The last several months have been great for me and finding things to be nerdy about. Who would’ve guessed, after a few not so successful attempts, that Capcom would look back once again to Sir Arthur’s underwear exploits?
Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection is yet another reason the Nintendo Switch is a gaming anomaly in our current generation. But looking back to the last few efforts, it’s easy to be uneasy.
On the other hand, Capcom has been hitting home runs since Monster Hunter: World hit. So while we can’t run a review yet, here are a few key points from my earliest experiences.
It’s Ugly (In a Way That’s Beautiful)
Despite its standing as a classic series, Arthur’s supernatural conquests have never been known for their visuals. The pixel art and subsequent 3D styles have never been terrible, and even the ill-received Ultimate Ghosts ‘n Goblins did a lot to spice up the game with color.
But they were still nowhere near their peers in terms of style or fidelity. Ghosts ‘ n Goblins Resurrection, in comparison, is a new step up for the series. Using a blend of styles from 2D paper cutout to influences from eastern European animation and medieval shadow puppetry, Ghosts ‘n Goblins has never been this visually impressive.
The way the colors are shaded on each kind of texture throughout the game especially provides a sense of character that really sells the conceit here. Even the basic zombies look cool, and when you get to the big, gross boss monsters it’s almost distracting to enjoy the style and animations.
You Can Beat It! Probably!
Even the Soulsiest of Soulslikes can’t hold a candle to Ghosts ‘n Goblins difficulty. Various attempts have been made to make later games more approachable, but it feels like Capcom nailed it here.
There are four settings, which seem to balance out to giving anyone the kind of Ghosts ‘n Goblins experience they showed up for. We’ll have more final thoughts on this by review time.
Good Replaying Incentives???
In most Ghosts ‘n Goblins games (I say most because I haven’t played ‘em all!) your runs through the game are linear, with the classic view of Arthur’s adventure path showing between stages.
In Resurrection you can move around on the map at will, and even choose different forks. But you can also replay levels right away, backtracking as much or as little as you want.
And we can’t go into a ton of detail here, but there are collectibles, a skill tree and other ostensible (i.e. haven’t done it yet) reward systems for doing more than just running straight through.
It’s Modern, Yet Uncompromised!
There’s a lot that can be said about how contemporary gaming has influenced Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection. But that doesn’t mean this isn’t a GnG through and through. And perhaps in its purest form since the original arcade title.
Everything runs super smoothly, from running and jumping as Arthur, to a noticeable lack of performance issues. The weapons are all distinct and will force you to change your approach.
There are also all kinds of bizarre environmental obstacles, non-sensibly hidden treasures, and boss characters that do not care about your feelings. You may be on a difficulty with more generous checkpoints, but you’re going to be revisiting that flag a lot.
There’s Co-Op???
How in the world does Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection support co-op? Well, it does. It’s important to note that currently, Capcom’s stance on this feature is that it isn’t the main focus or “core” of the experience. Frankly that messaging makes me respect this inclusion more.
The team doesn’t consider it the ideal way to play to convey the intended experience, yet co-op is in there anyway. That’s cool, yo. It’s the kind of self-contradiction that shows a real understanding of the source material, as well as a drive to go above and beyond anyway for newcomers or other potential players outside of that core audience.
This also ties into the difficulty settings, as even the game itself notes the “Knight” setting is the one most in line with the “vision” for Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection.
Needless to say, I need to dig more into this game. I’m stoked to have it in my hands already, as someone dumb enough to spend nearly an entire day getting to the end of Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts.
Resurrection feels good, looks good, sounds good and I’m totally here for it. Look out for more on Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection in the coming days, as we get closer to its release date later this week.
