Ghostbusters: The Video Game
(Xbox 360, PS3, Wii; $49.99-59/99; Rated E10+ (Wii) for Comic Mischief/Fantasy Violence, Rated T (Xbox, PS3) for Comic Mischief/Fantasty Violence/Mild Language; www.ghostbustersgame.com)
To this day, the original “Ghostbusters” remains one of my top ten favorite movies of all time.
Heck, I even think that “Ghostbusters II” wasn’t half bad.
So it is without hyperbole when I say that “Ghostbusters: The Video Game” was my most anticipated title this year. After getting tossed aside as one of the titles that Activision decided to not publish when it bought out Vivendi Games, I thought it might never see the light of day. Surprisingly, Atari- a company up against the ropes financially- bought the publishing rights to it and released it in conjunction with the movie’s 25th anniversary. The move was a win for Atari, and a win for Ghostheads all over.
Much ballyhoo and credit has gone to “Ghostbusters” writers, Dan Akroyd and Harold Ramis for penning the script to this “Ghostbusters.” How much of the actual scribing Akroyd and Ramis actually will likely be debated in the same vein as the “writing” of “Good Will Hunting” by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. Nevertheless, it’s clear that Akroyd and Ramis had at least some collaberation on the project and they have both stated that they intended “Ghostbusters: The Video Game” to be cannonical- for all intents and purposes, this is “Ghostbusters III.”
Nothing solidifies this more than having the entire cast of the original “Ghostbusters” back to voice their characters in the game- save for Rick Moranis and Sigourney Weaver, who’s characters do not appear in the game.
That’s right folks, they even got Bill Murray to come back and reprise his role as Dr. Pete Venkman- that’s huge.
Of all the characters though Akroyd really brings Ray Stantz back to life- he sounds just as he did back in ‘84; honorable mentions should be given for Ramis’ Egon Spengler and Ernie Hudson’s Winston Zeddemore, but as big of a “get” it was for Murray to reprise his Venkman, he phones it in a little too much.
Developers, Terminal Reality, obviously have as much of a love affair for the material as the fans do- “Ghosbusters” is littered with nods to the previous movies, opportunities to explore the firehouse, and chasing after Slimer in the Sedgewick Hotel. Everything that a Ghosthead would want from a “Ghostbusters” game is here- wrestling a ghost with a proton stream and ultimately capturing it in a trap feels right, the characters look exactly as they should on the High Definition systems- and even on the limited hardware of the Wii, the stylized/cartoonish look of the Ghostbusters begs for an updated cartoon series.
It is with this care and downright enjoyable story that will ultimately propel the player, fan or not, through what is, otherwise, a mediocre gameplay. Were there not all of the trappings and fan-service, and if there wasn’t such a rich property about which to create a game, the gameplay mechanics and level design would only be ho-hum and ultimately boring after a few hours of play- bustin’ makes me feel good, but a little more variety would make me feel great.
Still, it’s the nostalgia factor and the Hollywood talent that wins me over. “Ghostbusters” puts me as a new Ghostbuster among the original four, the feeling and humor of being a Ghostbuster is right-on, and this is probably a better experience than any third movie could have been.
It’s cliche, I know, but for my money- “who ya gonna call?”