X
- E10+
- Capcom
- E10+
- Capcom
- E10+
- Capcom
- E10+
- Capcom
Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins
PSP
Released On: Aug 29, 2006
72
8.2
All Platforms
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 49 Critic Reviews
72
43% Positive
21 Reviews
21 Reviews
53% Mixed
26 Reviews
26 Reviews
4% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 49 Critic Reviews
72
43% Positive
21 Reviews
21 Reviews
53% Mixed
26 Reviews
26 Reviews
4% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins is "2D" but it's also a highly-produced, meticulously planned, big-budget release. This is no throwback to side-scrollers gone by, this is 2D handheld gaming. [Aug 2006, p.16]
They did it. Capcom sucessfully updated the series without destroying what was good about the classics. I'll always bemoan the loss of the Maximo team, as they actually translated things into full 3D perfectly, but this is a nice in-between.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 52 User Ratings
8.2
81% Positive
42 Ratings
42 Ratings
8% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
12% Negative
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 52 User Ratings
8.2
81% Positive
42 Ratings
42 Ratings
8% Mixed
4 Ratings
4 Ratings
12% Negative
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins picks up from the last entry in one of Capcom's most popular franchise series. In an update version Author has more weapons, more armor and more ghosts 'n goblins to slay. The game is as hard as it always has been, while adding more features, such as multiple shields, new spells and an armor stacking feature that allows you to take more hits. A new "warp staff" track back feature allows you to re-play through zones to collect everything you need, without having to beat the game and then re-play everything. A fantastic entry in the series, well worth the time to play.
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Hard, simple, good! It has more weapons, armour and enemies so you don't feel like fresh meat. The difficulty doesn't change, but deaths feel like it was your fault and not the games. Graphics improved, which doesn't bother me but may bother some, better music and the same storyline. Rewarding and pushes you on to win. My fave PSP game!
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Devilishly unforgiving and dangerously infuriating. But also delicately updated and delightfully addictive.
While Ultimate Ghosts ‘n Goblins often threatens to be obtuse and dated platformer, it’s hard not admire its impishly cunning design, charming presentation and strict old-school challenge.
This game is about as hard as petrified wood. Capcom eased things up a bit by tossing three difficulty levels into the mix, but even the added confidence booster couldn't save me from dying hundreds of times.
The fact that I greeted each completed level with relief rather than satisfaction ain't encouraging. [Sept. 2006, p.108]
When it isn’t busy knocking you off cliffs or duping you into a second play-through, it’s a fun, hectic shooter, but without a more gradual difficulty ramp or at least some cheat codes, this is one problem best left unsolved.
Prepare to have your fragile gamer ego mercilessly bludgeoned by wave after wave of enemies who attack from angles too awkward to counter.
Looks good, sounds good, and unlike previous installments in the series you get to save and continue your game, reducing the degree to which your sanity (and possibly your PSP) will be broken during gameplay. This is a great game, but skip it if you're not interested in struggling tooth-and-nail for every inch of progress.
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Here's my review from wayback on MobyGames, since the original on here has been deleted:
Summary
------------------------------------------------------------------------
UG'nG is a problematic, beautiful risk undertaken by Capcom.
What you liked about this game
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ultimate Ghosts’n Goblins is not a step backwards, but it is also not
the sequel that could have been made. Over a decade later and Capcom
continues right where it left off. This is only half of what was
expected. What they present is a troubling dichotomy within this
game, that of nostalgia versus innovation. Moments of wonder,
however, do slowly invade this troubled sequel in the form of
exciting expansions to Arthur’s repertoire, to remind us of the fact
that the originator was at the helm of this project. In short, quite
good but much more worthy of being made great.
What you did not like about this game
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Capcom could have taken many of the crazy-paced arcade game mechanics
that have made them famous since 1992, but has puzzlingly decided to
exclude them: a combo system, multiple characters, extravagantly
showy magic effects, and baroque bosses that take up a whole stage
rather than a whole screen, as well as multiple tiers of levels and
skill/technique-based rewards. Capcom has the technology these days
to implement the sprite-heavy, manic gameplay of the late 90’s-early
00’s, seen in their Versus games. Instead, we get more environmental
effects (which are admittedly good) but the ponderously fragmented
magic/armor/weapon system is needlessly clunky…what belongs in a
proper sequel to Ghouls’n Ghosts is the arcade sensibility and not
the collection adventure sensibility.
