GetDotted Domains

Viewing Thread:
"Ghost Squad (Wii)"

The "Retro Game Reviews" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.

This thread has been linked to the game 'Ghost Squad'.
Mon 25/02/08 at 02:13
Regular
"Ghosts Can't Die!"
Posts: 774
It seemed right from the get go that with the Wii remotes’ abilities a light gun game would be perfect for the console. However oddly there hasn’t been many at all. There were the shooting sections in Rayman Raving Rabbids, the recent change to first person blasting in Umbrella Chronicles and also Link’s crossbow adventure but not a proper light gun arcade experience. It seemed like one would never appear but luckily Sega appeared to answer our prayers.

Like most arcade shooters you are on rails and with the exception of choosing the odd path here and there are limited in where you look and aim. Simply pull the trigger and you fire bullets from a gun at enemies whilst shaking the gun to reload. Simple as that. There is no cover system like Time Crisis so you can’t dodge bullets, however when an enemy is taking aim at you, a circle will appear around them getting redder and redder until he finally hits you. You’d think that having this would make things easier as you would know where to shoot and when, but to be honest it happens so quick you need reflexes like a cat to keep up. But that’s great as it prevents the game becoming too easy. What’s more to compensate for some tough moments, you can choose between single firing, three bullet fire or rapid fire (although this has limited ammo) to best suit the situation at hand. There is also the option to use crosshairs but turning them off earns you more points per kill.

What separated Ghost Squad from its competition was that it threw other objectives at you rather than simply shooting. One for example has you disarming a bomb by cutting wires in order and another fighting enemies hand to hand by aiming at circles on screen. While it’s pretty simple stuff it breaks up the gameplay preventing it from becoming to monotonous. Then there are the sniper sections that require you to zoom in and take aim at enemies in the distance and also missions that entail you to protect your team mates from above.

This is exactly like the arcade version so upon starting the single player up you choose your save file and enter the main menu with three missions to choose from. (Villa, Air Force One and Jungle) It doesn’t matter which order you do them in as you will end up doing them all. After a brief introduction to the controls you’re thrown into your first stage. Fire away. During gaming another player can jump in (ala arcade version) which is great and the scoring method works well too with headshots counting more and optional routes making each attempt a new challenge.

Along with the normal arcade mode there are a few training modes that involve shooting targets and practicing your aiming ability. Then there is a ninja mode and paradise mode where you throw ninja stars or squirt water pistols instead of bullets at the enemy who are also now fighting ninjas or hot bikini girls. It doesn’t change the gameplay at all but does make for some funny battles and cutscenes. The one key difference here is that four players can take part which is strange for a light gun game as the most you usually see is two people. It is fun but pretty hectic with four crosshairs on screen at once.


There are two possible ways to play Ghost Squad, one with the zapper and one with just the remote, and oddly enough the zapper does actually play better. You do feel more involved holding something that handles like a proper machine gun rather than pointing with a remote control. What’s more the reload works much better compared to games like Umbrella Chronicles where shaking the gun didn’t register every time. The trigger and action buttons are handled with the B and A button respectively but in the options these can be changed to your liking. What’s more you are even able to move the crosshair to make for more accurate shooting like the arcade versions. All in all Ghost Squad handles great with the remote but even better with the zapper.

The game features some of the worst dialogue in video game history but unusually it just adds to the game’s cheesy charm. The mouths of characters move out of sync with what they are saying and the voices feel so forced and over the top. It’s funny. Gunshots and explosions are passable and overall it’s okay. The graphics however haven’t been updated in the slightest and look bad even for a Gamecube game. On the upside though the amount of destruction that occurs when you shoot backgrounds is impressive and really makes the environments feel a little more alive.

At only three stages long this isn’t exactly the longest of experiences. With each mission only lasting around ten to fifteen minutes you could plough through the main chunk of the game in less than an hour. It is an arcade game after all. But Sega have at least tried to warrant gamers to come back for another go. They have included an experience system in which when rising the levels unlocks new weapons (shotguns, rocket launchers and more) and new costumes. (ranging from the usual attire to downright bizarre) As well as this throughout each mission there are multiple paths in which you can take adding more incentive to go back again. Also every time you do replay a mission things get a little tougher with more accurate enemies thrown in. It isn’t a lot but its great Sega have tried to lengthen what is otherwise a real short game. Then there is also the online leader boards which add a little something to those gamers out there who love improving their scores and being the best.

Ghost Squad isn’t going to blow you away I’ll tell you that, but it will provide a short and sweet distraction that is worth coming back to every now and again. While I do think the thirty pound asking price is a little too steep, if you do come across this for around the twenty mark give it a try.

