You'd at least be spooked at what you're not playing is the proper arcade version of the game.
Game Title: Laser Ghost
Platform: Sega Master System
Developer: Sega
Publisher: Sega
Genre: Light Gun Shooter
Age Rating: N/A
Release Date: 1991
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Game Score: 5.5/10
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Summery:
You'd at least be spooked at what you're not playing is the proper arcade version of the game.
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Laser Ghost was actually an on-rails shooter for the Arcade and from first looks it's like a Light Gun version of Ghostbusters without the famous Ghostbusters license. Sadly that isn't the case with it's home console counterpart which is only release in PAL countries. What gamers get on the Master System is a mildly spooky game that is ultimately a parody of the Third Poltergeist movie.
The game's introduction tells the basic plot about a young girl named Catherine who is imprisoned inside an evil manor and her soul is taken. You have to help get her soul back in a town called Ghost City which is a town that's rumored to appear every 13 years. It makes little sense to me because how is still alive and breathing when her soul is taken? I bet it's a question nobody will ever find out or care unless anyone cares to tell me about the other Poltergeist movies without me watching them.
Unlike the Arcade version, Laser Ghost on the Master System (while still being a Light Gun shooter) takes place as a side scrolling on rails shooter where Catherine in game moves on her own and you have to protect her from flying bats, ghouls, demons, goblins and enemy projectiles before they touch her, she has about 6 hits and after she gets hit about 6 times she dies. You can shoot her to try and get her to avoid attacks but sometimes attacks are near impossible to avoid and you'll only end up damaging her more then the enemies especially when she ends up getting in the way of boss battles at the end of the stages.
Boss battles consist of of group of knights, an evil painting, a swarm of demons, hands which can grab and squash her, evil cars which can come to life and finally a room which has evil faces which proves rather difficult.
While mostly the game starts to get too easy but it later gets annoying when sometimes enemies instantly attack Catherine from both sides sending her back a few miles which gets frustrating. Catherine simply walks into traps carelessly and also on the fifth stage there are endless waves of ghouls that consistently attack while you're trying to shoot down a hanging man from the ceiling.
The game is compatible with the Light Phaser but you'll need the controller plugged in as well to use the Special Bombs hidden throughout the game. What I really hate about the game is that you need to Press Start on the controller when the gun is plugged instead of just pulling the trigger to start the game. Doing so well only make it that you play with the standard controller instead which is bad programming. Yes you need to plug the gun into slot 1 but you need to plug the controller into slot 2 as well.
Laser Ghost looks pretty good for the most part including animations but the frame rate is sloppy and sometimes the item sound effects can get annoyingly repetitive after the first stage. Catherine herself looks pretty good but she's tends to have a hair style change from her looks on the cover, her in game character and also her appearance in the chapter backgrounds. In some ways she does resemble her actor Heather O' Rourke who has played her character role in the Poltergeist movies.
It's a short and you can beat it in about less then an hour if you're experienced with Light Gun shooters while new comers will have some frustrating moments playing it whilst thinking that this game parodies Poltergeist III. It resembles it in ways but however you'd at least be spooked at what you're not playing is the proper arcade version of the game.
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Reviewed by: Anthony Hayball (AQWBlaZer91)
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