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Dan Aykroyd prefers Ghostbusters for Wii, says romance got axed for gameplay
Dan Aykroyd really likes the 2004 film, The Incredibles. So much so, in fact, that he believes himself to look like an Incredibles-esque superhero in the upcoming Ghostbusters game for Wii, telling Newsweek, "I love the way we look in the Wii platform ... anybody who looks like an Incredible is automatically a superhero." Though we're not sure if there's a direct correlation between the two, Aykroyd firmly believes so, continuing, "I was so pleased that they shaved off at least 60 pounds from my current bulk." Apparently Aykroyd's current poundage isn't all that was shaved in translation from movie to game, as the romantic elements between Bill Murray and Sigourney Weaver have been omitted from the forthcoming title. Aykroyd says "the format of ghostbusting lends itself to a video game beautifully," while apparently the finesse required in convincing Sigourney Weaver to fornicate with Bill Murray doesn't so much. Not even a minigame, folks? We kid! It probably didn't help that Ms. Weaver declined to be part of the game, huh? %Gallery-38587%
Bustin' PSP Ghostbusters rumors makes Atari feel good
Bad news for PSP fans looking forward to a version of Atari's Ghostbusters game: the ESRB listing that seemed to indicate an unannounced PSP version was nothing more than a ... phantom. An apparition. Something ephemeral. What's the word? The listing has now been corrected to cover just the PS2 and Wii versions. In addition, Atari confirmed to Eurogamer that it is not releasing a PSP Ghostbusters. Whether the PSP mention in the rating was a clerical error or indication of an earlier, canceled PSP version, the end result is the same -- there is no Ghostbusters on PSP ... only Zuul.
ESRB rates Ghostbusters game for PSP
Looks like the Ghostbusters are heading to PSP, if this ESRB listing is to be believed. According to the ratings bureau, the PSP will receive its own version of Ghostbusters, based on the PS2 and Wii versions of the game. The game has been announced for pretty much every platform including the DS and iPhone, so it's unsurprising that Atari would want to make a quick buck by releasing a PSP port as well. [Thanks, David B.!] %Gallery-38587%
Harold Ramis talks Ghostbusters and lengthy game scripts
MTV Multiplayer's Stephen Totilo used his MTV Movies contacts to get some info out of Ghostbusters writer and star Harold Ramis regarding the upcoming video game. Ramis said that he and Dan Ackroyd both contributed to the game's narrative, in addition to lending their voices to their old characters, Egon and Ray. "Dan consulted a lot on the story. I just kind of helped him change the dialogue." Speaking of which, Ramis seemed surprised by just how much dialogue there actually was. "It was a little weird. I had no idea because I'm not a gamer. The game scripts are like 250 pages. You need all these alternatives so it took forever. A lot of it is just yelling, 'Look out! Throw that trap, rookie!'" Hopefully having both of the original writers helping out will make the game as much of a classic as the movies are. We'll find out when the game releases in June.
Alyssa Milano talks about Ghostbusters role
Former Charmed star Alyssa Milano will be in the new Ghostbusters video game and she's here (in video) to talk about her new role as Ilyssa Selwyn. Her character is the love interest for Dr. Peter Venkman (voiced by Bill Murray), and is likely to play a bigger role than one would expect. "Paranormal activities take a liking to [Ilyssa]," said Milano. "So crazy things sort of happen ... she can't figure out why, but we'll eventually, at the end, figure out why." It sounds like the leading lady is at the heart of the mystery for this new Ghostbusters outing. And apparently, there's lots of "flirty, flirty sexual tension" happening between Venkman and Selwyn, too. At least, that's what Milano says ... We can't imagine how much sexual tension there could possibly be starring opposite Bill Murray. %Gallery-42934%
Alyssa Milano replaces Weaver in Ghostbusters: The Video Game
Everyone's dream girlfriend from the '80s and '90s, Alyssa Milano, will replace Sigourney Weaver as the leading lady in the upcoming Ghostbusters game from Atari. Weaver originally declined to reprise her role as musician -- and Bill Murray baby-mama -- Dana Barrett unless the game was of "high quality," until she had a change of heart. Unfortunately for the actress, and Ghostbusters fans, the change came too late in development as her character had been written out to make room for a new leading lady, voiced by Milano. Milano, still stunning at 36-years-old, will play Dr. Ilyssa Selwyn -- curator of the World of Gozer exhibit at the Natural History Museum in New York City. Also missing from the regular Ghostbusters cast is Canadian actor (and spokesperson) Rick Moranis, who has since left show business in the wake of collecting giant stacks of Honey! I Shrunk the Kids money. Ghostbusters go on the hunt on June 16. %Gallery-48356%
Ghostbusters producer talks Atari takeover, describes game as 'Gears of War Lite'
Atari's senior producer for Ghostbusters, Garret Moehring, recently spoke with MTV Multiplayer about the upcoming title and its focus. He said the team is really going for a mainstream experience with Ghostbusters, best described as "an action-shooter - Gears of War Lite, in a way." Moehring described how Atari had made the game more accessible by changing the process of wrangling up those ghosts, making it more of an automatic process.Apparently, after acquiring the game, Atari spent the majority of time on polishing it up, with "probably 70 different people playing the game" throughout the development process. Terminal Reality will continue making various tweaks until Ghostbusters arrives on June 16.%Gallery-21636%
Infernal Engine licensees will get Ghostbusters, in spirit
Terminal Reality, developer of Ghostbusters: The Video Game and the newly commercialized Infernal Engine which powers it, will be helping licensees ease into using the middleware by providing them the framework for Ghostbusters -- sans the Ghostbusters. VP Joe Kreiner explained the dea in an interview with Gamasutra."Once Ghostbusters ships in June, we'll be providing Ghostbusters the game as a framework to our licensees," he told the site, adding, "We'll have to remove the talent and any copyrighted items, but we will be distributing that to our developers once the game ships." So, developers who've licensed the engine will be able to build on what Terminal Velocity learned during the game's development process. Or, they could make a game just like Ghostbusters, with some minor tweaks here and there. Call it Phantom Squad or Spirit Snatcher. Psst! Hey, From Software -- thought you could use those after playing your latest game.
