I did what every other kid did growing up on the franchise: made a proton pack out of a cardboard box, tube and some string.  When I found out Ghostbusters was being made into a video game, I was completely ecstatic.    The video game published by Atari is literally the next best thing to having your own proton pack.

What is especially appealing about this game is the involvement of the original cast from the movies.  In fact, this game features a story that is a direct continuation from Ghostbusters 2.  Bill Murray, Dan Akroyd, Harold Ramis and Ernie Hudson all reprise their roles with their 3D likeness and voice.  The quirky humor from Peter Venkman's one-liners to Ray Stantz's child-like fascination of the paranormal is all retained.  All in all, it's Ghostbusters 3 but with you at the driver's seat.

The Xbox 360 version of this will be featured in this review.  Note that there are comparisons mentioning the PlayStation 3 version to be essentially identical.

The game opens up with a fantastic CG scene that sets up the story leading to the familiar Ghostbusters theme by Ray Parker Jr.  From here on, you take on a nameless role as the fifth ghostbuster and referred to as  "Rookie".

As the noob Ghostbuster, you get to test Egon's latest tech as an experimental weapons technician.  As the story progresses, you will have access to new weapons and upgrades to compliment the proton beam.  Another tool in your arsenal is the PKE meter.  In first person view, this handy device allows the Ghostbuster to determine paranormal activity location, scan ghosts and monsters à la Metroid Prime scan visor, and to collect artifacts.

Ghostbusting is a fairly straight forward process.  All enemies have a health circle that will appear on the crosshairs.  With your chosen weapon, you basically blast away at your enemy to weaken them.  Certain enemies are susceptible to certain weapons which can be determined by a PKE scan.   Weakened enemies that can be trapped can be captured by triggering the "capture stream".  From this point, you will need to wrangle or "slam" the spook into submission and then trapped.  Untrappable enemies will explode.

Familiar locations such as the fire hall, city library and Sedgewick Hotel will make you giddy with glee when you make a return visit.  The various locales in this game does an excellent job of setting up the mood and advancing the story.  There aren't may terrifying moments but the ones you do experience will have you on the edge of your seat.

Where I'm Coming From

Having watched every episode of the cartoon and the two movies, making the decision on whether to play this game was a no-brainer!  Seriously, taking on Stay Puft is epic.

What I Compared it to

Ghostbusters is unique in that its basic mechanics is essentially a shooter.  The element that differentiates it from other shooters is the ability to trap spooks.  In some respects, the gameplay elements reminded me of the Ratchet and Clank franchise.

What I Liked

Atari has finally delivered a Ghostbusters experience that is worthy of attention.  Lugging around a proton pack ROCKS.

While the developers may not have pushed the Xbox 360 hardware to it's limits, the game is rendered with clean visuals and a steady framerate.  Voice acting is superb.  The principle cast is engaging.  What you would expect of Ghostbusters 3.

What I Didn't Like

You will encounter a variety of ghosts and monsters but there are essentially only two types of enemies.  Ones that you can trap and ones that will blow up.  It does become a bit of a repetitive rhythm which plagues all shooters in one form or another.

The 30 seconds load times after your character dies is annoying.  I like the Ghostbusters theme but not after hearing it for the 50th time.

There are four attainable weapon systems built into the proton pack but I found myself using the proton stream and slime blower/tether mostly.  There were not enough situations to warrant the need for the other two.

Voice sync is off at times and some of the CG movies look pixelated due to terrible compression.

Value

Most gamers will complete the storyline game in about ten hours on normal difficulty.  The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions features a multiplayer component that will keep online Ghostbusters busy with missions.  The PC version is cheaper to buy but lacks any multiplayer, online or off.

Final Word

Harold Ramis and Dan Akroyd should be commended for writing an excellent script befitting of the Ghostbusters franchise.  The game stumbles a bit at times but is otherwise a solid experience.  Fanboys should do themselves a favor and buy this game.  Ghostbusters: The Video Game earns GamerWok's Hot List Editor Choice award.  Highly recommended.