Your final recommendation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
This game may be unapproachable to many casual gamers. I would like
to think the new levels, monsters and surprises would be enough to
hold interest; but to the hardcore among us, we will be in familiar
ground, with new twists that stretch the boundary of rewards and
punishment even further, the collection aspect being the most
frustrating. Stick through the tough parts and you will find the gems
in this game. It's most worth it to see (and fight) the spectacular
bosses and find your own way through.
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I didn't expect to write this much but oh well. This is gonna seem pretty doom and gloom but tbh it's super easy to focus on the negatives of this game though I do mention the positives toward the end. I also didn't get around to playing this game until 2023 but here goes:
I recently played through Ultimate Ghosts n' Goblins 100% twice (once with save states and once without like on original hardware) on it's Normal difficulty and man, what a frustratingly tedious experience. I honestly have no idea what the developers were thinking, the game is riddled with instances of awful game design. It would take a long time to detail every flaw in this game tbh so there's no way I'm even willing to cover everything here. Just to name a few of the biggest flaws:
In true Ghosts n' Goblins fashion, the random elements of it's design ruin this game. The amount of enemies on screen and non-stop enemy spawns are terrible, they'll spawn on top of you often. They've designed it in a way where enemies fill up the screen and make it nearly impossible to not take damage. They tried to compensate by giving you strong power ups, magic and multiple lives but you lose said power ups and lives extremely easily. You also run out of magic quickly, especially on the 1st loop of the game. The weapons are imbalanced like all games in the GnG series also, which is to be expected as someone who has played basically every game in the main series besides the mobile exclusives which probably **** anyway.
You also have to 100% the game + complete every level numerous times to get the true ending w/ the actual final boss. In order to reach said boss you have to collect many different items including but not limited to:
- 48 HIDDEN red chests
- Numerous HIDDEN blue chests
- 33 light rings
- 9 witch ingredients (3 witches need 3 items each, the witches are
hidden and most of the ingredients are hidden too)
Not to mention that the game forces you to complete 1 loop of the game with few resources. Then you'll REVISIT most if not all of the levels to get HIDDEN magic spells you'll need to collect 22 light rings to fight the faux "final" boss (said boss is miserably easy at that, quite a letdown). Then you get booted to the start of the game and complete a 2nd loop of each level and boss again but the levels are harder this time around. Then you have to collect another 11 light rings in order to fight the true final boss at the end of the game who also is so insultingly easy that I beat him first try. With how cumbersome it is to find some of these collectables I imagine very few ppl who played this game back in the day actually finished it entirely, and most of which who did likely had to use a FAQ. A large portion of these items are incredibly hard to find.
The difficulty alone isn't the game's problem, also I LOVE difficult games and retro games in general. The problem lies in everything else like the RNG elements, save system and having to go through each level a minimum of 3 or 4 times (at a casual level) even with the most efficient route possible. Without a guide you'll likely go through each level many more times than that tbh. There also aren't many GOOD guides for this game either which is a bummer.
It's a real shame too b/c this game has some cool level design, damn good music, fun power-ups/spells/weapons and some good bosses (as far as the GnG series goes anyway). Overall it's egregious as a complete experience but really has it's merits. I think this game had a chance at being up there with some of the best games in the series but Capcom shot themselves in the foot on this one. I can't justify giving this game a 7 or higher.
6.8/10
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Summary In Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins, Arthur's heroic battle with the underworld was finally over and the entrance to the realm was sealed. So he thought. Time passes and unknowing to mankind, the dark lord has awaken from his slumber and kidnaps the princess in an effort to conquer the human world. Arthur must set off for the evil forest, the ...
Rated E +10
for Everyone +10
Platforms:
- PSP
Initial Release Date: Aug 29, 2006
Developer:
- TOSE
Publisher: Capcom
Genres:
