Grabbed by the Ghoulies

[TheMarvell]

has anyone ever played this game on the Xbox? If you haven't, don't bother. I understand this was more or less a launch title, but it's probably one of the dumbest games I've played in a long time. It's from Rare, the same company behind great games like Donkey Kong Country, Banjo-Kazooie, Conker and others, and this was their first game on the Xbox. Honestly I'm quite surprised at how such a great company could make such a boring, annoying, repetitive game.

Oh, and the only reason why I picked it up is because it was in the bargain bin for 5 dollars. I knew of the mediocre reception of the game, but I like Rare and decided for 5 bucks it was worth a shot. Let's just say if I paid anything more than 5 dollars, I'd be very upset with myself, lol.

If you want to know why I thought the game sucked, read further:

Here's the game in a nutshell: you go around a haunted mansion, and each room has "ghoulies" that pop up and you have to complete a specific challenge of the room to advance further. For example, defeat X amount of ghoulies using only your fists, etc. That's basically all you do. The controls of the game are simultaneously simple, yet frustrating. To attack, simply flick the right stick in the direction you want. The game is basically a brawler. Probably the most annoying thing I thought was the "voice overs" or rather the lack thereof. There are a few characters in the game, specifically the beginning tutorial, where they help you out. Instead of voice overs, there's text, but for each bubble of text, the character will just moan, groan, and mumble jibberish. Now, imagine for the tutorial, you get about 7 to 10 texts in a row sometimes explaining what to do. Imagine hearing a bunch of "err!" "uuhhh!" "waahh!"'s in a row, and continuing for the rest of the game. It's SO annoying, and it actually gave me a headache, that's how much the jibberish is done. Worst of all about this game though would be this simple fact: it just isn't very fun.

The best thing about the game is actually the graphics and the music. The music is only good because it really sets the tone of the game, and the graphics, as with all Rare games, are great, even if they are cartoony. I rate the game a 5/10, and I'm being generous. The game is about 5 hours of annoying crap. There are a few amusing moments here and there, but nothing ever that great.

I really wish they went with more of an update to the great game Zombies Ate My Neighbors on the Genesis and SNES. This game would be right up that alley. It certainly had the graphics and tone down, but alas, it wasn't anything like that game.

Sorry, just had to vent about a crappy game. I'm sure we've all been through it before, lol.

[BatWing]

i played this game before, when i was at my little cousin's house.
i got all the way through where i save the main character's girlfriend

[bredon7777]

Hey! I thought you were way too hard on what is, essentially a kids game.  Its a fun way to pass about 10 hours...

[TheMarvell]

I actually beat the game in 5 really boring hours. It might be a kids game but that doesn't mean it has to suck.

Rare knows it has an audience, so I really don't get why they'd make a kids game anyways. Unless you count Banjo-Kazooie and Conker kids games, which this is nothing like.

[zuludelta]

The controls of the game are simultaneously simple, yet frustrating. To attack, simply flick the right stick in the direction you want. The game is basically a brawler.

Horrible control scheme. I remember game designers using a similar scheme in Jet Li's Rise to Honor and Namco's Death By Degrees (featuring Tekken's Nina Williams). Makes for terribly boring gameplay, especially for games with a focus on brawling.

[BatWing]

banjo kazooie was one of the funniest games ever :thumbup:

[TheMarvell]

yeah, the controls were pretty bad. I've experienced worse, but I have no clue why anyone would think using the right stick would be easier than using buttons, because all logic says no, lol.

And I actually found some "kids games" to be quite fun, and follow a similar philosophy that Ghoulies does. Ever hear of Lego Star Wars? Those games were designed for a younger audience, yet it's an underground hit and it's actually fun (except the racing parts).

Conker was hilarious too, which makes Ghoulies all the more disappointing. It's certainly not the worst game I've played, but coming from Rare, it's a huge dud. Definitely Rare's worst.

[BatWing]

lego star wars?
it be more fun if they added more enemies!
and lego star wars completed for the ds is coming out :o

[bredon7777]

I actually beat the game in 5 really boring hours. It might be a kids game but that doesn't mean it has to suck.

No, it doesn't have to suck, but you don't judge whether or not it sucks using the same criteria by which you'd judge an adult game. You don't compare Dr. Seuss to Shakespeare, after all.

I found it reasonably entertaining and fun to play (or I wouldn't have bothered beating it) - for what it was.  I'm sorry you didn't like it, but it seems pretty clear that due to the publisher and not taking into account what the game was supposed to be you went in with overly high expectations; its not fair of you to take out the fact that your expectations were unrealistic on the game in your review- thats not the game's fault.

[TheMarvell]

whether the game is meant for kids is besides the point though. As I said before, Lego Star Wars is also meant for kids, yet I found that game to be very enjoyable, and it's not just because it has a Star Wars label. It's because the game actually had some depth to it, and more importantly, variety. Ghoulies didn't. In fact Ghoulies lacked what good games should have, whether they are for kids or adults, and that's a fun factor. No, I wouldn't compare Dr. Seuss to Shakespeare, but both are enjoyable in their own way. Similarly, as with Lego Star Wars, I can have fun with a kids game as much as an adult game.

and high expectations? I clearly said I was well aware of the mediocre to poor reputation the game has. I didn't go in with "overly high expectations". I knew that Rare made decent to good games, and that this one wasn't one of their best. I merely wanted to experience it for myself. Being simplistic doesn't mean it isn't fun, but in Ghoulies case it was.