[M.Thunder]

Don't get the intent of this thread wrong. I'm perfectly satisfied with the game we did get...give or take a few minor things like the lack of a "New Game +" feature where you could replay missions but keep the money, equipment, and collectables you'd already obtained. Overall it's one of the best movie games that's been made.

This thread is just for fun. If you could wave a magic wand and make things different, what would you do?

For myself:

- An actual score. I love the film music as much as anyone, but a 10 hr game means we'll hear a lot of those tunes over and over again. Throw in the Pumps song and a montage sequence as well, for fun!

- It would have been cool if the Parade level had been finished, and we got to explore Ray's Occult. I know the Comic Books hadn't been made yet, but since this game exists nowhere except my own imagination, Kylie Griffin (voiced by Tara Strong) cameos as the cashier who minds the store while Ray is out working his day job.

- The firehouse was one of the best things in the game. Exploring all the knooks and crannies, finding the RGB model PKE meter and discovering that you can try the pole and take a scalding hot shower are awesome. So..it would have been cool if that set had actually been used more. Some form of adventure that's not the intro that takes place in the firehouse would have been cool. Or even mundane tasks to complete between the missions, like "wash off the slime" or "get Janine to unlock Louis's desk so you can retrieve a file.."

- Better use of Peck and Janine. Peck's testiness even after being rescued from possession strains credulity. I'd have loved to see him go to bat for the guys against the mayor just once. I know I'm probably a minority for even hoping of a Peck redemption but even a dickless duke will defend his fiefdom. And Janine...did nothing, basically. I'm glad she was there, but those of us who wish it had been her, not Louis, who donned the Proton Pack and saved the day at the end of GBII will have to wait another day. This is the lady who said, after the Firehouse had been overrun by an evil spook with his army, "Fine, but Mr. Venkmann's not going to like it. He hates paying me overtime." Totally fearless.

- Illyssa should have turned out to be the Big Bad of the whole story. I know the following probably popped into my head because "The Case of Charles Dexter Ward" is one of my favorite scary stories ever, but after her portrait turned up on Shandor Island I was all excited thinking ooooh, something fowl is afoot here, and isn't it convenient that even though she just happens to study the same exact occult topics that her infamous ancestor did and always happens to be at the scene of whatever major paranormal problem is going down today, nobody ever seriously entertains the idea that she MIGHT not be a totally innocent party here? Seriously, they never consider she might be lying to them...about anything. And then they bring her into their firehouse and leave her unattended with the biggest source of Free Soul Energy in the whole wide world. No villain could possibly ask for a better set-up.

Or further out in there, oooh, what if Ivo Shandor had secretly been a woman the entire time, and had used a male psyudonym and a willing male co-conspirator to keep up the lie? And maybe she never actually died, but she's been pulling a Joseph Curwin the whole time, always "falling ill" whenever her unaging nature gets too suspicious, leaving town, "dying," and then turning up as a long-lost but oddly identical relative nobody has ever met before but who of course continues the work of her late lamented mother/aunt/sister/whoever.

Illyssa's character would have been 200% more interesting and I'd have loved to see Alyssa Milano being kittenish sinister as someone working both sides.

- Bill Murray actually gave a crap. I know. Now I'm just talking crazy.

If you could add or subtract anything by waving your hand, what would you want? What would YOUR ideal Ghostbusters game be like? Perhaps for the future?

[Buckynohair]

I'd be happy for more of the same. Although abviously building on the original. Much the same way that the gears of war games went. I was so happy with the original, even sanctum of slime showed some promise, just a shame it was rushed. I was hoping that would be more along the lines of something like a dead nation for example.

But yeah, as far as a sequel goes - bigger, better but the same style of game would suffice me. Co op, bit more freedom, upgrading etc. I could even see a ghostbusters game with new characters in a different city working. Build your own franchise with upgrades etc. although I'd prefer the originals.

[M.Thunder]

A "build a franchise" style game A La Assassin's Creed could be fun! you'd have to upgrade your firehouse, recruit rookies, get them trained, weed out the ones who will take one look at a spook and go crazy...

Actually I guess in that case, you wouldn't be playing as a Ghostbuster, you'd be playing as JANINE as you sort through the calls, manage the money and resources, keep track of the research going on and the new developments with the gear, screen potential recruits, monitor the ECU, and eventually hit the big red button that sends the boys out to get their paychecks. We all want to hit that big red button.

..I'd still want the option to go on a bust yourself but that other one could be a fun game too.

[hrdcordweeb]

I would have loved a new game+ option and the addition of the parade level too. Even though I love the game it just feels like everything is over too soon so a few more levels would have been great.

If I could design my own ideal game I would have made it like a GTA style open world game where you could go on busts outside of the main story and actually drive the Ecto-1.

I'd also love to see decent sequel game that could focus on a start up franchise in another city. It would be a great way to expand the universe.

[M.Thunder]

There was a period there where EVERYTHING was trying to beat GTA in terms of "Open World." Personally, I don't think driving around looking for stuff to do would really fit with Ghostbusters. It defeats the whole, "call today, we're ready to believe you" thing. The boys come when they are called, they don't randomly show up.

Now, I wouldn't object to the ability to explore the world for things OTHER then ghosts to bust, especially if there happens to be an ongoing mystery with clues and witnesses and the like that you can look for and interact with. But just happening on a ghost shouldn't happen. Proton packs are too heavy to wear casually.

And I've survived enough driving levels to not want a car in there just for the sake of driving a car. Ray can drive the Ecto: I'll ride shotgun and shoot lasors at the ghosts through the window.

This is my own opinion of course. We are talking about imaginary games here.

[Cornelius]

It has been said before, but, since you ask:

- driving the ecto, based on a realistic map of NYC. This would probably take up too much memory, but still - it would add a level of realism to it all.
- and in relation to the first point, like in the C64 game, a management aspect to the game would be absolutely fantastic.

[hrdcordweeb]

In my head you wouldn't be out looking for ghosts, but you'd have a call sheet like they had in the movies and you went out with your partner/s to those locations. There could be on the fly updates as new calls come in and if you get tired of playing the same character you could switch GTAV style to one of your coworkers. They could all have their own personalities and even have "shifts" so you can play certain characters at night and others during the day.

I'm putting too much thought into this.

[M.Thunder]

You think that's overthinking? I'll show you overthinking!

When you only have four/five Ghostbusters, you can't really divide them into shifts. We know one of their rules is "don't bust alone," so you need at least two to answer a call, which means you need all five if you want to be able to answer more then one call at once, and that's only if the call you've got isn't intense enough that they send all four. Allow that sometimes Egon will be in the middle of an experiment or someone will be sick or hurt and you can go from five available GBs to three, or two. If you really want to be ready 24/7 then you don't really have a lot of choice over who works when. It seems like the call will come in and anyone who can will answer.

Back in the world of imaginary games, Ray is, supposedly, extra vulnerable to possession due to his open mind and trusting nature, right? In the game I'm constructing in my head, that would have been played up more. A demon villain would mention how good and appealing he smells. I have a very strong mental image of Egon having a number of possessor spirits in the tank, and Ray walks in, and ALL of the ghosts sort of crowd around the glass where he is, all staring at him. A duplicitous demoness follows him around and hovers over him, like a cat who smells catnip.

[portugueseGB]

In my head you wouldn't be out looking for ghosts, but you'd have a call sheet like they had in the movies and you went out with your partner/s to those locations. There could be on the fly updates as new calls come in and if you get tired of playing the same character you could switch GTAV style to one of your coworkers. They could all have their own personalities and even have "shifts" so you can play certain characters at night and others during the day.

I'm putting too much thought into this.

Now you're not! This idea and the ability to drive the Ecto-1 across NY (not that unfeasable, there has been a bus sim taking place in NY) would have been my perfect GB game.

[M.Thunder]

I've totaled so many cars in GTA...if I did that to the Ecto I'd never forgive myself!

[hrdcordweeb]

Even in the GTA games if you operate any of the emergency vehicles with lights and siren on the AI cars make a path for you. Since our game takes place after the Ghostbusters have been well established one could assume the average person would clear a path when they hear that distinct siren and see the flashing blue lights. I know I would.

[M.Thunder]

The other cars may move, but the walls, lampposts, signs, and trees won't. Those are the bane of my fictional automotive existence.

Also, crashing the Ecto might not be like crashing other cars. What happens to Muon Scrubbers after a head-on collision? What happens if your cyclotron shakes loose? How big of a kaboom can you expect if your superslammer gets sandwiched between a cop car and a brick wall?

With the ability to drive the Ecto would come the ability to crash it, and I can't see a crashed Ecto being something the city would just shake off. Not considering all the hardware it's carrying. But eliminating the ability to crash it would make the driving pointless, since nothing bad can happen to your indestructible car so there's no reason to show any restraint.

