Ghosts n' Goblins (Arcade) Review

In 1985 a game came along that put skills to the limit. Being known for the sheer difficulty back then and still holds that same type of kick you in the nuts, throw a controller difficulty the be released. This game was ghosts and goblins and I hate it.

You get greeted with a nice cutscene that I have no idea what is going on in the park here. Satan steals your uh girlfriend. What the hell were they doing naked in the forest anyway?

You play as Arthur who’s primary weapon is a lance. You can also pickup different sub weapons as they drop. The knife is key here. It’s got a faster throw than the lance and you can have more on the screen.

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I have to admit, the game starts off fairly easy. Okay now give it about a minute and uh good luck. Until you see this red devil creature. Then you’re screwed. You run away, he flies over you and flies right at you. Oh he also shoots at you. Keep in mind, After you get hit once, you lose your armor and have to run around in your underwear.

What a fantastic idea for an iconic character. Let’s have him run around in his underwear as his trademark look!

If you do end up losing your armor, there are certain spots where you can pick it up again. It’s almost like throwing you a bone for putting up with the punishment for so long. Oh my gosh am I ever gonna see level two! With enough attempts, it actually happened!

You have to really memorize the patterns of the enemies in Ghosts n Goblins. Be prepared to die over, and over, and over again. When you jump, good luck because you’re not going to survive if you haven’t perfectly timed it. You can’t adjust your jump pattern in the air. Jump too early, you see the skeleton death animation.

Each stage will feature an end boss, almost taunting you to walk forward as you approach.

Stage three has these eyeball platforms that move in different directions. Better yet, the stage 3 boss is a dragon that flies at you. You can shoot the back of it to make it lose it’s tail.

Stage four is really confusing with all these ladders. Good luck finding out where to go. Oh perfect, a devil right in the middle of the screen. You’re like an ice cream sandwich. Even if you do manage to run away he just chases you the entire time

Its not like you can just wait it out for a perfect time to make a move. You only have three minutes to complete each stage. Seriously, how many more things can be wrong in this game.

I didn’t have too much trouble with the Satan boss in stage four. As long as you can dodge his swoop you’ll be fine. After you complete a stage, you’re lucky enough to regain the armor that you once had going into the next stage.

Stage five, we’re getting closer.  You have to go up a ladder with two of these unicorns right above you. Oh and they only shoot fireballs in case you do manage to get them on the right side.

Wait wait wait, another dragon. You have to be kidding me. First the unicorns now a dragon. As you make it to the top, you’ll face yet another two Satans. Finish it and you’ll be off to the last boss. Wait what? This weapon has not effect. Try again get a Shield? What is going on here?

It sends you back to stage four? You might as well have a giant middle finger scrolling up the screen as you have to go back a stage to pick up this weapon.

This time I’ve picked up the shield. This shield isn't very good. It’s got the worst range out of all the weapons. The only real positive is that it blocks projectiles that the enemies throw your way.

No wonder I had such an easy time against Satan the first time around. Alright back to level five. The two Satans are even harder with this lousy shield. After about 100 attempts, I finally finished off the second Satan.

The last boss “the devil” didn’t take that many attempts to get past. You basically just have to jump backwards in order to avoid his fireball attack and hopefully get within range of the shield radius in order to get a hit in.

Come on, come on! Yes I did it! Finally I saved my girlfriend. Wait what? This room is an illusion and is a trap devised by Satan. What the heck does this mean?

Level one? You have to be kidding me. I have to do this all over again with this shield. It was bad enough to get through this with the knife. Let alone the shield.

So basically, be prepared to be brutalized over and over again. If you enjoy the type of balls hard, die over and over again type of gameplay, it might be up your alley. Personally I think you should avoid this one. The difficulty and controls make for a game that’s overly difficult.