Luigi finally gets his moment in the spotlight and it's a fun 15 minutes of fame.
Luigi has won a mansion in a contest he didn't enter and Mario heads over to the location. Luigi then heads over to find the mansion haunted and Mario missing. Luigi meets a small person by the name of Professor E. Gadd who saves Luigi from the attacking ghosts. E. Gadd gives Luigi the ghost busting gear he created known as the Poltiergust 3000. He then sends Luigi into the mansion to suck up the boss ghosts that escaped and save his brother; Mario. It's nothing special and like most other Mario games it's not the focus. The focus here is the gameplay, therefore story will not factor into this review.
The gameplay here is basically what a Ghostbuster game should have been. You move from room to room in the mansion and capture any ghosts you find. You proceed throughout the mansion by using keys found in the rooms you clear or by using more special means; such as dousing flames blocking the door. To fight the ghosts, you point your flashlight at each ghost using the c-stick and, when they are stunned, sucking them up with the poltergeist 3000. You can turn the flashlight off by holding the B button and this will let you catch the trickier ghosts off-guard. The normal ghosts are no problem to capture but the Portrait Ghosts, special boss-like ghosts, prove bigger challenges. They each require their own patterns to exploit so they reveal their hearts. Once their hearts are visible they can be captured. Each area ends with a real boss fight, which all have their own special ways of being defeated.
That is all there is to the game and it's done really well. If there ever was a great Ghostbusters game, this would be it. The game controls well, once you get used to it, and there are plenty of secrets to discover. You are also ranked by how much money you have at the end of the game. Each room has a Boo hidden in it, after a certain point in the game anyway, and finding them all gives you a reward. Clearing each room is entertaining and fighting the portrait ghosts is fun. The fun factor outweighs the low challenge and short length. You won't be bored in Luigi's Mansion.
The audio is pretty limited. You'll mainly hear the same few melodies and sound effects. They aren't horrible by any means but they are in short supply. Despite the low amount, what's here is still really great.
The visuals are simply fantastic. The mansion is incredibly detailed and there are a variety of rooms to take in. Luigi looks great and the transparent look for the ghosts is great to see. The Boos have never looked better and neither has a Mario game. Though the reason it looks so great so early is that the game is so small. On the flip side, the room to room transitions are smooth and natural, no hanging load times to be found. The map and menus are brought into the game thanks to Luigi's GameBoo Horror, which is a Game Boy, and it's all neat. The game simply looks brilliant.
PROs:
- Bustin' ghosts is satisfyingly fun
- Mansion is large, varied and detailed
- Main melody is fantastic
- Visuals are the best Nintendo has ever seen
- Simple, but enjoyable
- Luigi is the star
CONs:
- Game is super short
- Lacking in variety
- Lacking in music
- Controls takes some getting used to
Overall, Luigi's Mansion is a fun little distraction. It was clearly meant to show the capabilities of the GameCube rather than to provide a lengthy, substantial game. It's short, well made, detailed and fun. It'll be hard to recommend paying full price for, but for those who open the door of the mansion, a fun Ghost hunting time awaits.
Story: N/A
Gameplay: 7.5/10
Audio: 7.5/10
Presentation: 9.0/10