1990 · Namco · First-person shooter · Light gun shooter

Golly! Ghost!

Use your guns to shoot a specific amount of ghosts before time runs out. This is a video ticket/redemption game.

Released: 1990
Platforms: Arcade
Genres: First-person shooter Light gun shooter Shooter
Developers: Namco
Publishers: Namco
Modes: Multiplayer Single-player
Themes: Horror Comedy
Country: Japan

About

Golly! Ghost! is a 1991 light gun shooter arcade game developed and published by Namco.

Keywords

shoot 'em up
ghostbusting

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Golly! Ghost! is a light gun shooter video game. Its plot involves a group of scientists inventing an energy weapon named the "Zapper" to defeat a band of comical ghosts, who have taken over an abandoned Victorian era mansion in the Northeastern United States.

Players use the attached light guns, nicknamed "Zip" and "Zap", to shoot these ghosts in each of the game's levels, referred to in-game as "scenes". In these scenes, players are to score a specified number of points before the timer runs out. Each scene contains a bonus ghost that awards extra points when shot. These take the form of everyday objects, such as jackets, hamburgers, and footballs.

Development

Golly! Ghost! uses an electro-mechanical diorama of a house for its background, with movable parts powered by solenoids. These parts, which include a closet door, a chest, and a toilet seat, open and close based on the movements of the ghosts in the game. A mirror inside the machine reflects the game's graphics onto the background, creating the illusion that the characters are interacting directly with the diorama.

Golly! Ghost! was released in Japan in July 1991, running on the Namco System 2 arcade system board. In North America, it was demonstrated at that year's Amusement Machine Operator's Union (AMOU) tradeshow held in Las Vegas, presented alongside the 3D rail shooter Starblade. The game was released in Australia in October.

Reception

Golly! Ghost! 9% increase in revenue in Namco's arcade game division during the year. Game Machine commented on its creepy atmosphere and unique concept, believing that its electro-mechanical backdrop would make it stand out from other light gun shooters in arcades.

A writer for MegaZone shared his appreciation towards the game for keeping in line with Namco's line of high-quality light gun shooters. They were impressed with the game's mechanical diorama, commenting that "real targets pop up at you, which you must try to hit with your super responsive electro-gun... ". In a 2016 retrospective, Hardcore Gaming 101 writer Aaron Vark felt that Golly!