[hrdcordweeb]

There are ways around crashing, and all damage to company property will have to come out of your paycheck. Driving the Ecto-1 was one of the things that a lot of people would put in their ideal GB game. I'd be willing to sacrifice some realism if it meant being able to digitally fulfill a childhood fantasy. Driving the Ecto could even just be a mini-game or something like driving the zamboni in some of the old NHL games.

I have to say, this has been a fun thread. Thanks for starting it.

[kevinj319]

I can't say I understand this particular fantasy. Yes, driving the Ecto would be cool but from a gameplay standpoint I'd imagine it would get boring after about 5 minutes. Why do I have to drive eveywhere? Just let me bust ghosts.

[M.Thunder]

I can't argue with the fantasy of driving the Ecto. We all do, in one way or another. I've just survived enough badly-designed driving levels that I don't want it in there just for the sake of being in there. I'll be satisfied if I can ride in the Ecto.

[hrdcordweeb]

Fair enough. A level where you can hang out the window and shoot on the run like you suggested earlier would be a good compromise.

Honestly, I would have liked to see different consequences based on how much damage you did. The game keeps track of it for entertainment/achievement purposes, but what if the ending cut scene was different depending on how much havoc you caused. Though I guess leaving off at saving the day is pattern for the Ghostbusters.

[CPU64]

For me, a GB version of GTA would've been freaking amazing. You could drive to the next location, or if it's close, you could walk there like in the movie. You could meet up with the other busters in set locations to investigate. You could talk to people in the streets about strange things in the neighborhood. Investigate more of the museum, stop by rays occult, visit dana's building. Capture more ghosts in Central park. Call back janine at HQ for jobs and info...
Sorry, I'm getting carried away again

[M.Thunder]

There was a period of time when every game was trying to be gta. I like gta as much as anyone else but I can't say I want "Ghostbusters" to follow that model. Gta's glory is about going wherever you want and doing whatever you want. Ghostbusters come when they are called. They don't wander around looking for things to do.

[CPU64]

I was mainly comparing the size of the city, amount of stuff going on, and visuals. You can have the game be structured in such a way that you don't wonder around aimlessly like you can in GTA.
What's that other game, watchdogs? That would make a gorgeous GB game

[M.Thunder]

It'd be gorgeous, sure, but kinda pointless. Watchdogs is all about manipulating the city itself against your enemies. Ghostbusters don't interact with the city on that level. These super-detailed city in GTA is because that's a free-roaming, non-linear game where you can do missions in whatever order you want, whenever you come across them. Random stuff pops up you handle it however you want.

You can't really do that if you're a Ghostbuster. If you've been called, Janine's hit that big button, you gotta slide down that firepole and pile into the Ecto and tear down the road at speeds that old cadillac was NOT built for. You can't make a detour if you spot something else that's more interesting when you're en-route. And afterwards, the traps are not optimal for holding ghosts long-term so you shouldn't lollygag getting back to the ECU to empty them, no matter what you see through the window. So I'm not sure when you'd have time to explore this big, detailed city.

You could always explore in your off-hours, I suppose, which might provide a cool "investigation" angle where you meet with people who are experiencing psychic phenomena who won't come to the firehouse for whatever reason... but during these sequences, you would A) not have a proton pack with you, since I can't imagine they let employees just carry those around and B) not be driving the Ecto, since the Ecto has to stay at the firehouse in case there's a call. So that part wouldn't feel much like Ghostbusters.

[xaviorbat]

Considering I have the PC version, I'd like my multiplayer, maybe a mission based new franchise mode with the rookie in command.

Also speaking story wise, can the boys please realize their containment unit is baiting bigger ghosts? Maybe be working on a quantum dump system

[CPU64]

I think you're taking my comparisons a bit too seriously. I'm not saying take watch dogs, and put the ghostbusters in it. I just like to think of the game looking fantastic, and not being so linear.

[kurisu7885]

It'd be gorgeous, sure, but kinda pointless. Watchdogs is all about manipulating the city itself against your enemies. Ghostbusters don't interact with the city on that level. These super-detailed city in GTA is because that's a free-roaming, non-linear game where you can do missions in whatever order you want, whenever you come across them. Random stuff pops up you handle it however you want.

You can't really do that if you're a Ghostbuster. If you've been called, Janine's hit that big button, you gotta slide down that firepole and pile into the Ecto and tear down the road at speeds that old cadillac was NOT built for. You can't make a detour if you spot something else that's more interesting when you're en-route. And afterwards, the traps are not optimal for holding ghosts long-term so you shouldn't lollygag getting back to the ECU to empty them, no matter what you see through the window. So I'm not sure when you'd have time to explore this big, detailed city.

