Ghost 1.0

Genre: Metroidvania / Two-Stick Shooter

Players: 1

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Review:

Ghost 1.0 is a Metroidvania with Two-Stick Shooter elements. There’s also an optional Roguelike mode for those wanting a challenge. Originally released on PC in 2016, this game was gradually ported to other platforms, with the Nintendo Switch getting a version of the game in 2018. In this game, players take the role of an android mercenary infiltrating a tech company to try to extract some code on one of its computers, in the process fighting off (and frequently taking over) an army of enemy androids on the way to doing so.

The presentation here is good, albeit with one major caveat. The game uses 2D artwork for its characters, backgrounds, and cutscene art, and all of these work well enough for the game… except for the fact that the game’s corridors all look so very samey, and this not only makes exploring the game’s world pretty boring, it also makes it hard to navigate the Metroidvania-esque map.

When it comes to gameplay, there’s a lot this game gets right, and a few things it does poorly. On the one hand, your character has some interesting abilities. Specifically, being a digital lifeform, she can hop into or out of enemies, leaving her main body behind (and vulnerable). This makes for some good gameplay variety, as well as providing a nice puzzle-solving element. And overall, the combination of Metroidvania-style level design and Two-Stick Shooter-style action works really well.

However, this game is filled with annoyances that don’t work so well within these genres. Most locations are narrow corridors, which doesn’t really work well when trying to jump around and dodge enemy fire (and also adds to the boring sameyness of the game’s overall level design). In addition, your default weapon recharges so slowly that it adds a frustrating element to combat, rather than a strategic one. Also, as a Metroidvania, this is a pretty poor use of the genre, as you’re not usually given much freedom to explore, and there’s usually only a few branching paths you can take to move forward.

Still, when Ghost 1.0 works well, it brings some fun and refreshing ideas to the Metroidvania genre, and it’s fun to move around and use the game’s unique mechanics to jack into enemies to tear a group of them apart from within. If the level design weren’t so bland and poorly-suited to Metroidvanias, I’d probably be a lot more enthusiastic about this game, but as-is it’s a decent but flawed entry in the genre, and fans of Metroidvanias may want to give it a try despite its flaws.

tl;dr – Ghost 1.0 is a Metroidvania that has players invading a tech company as an android capable of possessing enemies. The core gameplay here is fun, and the game has some unique mechanics that are an interesting take on the genre, but the level design is boring, samey, and not conducive to a Metroidvania. It’s a flawed entry in the genre, but Metroidvania fans may still want to give it a look.

Grade: C+

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