''Ghost Squad'' and ''Ghost Squad: Evolution'' are
light gun
A light gun is a pointing device for computers and a control device for arcade and video games, typically shaped to resemble a pistol.
Early history
The first light guns were produced in the 1930s, following the development of light-sensing ...
rail shooter
Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs
) are a sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of chara ...
arcade game
An arcade game or coin-op game is a coin-operated entertainment machine typically installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are presented as primarily games of skill and include arcade v ...
s developed and published by Sega. A home version of the original ''Ghost Squad'' was developed for
Nintendo
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
's
Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
game console
A video game console is an electronic device that outputs a video signal or image to display a video game that can be played with a game controller. These may be home consoles, which are generally placed in a permanent location connected to a t ...
.
[ A sequel, ''Operation GHOST'', was released in arcades in 2012.
]
''Ghost Squad'' (Arcade)
Sega released ''Ghost Squad'' for the arcade in 2004. ''Ghost Squad'' features a simulated IR light gun shaped similarly to the standard-issue weapon the game's protagonists use. This light gun is intended to function realistically: it features a working fire selector switch, a stock, force-feedback recoil, and iron sights
Iron sights are a system of physical alignment markers (usually made of metallic material) used as a sighting device to assist the accurate aiming of ranged weapons (such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow or even compound bow), or less commonly ...
. To ensure that the light gun fires accurately, a 20-second "calibration" mode is provided in which the game adjusts for any jostling or damage to the rifle's light-emitting components.
''Ghost Squad'' features different weapons, each with its firing and reload properties (i.e. long shot splash, long reload time) which affect its difficulty of use. ''Ghost Squad'' features three semi non-linear levels with adjustable difficulty and branching choices (dubbed "Tactical Decisions"), ranging from the jungle, a government-restricted villa, and inside an Air Force One
Air Force One is the official air traffic control designated call sign for a United States Air Force aircraft carrying the president of the United States. In common parlance, the term is used to denote U.S. Air Force aircraft modified and used ...
flight. There are many sub-activities in the game, such as defusing bombs and throwing grenades to disable armor, which are accomplished via the secondary "Action" trigger on the gun's foregrip
A vertical forward grip or foregrip is a vertical pistol grip mounted on the fore-end of a long-barrel firearm, designed for grasping by the frontal support hand (or "off hand").
Use
Forward grips aid in the maneuverability of the firearm, ...
.
Arcade version data features
The arcade version of ''Ghost Squad'' uses "IC Cards" to save the player's customized character data, score, and provide the player with experience points, new outfits, new weapons, and increased rank. The card is available for players to purchase at some arcades. The card allows the player a maximum of 100 games and sixteen levels of difficulty. After 100 games the card must be recharged by purchasing a new card. The game also utilizes an internet ranking system, that is accessed when using a password provided by the game.
Most ''Ghost Squad'' cabinets in the United States do not have card slots. However, players have immediate access to four costumes, four guns, and the first four mission levels.
''Ghost Squad: Evolution'' (arcade)
''Ghost Squad Evolution'' is the arcade follow-up to the original ''Ghost Squad''. It was developed and published by Sega and released in 2007.
In ''Ghost Squad: Evolution'' the player is a member of Alpha Unit, or members of the “Ghost Squad”, an unofficial unit of the anti-terrorist group, Multi-Operation-Program (M.O.P.). Non-playable characters
A non-player character (NPC), or non-playable character, is any character in a game that is not controlled by a player. The term originated in traditional tabletop role-playing games where it applies to characters controlled by the gamemaster o ...
include fellow M.O.P. members consisting of the Commander, who provides radio backup and pertinent advice to the player, along with the Bravo and Charlie Units who assist the player in suppressing the terrorist threat.[
The rifle can be set from single shot, to 3 burst shot to automatic fire as well as special effects to suit the situation such as Night Vision, Flash Light for the mounted gun, and Scope for the sniper rifle. The gun also features an action button which is used to pull off special moves like hand-to-hand combat, as well as recoil effects on every shot fired.]
Each mission contains multiple routes for the player to choose. Special events occur throughout the game depending on the route chosen, such as securing hostages, bomb removal, or providing friendly cover fire. The game is broken into 3 missions with 16 total difficulty levels. All 16 can be selected from the beginning. There are 14 costumes
available for character customization, however, the costumes have no effect on gameplay. There are 25 different weapons.[
]
''Ghost Squad'' (Wii)
Sega published the Polygon Magic developed Wii port of ''Ghost Squad'' in Japan on October 25, 2007, and in the U.S. on November 20, 2007. It uses the Wii Zapper
The Wii Zapper is a gun shell peripheral for the Wii Remote. The name is a reference to and successor of the NES Zapper light gun for the Nintendo Entertainment System. It is mainly used to enhance controls for shooter games, including light gun s ...
as a multi-purpose tool to allow players easy control of targeting enemies, defusing bombs, and detaining hostages.
''Ghost Squad'' takes advantage of the Wii Remote
The Wii Remote, also known colloquially as the Wiimote, is the primary game controller for Nintendo's Wii home video game console. An essential capability of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with ...
's pointer functionality, the nunchuk, and the Wii Zapper giving players controller flexibility. In addition, the game features a pointer calibration mode, enabling players to use line-of-sight aiming and fire precisely where the Wii Remote is pointed. The player has the option to turn off the on-screen pointer for more points.
Exclusive to the Wii
The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
conversion of the game are four-player support, and an online high score
In games, score refers to an abstract quantity associated with a player or team. Score is usually measured in the abstract unit of points (except in game shows, where scores often are instead measured in units of currency), and events in the ...
leaderboard via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection (WFC) was an online multiplayer gaming service run by Nintendo to provide free online play in compatible Nintendo DS and Wii games. The service included the company's Wii Shop Channel and DSi Shop game download ...
.
Reception
''Ghost Squad'' for the Wii received a metascore of 69 on Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
. ''IGN'' gave it a 7.5, remarking that "most of what made ''Ghost Squad'' fun in the arcades is still retained though, as there's a huge emphasis on weapon management and mid-level missions".
Writing in 2022 for ''Retro Gamer
''Retro Gamer'' is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Launched in January 2004 as a quarterly publication, ''Retro Gamer'' soon became ...
'' Ashley Day placed ''Ghost Squad'' in the top spot in his list of the Top 25 Light-Gun Games of all time, pointing to its branching-path levels, high score challenges and character progression as lending it a replayability unmatched in the genre.
See also
*'' The House of the Dead 2 & 3 Return''
References
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghost Squad (Arcade Game)
2007 video games
Arcade video games
Light gun games
Polygon Magic games
Rail shooters
Sega-AM2 games
Sega arcade games
Video games about terrorism
Wii Zapper games
Wii Wi-Fi games
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection games
Video games developed in Japan
Multiplayer and single-player video games