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Ghostbusters Game Coming From Atari

Posted by Soulskill on from the who-you-gonna-call dept.

Variety reported last week that Atari secured the rights to a Ghostbusters video game from Activision Blizzard, intending to publish something next year to coincide with the first movie's 25th anniversary. "The Ghostbusters game, which features all four actors from the original movie and a new script by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis, is a follow-up to Ghostbusters II." Now, Eurogamer confirms that the game is indeed in development for the PC, PS2, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360 and DS.

48 comments

  1. Venkman... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...burn in hell!!!

  2. Awesome! by TrekkieTechie · · Score: 2, Funny

    I was horrified to find that it had been dropped.

    I'm really looking forward to the whole video-game-as-a-sequel-to-a-movie, and have high hopes since the original team have such an involved role in it.

    Just remember -- don't cross the streams.

    1. Re:Awesome! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nice. In one small post you managed to trivialize both "awesome" and "horrified."

    2. Re:Awesome! by Chelloveck · · Score: 1

      I'm really looking forward to the whole video-game-as-a-sequel-to-a-movie, and have high hopes since the original team have such an involved role in it.

      Tron 2.0 was an excellent video-game-as-a-sequel-to-a-movie. It brilliantly captured the feel of the movie, advanced the storyline, and had some of the original actors reprising their roles. Hopefully Ghostbusters can pull it off just as well.

      --
      Chelloveck
      I give up on debugging. From now on, SIGSEGV is a feature.
  3. Who ya gonna call? by liquidMONKEY · · Score: 0

    The eighties!

    1. Re:Who ya gonna call? by philspear · · Score: 4, Funny

      Yeah really, the writer's strike didn't affect games, who decided that the 80's were officially "it" this year again? There are plenty of decades that haven't been brought back every other year. The 1810s, for example.

    2. Re:Who ya gonna call? by Culture20 · · Score: 1

      I would totally play a Battlefield:1864.

    3. Re:Who ya gonna call? by Mr.+DOS · · Score: 1

      Battlefield: 1812 would actually be sorta cool... until your musket jammed, of course.

            --- Mr. DOS

    4. Re:Who ya gonna call? by Culture20 · · Score: 1

      That's the support role; you reload muskets and toss them to your squad.

  4. Oh my by White+Flame · · Score: 4, Funny

    Hopefully it'll be better than the Atari 2600 version! (starting at 5:30 of the video)

    1. Re:Oh my by d34thm0nk3y · · Score: 2, Interesting

      You don't need to wait 5 minutes, that game (as the review said) was horrible from second zero. I remember renting it back in the day and being so angry at how bad it was. There was actually a pretty fun arcade version that I remember playing at the time.

      Anyway, the nostalgia grabbed me and the narrator said there would be a followup. The link is here, it was a bit difficult to find.

    2. Re:Oh my by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Here's his home page, linking all the AVGN videos.

    3. Re:Oh my by LoadWB · · Score: 1

      The Commodore 64 version of "Ghostbusters" was pretty good, as I recall. I might have a working disk around here somewhere... time to play again!

    4. Re:Oh my by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 1

      I played the C64 version, and it's very superior to the Atari version.

      First of all, the game starts with a text intro telling you to open a Ghostbusters Franchise in your city. MacDonalds, eat your heart out.

      Second, they give you a bank account number to add to the replay value. You can purchase a better car because you'll be given more credit.

      Third, there's no stairs stage where you have to fight boring ghosts, and not even a Gozer battle stage.. You pass the Stay Puft, you win. And the graphics are very well done (for the time, of course).

      That said, I'm still waiting with anxiety for the ghostbusters videogame.

    5. Re:Oh my by kisrael · · Score: 1

      C=64 came first.
      In fact, I remember a David Crane interview where he pointed to it as an example of something that couldn't be done on the 2600... maybe he shoulda said shouldn't...

      --
      SO YOU'RE GOING TO DIE: The Comic for Dealing with Death
  5. ho-ray by juventasone · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Like a lot of games of the time, Ghostbusters II (the 1989 Activision release) was impossibly hard. It had pretty cool graphics and sound for the time, but poor controls and little content. When it comes to games based on movies, things never changed.

    1. Re:ho-ray by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Movies based on games are just as bad...

      Exhibit A: Super Mario Brothers.
      Exhibit B: Final Fantasy, the spirit within.
      Exhibit C: Everything Uwe Bole has done.
      Exhibit D: Tomb Raider.
      Exhibit E: Streetfighter / Mortal Kombat

    2. Re:ho-ray by Mystra_x64 · · Score: 1

      FF7: advent children was good though.

      --
      Quick way to get 30% Funny 70% Troll: defend Opera browser on /.
    3. Re:ho-ray by LoadWB · · Score: 1

      I object! "Streetfighter" was a fun movie, and "Mortal Kombat" was fairly good as well. In the end, they *were* movies based on video games, after all -- campy and, well, video-gamey.

    4. Re:ho-ray by Spy+der+Mann · · Score: 1

      I object! "Streetfighter" was a fun movie, and "Mortal Kombat" was fairly good as well.

      Obligatory Nostalgia Critic review (Mortal Kombat) :
      http://www.gametrailers.com/player/usermovies/268120.html

      My favorite part: Oh, Johny Cage's gonna do something funny again. (trombone plays)

    5. Re:ho-ray by stevey · · Score: 1

      The Tomb Raider films were great action/trash films. As were the various Resident Evil movies.

      OK not hugely based on the relevant games, but still entertaining.

  6. So... by jacerie · · Score: 1

    if we're going to be seeing a trend in 80s game spin-offs, why not breathe some new life into something that was good. Starflight comes to mind. Or perhaps an update to Neuromancer since we may actually live to see it as a film.

    1. Re:So... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What about Star Raiders or Ball Blazer? Those were lots of fun!

      The second of which has a cool Beastie Boys remix done to it's theme music.

    2. Re:So... by bigstrat2003 · · Score: 1

      why not breathe some new life into something that was good.

      Well, obviously that's what you'd want to do. And that's what they are doing.

      --
      "16MB (fuck off, MiB fascists)" - The Mighty Buzzard
    3. Re:So... by LoadWB · · Score: 1

      Ball Blazer is an AWESOME game. I have seen it on the Commodore 64, Atari 800, and Atari 5200 (the later mostly the same, for obvious reasons.) I think I missed more modern version, though (Playstation had one, right?)

  7. Don't expect a quality product from Atari by jools33 · · Score: 1

    If its coming from Atari don't set your expectations high - expect a mess something along the lines of 2 of their flagship titles:

    DRIV3R

    http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/driv3r?q=driv3r

      or even worse Alone in the Dark!

    http://pc.ign.com/articles/887/887197p1.html

    1. Re:Don't expect a quality product from Atari by crossmr · · Score: 1

      Too bad you couldn't search somewhere by developer and/or publisher and see how their recent releases are doing.
      I don't think Atari has released anything that stellar. ever.

  8. Aww c'mon.... by An+Ominous+Cow+Erred · · Score: 1

    This is all you need. Spent countless hours on it. xD

    1. Re:Aww c'mon.... by PixelScuba · · Score: 1

      Ghrst Brstrsss rah hah ha ha ha ha ha

    2. Re:Aww c'mon.... by fat_mike · · Score: 1

      Hey, that game was awesome. The second one pretty much sucked (like the movie) but the first one was groundbreaking. The budget system in it was a huge pain.

  9. The eighties called. They want their headlines. by jonadab · · Score: 1

    I'm pretty sure I saw the Ghostbusters game on Atari a fairly long time ago. Like, during the cold war, if I'm not mistaken. It was almost as lame as the E.T. game.

    --
    Cut that out, or I will ship you to Norilsk in a box.
  10. Good to see that its still gonna come out on PC by jonwil · · Score: 1

    It would SUCK if it ended up being console only.

    1. Re:Good to see that its still gonna come out on PC by DragonTHC · · Score: 1

      seconded. I'm still here on the PC buying and playing games.

      and to all those publishers: "Hey douchebags, who do you think is buying all the high end PC components?"

      --
      They're using their grammar skills there.
  11. UH! by NetNinja · · Score: 1

    Why? Why do companies waste thier time and talent trying to rehash old games especially since movie based games suck ass?

    People who buy into this stuff need to buy a piece of the Brooklyn bridge.

    1. Re:UH! by Jimmy+King · · Score: 1

      Much like movies based on super heroes and video games have gotten better, some even to the point of being able to be called good, the same has happened with games based on movies.

      Have you played any of the Evil Dead games? Fistful of Boomstick was fun and while I didn't play all of Hail to the King, what I did play of it was good. These games even act as sequels to the movies, just like the new Ghostbusters game is intended to do.

      Escape From Butcher Bay? I have yet to meet a person who played that game who did not like it or had a complaint other than wishing it was a couple hours longer. This one was a prequel to the movies.

    2. Re:UH! by Dogtanian · · Score: 1

      Much like movies based on super heroes and video games have gotten better, some even to the point of being able to be called good, the same has happened with games based on movies. Have you played any of the Evil Dead games? Fistful of Boomstick was fun and while I didn't play all of Hail to the King, what I did play of it was good.

