The First 10 Minutes: Ghostbusters

Driftwood
Tuesday, June 30, 2009 | 10:20 PM
15 comments

First 10 minutes PC Xbox 360 PS3

It's been 20 years already since the Ghostbusters saved New York city from Vigo the Carpathian, the scourge and sorrow of Moldavia. Thanks to today's technology, they are back, younger than ever, on Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 and time has come to show you the first 10 minutes of the game. Please note that we captured the 360 version but that this version won't be released here in Europe before the end of the year.
Update: Part 3 added plus a video of a French cutscene. The streaming is up for part 3 as well.
Update 2: Fourth and last part is up.
Update 3: One last "slime" of Ghostbusters with a video showing some of the multiplayer modes available.

We came. We saw. We kicked its ass.

The good news is that, apart from Rick Moranis and Sigourney Weaver, the whole original cast is back in this direct sequel to Ghostbusters 2. You'll be happy to hear Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Dan Akroyd, Ernie Hudson and the others. They all play as well as you'd expect them to though I find Murray to be a bit too nonchalant to my liking. Other than that, the voice acting is solid and it really brings you back in time, back when you were a kid watching the movie.

The music score is also the original soundtrack and I'm sure those of you who own both the VHS and the DVD of the 2 films - you know, those of you who have never missed a rerun on TV - will be thrilled when hearing Ray Parker Jr. in the introduction of the game. You'll even get to hear the song during the few loading screens - when you load or reload a game for example - but, provided you install the game on your hard drive, they won't be too long hopefully.

Technically, the game is OK overall. The character models are close enough from their real-life counterparts, the facial expressions are even quite good - although the characters' faces seem a bit doll-like and cartoony somehow. The special effects are well done, the physics engine does its job, no really, this is so not your typical licensed game which transforms your standard playthrough into a nightmarish Terminator-like experience. So the game may not be the eighth wonder of the world but the familiar places you visit are easy enough to recognize to make you feel at home. It is however worth mentioning that the framerate is unfortunately far from being smooth. One last thing about the tearing issues you might notice: because of the capture it is a lot more noticeable than in the actual game so, no worries.

As for the gameplay, it isn't bad at all and the game is actually pretty fun to play. It's a kind of mix between a third person shooter and a ghost fishing game. You can really feel that capturing ghosts requires some strength and you will even have a hard time trapping them when you're in hard mode. It is possible to upgrade your gear thanks to the money you make and there are also some puzzles that break the monotony of all the shooting and capturing. Let's face it though, the game can get a bit repetitive at times but that's probably because the developers wanted to respect the movies so bad they didn't dare add some sequences that might have felt out of place.

In a nutshell, my first impression of the game is that fans will certainly have a good time because the game will bring back memories of their childhood. There's nothing particularly original so to speak but spending a few hours with Venkman, Stantz and Spengler is kind of priceless, don't you think? So, if you're looking for a fun summer ride and you like the franchise, you know who you gonna call, don't you?

I'll be adding some more videos ASAP - including one from the multiplayer mode if possible - so stay tuned.

Téléchargement

Commented on 2009-06-29 10:11:03

liked the game at 1st,got bored about 30 mins in,its very repetative,i know with fps games all u do is kill but with the shoot,trap and fish it gets boring and the team AI is so dumb,u spend most of your time reviiving your squad

In reply to

squarejawhero

Commented on 2009-06-29 10:18:26

I think it's great. But then I'm a big Ghosbusters fan and the game itself is solid. Yes, there are some AI problems, but it's perfectly manageable. Trapping is beautifully done and has a real feeling of achievement to it, there are tactics required for each ghost/boss so it doesn't get boring and despite some framerate/tearing issues it looks great with tons and tons of physics objects flying around, ghosts, beams, and some nice water effects. More importantly, it captures the spirit (pun intended) of the film completely. A script by Ramis and Ackroyd means that you'll get through the frustrating bits just to hear more quips and thanks to the nicely realised fifth member (all facial tics and panic) you feel like part of the team.

Essential if you are a fan of the films and one of the best movie tie-ins there is.

Nakano

Commented on 2009-06-29 10:37:46

I really like the added "Impressions" in Gameryde pages. More useful than most crappy reviews from other sites.

I played the game at friend's house, and liked it. The only concern is it ran quite sluggish on a high end pc. Not sure about its specs, but i saw much gfx heavier games running on it with no problems at all.

nagylebowski

Commented on 2009-06-29 11:07:24

Looks very impressive, when it'll become a bit cheaper, I will get it surely

This message and account have been deleted at the user's request

Hypertrooper

Commented on 2009-06-29 13:31:21

The Game is incredible! Yes. the graphic is only great, but it has the ghostbusters Style. It is funny...!

Doctor_Hades

Commented on 2009-06-29 16:01:45

I'm really enjoying this game on the PC, mainly because it does such a good job of capturing the essence and excitement of the source material that I can forgive the various flaws such as the overly linear nature of the game and the fact that you never get to drive ECTO-1.

It's very addictive and I found it very funny in places. Up there with X-Men Origins Wolverine and The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay as examples of how to a movie license right IMO.

nostradamus

Commented on 2009-06-29 16:45:26

"Please note that we captured the 360 version but that this version won't be released here in Europe before the end of the year."

That sir, is as shitty as they come. Goddamn!

Commented on 2009-06-29 17:19:45

The US version is region free, 360 owners.

romeolives

Commented on 2009-06-29 18:57:57 In reply to nostradamus

Posted by nostradamus

the us version is indeed region free, and already companies in Europe are selling the US imports. In Belgium you have for ex. the Mediamarkt doing this.

Commented on 2009-06-29 20:24:30

Or if you're lucky like me, have parentals on holiday in the States on time of release. ;)

moroboshi

Commented on 2009-06-29 20:48:25

I though this game was total rubbish, and I love the original movie. For the PS3 version at least it's technically AWFUL, running in a near SD resolution with jaggies galore, low res texures, a terrible fram rate, and the worst lighting I've seen in any game this gen. It's seriously ugly.

And the game, it's just a third person shooter where each enemy takes about half an hour to kill (at least it feels that way). The old C64 version had a lot more depth than this.

munkini

Commented on 2009-07-01 08:03:28

I loved the Ghostbusters movie but I have to admit I never particularly wanted to be the Ghostbusters or do what they do so I doubt this is for me. Also, the technical issues are kind of unacceptable.

Commented on 2009-07-01 10:11:35

You're not The Ghostbusters, you're a new recruit who watches from the sidelines. Also makes for some nice jokes and facial expressions.

Got to an underground section last night in a massive temple. Very nice to look at. I'm on the 360 and frankly the very minor framerate hitches and tearing are a blemish, but on a game that has more physics objects than I've seen on consoles and some very nice environment/particle effects. There's always a lot going on.

Just feel I need to add some balance to my experience, which is with a solid, not great, shooter, lifted by nice variation in level art, good mechanics and a platinum license which lifts it above the norm. If you LOVED the Ghostbusters movie, you simply need to play this game. Bourne Conspiracy it is not.