Ultimate Ghosts 'N Goblins [PSP]

Horror-themed medieval platformer Ghosts 'n Goblins dates back to the mid-'80s, and is celebrated for its natty boxer-sporting hero named Arthur and its stiff difficulty level. It shares the same legacy as classics like Battletoads or Contra, was released on just about every platform under the sun, and now makes its way to the PSP courtesy of Capcom and original designer Tokuro Fujiwara. This "Ultimate" sequel makes no compromises for modern tastes, and delivers retro-styled, uncompromising gameplay that's as tough as Arthur's pointy lances.

Sure, Capcom does add plenty of new content. The slick, partly 3D graphics engine is the most obvious, but there's plenty more beneath the surface. Like the way the game's star can hang from the edges of platforms or can carry a shield for limited protection. New weapons and pickups also feature, but there's no doubt much of the game will be familiar to old-school Ghosts 'n Goblins fans, right down to Arthur's red-and-white spotty underpants.

One of the things that'll particularly strike you as familiar -- if you play old-school platformers, that is -- is the way you can't control the path of your jump. In UGnG, once you hit the button, you'll fly in an inexorable and predetermined arc until you hit your landing spot. If a baddie pops out of nowhere in your way, that's just too bad for you, pal.

Those of you with longer memories may be nodding fondly at that description, recalling the era of classic platform games when everything worked that way. Nowadays, though, our expectations are different, and we're accustomed to tighter control from our platformers, and that's not the only area where gamers with modern preconceptions will feel frustrated.

To be fair, UGnG does offer three difficulty levels. Each has obviously been given considerable attention, because rather than just giving Arthur a couple of extra life bubbles or losing some bad guys, the easier levels actually change a number of key gameplay concepts. In other words, the novice level is just as much of a balanced, carefully designed game as the expert setting. It's also pretty tough in its own right.

Talking of careful design, UGnG's levels fiendish, cunning, and varied. Really, the only criticism we can level at them is that from time to time they seem to delight in tempting the player into unwise maneuvers. It's sometimes hard to shake the mental image of a bespectacled level designer cackling as he gleefully lays down another combination of platforms and pickups that'll be sure to ensnare the unwary, and it's not so much that it's unfair, more that sometimes the level design seems to be smarter than you are.

Giving UGnG a concise, one-size-fits-all rating is really impossible. Its uncompromising design could be perceived as lazy and frustrating or inspired, bold, and nostalgic, depending on your point of view. Since PSPs cost more than the old Nintendo gamepads, it'd be a shame to throw yours against the wall. For this reason, the easily frustrated should steer well clear of Ultimate Ghosts 'n Goblins. But those with the patience born of ploughing through countless classic platform games will love it. It's true to the spirit and style of the classic original, losing nothing in its 20-year leap to the present, and gaining plenty. This is how classic games ought to be updated.