Ghostbusters: The Video Game Review (PS3)

There were some great movies that came out of the 1980's. Raiders of the Lost Ark, Back to the Future, and Aliens were all considered blockbusters. But one movie holds a special place in the world of comedy at that time, and that movie was Ghostbusters. The Academy Award nominated comedy was a critical and commercial success that spawned cartoons, video games, and toys. In 1989 a sequel was released to an eager public. Rumors started circulating a couple years ago that a third Ghostbusters movie was in the works. Well not really. What was released was a video game that had a story written by Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd and the voice talents of all four ghostbusters as well as other well named celebrities.

The story takes place two years after the second movie and follows the boys of the ghost removal service as they combat the forces of Gozer. You play the fifth ghostbuster. You are the experimental equipment technician, trying out all of Egons new toys. This allows interesting new devices to be deployed for catching ghosts. Famous landmarks for the movies like the public library and the Sedgewick Hotel are in the game as levels and old favorites like Slimer and Stay Puft are included for good measure.

From a technical standpoint Ghostbusters: The Video Game plays a lot like Gears of War with a little Luigi's Mansion thrown in for good measure. It has the same camera perspective, nearly the same controls, it even has the "roadie" run from the 360 shooter. The graphics are good on the PS3 but if you own a Xbox 360 and a PS3 you'll want the 360 version mainly because the graphics are crisper and it wont require a 4 gig hard drive install unlike Sony's system. For me it really wasn't that big of a deal. The sound and presentation are very good. Controls are tight, and intuitive. If I were you, I would pick which system your friends are playing on so you can enjoy multiplayer together. To me, that's the deal breaker.

Multiplayer is a fun little diversion after you finished the single player story. There are five competitive modes that have you earning money for destroying relics, trapping ghosts, protecting "PKE Disruptors", and protecting artifacts from being stolen. These are generally fun and are good for a quick shot of ghost busting action. My opinion is weighed down by the fact that you can not play split screen on any of the competitive modes or in the single player story. The Wii version has split screen and it is awesome. Its a small gripe, but a gripe none the less.

In closing, Ghostbusters: The Video Game is a wonderful game. The story, the voice acting, and the gameplay come together to form the Voltron of licensed properities. If you are a fan of the movies you will enjoy the little touches the developers put into this game to bring back the memories of your childhood. Atari deserves a round of appluse for taking a risk bringing this game out after Activison cut it from its lineup. Heres to hoping that the game is successful so we can get a third movie.