Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

10 to 20 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"All it's cracked up to be"

I rarely disagree with GameSpot when it reviews a game, with that said, when you read this review you'll understand why I believe this game got cheated out of a couple points on the scale.

I've broken my review up into parts: Storyline, Gameplay, Multiplayer, Music, Sound Effects and Voice Acting, Achievements, and Miscellaneous perks.

Author's Note:

This review will try its very best to include NO SPOILERS. I'm writing this in order to persuade you to BUY the game. The last thing I want to do is ruin your experience. Thanks for taking a look! Please read and review me! =]

Storyline:

The game takes place in different venues throughout New York City: The Sedgewick Hotel, Central Park, The Natural History Museum and a couple others.

Throughout the game you will feel as if you're in a movie. Each level is broken into a few parts, so while there aren't too many "different" venues, every time you revisit a previous level it feels fresh and new.

The campaign(Career mode) isn't too short, and isn't too long.. Each movie cut scene averages about 1 - 3 minutes and provides a welcome break in between busting.

All in all, a very satisfying campaign! Everything you could hope for from a game that praises itself for being akin to a third movie!

Gameplay:

For the most part it's a third-person shooter, but they do mix some RPG elements into it with great success(upgrading your different weapons and equipment). Every piece of hardware you can imagine from the movies has made it into the game. You've got the trap, the proton pack, and the night-vision goggles in conjunction with the PKE reader. While the goggles don't really see too much better into the dark, it gives you an idea of what Ray must have been seeing when he was in the Sedgewick Hotel.
A new mechanic they added that isn't from the movies is the use of four unique proton pack add-ons: The good ol' Proton beam, Shock Blast/Stasis, Slime, and the Meson Cannon(my favorite).

Wrangling Ghosts can be a pain at first, but you will master it with time. Getting them into your trap's beam can also be frustrating, but as I said before, you will get better at it with time.

I can already hear the question: Will you always have to trap ghosts? No! Thankfully they've added some regular encounters that only require you do enough damage to them before they die. Each creature(and Ghost!) has a weakness, so be sure to scan it with your PKE to find out which weapon does the greatest damage to it!

Gameplay Cons:

Knockdowns are infuriating. You can be as quick as a rabbit while hitting the dodge button(B), but sometimes there's no way to avoid them.

Some say revivals are lame. I am forced to agree only because it happens a lot more than it should be allowed to, in some levels.

Multiplayer:

For those of you who like competition, you will find it all online!

Whether you just want to play with a friend, or a bunch of random people, it can be fun---and addicting---as hell!

I won't profess to know everything about the multiplayer, but from what I have played(Campaign matches with a friend): It is heavily-based on team-work. In the campaign levels I played you had to find power-ups for your weapon, lest you be over-run by ghosts that aren't affected by your proton-pack(which you always have even if you don't select it from the start screen).

Music, Sound Effects and Voice Acting:

Let me start by saying the voice-acting is OUTSTANDING! By this merit alone the game should have received an 8. The whole gang participates in this, even the bug-eyed secretary. Thankfully for us(in my opinion) Louis doesn't make an appearance. Perhaps developers are tuned into gamer's wishes after-all?

Directly relating to voice-acting are the lines. Classic Ghost Busters that'll bring you right back to the movies. They'll even have you chuckling a few times, though the game didn't come off as humorous as I thought it was going to be.

The music is unique for the first couple of levels, but after awhile you will notice that its the same throughout the game. I feel this is a double-edged sword. While I LOVE the original music, I was expecting more from the developers.

Sound effects feel real and bring you a surreal sense of actually being in the game.

Achievements:

I normally wouldn't mention achievements, but with this game I feel I must. Every time one of those joyous little boxes pop off, you will hear yourself repeating it in the best Bill Murray impression you have. Achievements also aren't particularly hard to get, but there are some you might need to check out online for.

Misc.:

There aren't very many jump out of your seat scares, but there are some! And the game does provide enough creepy thrills as to remind you of the movies. A definite perk.

All in all, Ghost Buster fans and people new to the franchise will enjoy this game immensely.

I'm forced to give this game a 9.0 out of 10 on it's unique game-play, amazing voice-acting and sound effects, and it's over-all value(including multiplayer modes and achievements).