself chuckling often, and doubled over laughing on a couple occasions (Winston's material in particular is darn good stuff).
The game's multiplayer component is strangely as exciting as the story, and a better implementation of the game's combat mechanic. Four players work together to capture ghosts, destroy evil relics, survive wave after wave of ghosts and demonic entities, and much more. Players choose a weapon specialization, a Ghostbuster (warning: everybody wants to be Peter Venkman), and whether or not to play a one-off "job" (another word for the various modes), or several jobs in a short campaign. Players earn cash towards rank upgrades, which bring better equipment and other enhancements. While the jobs are all cooperative, they're also a bit competitive as each player strives to be the best Ghostbuster, earning the most cash and therefore ranking higher than their teammates. Bottom line: the Ghostbusters multiplayer is better than it has any right to be.
Whether or not you should buy this game is dependent on your love of the Ghostbusters franchise. Despite my heavy bias, I wasn't wowed by the single-player campaign, but the story was funny and charming. Issues aside, fans like me should buy this game ASAP. If you're intrigued, but not a die-hard Ghostbusters nut, you should probably rent this instead. The story mode is quite short (well under 10 hours, unfortunately), but what's there is choice material, and the multiplayer component is strong enough to keep you coming back for more. Though it's a bit rough in spots, the complete Ghostbusters the Video Game experience is something special.