In this case, the sheer skill and advancement of the Ghostrunner is conveyed superbly with the dynamic movement and destructive abilities, something I prefer heavily to an alternative like including cutscenes or dozens of audio logs to achieve a similar result.
“Show, don’t tell” is an enduring storytelling lesson for good reason and in video games, I have always felt the gameplay is the main method with which developers should deliver the messages at the heart of their vision. It must be said that the barebones story isn’t a game-breaking negative for me personally. I was underwhelmed by the ending, something I can’t discuss in detail for obvious reasons but a more impressive one could have salvaged a few extra points for the story, which is not the case here. The rare highlights come from some exploration of the Ghostrunner’s true nature and backstory in the late game as well as the character Zoe, who proves to be a likeable presence throughout the narrative. The characters, with the exception of the protagonist, are pretty one-dimensional the Keymaster is especially uncompelling and lacks depth, contributing to their middling impact as the main antagonist. It’s standard uprising fare, the protagonist fights for the downtrodden everyman and a rebellion, rising up against the tyranny of those at the top of the cruel world who have taken too much for themselves and left little for those at the bottom. After being woken by a voice named the ‘Whisper’, the Ghostrunner is given the job of scaling the Tower, whilst defeating the guards known as ‘keys’ and ultimately their leader, the Keymaster.
Ghostrunner genres free#
The combination of the brisk free running with these slick abilities gives the gameplay a unique flavour and can make for some super satisfying moments, particularly when you replay levels and are able to rip through them with ease, with the prior knowledge of enemy positions and optimal routes to clean house.
Ghostrunner genres upgrade#
The upgrade system is similarly dynamic, allowing the player to compound improvements onto their preferred abilities whilst ignoring the others, and being simple and non-intrusive enough that the focus remains on the action and not in the menus. Granted these abilities are on cooldown but their immense power means they are always worth the wait and are a useful crutch in the heat of battle. I abused the hell out of Blink, an ability that allows you to warp toward and instantly kill enemies. The unlockable abilities are incredibly useful and as the game rarely forces you to use a particular one, the player is encouraged to use the ones that fit with their specific playstyle. This was especially the case in the first seven of the seventeen stages, where I was hoping for slightly more variety with the enemies and environments. In some ways, the gameplay loop is so enjoyable that even when the areas themselves started to become a little repetitive, as long as the free running and sensory abilities were available, I still had a great time stylishly dispatching enemies and moving forward through the main game. These varying routes are a definite highlight of the stage design and it was quite rewarding to see my efforts in finding faster and more convenient ways to clear levels pay off. This rewards experimentation with different routes and strategies to clear a room, something the player is more enticed to do knowing they won’t be harshly punished if they make a mistake. Levels contain numerous checkpoints so death is not a big deal. When the game is at its best, you are sprinting through a beautiful neo-noir inspired city, leaping from wall to wall, swiftly slowing time to a crawl to evade a guard’s attack and then promptly sending them to paradise, or wherever they go when chopped in half by a katana. It’s a fun twist, aided by the responsiveness and rapid pace of the wall running and movement in general, as well as the Sensory Boost ability which allows you to slow down time whilst you dodge bullets and adjust your jumps in mid-air. By de-emphasising the combat itself, more importance is placed on traversing the environment to outmanoeuvre the enemy’s attacks whilst closing the distance to them. It’s a platformer first and foremost but the action itself remains exciting due to two reasons: most enemies die from a slash of your sword and ALL enemies kill you in one hit. Ghostrunner’s blend of free-running and action is refreshing because the latter is incorporated into the former.