Johnny Blaze makes his debut on the small screen, as Ghost Rider makes its way from the theater to the console. How will that big, flaming skull fare on the PlayStation 2? X-Play knows, and so will you.
The Pros
- Blatantly rips off God of War and Devil May Cry 3
The Cons
- Doesn’t rip off either of them very effectively
Ghost Rider tries really hard. It lifts so many great ideas from two of the best games in the genre; one would be forgiven for thinking that becoming a hit is a foregone conclusion.
It’s too bad the game lacks any kind of soul.
Easy Rider
Giving a detailed breakdown of Ghost Rider is a waste of time. The easiest way to describe the game is to say it’s mostly God of War with a tiny bit of Devil May Cry 3 tossed in. Ghost Rider apes God of War so completely that most of the flaming one’s moves actually resemble Kratos’ blade flinging acrobatics. You even use points earned to buy new abilities and improved attributes. Mix up your moves to earn a better ranking; a la Devil May Cry 3…you get the idea.
The problem is once you get beyond the surface, there’s nothing that keeps the experience compelling. Semi-deep fighting engine aside, the enemies are brain-dead, the levels are frighteningly repetitive (apparently hell is where people go to be bored for all eternity), and the complete lack of puzzles or alternate objectives is just painful.
Oh, and there’s one move you can earn and exploit that will make the game a complete cake walk.
Hell’s Highway
That’s not entirely fair. Ghost Rider’s hellish motorcycle appears once in a while for a quick jaunt down hell’s highway. These quick driving sequences play out like a low-rent Road Rash with poor controls. Fighting enemy riders while on the bike is a huge pain thanks to a stupidly-slow attack; and the massive jumps and slides over and under obstacles feel played out by the end of the very first driving sequence.
At best, these driving bits break up the monotony of the main game play for a few minutes here and there. But they really don’t add anything to the overall experience other than making sure fans get to see Ghost Rider’s kick-ass bike once in a while.
Flaming Pile
The original design document for Ghost Rider must have read like a real winner, especially with all those words like “God,” “War,” “Devil” and “Cry” crossed out all over the place. But this brief, easy, and repetitive experience never comes close to the games it’s emulating.
Article by: Greg Sewart
Video produced by: Michael Leffler
Comments
PunitiveZero
It's ok Adam. I had to play this trash also. That should be a 0 out of 5.
Add a Comment