Ghostbusters game initially had tactical voice commands
Executive Producer Brendan Goss disclosed that the upcoming Ghostbusters game had once featured voice recognition commands that were ultimately removed because they weren't "a good fit." In an interview with Strategy Informer, Goss mentioned that the tech was available and working, but that there were some instances where character personalities conflicted with the command-and-obey system: " ... if you tell Peter Venkman to go open a door he's going to hit you with something, he's not just going to go over and open the door, so that was something that we had a look at and thought, well this is great, but it's not a good fit for what we're trying to do, so we cut it." As much as we'd like to see Venkman comedically berate us, we guess Goss has a point. You know, if you care about that "gameplay" stuff.
Atari drops Ghostbusters multiplayer deets, neglects vital information
There are a few things to be gleaned from the Ghostbusters multiplayer details recently posted on Kombo.com. First of all, the game features co-operative multiplayer in which players catch ghosts as a team. Of particular interest is the multiplayer campaign mode, which allows you to earn cash and upgrade your equipment. There's also an Instant Action mode for less patient players. Beyond that, there are plenty of other details: six power-ups, twelve maps, six different game types, etc. The problem, see, is that Atari forgot one important piece of information concerning any Ghostbusters multiplayer experience: What happens when you cross the streams? It's a vital detail and, frankly, we're shocked it's not even mentioned. We can tell you this right now: If nothing happens when you cross the streams, the trivial geek rage will be heard the world over.
Sigourney Weaver missed her shot at Ghostbusters game role
We reported last year that Sigourney Weaver was interested in a role in the upcoming Ghostbusters game so long as the project was "high quality." The good news: Sigourney Weaver apparently thinks Terminal Reality's adaptation is up to snuff. The bad news: She came to this conclusion too late. At a recent press event in Stockholm, according to Game Reactor, Terminal Reality producer Brendan Goss stated that Weaver originally turned the role down when it was first offered. When the actress later learned that Bill Murray had signed on to do the game -- on the condition that each Ghostbuster get equal screen time -- she approached the makers asking to be a part of the project. Unfortunately for Ms. Weaver, the game was already too far into production and a new lead female role had been written. We can only assume said role is that of Janine Melnitz, the Ghostbusters' sassy receptionist. We imagine the romance between her and Peter Venkman will be a torrid, strange affair, what with the bug eyes thing and all.
Terminal Reality ain't afraid of licensing no middleware
The developers behind the upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of Ghostbusters: The Video Game have informed us that the engine driving the game, the Infernal Engine, is open for third-party licensing. In fact, Terminal Reality will be meeting behind closed doors to discuss licensing its tech with several folks at the DICE Conference, which is going on right now in Red Rock, Nevada.Terminal Reality says its engine is compatible with all next-gen platforms, including PC, and can take "full advantage of next generation hardware while scaling easily to all systems." It features "an advanced physics solution, powerful particle system, and rendering features that provide ultra-realistic environments and characters." In layman's terms, the Infernal Engine can make stuff.The image above was crafted using the engine, and will serve as one of the items Terminal Reality uses to market its middleware product. So, developers, if you're looking for something that can help you create dudes with glowing eyes, old rifles, and a taste for tacky jewelry, who you gonna call?
