Ghouls 'N Ghosts

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Description

Three years have passed since Arthur defeated the Demon King Astaroth and rescued his beloved Princess Prin-Prin (see Ghosts 'N Goblins). A new villain, the Great Demon King Lucifer (Loki in some versions) has become the new leader of Ghoul Realm. While returning from a journey, Arthur sees the Princess' castle and her village under attack by Lucifer's forces. While rushing towards her beloved knight, the Princess is struck by one of Lucifer's laser beams.

Now, Arthur must venture back to the Lucifer's palace and destroy the demon in order to rescue the Princess' soul and bring her back to life! And it won't matter whether he fights in his shining armor or in his underwear alone...the bravest Knight in the land isn't going to be stopped by some monsters! Although the game starts with graveyard and marsh territory familiar from the first game, later levels are set in a tower, a mass of skeletons, and a castle.

Players progress from left to right (from bottom to top in level 3), and have to hack down the aforementioned monsters with a sword. The journey includes ledges, ladders, lava pits and slippery slopes. Different weapons can be collected, by finding suits of armor inside chests. Each of the five stages has its own setting and a final boss.

In comparison to the first installment, gameplay was tweaked and some additions were made. Arthur can now fire vertically and is able to collect weaponry from fallen enemies. The landscape is littered with a number of treasure chests that erupt out of scenery, some of which are hidden and has to be found by way of a well-timed jump in a certain place. The treasure chest can be opened with projectiles resulting in one of three occurrences: the reward of a new weapon, some shiny new golden armour or a hostile wizard who turns the player into the old man or a duck. The golden armour gives Arthur a chargeable "super" attack which varied depending on the currently possessed weapon. These attacks range from a huge lightning bolt that cut a swathe both vertically and horizontally across the screen, to a spell that creates a mirror-like clone of Arthur, effectively doubling his attack power.

Screenshots

Promo Images

Alternate Titles

• "大魔界村" -- Japanese spelling
• "Ghouls 'N' Ghosts" -- European Commodore 64 / Amiga title
• "Daimakaimura" -- Japanese title

Part of the Following Groups

• Game Center CX challenge games
• Ghost 'N Goblins series

User Reviews

The original flagship of the Sega Genesis.	Genesis	Majestic Lizard (676)
This is one of my favorite games for the Genesis, let alone, my favorite game of the GNG series.	Genesis	Mavi Bacon (15)
An action packed challenge, even for a seasoned gamer. Great Stuff!	Genesis	aaron pridemore (11)
The greatest series just got better	Arcade	Katakis | カタキス (42838)

Critic Reviews

Complete Guide to Consoles	Genesis	Oct, 1989	98 out of 100	98
Computer and Video Games (CVG)	Genesis	Oct, 1989	96 out of 100	96
Retro Archives	Arcade	Jul 23, 2021	18 out of 20	90
Tilt	Genesis	Oct, 1990	18 out of 20	90
Computer and Video Games (CVG)	ZX Spectrum	Dec, 1989	85 out of 100	85
HonestGamers (Staff reviews only)	Genesis	Jun 07, 2018		80
Mean Machines	SEGA Master System	Apr, 1991	80 out of 100	80
Game Freaks 365	SEGA Master System	Sep 21, 2006	7.8 out of 10	78
ASM (Aktueller Software Markt)	SuperGrafx	Sep, 1990	9.4 out of 12	78
ASM (Aktueller Software Markt)	Commodore 64	Dec, 1989	5.4 out of 12	45

Forums

Topic	# Posts	Last Post
C64 Disk	5	Edwin Drost (4229) Mar 31, 2017

Trivia

1001 Video Games

The Arcade version of Ghouls 'n Ghosts appears in the book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die by General Editor Tony Mott.

Development

Ghouls 'N Ghosts was the second game, after Forgotten Worlds, which used the new Capcom Play System-1 (CPS1) board in 1988. The superior performance both graphically and sonically offered by the board was apparent and was considered as an improvement on the original.

Awards

• Electronic Gaming Monthly
  • November 1989 (Issue 4) - Game of the Month (Genesis version)
  • December 1989 (Issue 5) - Best Genesis Game of the Year
  • December 1989 (Issue 5) - Best Graphics in a Video Game (Genesis version)
  • December 1989 (Issue 5) - Best Sequel to an Existing Game (tied with Mega Man 2)
  • December 1989 (Issue 5) - Coolest Boss Attackers (tied with The Legendary Axe)
  • December 1989 (Issue 5) - Worst Stomach Problem in a Game (for projectile vomiting animation)
• Game Informer
  • August 2001 (Issue #100) - #67 in the "Top 100 Games of All Time" poll

Related Web Sites

• Game Map (Sega Master System) ()