This is it. This is definitely it: A Solid Review
Graphics: 9.0
The graphics are wonderful. The proton pack details are really something to awe at, as are all the weapons, Ecto-1, even the clothing (if you've got a high res video card/monitor). The ghosts look great. The effects are everything they should be and the proton stream especially is really cool. Physics are almost perfect (and by this I mean they do what they're meant to do, look good doing it, but can sometimes get in your way) and make destroy things a lot of fun. Oh and by the way, almost everything is destructable though you do get billed which is quite clever.
There are beautiful CGI cutscenes and in-game engine rendered cut scenes. Now if there were only the in-game cut scenes I'd be happy and would've enjoyed them very much. But the CGI are so beautiful that they make mince meat out of the in-game. All CGI would've been nice but I am in no way saying that the in-game suck. They're great.
On a technical note, there's no AA option (anti-aliasing, unlike most PC games) so there are jaggies but honestly AA would've killed the framerate and at least now I don't have to pick between high resolution and AA. (High resolution equals way more detail and better framerate :)
Sound: 10
From the moment I fired the proton stream for the first time I had a huge grin on my face and I'm 25 years old, not normally so amused by that sort of thing. This sound is taken right out of the movies and makes the proton stream even more fun to fire. Actually a very large percentage of the sounds are taken from the movies as well as ALL the music. The proton pack being switched on and the proton stream are personal favorites.
Now some reviewer said that the music "is only meant to carry a 2 hour movie" and that it gets annoying hearing it over and over again. THIS IS SIMPLY UNTRUE. There are a variety of songs that play and quite frankly you as the player feel that, at all times, you are immersed in the world of the Ghostbusters and are actually living out a GB movie. The only problem I had with the music was that the theme song by Ray Parker, Jr. was only played twice in the whole game (beginning credits and end credits) and it's only a short clip. Both times I was grinning and just getting into it then OOP! it's over. Bullsh*t.
At certain parts toward the end when the music swells (if you saw the first movie you'll know what I'm talking about) I kept hearing Winston exclaim "I love this town!" in my head but he never said it in the game. Might have been out of place or corny but I would've loved it. That applies to several other movie quotes that weren't there but I have to accept that this wasn't GB 1 or 2. If anything it was 3 and there are "new quotes," sort of.
The voice acting was incredible. The whole time you feel as though you're being accompanied by the actual GB's from the movies and it feels very interactive. The IGN reviewer said Peter sounds like he's doing an impression of Peter. That is a strong over-statement. Peter does sound a little different, and he's the only one, but this is in no way a deal breaker and I'll bet half of you won't even notice it.
Gameplay: 8.0
This is where I take off points but bottom line, catching and trapping ghosts is all it's cracked up to be and makes the game worth playing by itself. Let's start with the positives. Like I stated before, hearing the proton stream go off is great enough but actually getting to fire and control it yourself? Just awesome. And throwing the traps out (though I thought they should've slid a little further) was very cool.
To trap the ghosts you need to first shoot them with your choice of weapon (though each ghost has a weakness) long enough to drain most of their life and then shoot a capture beam. This enables you to slam them against anything you want until they are "dizzy" and then you can trap them. You have to try to keep them centered as much as possible over the cone the trap emits or they will leave the area of "trap effectiveness" and you will have to try again. All of this is incredibly fun and engaging.
My personal favorite is the PKE-meter. While equipped you also have a type of night vision goggles. The PKE-meter looks and acts like it does in the movies. The closer you get to an enemy, psychic energy/residue, or even hidden artifacts, it let's you know. It's just a fun little gadget to use as you are "taking psychic readings" of the areas. You can also use the PKE-meter to scan each and every type of ghost to learn their weakness and some info about them.
The number one problem with this game is FRAMERATE. Wow is it inconsistent. I had a solid 60 FPS with V-Sync (without between 90 and 50) playing at 1680x1050 with everything on high except for medium shadows (which look nearly identical but make a huge difference in performance) but from time to time it would drop to the 20's. Unacceptable. And it wasn't because there were a million things on screen. Half the time a ton of stuff was going on and I was fine. Bottom line, you need to have a powerful machine to run this game well. I do and I loved it but if you don't AT THE VERY LEAST meet the minimum requirements then good luck. Even then you may still have some problems, that is if you want the game to look as beautiful as it should.
Now the difficulty. I played through the first 3 or 4 levels on medium (like I always do) and at times it got pretty frustrating. I'm a veteran gamer and I certainly have skill when it comes to video games but the difficulty here was more along the lines of cheapness. You regenerate health but you don't have a lot of it and get knocked down quite easily. You also act as a medic to the other GB's who get knocked down, and they to you. However if everyone is knocked down it's game over, restart at nearest checkpoint. ***You know what I found? This game is a blast on Easy.*** So what if you don't beat it on ultra hard. This game is meant to be fun busting ghosts and experiencing the new story. I played it through on easy and had a blast. No more cheap frustrations and honestly, there was still a challenge (a few parts that would've been impossible on harder difficulties due to cheapness that were more tolerable now). The only difference is that it doesn't take 5 minutes to drain the ghosts' life and you don't die instantly in certain areas. I strongly recommend this for anyone looking to enjoy this game.
The shrapnel from everything that gets destroyed, and there's a lot of it, can get in the way from time to time and there are also some annoying path-finding issues. But this does not out weigh the good, although it does detract from this being a perfect game.
The upgrades, also, are a little disappointing. You never have to worry about not being able to afford something. You make plenty of money so it's basically just a matter of time until you can purchase everything and this point is only about halfway through the game. What's the fun in that? I mean it's great to be "maxed out" but come on. It's like Fallout 3. After you get to level 20 why keep playing? That game sucks anyway. Oblivion was way better.
Finally, the PC version doesn't have multiplayer and get's rated down for it. I answer this with a very strongly worded: "WHO GIVES A SH*T?" Multiplayer is so overrated with the exception of CoD 4 and a few others. I wanted a strong narrative and excellent gameplay with GB and I got it. F*ck multiplayer. It should be extra and a game absolutely should not be judged on it, unless it is only a multiplayer game.
Epilogue:
All in all this game is everything it said it would be. It 100% plays out like a movie that you're not only watching, but playing as well. Innovative? Oh yes. The ultimate groundbreaking gaming experience? No, though there is TONS of potential. I looked at it like this: For a typical gamer this game is tons of fun and I'd give it between a 7.5 and an 8.0. For a Ghostbuster's fan, a solid 9.0. If you're a fan and have always wanted to be a Ghostbuster, this game is your chance. And it's worth it.