Ultimate Ghost 'N Goblins
In today's gaming society challenge has become something of a taboo. Games can only push players to a certain point before the difficulty is too much to bear and cheat codes help make the world go 'round. Yes, the days of quarter sucking arcade machines may be over but it's good to see that old Arthur hasn't lost his touch. Ultimate Ghost 'n Goblins is one of the most difficult (and rewarding) games that you'll find; not just on the PSP but any console.
In the latest incarnation of the series, Arthur, the knight who isn't afraid to fight evil in his underwear, has to do whatever he can to save the Princess. I know, I know, that plotline is so cliché. A new dark lord from the Demon Realm has come to power and is seeking to mix his blood with someone of Royalty, so naturally a prissy princess comes to mind. What it lacks in rich plot development and creative storytelling, Ultimate Ghost 'n Goblins makes up for in old school flavor. In every sense of the word this game is iconic of the day when gameplay harnessed the things that helped build the industry: challenge and a lot of fun.
Gameplay:
Right from the start the first thing you'll want to do with your game is select what difficulty you want to play through it with. If you want to have the confidence in your abilities as a gamer raped beyond comprehension be my guest and select the Ultimate difficulty; good luck. This mode is definitely not for the feint-hearted and is more akin to the original games in the franchise. One hit equals an armor loss and another forces respawning at a predetermined point. This makes things frustrating to say the least. Now, don't get too scared and go to the (still surprisingly challenging) Novice difficulty just yet. The Standard mode provides an appropriate amount of abuse and reward for the gamer with a thick skin that doesn't mind dying a lot. The nice thing is that you can take hits, have a decent amount of lives, and come back to life at the point you died.
It's very hard to say whether or not a new audience of players will be won over by the sadistic difficulty. It's kind of funny though because Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins offers more health, a decent amount of lives, saving feature, and the ability to continue. You'd think that the challenge pill would be much easier to swallow, especially since the degree of combat remains relatively the same throughout each difficulty selection.
Combat is relatively simple, just like it has always been for the series. Arthur can jump (awkwardly – I'll get into this in a bit), attack with a weapon, and use a degree of magic. The nice thing about Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins is that as you play you'll be able to accumulate a great variety of stuff and can store it for future use with an item management system. This comes in handy when the going gets rough, which needless to say, happens often.
This game also provides a lot in terms of weaponry, armor and magic to toy around with. As you kill monsters, open treasure chests and break pots objects will be strewn across the stage. Let's just say that you don't just have to toss daggers the entire way through. A whip, enemy seeking blade, and triple-fire crossbow are in the mix and help out in respective situations. New varieties of armor also provide defensive, offensive or magical bonuses so experimentation is key depending on your play style.
The game also gives you a decent amount of power-ups for Arthur to exploit. From a double-jump to a selection of shields, this dude has plenty of tricks up his sleeves (or heart patterned boxer shorts as it were). My only reel beef with the gameplay, aside from the insane difficulty that is, was the fact that no matter how hard I tried it was near impossible to control Arthur's jumping. I understand the guy is in a suit of armor and all but gameplay has evolved since the last time the series released a sequel. Nowadays we're used to being able to have some ability to manipulate the direction and duration of a leap. Not being able to do so leads to a lot of unnecessary deaths and the bulk of the game's difficulty.
Jumping flaws aside, Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins is a trip back in time to a series that gamers had fond memories of. The improved aspects such as the item selection and varying difficulty levels really present the series in a new light. I do have to wonder if the game will be too challenging for today's market to be considered a financial success. With the pick up and play generation I have a bad feeling that this otherwise great game will be the subject of ridicule to the uninitiated. If old school side-scrollers are your thing you'll be in ultimate pixilated heaven though.
Graphics:
While it's not completely 3-D like the Maximo series, Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins is presented from a 2-D perspective with some 3-D elements running throughout the backgrounds. To say that the game absolutely pops from the PSP's LCD screen would be a grave understatement. There is so much going on here with so many vibrant colors that the game transcends digital entertainment at times and could be construed as a piece of art. Granted the cut scenes are kind of ugly, though those only ding a small portion out of Arthur's armor. This is easily the best looking Ghosts 'n Goblins game.
Audio:
Things in Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins sound very good, but the presentation is not quite as slick as the visual's. The soundtrack is marvelous with great orchestral scores and sweeping tunes that work well with the on-screen action. Unfortunately the sound effects don't make quite the same impression and wind up being merely acceptable in the grand scheme of things.
Conclusion:
Like many of you I have fond memories of staying up late at night cursing out Ghosts 'n Goblins. Sure the original game probably caused me to have an ulcer later in life, but I'll be damned if I didn't have a good time. Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins elicits the same elation that I felt back in the day while playing as Arthur. It takes the challenge and concept of the established franchise and tweaks things a tad by adding a little more depth and variety.
In many ways this is probably the best game that the series has produced. Fans will be pleased beyond reason, despite the fact that Arthur still can't jump to save his life. Newcomers may be taken aback by the unabashed challenge and unrelenting sense that you suck every time you die. Because of that I foresee this title as being very polarizing on the market. Whichever side of the fence you fall on, this is still such a well developed game that not highly recommending it would be doing a disservice to Capcom. Play Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins and play it now.