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Review: Ghostbusters: The Videogame - PS3

by Steven Williamson on 17 June 2009, 12:02

Tags: Ghostbusters, Atari (EPA:ATA), PC, Xbox 360, PS2, PS3, Wii, Action/Adventure

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What's it about?
Ghostbusters: The Videogame is an original story in the popular Ghostbusters franchise, taking place two years after the events in Ghostbusters II. Set during Thanksgiving 1991, the original ghost-busting team of Spengler, Stantz, Zeddmore and Venkmann join up once more to tackle a new wave of mischievous spirits who have descended on New York City.

Featuring voice-acting from the original cast, including performances by Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd, Ghostbusters is a third-person shooter where you’re tasked with becoming the fifth member of the ghoul-trapping team and saving New York City from the spread of paranormal activity. Joining up alongside your team-mates, the aim of the game is to hunt down and trap a range of ghosts from the Black Slime Fiend to the Kitchen Golem as you pick off of the small fiends on your way to bigger battles against iconic figures such as Stay Puft MarshMallow Man and Azetlor.

Armed with a PKE meter, which allows you to switch to the first person perspective and track down any ghosts that may be hiding, you explore locations, such as The Sedgwick Hotel, New York Public Library and Central Park, hunting down ghosts and trapping them using a three-pronged attack. Known in the game simply as "zap ‘em, sap ‘em and cap ‘em," trapping a ghost requires you to blast them with a shot from your proton pack’s energy beam; drain their energy by dragging them around the environment and bashing them into objects; and then finally laying down your trap and wrestling them into position ready to be sucked up into the small device. There are also times when you simply have to shoot ghosts to kill them, but by and large the trapping mechanic is at the core of the gameplay.

Trap a ghost and you earn cash, which can then be spent on upgrading your proton pack with the likes of damage upgrades, and increases to your rate of fire.Though the game is largely linear there’s also an element of exploration as you search for hidden artefact's with your PKE Meter and scan ghosts so that you can add them to your spirit guide where you can check out their back-story, as well as their strengths and weaknesses.

Aside from story mode, Ghostbusters: The Videogame also boasts six paranormal-themed multiplayer games.

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Gameplay impressions overleaf...