In an ever-growing list of game remasters, Ghostbusters could easily be over-looked…
It shouldn’t be however, as Saber Interactive have done a fabulous job of preserving the core aspects to the game that gave it’s original charm. The gameplay mechanics – think of similar third-person action games such as “Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune” or “AVATAR: The Game”, the original dialogue (featuring recordings of Akroyd, Ramis, Murray, and Hudson), and of course the story (which at the time of original release, felt like the third movie that could have been) are effectively un-altered, whilst upgrades are made to the overall aesthetics.
I won’t be dwelling too much on the narrative itself, being that the game is a remaster unchanged in this aspect, and of course for the sake of spoilers. For those returning to the game, you’ll still find the thrill of hunting ghosts through the corridors of the Hotel Sedgewick, and a few other key areas from the original movie. For those of you new to the game, I can assure you that it handles well and has a very engaging story. Following the events of the second movie, the basic premise is that you play the role of “Rookie”, a new recruit to the Ghostbusters who is thrown into the deep end as there is an outbreak of supernatural threats to deal with in New York.
The game is full of nostalgia, whether small easter eggs found in the fire station itself, or familiar spectres that show up throughout the campaign. In fact if you haven’t yet seen the first two Ghostbusters movies, I strongly recommend you get a hold of a copy of the Blu-ray before you begin the game. The visuals have noticeably improved. Saber Interactive remastered the source art in 4K, and when running through a powerful custom PC or console such as the Xbox One X or PS4 Pro (the latter of which I used myself), to a 4K OLED display, object colours and contrasts have a slight edge that the original was lacking.
The game generally runs nice and smoothly, even in areas of high detail or fast moving objects. Though the character models and scenery didn’t blow me away, the ghosts and equipment certainly did. This meant that the “travelling” sequences and cut-scenes felt necessary for driving the narrative and giving characters room to speak, whereas it was the set-piece ghost battling that allows the game to really shine. It felt like having delicious icing on a familiar and rather standard Victoria sponge.
As with most new games, there is a certain mixture of excited anticipation and nervous apprehension when first starting. This completely dissipated when Ray Parker Jr.’s iconic theme kicks in at the main menu. The audio did however, turn out to be a rather interesting aspect. It was wonderful to have the original recorded dialogue, and a reworking of the surround-sound aspect. There were moments in the game, when forced to first-person mode using the PKE Meter (a ghost hunting device), that shared a similarly thrilling vein to the likes of “Bioshock” or “Prey”, with suspense and jump scares heightened by the audio mix.
There was a strange occurrence that, when turning the character’s field of view, certain characters that you could hear talking whilst on-screen, suddenly became in-audible, sounding as if underwater. This may just be an issue with the disc content itself and will hopefully be fixed with an update in the near future. For now, it is very distracting. Avid Trophy/Achievement hunters will be happy to know that it is feasible to achieve a Platinum/100% entirely offline. The list is still the same and those of whom are new to the game will find an enjoyable, albeit slightly grinding quest.
On the flip-side to this, returning players may be unhappy to hear that the multiplayer has been completely removed from the game. A sentiment shared by the up-coming and highly anticipated Last of Us: Part 2, this was in order to fully commit to the campaign. This could mean that it will be added with a later update, but I believe this is unlikely.
Summary:
Gameplay – Practically un-altered, though feels smoother due to the frame rate tweak. 8/10
Visuals – The ghosts and equipment appear more impressive than previous, though the character models and surroundings don’t stand out. 7/10
Audio – Nice 5.1 mix and preservation of original dialogue, ruined by the “Life aquatic of Peter Venkman” audio glitch. 6/10
Trophies/Achievements – Same list as the last, minus the online content. 6/10
Overall:
The game serves as a champion of what HDR and surround-sound can bring to the gaming experience, so please give us a shout for the best advice in AV setups. A decent remaster of what was already a winning game of its time, it is a cut above most other movie-turned games from a previous generation of console.
Author: Dec, Prestwich store
