Developer: Natsume Publisher: Banalex Release: 09/23/93 Genre: Action
In my early days of emulation it was not uncommon to scroll through a list of roms and try random games just because the name sounded interesting. Sometimes I would find a cool hidden gem like Sugoro Quest. Other times it led to a complete waste of time like Granzort. Ghost Sweeper Mikami is a title I overlooked time and time again. But had I known a. that it was made by Natsume and b. it was similar to Valis I would have gotten around to it sooner. Natsume rarely missed during the 8 and 16-bit era and Ghost Sweeper Mikami is another notch in their belt.
Ghost Sweeper Mikami is based off the long running manga of the same name. In the future Japan is suffering due to overcrowding which leaves ghosts and spirits with nowhere to go. To combat this ghost sweeping becomes a new profession. For a price they will exorcise any ghost and the Mikami Ghost Company is among the best. In the game Mikami exorcises ghosts and collects seven gems that will supposedly grant any wish to whoever completes the set. Mikami is not doing this for altruistic reasons however; she is in it for money!
I made the comparison to Valis for a reason as Ghost Sweeper Mikami is like a light hearted version of that series with tighter gameplay. Mikami has two attacks with her staff, a straightforward swipe and an overhead bash. Throughout your adventure you can pick up different elemental powers for the staff. Ice fires a double shot of ice shards. Lightning is a straightforward piercing attack while wind creates a wave of force. These attacks are powerful but you lose them after a single hit. In a pinch you can activate magic which will suck all enemies and projectiles into a vortex and freeze time for a few seconds. Magic is limited but the game is very generous at providing more.
To be fair the level design is for the most part straightforward. Occasionally there is more than one path that sometimes have more items or less enemies but that is slight. What makes Ghost Sweeper Mikami so enjoyable are the nutty situations and set pieces. In stage three Mikami is shrunken down and led on a mad cap chase through the city on the back of a cat. The construction site is full of equipment that has taken on a life of its own. Normally a haunted house is full of zombies and ghosts. Make no mistake they are present but also joined by walking hands and living dolls. The second auto scrolling level is a magical broom ride above the city. Because Mikami only has her staff the focus is on melee and presents more of a challenge than you would expect.
To an extent while the game is very enjoyable it does show that it has missed potential. Because of its length you only get a taste of its more unique mechanics which are not utilized fully and its bosses. Hanging from platforms and swinging upward is only sees slight use for most of the game. But it becomes the focus in the last stage. The boss battles are highly enjoyable with their easy to learn, hard to master patterns. I applaud the game for its excellent pacing and knowing when to move on and not overstay its welcome. But I wish there were more.
That is the only thing stopping Ghost Sweeper Mikami from true greatness, its ease and length. Despite spanning seven “reports” they fly by briskly. I would have loved to see a few more stages that use the game’s more interesting mechanics like the platform creation and swinging of the last stage. Hell I even liked the auto scrolling levels too. But part of the reason the game flies by is its easy difficulty. Nearly all enemies die in one or two hits. The game is a little too generous with life restoring cake as the action rarely gets hectic. The bosses can be tricky but their patterns are easy to spot. It isn’t until the end of the game that it picks up a little. If GSM were longer and more challenging it would be almost perfect.
In Closing
Ghost Sweeper Mikami is a solid game bordering on greatness. While I wish it were longer don’t let that stop you from playing this awesome game. The game is so good I am now interested in the series it is based on. The fact that you can play it with no knowledge of its license speaks to its quality. This is another in a long line of awesome import gems for the Super Famicom worth your time.
