Thankfully, It Isn't Mass Hysteria
Ghostbusters: The Video Game brings fans what they want; their own adventure with untested equipment. I blame myself.
Published: July 9, 2009
Like many children of the 80s, I am a Ghostbusters fan. Even before I could form coherent memories, my parents indoctrinated me into the world of Ghostbusters (thankfully, however, to a rational degree). So, to my delight, the release of Ghostbusters: The Video Game, would finally give me a chance to experience their universe for myself. This game has gone through a lot of heartache to get launched, but it was well worth it.
In the game, you play as a nameless, generic, yet somewhat relatable character called the Rookie (or various other newbie names). It is a bit disappointing that you do not play as one of the original four Ghostbusters for the main campaign, but you get over it. To my surprise, it is a lot of fun playing as a person who sort of looks like me and would probably react the same ways during the abuse in the cutscenes. As the newest member, you are given an arsenal of new gadgets and upgrades to help in your main goal: kicking ectoplasmic faces in. When it comes to most ghost capturing situations, you will use your standard Proton Wand to weaken and wrangle your opponents. However, almost every enemy you encounter has a certain weakness, so switching to your Slime Blower, Shock Blast, or Meson Collider is to your advantage. They aren’t just effect changes, as each primary and alternative fire feels different to control. Given their distinctive properties, they allow for new ways to deal with the many hectic firefights that you will get into.
Not to give anything away about the story, but just like the first two films, you are ultimately going to stop some supernatural entity. In that sense, the main idea isn’t that original, but Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd have come up with a really coherent script that plays heavily off of the first film. For this reason, consider this the real Ghostbusters 2 [or at least a proper Ghostbusters 3 -ed].
In the game, you play as a nameless, generic, yet somewhat relatable character called the Rookie (or various other newbie names). It is a bit disappointing that you do not play as one of the original four Ghostbusters for the main campaign, but you get over it. To my surprise, it is a lot of fun playing as a person who sort of looks like me and would probably react the same ways during the abuse in the cutscenes. As the newest member, you are given an arsenal of new gadgets and upgrades to help in your main goal: kicking ectoplasmic faces in. When it comes to most ghost capturing situations, you will use your standard Proton Wand to weaken and wrangle your opponents. However, almost every enemy you encounter has a certain weakness, so switching to your Slime Blower, Shock Blast, or Meson Collider is to your advantage. They aren’t just effect changes, as each primary and alternative fire feels different to control. Given their distinctive properties, they allow for new ways to deal with the many hectic firefights that you will get into.
Not to give anything away about the story, but just like the first two films, you are ultimately going to stop some supernatural entity. In that sense, the main idea isn’t that original, but Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd have come up with a really coherent script that plays heavily off of the first film. For this reason, consider this the real Ghostbusters 2 [or at least a proper Ghostbusters 3 -ed].
