As one of the classic film franchises of the 1980s, Ghostbusters has been no stranger to plenty of video game adaptations over the nearly 40 years since the first movie premiered in theaters. From iconic retro games on the NES and SNES to more modern titles like Saber Interactive's Ghostbusters: The Video Game, Ghostbusters games have been a staple of the video game industry across multiple generations. Now, Friday the 13th developer IllFonic is putting its own spin on the franchise with Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed.
A new Ghostbusters game has been rumored for several months with IllFonic previously being linked to a potential upcoming game. Actor Ernie Hudson, known for playing the role of Winston Zeddemore, had previously announced his involvement in a new Ghostbusters game by IllFonic during Celebrity Fan Fest in December, and reports had linked the Friday the 13th developer as early as October of last year. Now, IllFonic has officially unveiled the new ghost-hunting adventure, an asymmetrical 4v1 multiplayer game that will feature Ghostbusters fans both capturing ghosts and taking on the role of ghosts themselves.
IllFonic officially revealed Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed Tuesday morning with a short trailer showing off the newest adventure facing the iconic ghost-hunting quartet. The game looks to play similarly to popular modern 4v1 games like IllFonic's Friday the 13th and Behaviour Interactive's Dead by Daylight with a team of four players taking on the roles of the Ghostbusters and hunting ghosts in a variety of different environments. Players will be equipped with all the tools they need to bust ghosts like P.K.E. meters, proton packs, and a variety of other tools in their arsenal.
In a first for the Ghostbusters franchise, Spirits Unleashed will take inspiration from its developer's previous games and allow players to play as some of the franchise's most iconic ghastly ghouls facing off against the team of Ghostbusters. The trailer showed off several ghosts from throughout the franchise for players to choose from, including the legendary Slimer, and showed ghosts being able to possess different objects around the map to wreak havoc on the ghost hunters. Each ghost also appears to have unique abilities to help give them an edge over opposing players.
The announcement of Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed comes off a revived interest in the series within the past few years as the franchise has seen not only new games but a brand-new movie as well. Saber Interactive recently remastered the classic 2009 Ghostbusters: The Video Game for modern consoles and 2021 saw the release of Ghostbusters: Afterlife in theaters acting as a proper sequel to Ghostbusters 2. Spirits Unleashed looks to take notes from its predecessors and seems set to bring a wholly new ghost-busting experience when it releases later this year.
Ghostbusters: Spirit Unleashed is scheduled to release in Q4 2022 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.