You could always explore in your off-hours, I suppose, which might provide a cool "investigation" angle where you meet with people who are experiencing psychic phenomena who won't come to the firehouse for whatever reason... but during these sequences, you would A) not have a proton pack with you, since I can't imagine they let employees just carry those around and B) not be driving the Ecto, since the Ecto has to stay at the firehouse in case there's a call. So that part wouldn't feel much like Ghostbusters.

Um, in the game Janine DID call them while they were in transit about heading to the library, so it IS possible. Say you're out on patrol, and Janine, or whoever your secretary is, calls you, you can choose to accept a random job, and if you do a blip in the form of our favorite logo appears on the map, and you head there to take care of it. Or say you're driving and you see, say, a vendor being hassled by a ghost, a car running rampantly possessed, or the windows of a building flashing really weird. The random mission thing CAN work, just, you know, have them in the context of being a Ghostbuster.

As for wrecking the car, well, obviously there might have to be penalties for that, though what kind, I dunno, losing a ghost and having to get out and wrangle it again, having to get it fixed, there could be a few I would think. But honestly, in all the time the busters have owned it that poor car has been through a lot, I imagine fender benders are included, and you gotta admit, it'd be funny to have Ray and Winston more or less cuss you out over damage. Hell, it could be part of a story ,something like "We just saw a spike on the PKE, what happened?" "Well, we swerved to avoid having to ghost trap a cat and..." "Just get that ghost and get back here so we can fix it"

And I'm on board out Peck since in the comics he recognizes the need for the Ghostbusters then freakin offers to take care of the paperwork. I mean he did almost witness armageddon three times.

And I do live the idea of being able to see Kylie at the book store. At the least the first time could have been like "Hey there Dr Stanz... um, what's going on outside?" "You don't know?" "You didn't give me the day off for the parade..." "Well you don't WANT to know"

And yeah, the firehouse could have been more interesting, i didn't like being locked out of the sub basement.

[M.Thunder]

Why would you get the "option" to accept a job that's just come in? If Janine calls with a job, it sounds like that'd be where you'd go next. I can't think of a good reason why the guys would turn down a paying job, if someone has actually called and arranged with Janine. You don't get to not feel like answering calls if you want to stay in business. I know it's all about giving the gamer choices, but this is a BAD choice.

As for just happening on people being harassed by spirits...that would require wandering, randomly exploring the city, and I can't think of when it would be OK for a Ghostbuster to "wander." If you're on your way to a job, you're going to get to the scene of that job as fast as you can to get paid faster. If you're on your way back from a job, you're going to be heading to empty your ghost trap as soon as possible. It's possible you could just HAPPEN to see stuff through the window, but that can only happen so often before it kills the urgency of actually answering calls.

And really, if your a Ghostbuster, the focus should be the CALLS, not the random stuff that happens on the street to random people who haven't promised to pay you. They're not superheroes on patrol, they're firemen. Firemen don't drive around the city just looking for random fires to put out.

And you'd only have to wreak the car ONCE before Winston and Ray would see you fired. Or at the very least not let you drive the Ecto anymore. Ray would never let any damage to his beloved car stand.

And the Firehouse WAS really interesting, I just wish there had been more stuff to do there besides walk around and look at things.

[Buckynohair]

E3 this week. 30th anniversary. What if indeed...

[Human_3D]

I don't know if it has been said yet, but drop Marshmallows on me if it has as I was too lazy to check.

- I would've liked driving the Ecto-1, maybe even a level with the Ecto Copter fighting the gargoyles or something.

- Some more ghosts takig human appearances like the Bellhops, Morguncher, the Confeds and Unions and so on. The enemy design was top notch, but that would've added the cherry on top of the Ice cream.

- A blakboard or something with open missions, say changing localities with changing ghosts haunting them. For example get to the Restaurant and hunt down some possesors there and the next day something else.

- The Slime Blower ? Not that I know of the SlimeBlower V.2 but this strategy/ tactic thing would've been neat.

- And the Parade level. There would've been Marching Bands, Clowns and Blinkers the Science Pup ! But no...

- Maybe some missions from the GB 1 and GB 2 movie, like catching the Scoleri Brothers or the finding Subway Ghost would have also been great.

So if anyone is making a game. There you go.