Ghost Blade HD

 Xbox One
Metascore
72

Mixed or average reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 8
  3. Negative: 1 out of 8
  1. Gaming Age
    Mar 3, 2017
    91
    I highly recommend Ghost Blade HD for fans of these type of shooters and even newcomers looking for a challenge. This is a great game and really captures the spirit of classic arcade shooters like Raiden, Giga Wing and others. I really had a surprising amount of fun with this one, and I'm sure you will do. Pick it up if you can, you will love it.
  2. GameSpew
    Mar 15, 2017
    80
    Ghost Blade HD is one hell of a lot of fun that does a great job of reminding you of the uncomplicated nature of the genre’s past without the fuzzy visuals.
  3. TheXboxHub
    Feb 28, 2017
    80
    All in all, Ghost Blade HD is a very enjoyable game. It is unashamedly retro, and captures the vibe of the 90’s shoot-em-up very well. The slow down is annoying but isn’t a deal breaker, because with practice it is possible to compensate for it. The addition of the Global Leaderboards brings in the chance for competition, and if you are willing to invest the time to learn the enemies attack patterns, then the chances for score chasing fun go through the roof. With local co-op play and the score attack mode, the 1990s have never looked so good.
  5. XboxAddict
    Mar 22, 2017
    75
    As an indie bullet hell title, Ghost Blade HD was a fun little title I sunk a few hours into. Once I learned all of the mechanics it utilizes I had a lot of fun with it, as should you, regardless if you’re a casual or hardcore fan of the genre. Is it going to sit amongst the legends in the genre? No, but for the price of admission, shmup fans like myself should have fun trying to climb the global leaderboards trying to prove their shmup prowess amongst the community.
  6. ICXM
    Feb 28, 2017
    75
    The game offers good replayability, pushing you to become the master of the universe on the online leaderboards and to team up with your friends to take on the biggest bosses in the hardest of modes.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 7 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 7
  3. Negative: 2 out of 7
  1. JohnnyK98
    Mar 1, 2017
    8
    Good to see another shmup game arrive on Xbox One. There's only two at the moment, the other being Raiden V (as far as I'm concerned). PrettyGood to see another shmup game arrive on Xbox One. There's only two at the moment, the other being Raiden V (as far as I'm concerned). Pretty strange considering the Xbox 360 had a plethora shmup games to choose from, including region-free games from Japan. It was the console of choice for this niche genre.

    Ghost Blade HD is a very simple bullet-hell shooter. There's two firing modes: Spread shot, and forced shot. Forced shot being the most powerful, but slows down your ship - and it also collect most points (nothing new here). There's 3 ship types available, all are fun to use - each with its own unique shot type. The scoring mechanic is equally as simple, kill your enemies quickly. The more consecutive enemies you kill the higher your score. Each of the 5 stages are fun to play, with great enemy/bullet patterns and detailed environments. I especially love the enemy design and the animations - they're absolutely top notch. Ghost Blade HD is a good looking game. The music is also catchy and hyper-energetic. There's the typical options you'd find in any good shmup game, like alternate music, graphics settings, monitor type (yes, you can flip your monitor 90 degrees), etc. And of course, LEADERBOARDS. The game runs smooth at 60fps, but when things get hectic the game slows down but it's intentional. I've seen some reviewers that are new to the genre count this as a negative, but it's a core mechanic of most bullet-hell type games (imagine playing Mushi Futari with no slow down!)

    If you're new to the genre, it's a good place to start, and for shmup veterans they'd be interested in the hard mode and 1cc'ing the game. Ghost Blade HD also fixes a lot of the problems the Dreamcast version had, making it the definitive edition. For $9.99 this game's a steal.    … Full Review »
  2. Siddhartha19
    Mar 30, 2017
    7
    Suddenly the Xbox one has a nice library of shmups! (Especially if you count backwards compatible games like Guwange, Strania, Ikaruga,Suddenly the Xbox one has a nice library of shmups! (Especially if you count backwards compatible games like Guwange, Strania, Ikaruga, Triggerheart Exelica, R-Type Dimensions and Omega five) This is a very solid game, from the graphics to the music its all solid, like most people I do feel its a bit short (even for shmup standards) but like most shmups it still has excellent replay value, especially for those of us that aren't the best at these games. Its just a tad easier than most cave games.… Full Review »
  3. whynogoodgames
    Mar 14, 2017
    8
    Great game for the $9.99 I paid for it they don't make a lot of games like this anymore if I was going to complain about anything it would beGreat game for the $9.99 I paid for it they don't make a lot of games like this anymore if I was going to complain about anything it would be the length it could use a extra level or so still a must for fans of shmups.… Full Review »
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