Ghost Blade HD is a SHMUP (Shooter ‘Em Up) shooter game that was originally released on the Sega Dreamcast. It is a 2D vertical space shooter that tests your skills as you go through hordes of enemy ships, eventually getting to a “boss level” to take down a much bigger ship.
General Gameplay
You pilot a ship and go through waves of enemies until you get to a boss, rinse, wash, and repeat. As with SHMUP shooters, Ghost Blade HD is no different, but this particular game is more approachable to gamers that are newer to the shooter genre. This specific type of shooter game is called a “bullet hell” type of shooter (more on this in our Family Friendly section).
Audio
The game audio is impressive. From the ambient/techno style of background music to the sounds of the blasters blazing, the game is very clear in the audio department. There were times when the sound drowned out the effects, but that can be easily fixed by going into the settings and making some simple adjustments. Ghost Blade HD is a remake of the original Ghost Blade, and the new, HD version does have surround sound. We did not encounter any offensive language or sounds whatsoever during the playtest, so rest assured that this is a family-friendly game. Your gaming family will love the sounds from the headphones, but as always, parents, please use caution when playing for extended periods of time with headsets. There is no special equipment needed to play the audio from the game. Also, during our special needs game testing, we did not see any issues with any of our special needs gamers with the audio or gameplay at all.
Visuals
The visuals in this HD remake are much better than the game that came out on the Sega Dreamcast years ago, and, if you had to hold Ghost Blade HD against other SHMUP shooter games of today, it holds its own just fine. The game has very vivid colors and graphics on the screen. The ships and the background are drawn very well for Ghost Blade HD, however, being a “bullet hell” type of shooter, there is a lot of action going on the screen and some of our gaming family (newer gamers) did lose track of the action – it’s fast-paced! This is a normal attribute for this type of game and should not be seen as a fault whatsoever, but do heed caution on this matter. Some of the images in the game, during the space ship selection, show women in an anime-style that are not fully dressed. Before you think this inappropriate, know that if you’re comfortable with your gamer seeing a character in a bikini, you’ll be fine with this. The game does not have a colorblind mode, but the colors are plenty vivid to be seen distinctively on the screen. In fact, if you see that the colors are too bright for some of your gaming members, there is a bar in the options where you can make the minor adjustments and the colors will be just fine. We were hard-pressed to find anything that would be offensive for any members in a gaming family.
Controls
The controls are very simple, as there are only three buttons used to play the game. A fire, a bomb and a concentrated beam of firing from your ship are all you need, next to the left joystick, to play Ghost Blade HD. The game is meant to be very pick-up-and-play-friendly for anyone. During our play test we did not see any issues with the controls for anyone, as all members of our gaming family were able to pick up the controller and play the game for the first time with no problems at all. For children with special needs, the controls also worked very well during our playtesting. There is no need for any type of special controller to play Ghost Blade HD.
“Shooters don’t get better than this, Ghost Blade HD is able to capture the hearts and attentions of all types of gamers”
Delivery
This is where Ghost Blade HD is a hardcore shooter and a “pick up and play” shooter at the same time. With shooters, it is either very easy or very hard; there is no grey in this. Ghost Blade HD is made so that people can play it for the first time and still do well, while still giving a challenge to players that are more used to the “bullet hell” type of SHMUP shooters. The game is no pushover, but the 5 stages, score attack mode and leaderboards make it a fun shooter… a short shooter, but still a fun game. Also, for those that are looking for a good SHMUP local co-op, Ghost Blade HD is a great co-op game!
Family Friendly
Being a space shooter, is Ghost Blade HD a family-friendly and fun game to have in your digital library? Yes and no. It is if you want an easy shooter that you can play to relieve stress and have fun, both in local co-op and solo play, but not if you are looking for more of a challenge. As the game is designed to be very pick-up-and-play-friendly, it is also a “bullet hell” game. In the “SHMUP” world, a “bullet hell” type of game is one in which the screen is filled with enemy bullets and you have to navigate around them (quickly!) so that you don’t get hit. This is more of a challenge for some vs others. Also, a few families may disapprove of scantily-clad anime (cartoon) women in the ship select screen, but that’s the only thing that we found that could even possibly be offensive to younger gamers. Also, gamers who are used to playing SHMUP shooters can complete the game within 20-30 minutes, as it is meant to be a short game. This may not sound appealing to some looking for a shooter for their digital library, however, for those that are looking to play a casual game, Ghost Blade HD may be that perfect game for them. Another thing to note is that, for those that have special needs gamers in their family, the amount of action on the screen may be too much, but that’s subjective to each special needs gamer. During our test, some of our gaming members with Autism became a bit overwhelmed with everything going on the screen, while others, after beating the game, were looking for more after the game was over. Other gamers were having so much fun playing co-op that they continued to play well over 2 hours; again, this will vary from gamer to gamer. In our honest opinion, there are other shooters out there, but for an easy game to get into, Ghost Blade HD is a great start.
Closing
Ghost Blade HD is a great remake of a good shooter, but with only 5 missions and a score attack mode, it may still seem “limiting” to some of the more hardcore shooter fans out there.
