Ghostbusters

Ghostbusters will get you through a few levels of mildly pleasant action before you shrug and see what's new on Netflix. That's about all she's got in the ol' proton pack, but as far as movie tie-in games go, it could certainly be much worse.

Ghosbusters is the perfect recipe for boredom. There is nothing wrong in its basic mechanics, but the pace is soporific, the level design is too linear, and the situations are the same over the entire course of the story. It is, in the end, a gaming monster to flee from, no matter what.

The one saving grace is that Ghostbusters is dull rather than boring. Played in short bursts, a level or two at a time, it’s still rather fun, even more so when you have some friends in tow.

Ghostbusters is a slog from start to finish.

This installment lacks the humour, thrill and charm of any of its franchise's predecessors. [Oct 2016, p.94]

A bland and uninteresting cash-in that's being peddled at a downright scary price point. [Sept 2016, p.70]

Dull, repetitive and boring. Don't buy this. [Issue#177, p.81]

If you search for "cash grab" on Google Images, chances are that you'll find a picture of Activision's Ghostbusters video game. Quickly made with no ambition nor budget, this game is a total waste of time. Ghostbusters fans, you're better off finding and playing Atari's 2009 Ghostbusters game instead.

What we have here is the definition of cash-grabbing and at £40 you’ll be as braindead as the ghouls ingame to buy. The release is obscenely catered towards parents or grandparents who would buy this for their child/grandchild because, it’s all the kids are talking about these days.

Ghostbusters is a pure merchandising product, made to be sold along with the movie, and without any interest on the videogame side of things. It boasts ugly graphics, a repetitive gameplay and a high retail price. Thanks Activision.

This thing is so awful that it isn’t even worth the effort to cram in an obligatory reference to the original films. The real problem is that the likelihood of these criticisms being heard by the person responsible for releasing this mess is practically zero, seeing as how the complaints would be drowned by the deafening sounds of the giant metal clackers required to think this was okay.

It captures none of the camaraderie or the imagination that’s seen in the films. There’s no personality here, and gamers are left with a $50 twin stick shooter that doesn’t have a single interesting idea in it.

Ghostbusters has rare moments when it doesn't feel like an utter waste of time. But it's mostly a bizarre slog through mostly empty, overly cumbersome levels full of extreme repetition. Even for devoted fans of the films and four-player co-op shooters, Ghostbusters is a disappointment.

It severely lacks in the fun department with its repetitive gameplay and bland characters. Expecting gamers to drop $50.00 dollars on this game is insulting. Yet, even if it were cheaper it would not make it any better.

Ghostbusters is an abysmal piece of garbage. It runs poorly, it sounds terrible, it has awful writing and it’s just a drag to play.

Ghostbusters as a couch co-op game is a dream on paper. Unfortunately, the execution from FireForge Games is so lackluster and devoid of quality that publisher Activision should be ashamed in having released it.

The literal definition of a cash grab, this is a blatant attempt to take advantage of the hype surrounding the latest film and prey on the nostalgia of the franchise's fans.

With no heart, soul, or even an ounce of genuine humor, Ghostbusters is a shameful cash-in for the new film. The scariest thing about Ghostbusters is that we have to pay actual money for this.

Whatever controversy there might be about the movie, there can be little argument that this spiritless cash-in is one of the worst video games of 2016.

Roger Ebert once famously opined that video games are not art, and Ghostbusters is Exhibit A for his case. This is not art. It barely qualifies as a game. Sure, it's not broken like some games are. It's functional. It works. But there's no risk, no ambition, and not a trace of anything resembling the personality of the Ghostbusters movies or cartoons. This is a game that seems like it was made with the specific purpose of tricking parents who don't know any better into buying it for their kids.