Product ReviewsGhosthunter (Sony PlayStation 2, 2004)

A mediocre entry

It's terrifically unprofessional of me to review this game, since I haven't finished it yet. But I believe the reason why I've no finished bears mention. First, though, the game.

As is SCEE's idiom, this game is a work of art visually and aurally. While the ghosts unfortunately suffer from the same naturalist clanning that is necessary to save memory in video games, they are all unique looking and well-detailed. The environments push the PS2 to its limits, and in a few places, I wager, slightly over the bar. The characters are all highly detailed and suffer only slightly from their polygonal nature.

The story, much like its predecessor PRIMAL, is deeply involving and provides good motivation to be slogging through the levels of the game. I can't speak to the ending, having not beaten it as of this review, but the rest of the story is fairly good.

On to the low points . . . controls are the highlight, as many alleged they were in PRIMAL. Unlike in PRIMAL, however, where the system rewards experimentation and perseverance, GHOSTHUNTER's controls are frustratingly arbitrary when you are in command of Lazarus. As the bulk of the game revolves around ghosthunting (usually with big shiny guns), the combat is a painful experience. While it may have been the designers' intent to make combat a lethally serious affair (and believe me, it is), your command of Lazarus never improves. Despite the many guns at his disposal, the vast majority of the combat is best handled with the game's third gun. The controls are massively comfusing and at times counterintuitive as your fingers dance over the controller, trying desperately to cycle through equipment menus and view modes while you've being harried by the game's many enemies.

Interspersed with the combat is exploring (not much to explore, no Easter Eggs in the game . . . often as not you're hunting for precious, precious health) and puzzle-solving. While the puzzles are simple enough to solve, they are very vague as to all their moving parts. While Lazarus' sidekick Astral has the ability to turn on 'part detection' to tell you what the puzzle's pieces are, he does not always have her around to assist.

The reason I have no finished the game yet is due to the game's most glaring error . . . lack of attention to the administration of the game's features. While the game offers the mandatory save feature, you cannot 'fork' your saves. If you get stuck in front of the Prison boss with no health like I did, prepare to start the game over again, because the bosses of this game are brutally unforgiving of Lazarus' limited mobility.

GHOSTHUNTER is ultimately of average quality. In a happier world, this game would've come out in 2000 and blown everyone away. But as it stands, it's a sad comparison to the Resident Evil games. A sequel to PRIMAL would've been a superior expenditure of resources, IMHO.Read full review...

Really good game.

Hard to believe the PS2 was pulling off graphics of this calibur way back in 2002/2003. This game has some amazing graphics, from the high polygon laden characters to the amazing cloth simulation used on the clothing. The game also runs in 480p, but looks really great upscaled on the PS3. The voice acting and sound in the game is also of a high caliber, with music that changes dynamically based on what is going on in the game to very well done voice acting that really give the game character. The art direction isn't the best, and that is really the only downside to the graphics. The gameplay is fun, but leaves a little to be desired. The puzzles in the game are from easy to hard, but nothing ever gets too frustrating but sometimes the puzzle solving gets a little tiresome and that's really where the gameplay could have been a bit better. The game also has a good story with a nice ending, but there aren't too many meaningful unlockables. Overall, this is a good game that I say is above average due to the fantastic graphics and story telling.Read full review...

Great game

Fun and a lil scary at times. I enjoyed this game alot.

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: clovisgamer

How much patience do you have

This game has you curious about what is around the corner, but it is too friggin hard. Right from the getgo you have ghosts the are fast as lightening and hard to kill. I hate games that do that to you, at least give me a level or two to familiarize myself with its complicated weapons and capturing technique.Read full review...

Fun

Great game lots of scares

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: fredseguino

Good Game Buy It

Good game. It's a combination of a shooter & acation. The effects are cool. The story line is good. You switch bewteen two characters. A ghost and you.