Score: 78
Overall User Average: 7.86 / 10 (77.5%)
Gameplay User Average: 7.57 / 10
Graphics User Average: 8.14 / 10
Sound User Average: 7.43 / 10
JediMasterChief
Date reviewed: August 26, 2005.
Overall: Grabbed by the Ghoulies was Rare?s first game on the Xbox. It?s an enjoyable (and, in my opinion, somewhat under-rated) adventure game. You take on the role of Cooper who must go into Ghoulhaven Hall and find his girlfriend, Amber. You play through a number of chapters, fighting off all sorts of ?things? (zombies, skeletons, etc.) and doing other stuff through a number of rooms. The storyline is imaginative. The game is not one of the better Xbox games around, however, it is definitely an ideal game for Halloween and for younger gamers.
Gameplay: As mentioned before, the game is split into chapters. In each chapter, you progress through a number of rooms. Your enemies (the ?Ghoulies?) become more difficult as you proceed through the game. You have several weapons at your disposal (both permanent - like a water gun - and temporary - like a chair). Gameplay is quite simple in its nature and Grabbed by the Ghoulies has a very easy learning curve. Overall, the game flows well and is very creative. Some more depth in gameplay, and maybe even some multiplayer, would have been nice though. The controls were OK, but rather odd. The camera angles tended to be an annoyance, however.
Graphics: The visuals are good, but nothing too spectacular. The characters, Ghoulies, and the environments are look nice. Most importantly, the visual element of the game manages to capture that particular Halloween mood - especially of those 50s/60s horror films. More work could have been put into the visuals, nevertheless, they are sufficient enough for this type of game. Some parts of the cut-scenes were done in first-person and it would have been great if the game enabled a gamer to switch between a first- and third-person perspective.
Sound: The sound has been done well too. The general audio element also contributes to that ?mood? extensively, in particular, the sound effects used. The music is also effective. The tune sung by the Ghoulies (when the game disc is inserted) is pretty funky. The biggest disappointment, however, would probably be the inadequate voice-over work.
Suggestions: If a sequel is developed for Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Rare/Microsoft should try to market it better. Rare should definitely try to improve gameplay. The story is OK, but the game design needs more depth. Some multiplayer wouldn?t hurt either. The visuals and sound, although sufficient, should be worked on too.
Overall: 90 %
Gameplay: 90 %
Graphics: 90 %
Sound: 90 %
SamSmith
Date reviewed: September 24, 2004.
Overall: a good game, that suffers from slight repetativeness and lack of replay value. but a decent outing for rares 1st xbox game... could have done more though
Gameplay: gameplay is great, and very intuitive... easy to pick up ad play.. and the combat system is great... gameplay is just let down by a lack of originality and replay value.
Graphics: lovelly cell shaded visuals, are now almost a trademark for rare games. visual quality is among the finest on xbox
Sound: sound is prety good, and music captures the spooky, but humourous aspect of this game. a decent sounding game
Suggestions: be more adventuous in future games... you played it safe for your 1st xbox game
Overall: 70 %
Gameplay: 70 %
Graphics: 80 %
Sound: 70 %
Ragnarok
Date reviewed: July 23, 2004.
Overall: Grabbed by the ghoulies is a really good game. It seems to never end, whitch make it even more exciting. plus another little thing that makes it cooler is that after you beat the game you can go on another quest to find all the rare books to unlock all the bonus challanges
Gameplay: gameplay is good. you get a amout of unlimited live so you dont see a GAME OVER on the sceen. but note: you will be rated on the game so dont die to frequently.
Graphics: its visuals are amazing. som are really breath-taking. some of the ghoulies are really creepy looking.
Sound: sound and music are great. i like the music. its a good game so it will have good sounds and effects.
Overall: 80 %
Gameplay: 60 %
Graphics: 60 %
Sound: 80 %
m4oH
Date reviewed: March 2, 2004.
Overall: This game is intended for a younger audience. I played the demo of it on the official Xbox magazine's demo disc. The graphics are nice but I'd put it under the "kiddie" game section.
Gameplay: The levels are pretty cool. I like how you can split all the bones on the skeletons.Also a lot of the stuff in the levels are destructable which makes it a little bit better.
Graphics: Good graphics overall! I love how the levels look and everything looks realistic when you destruct it. Again I would definently say that I would rate this under the "kiddie" section.
Sound: Ummm. The bones on the skeletons sound cool when they are broken?! But that is just about the only cool sound.
Overall: 40 %
Gameplay: 50 %
Graphics: 80 %
Sound: 50 %
mileskr
Date reviewed: February 16, 2004.
Overall: Ok I see some people missed the point and don't like it. They missed the point..yes it is easy and childish...that's the freaking appeal...for the ENTIRE family. We have a hoot playing it from my 4 year old daughter to my wife. Awesome game that did exactly what it set out to do.
Gameplay: I won't bother describing what everyone else already so I'll tell you this....the game starts very easy (VERY) and progresses to being very difficult. There are many min-games and challenges. I love the control squeme...it's so easy!
Graphics: I really like the look of the game. It's funny. I love breaking stuff for the sake of breaking stuff. I think it looks real smooth and cartoony...my favorite!
Sound: I like the sound it's creepy and eerie. Sounds great on my surround system. Can't wait to get a digital connection and have it really boom.
Suggestions: Welcome RARE. Please make another "family" game
Overall: 100 %
Gameplay: 80 %
Graphics: 80 %
Sound: 80 %
asammw
Date reviewed: December 4, 2003.
Overall: This is probably one of the most underrated games on xbox. The game is fun, challenging, funny and... Well, fun. The debut of Rare onto Xbox has been a rough one according to most reviews, but give it a chance, its the best adventure/platformer on xbox.
Gameplay: You take the role of Cooper, whos girlfreind is snatched during a storm and dragged into a huge mansion. The game proceeds, told like a story book, with each event making up one page in the story. The animations here are often humorous, so pay attention. The game has to be one of the most fun games i've ever played. Each room presents its own challenge by placing a set of perameters for your actions in that room before proceding to the next. Mainly, this entails some of the most satisfactory combat EVER. Quite simply, either with fists or weapons, your job is to smash the living day lights out of all manner of Ghoulies, that you'll encounter throughout the game. The weapons range from chairs or bottles, to snooker cues and even hamburgers. There are tonnes of thing that can be picked up in any room. If a challenge is failed the player must face the Grim-Reaper, a Ghoulie who can kill with a single touch, so watch out!
Graphics: The game is presented in a cartoony cell-shaded style. Although that doesnt sound appealing, it suits the game very well, and just because its cartoony, it isn't devoid of detail. The rooms are almost entirely destructive, and the rubble stays on the floor rather than immeadiately dissapearing. Wet floors and puddles give excellent reflections, and the games use of lightning is atmospheric at all times. The character animations, and the enemies are excellent, with flowing movements and animation. Don't be put of by first perceptions the game looks good, take the time to find the details.
Sound: The sound in the game is not the best as it goes for music, but the sound effects ARE good. Some may be dissapointed that the game lacks voice overs, but I would rather have no voice acting, than bad voice acting. However cooper and the other characters do have their own grunts and sonds in the same style as previous Rare games such as Banjo-Kazooie.
Suggestions: The fun to be had by replaying chapters is great, if Rares future efforts on Xbox are this good, they'll be doing well!
Overall: 90 %
Gameplay: 90 %
Graphics: 90 %
Sound: 90 %
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