75%
There have been no replies to this thread yet.
Mon 25/02/08 at 02:13
Regular
"Ghosts Can't Die!"
Posts: 774
It seemed right from the get go that with the Wii remotes’ abilities a light gun game would be perfect for the console. However oddly there hasn’t been many at all. There were the shooting sections in Rayman Raving Rabbids, the recent change to first person blasting in Umbrella Chronicles and also Link’s crossbow adventure but not a proper light gun arcade experience. It seemed like one would never appear but luckily Sega appeared to answer our prayers.

Like most arcade shooters you are on rails and with the exception of choosing the odd path here and there are limited in where you look and aim. Simply pull the trigger and you fire bullets from a gun at enemies whilst shaking the gun to reload. Simple as that. There is no cover system like Time Crisis so you can’t dodge bullets, however when an enemy is taking aim at you, a circle will appear around them getting redder and redder until he finally hits you. You’d think that having this would make things easier as you would know where to shoot and when, but to be honest it happens so quick you need reflexes like a cat to keep up. But that’s great as it prevents the game becoming too easy. What’s more to compensate for some tough moments, you can choose between single firing, three bullet fire or rapid fire (although this has limited ammo) to best suit the situation at hand. There is also the option to use crosshairs but turning them off earns you more points per kill.

What separated Ghost Squad from its competition was that it threw other objectives at you rather than simply shooting. One for example has you disarming a bomb by cutting wires in order and another fighting enemies hand to hand by aiming at circles on screen. While it’s pretty simple stuff it breaks up the gameplay preventing it from becoming to monotonous. Then there are the sniper sections that require you to zoom in and take aim at enemies in the distance and also missions that entail you to protect your team mates from above.

This is exactly like the arcade version so upon starting the single player up you choose your save file and enter the main menu with three missions to choose from. (Villa, Air Force One and Jungle) It doesn’t matter which order you do them in as you will end up doing them all. After a brief introduction to the controls you’re thrown into your first stage. Fire away. During gaming another player can jump in (ala arcade version) which is great and the scoring method works well too with headshots counting more and optional routes making each attempt a new challenge.

Along with the normal arcade mode there are a few training modes that involve shooting targets and practicing your aiming ability. Then there is a ninja mode and paradise mode where you throw ninja stars or squirt water pistols instead of bullets at the enemy who are also now fighting ninjas or hot bikini girls. It doesn’t change the gameplay at all but does make for some funny battles and cutscenes. The one key difference here is that four players can take part which is strange for a light gun game as the most you usually see is two people. It is fun but pretty hectic with four crosshairs on screen at once.


There are two possible ways to play Ghost Squad, one with the zapper and one with just the remote, and oddly enough the zapper does actually play better. You do feel more involved holding something that handles like a proper machine gun rather than pointing with a remote control. What’s more the reload works much better compared to games like Umbrella Chronicles where shaking the gun didn’t register every time. The trigger and action buttons are handled with the B and A button respectively but in the options these can be changed to your liking. What’s more you are even able to move the crosshair to make for more accurate shooting like the arcade versions. All in all Ghost Squad handles great with the remote but even better with the zapper.

The game features some of the worst dialogue in video game history but unusually it just adds to the game’s cheesy charm. The mouths of characters move out of sync with what they are saying and the voices feel so forced and over the top. It’s funny. Gunshots and explosions are passable and overall it’s okay. The graphics however haven’t been updated in the slightest and look bad even for a Gamecube game. On the upside though the amount of destruction that occurs when you shoot backgrounds is impressive and really makes the environments feel a little more alive.

At only three stages long this isn’t exactly the longest of experiences. With each mission only lasting around ten to fifteen minutes you could plough through the main chunk of the game in less than an hour. It is an arcade game after all. But Sega have at least tried to warrant gamers to come back for another go. They have included an experience system in which when rising the levels unlocks new weapons (shotguns, rocket launchers and more) and new costumes. (ranging from the usual attire to downright bizarre) As well as this throughout each mission there are multiple paths in which you can take adding more incentive to go back again. Also every time you do replay a mission things get a little tougher with more accurate enemies thrown in. It isn’t a lot but its great Sega have tried to lengthen what is otherwise a real short game. Then there is also the online leader boards which add a little something to those gamers out there who love improving their scores and being the best.

Ghost Squad isn’t going to blow you away I’ll tell you that, but it will provide a short and sweet distraction that is worth coming back to every now and again. While I do think the thirty pound asking price is a little too steep, if you do come across this for around the twenty mark give it a try.

75%

Freeola & GetDotted are rated 5 Stars

Check out some of our customer reviews below:

I am delighted.
Brilliant! As usual the careful and intuitive production that Freeola puts into everything it sets out to do. I am delighted.
Excellent support service!
I have always found the support staff to provide an excellent service on every occasion I've called.
Ben

View More Reviews

Need some help? Give us a call on 01376 55 60 60

Go to Support Centre
Feedback Close Feedback

It appears you are using an old browser, as such, some parts of the Freeola and Getdotted site will not work as intended. Using the latest version of your browser, or another browser such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Opera will provide a better, safer browsing experience for you.