      Have you played the original Evil Dead game? I think it proves your point about movie games having improved since that era :)

      --
      "Slashdot - News and Chat Sites Deviant". (Click "homepage" link above for details).
    3. Re:UH! by Jimmy+King · · Score: 1

      Much like movies based on super heroes and video games have gotten better, some even to the point of being able to be called good, the same has happened with games based on movies.

      Have you played any of the Evil Dead games? Fistful of Boomstick was fun and while I didn't play all of Hail to the King, what I did play of it was good.

      Have you played the original Evil Dead game? I think it proves your point about movie games having improved since that era :)

      No I haven't. You've done a rare thing finding a game I was not aware of. Being a video game and evil dead geek, I'm going to have to check it out in spite of it being terrible.

  12. A change in publisher. by CronoCloud · · Score: 1

    Wasn't this game announced ages ago and pretty much finished? I know I've seen gameplay video. This is about a change in publisher, since Sierra was going to publish it, but folded.

  13. The news isn't the game... by hal2814 · · Score: 4, Informative

    We learned about the game long ago. It was supposed to be released already. The news is that the game found a new publisher after the old one passed on it for some reason. That doesn't make me too confident the game will be that good. If Activision is passing on publishing a game with the name recognition of Ghostbusters with all 4 lead actors reprising roles, it probably sucks.

    1. Re:The news isn't the game... by andy9701 · · Score: 1

      Ghostbusters was originally to be published by Vivendi. Vivendi was swallowed up by the Activision/Blizzard merger, and they decided to pass on the game (apparently because it couldn't be re-released every year).

      It's definitely great news that a publisher finally picked this game up. From what I've read, it sounds like it will actually be pretty good.

  14. Game is DONE. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Here's what I heard. . .

    Game is DONE, and is AWESOME. . . expect a gameplay trailer soon (I got a friend who does all the FCP work at Atari). . .

    Also, it's going to be released to COINCIDE with the BLU-RAY Special Edition of Ghostbusters. . .

    . . . and, there's local multiplayer, and internet play. :D

    1. Re:Game is DONE. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      . . . and ALL the original voices from the movie signed on, EXCEPT Rick Moranis. Oh well.

  15. No DRM, please! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They've got the market right. You've got the parents who grew up with fun stuff like Ghostbusters, buying for their kids who are getting turned on to all that 20-year old fun. See the popularity of Star Wars, Indiana Jones, etc. A win-win for everybody to publish something like this nowadays.

    I am certainly the demographic for a game like this. I am so glad to see it will be on PC.

    But no DRM, please! Please let me buy something that I don't need an Internet connection for, that I can install multiple times on PCs! These are kids computers we're talking about putting them on, for crying out loud. Our kids are too little to have Internet connections. And our kids are the exact type of people who, while they do great with their Linux partitions, are forced to have Windows partitions for playing games and are always trashing their Windows partitions. Hosing partitions so that re-installation is needed comes with Windows, of course, everybody knows that - crappy Windows sustainbility seems to be a Windows feature. And they're kids, for Pete's sake. If there's a way to hose a Windows partition, they'll find it. So a parent like me needs to be able to install, and re-install, and re-install whenever it's needed, without phoning home for permission to some mother ship. We've got busy schedules and other things to do with our lives than be continually "activating" crap we buy.

    Also, let it work on older Windows OSs like Windows 2000 and XP, and not require Vista. Think about it, you stupid manufacturers. What computers in the house do you think the kids are more likely to have, the shiny new Vista rig, or the old hand-me down W2k box that Daddy use to use?

    These game manufacturers need to understand parents like me. I want to buy, buy, buy. want to make some fun for my kids. But take the freaking hassle away. You infect this game with DRM and, well, there goes another game I won't buy.

    And you wonder why game sales are dropping... Hmmm...

    Lots of money in this family. Lots of desire to buy computer games. But no money will ever be spent on DRM-infected stuff by this family - ever. F-You, Half-Life.

  16. I'm So Excited! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm so excited! I'm so excited! I'm so.. I'm so scared!

  17. Hopefully by deblau · · Score: 1

    It won't suck as much as the last one.

    --
    This post expresses my opinion, not that of my employer. And yes, IAAL.
  18. Not seeing a new script. by penguin_dance · · Score: 1

    "The Ghostbusters game, which features all four actors from the original movie and a new script by Dan Aykroyd and Harold Ramis, is a follow-up to Ghostbusters II."

    Looking at the video at http://www.ghostbustersgame.com/, nice graphics, but it looks like the script is IDENTICAL to the movie.

    --
    If you've never been modded as "flamebait" or "troll," you've never tried to argue a minority viewpoint here!