If you asked today's gamers which, in their opinion, is the most difficult genre, they would surely answer soulslike. Yet, those who grew up in the '80s and' 90s know well that the hours spent in the arcades in front of the cabinets reserved some sometimes insurmountable videogame obstacles, which only so much sweat and an avalanche of tokens could help to overcome. Among the most difficult titles that you could have faced in those years there was certainly Ghosts' n Goblins… IS among the most difficult titles that you will find yourself playing in this 2021, there is certainly Ghosts' n Goblins Resurrection.
The exhumation of Sir Arthur on Nintendo Switch targata Capcom in fact, she succeeded perfectly in to reincarnate all the difficulty and satisfaction that many players experienced years ago, however, trying to meet even those who gods run and gun has never heard of, or to anyone who believes that losing a few souls is really the end of the world. The epic of our knight in search of his beauty will again be studded with seemingly invincible enemies, who will literally leave you in your underwear more than once. Fortunately, Capcom has chosen not to leave you in the corner and ask yourself if you have ever really been able to play a video game, and has introduced a whole series of facilities which, perhaps, will help you save your kingdom. But mind you, these won't save you from a structured level design only to be surpassed by one coordination to the millimeter and by many attempts. Polish your spear then, and get ready to rediscover a classic of the genre that is back to shine (and to be cursed) more than ever.
Conquer the flag
The first difference between a Ghosts' n Goblins Resurrection player on Switch and one who has played his first incarnation on a cabinet, is that the former will not have to open a mortgage in 500 lire coins. The second is that the latter will be able to abandon the idea of saving the princess as a legend, and to do it more sadly as a page. The first novelty of the title, in fact, in addition to the graphics that immediately catches the eye from the splendid opening video, is that Resurrection offers 4 levels of difficulty: Legend, Knight, Squire and, indeed, Page. Capcom must have worked hard to find the perfect formula that would not distort the soul of GnG, but still manage to make it accessible to a wider audience, and having created different levels of difficulty proved to be the best solution.
Legend is the level that the main screen will offer us by default. The title will openly declare it to us right away: I'm a tough game, and this is the real challenge I want to offer you. However, if you are a player approaching the brand for the first time, you can take your time, learn the mechanics, and then come back here to try again. In fact, Ghosts' n Goblins Resurrection presents us with one total scalability of the gaming experience, while going down in difficulty you acquire a whole series of bonuses that will facilitate the adventure. Arthur will lose his armor progressively, and no longer on the first hit, thus being able to withstand more hits before succumbing. Not only that, even the number of enemies on the screen will be lower, and we will also be able, at the lowest difficulty, to slow down their movements thanks to the function enchanted metronome. At a lower level, then, the game will also grant us infinite lives, allowing us to respawn directly from where the demons turned us into a pile of bones.
What if you die on higher difficulty? Capcom has also thought about this. Unlike the progenitor, in fact, checkpoints have definitely increased. At each section of a level, we can in fact reach and raise a Banner, flag that once conquered will act as a resurrection point for our Arthur, also giving us a reset of the 7 minutes within which we will have to be able to complete the level, and keeping armor, weapons, and spells conquered. Don't make the mistake, however, of thinking that this whole series of bonuses will make your journey smooth. The platforming sections must be studied to the millimeter, the enemies will remain a thorn in the side, and in any case it will take you a good number of tries before discovering the best strategy to face the bosses. A page's life is harder than you think.
An adventure more alive than ever
Ghosts' n Goblins Resurrection returns as we have come to love it: a horizontal scrolling run and gun, with very challenging platform sections. Purpose of the game? Help the hapless Sir Arthur save his beloved princess kidnapped by evil demons. To do this, our hero will have everything at his disposal a number of unique weapons, most of them throwing, like the knives, the crossbow and the iconic spear, but also blunt ones like the hammer. Not only that, this new reincarnation will allow our knight to also count on arespectable magical arsenal. In each level, in fact, we will be able to collect fairy fireflies, "Expendable" in a special menu - the Fairy Tree - to buy upgrades for Arthur's "magic knickers". During the game, you scroll through the available spells with the back buttons and activate the magic by holding down the attack button: however, a certain charge time is required, during which you can move but you are exposed to the enemy, so it is necessary to understand when to use these powers.
Each area of the game will feature two levels, which can be tackled in any order you prefer and each level can be accessed from the map at any time. All this, combined with the collectibles and the different levels of challenge, will contribute to increase the replayability of the title, especially for completists. You can then save multiple game profiles, linked to various difficulty levels, so as to decide to tackle different sections at different difficulties: in fact, each profile keeps its progress and you can start from the last Banner unlocked in each level.
A welcome feature was the introduction of the local co-op mode: the second player can in fact choose to impersonate one of three different floating spirits that will serve as support, each with a different spell. If they are hit, you will have to wait a few seconds before you can get them back into the game. One more gameplay variation, which could make things a lot easier against bosses steering wheels and in some particularly difficult sections.
Can Ghosts' n Goblins Resurrection survive the future?
Technically speaking, Capcom's work is commendable. Although this is not the first revival of Ghosts' n Goblins, in fact, the Re Engine does its duty, with a graphic detail that puts one on stage fairytale style illustrated dark fantasy really pleasing to the eye, which perfectly accompanies the mood and the ever-changing artistic direction of the areas we will face. The same goes for the audio sector, with the classical music from the series rearranged to perfection.
Ghosts' n Goblins Resurrection is a remake with all the trimmings. The work done by Capcom was painstaking and done with the heart, keeping faith with the origins of the series, with an eye, however, aimed at the future and today's players. The challenge level, the real flagship of all GnG, has remained unchanged, and the various difficulty levels offered accompany any type of player in this adventure, while never making anything too simple. Rather. It will therefore be necessary to see if this high challenge rate, sometimes frustrating, combined with a not excellent longevity, cannot keep younger or less patient users away: it would be a real shame, because they would lose one of the coolest new past experiences Nintendo Switch has to offer.