Look directly into this new Ghostbusters trailer
The Ghostbusters game presents something of a predicament to the savvy gamer. On one hand, it's a movie-licensed video game. On the other hand, it's Ghostbusters. The PR folks at Atari seem very aware of this touchy dichotomy and have made sure to cram the latest trailer with just enough fan service to make us wonder if gameplay even matters at this point. Example: Some guy: "This game doesn't really look that good." Some other guy: "But ... he said 'don't look directly into the trap!'" Some guy: "Touché." Download HD Ghostbusters Rule #2 Trailer (53 MB)
New Ghostbusters screens feature slime, virtual hair-don't
click to make big (like the Stay Puft Marshmellow Man) You're probably expecting this post to contain some Ghostbusters-related humor; perhaps a "Who ya gonna call," or a reference to not "crossing the streams." Well, it doesn't. Okay, so it does -- but that wasn't our intent. No, that would be showing you this latest batch of screenshots from PS3/360/PC version of the game, featuring the hair of a virtual Harold Ramis. Due on June 16, the game's looking good, playing well, and, so, Atari ... "we're ready to believe you." Damn. %Gallery-42934%
Ghostbusters: We ain't afraid of no new screens
Atari released six fresh screens of its upcoming Ghostbusters game, including the image above of Ernie Hudson (Zeddemore) and Harold Ramis (Spengler) pimping into, what we can only assume is, a ghost infested room. Written by Ramis and Dan Aykroyd, Ghostbusters: The Game is essentially considered a third film in the series, continuing where the second film left off, over 20 years ago. Nearly the entire cast of characters will reprise roles from the 1984 film and its 1989 sequel. Hell, they even tracked down the skeptical antagonist from Ghostbusters II! So far they have the fan service thing down, we just really hope the gameplay gets the same level of attention. %Gallery-38564%
Your guess as good as ours: BlowOut coming to Xbox Originals
Word comes by way of Gamerscore Blog that BlowOut will join the ranks of Xbox Originals, as of January 19th, for 1200 ($15). Reaction to the news was swift and sure in the site's comments section, with gems like: "F*ck off with the sh*t we've never heard of. Get some half decent games on there already." "When the f*ck did this come out. How about KOTOR either of them, or any other of the top selling title from the original Xbox. What is Microsoft paying you people for." "Ugh, I wish I could remember the right command. > kill proc PR_Bot." Uh-huh, that just about sums it up. Seriously, how many people actually remember this game, or would pay $15 for it? If there was ever any question about the Xbox Originals system being misguided over the last few updates, we fear the answer is quite clear now.
Crossing streams: Ghostbusters game confirmed for week of June 16
It sounds like everyone is on the same page now about the Ghosbusters game release. Sony Pictures stepped on Atari PR's toes by revealing the June 16th date, coinciding with the Blu-ray release of the movie. Atari has since confirmed a June 19th date for the UK. Just to make sure everyone is in on the party, VG247 has confirmed with the game's developer, Terminal Reality, that it's "always been planning day and date release with the Blu-ray discs." Terminal Reality chief Mark Randal says "it will be a huge Ghostbusters week!" That may be true, but how the company's game reviews and sells is a whole other question altogether. Randal wouldn't say if there would be a special edition game and Blu-ray movie box set. We wouldn't count it out -- but that would certainly move a couple units.
Sony Pictures: Ghostbusters busts out June 16
According to a press release from Sony Pictures, the upcoming Ghostbusters video game will release on June 16. The game is set to release alongside the Blu-ray edition of Ghostbusters. Both are being released in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the film, first released in 1984. No further details are given about the game, as the press release chiefly concerns the Blu-ray release of the film. Of course, you could always read Joystiq's hands-on with the game if you want details.Ghostbusters was picked up by Atari late last year after it was left without a publisher thanks to the merger of Activision and Vivendi.[Via Joystiq]
Sony Pictures dates Ghostbusters game for Jun. 16
Amid a slew of press releases it shot out in the hours leading up to CES 2009, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment may have stepped on Atari PR's toes. In announcing a June 19 release date for the Blu-ray Disc release of Ghostbusters (the movie), it also confirmed a day-and-date launch of Ghostbusters: The Video Game. The release is long on details concerning the film's HD debut, but short on specifics concerning the game. No platforms are mentioned, although it stands to reason that the highest-profile versions -- Xbox 360, PS3, PC -- will be first out the door. Atari has yet to issue a release of its own concerning the game's street date(s), but we've contacted it for comment on Sony's announcement in the meantime.
Phil Harrison would 'love' to prove Activision wrong about Ghostbusters
When it comes to the much anticipated Ghostbusters game, Atari's Phil Harrison – somehow it still sounds wrong – clearly wants Activision to know what it lost when it cut the game (and several others) loose earlier this year. Speaking to MCV, he called out Activision-Blizzard CEO, Bobby Kotick, on the decision. "What Bobby, perhaps unhelpfully said, was that those games were franchises which wouldn't make $100m of revenue and generate sequels," Harrison said of Blizzivision's choice to offload Ghostbusters. "If that's his benchmark, then fine – and we'd love to aspire to the same benchmarks. But you know what? I would love to turn Ghostbusters into a $100m franchise, just to prove him wrong." That may not happen, but given the hype and fan following – not to mention the fact that it's coming out on at least five platforms – Activision might yet kick itself when the sales numbers are tallied.
