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Author Topic: Ghost Control Inc. - Isometric Ghost Hunting Sim, on Steam.  (Read 8469 times)

nenjin

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Re: Ghost Control Inc. - Isometric Ghost Hunting Sim. Demo's out.
« Reply #45 on: September 27, 2014, 09:00:28 pm »

My gut reaction is maybe wait for a sale.

It's not a bad little game. Not super deep but has enough verticality that you can play it for a while. The wind up to the actual game is kinda dull as you've got 2 hunters, and unless you're ready to plunge ahead with the directives given to you, which opens the wider game (and harder missions), grinding up the cash you'll need for an upgraded base and car (which lets you get at the base features like research and field a larger team) can get a little boring.

On the other hand, the game ramps up difficulty dramatically on normal, and when you're outnumbered 2 to 1 by average ghosts, it starts to get tough surviving. Gameplay is basically X-COM light. There's no cover mechanics or Z-levels or fancy shit going on, it's an isometric, grid-based shooter at its most basic. The real variables in each mission is how much shit gets destroyed, which affects how much you get paid out. So you want to hunt down ghosts quickly before they wreck the place and hope your guys don't frag the scenery when they miss their shots. Trying to get ghosts into traps also can sometimes require some trickery, which some of the push/pull weapons play into.

As far as your team goes there's enough going on there to be playable. You can randomly generate a portrait, rename them. Guys have classes which determine their stat priorities. They get attributes sort of based on what happens (shoot a gun, get some shooty skill. Get hit with a paranormal thing, get some willpower.) When their "HP" is low enough they might start panicking and flee the level. If it's totally zeroed out in the level, they go insane and you lose them for good.

It accomplishes its goals, in that you get to make a little team of Ghosthunters, answer calls for help, try to beat the competition there, catch ghosts and break shit along the way. A little bit X-COM, a lot Ghostbusters, a fairly barebones game graphically and audio-wise.

Not an amazing game, and it may just be the dorkiest game I've ever played too. (The "barks" characters do at mission start/end are god awful, both in delivery and content.) Sound effects are pretty generic and cheap sounding, and the humor is so-so at best (the news articles are so weird and off-topic they're sort of? interesting to read. I get jokes are being made but I don't know about what.) The music, on the other hand, I kind of dig.

I figure it'll be on sale during Halloween, and that's probably the right time to buy it so you're in the.....spirit......for some light-hearted ghost hunting.
« Last Edit: September 27, 2014, 09:04:42 pm by nenjin »
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Nick K

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Re: Ghost Control Inc. - Isometric Ghost Hunting Sim, on Steam.
« Reply #46 on: September 27, 2014, 09:18:44 pm »

Thanks, that really makes things a lot clearer for me. I think I'll take your advice and put it on my watch-list for sales
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