Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins

Notoriously tough title reborn on PSP.

	Version PSP	Developer Capcom	Publisher Capcom	Genre Action

By Ian Dransfield

Capcom has opened the eyes of many around the globe to a disturbing fact - present for years, but never revealed on such a grand scale until now. The company is run by sadists. Evil little people who sit in a room cackling as they come up with the best way to incite violence, hatred and anger in the games-playing populace of the world. With Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins, they've stumbled on gold. Frustrating gold.

Shockingly enough, UG'NG is a remake of Capcom's classic arcade game Ghosts 'n Goblins - a platformer of incredible and unforgiving difficulty but one that has stood the test of time incredibly well amongst hardened gamers and sadists alike. The lovely 2D sprites of old have been replaced with pseudo-2D characters and levels of the polygonal variety - it's an interesting visual choice, and whilst certain to anger a lot of people (gamers are pissy at the best of times, let's be honest here) it works very well, with vibrant, colourful characters alongside fiendishly lovely-looking levels.

The legendary difficulty of the old game hasn't made it into this new iteration intact, however, the most likely reason being Capcom didn't want to get sued for thousands of PSPs broken through sheer frustration. This isn't to say the game is easy at all. Far from it; it's one of the hardest games of recent times, and getting anywhere at all on Ultimate mode is something that will surely rank alongside one-crediting Ikaruga or any other ridiculously hard gaming challenges that only the most dedicated and insane would dare to try and pull off.

Whilst this incredible difficulty level is harking back to the days of the original games in the series, it isn't necessarily A Good Thing. Jumps that are difficult to control and a lack of diagonal firing options - these are just two things that have been vastly improved upon since the original G'NG came out and their inclusion in this new version just feels silly - it artificially ramps up the difficulty by making the mechanics of the game dated. Yes, Capcom have every right to pay tribute to their series in whatever way they see fit, but they shouldn't do it at the expense of the player.

Anyway, what else is there about the game bar daft difficulty and good looks? Well, there are a fair few new additions to the formula that do help modernise the experience and add some much-needed depth. Magic attacks can be performed by our hero Arthur and different spells are available for collection through each level, as long as you know where to look. Aside from his regular armour and boxer shorts there are a number of other armours that add various effects when they are collected, as well as shields and other items, all providing things such as the modern mainstay of platformers - the double jump - or the ability to fly.

A plethora of weaponry is on hand, meaning Art isn't stuck with just his trusty lances - daggers, grenades and firebombs, boomerang sickles - every weapon needs a different style of play and strategic use of them can reap rewards for the clever player - do you opt for the speed of the daggers or the area effect of the firebombs? Either way you're going to die soon, but at least you have the choice in the meantime!

Ultimately (snak snak) these additions do little to change the bigger picture - Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins is a good game, but the game it emulates is from a completely different time to now. Gamers today don't expect to be treated so incredibly unfairly by a game and this fact is sure to ruin the experience for a lot of people - there will always be the hardcore and the 'elite' who have been clamouring for some old-school punishment on such a scale, but the majority of people (yes, myself included) just won't be able to put up with the game for long bursts.

Being unfair to a player is not a good selling point. Whilst the novice difficulty level makes up for this somewhat, who honestly wants to finish a game on the lowest difficulty setting? It's bloody insulting. Petulance aside, anyone lacking in the temper stakes could do a lot worse than UG'NG for some lovely portable treats - it's perfectly suited to a handheld and can be played for short bursts or long sessions. Though, to be fair, it's usually short bursts. Then the tears start flowing. The game is a short one, even with multiple deaths every second of the way, and whilst players are actively encouraged to replay through earlier levels to receive more rewards it tends to feel like a bit of a chore - you are punished enough playing through it the first time, so repeated plays are like asking the torturer to hook you back up to the car battery.

It is sufficient and is well in keeping with the nails-arcade ethos, but repeated plays cannot help but feel like unnecessary padding to a pretty solid experience.