Is Ghostbusters: The Video Game Canon? FROZEN EMPIRE UPDATE
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In 2009, Ghostbusters: The Video Game reunited the original four Ghostbusters and created a canonical third story which continued their legacy. Then in 2021, a third film, Ghostbusters: Afterlife debuted, leaving questions as to whether the video game can still be considered canon. 2024's Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, both gives more evidence to its place in the timeline but also complicates it.
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If the video game is still canon, then Gozer’s actions toward Ivo Shandor in Afterlife suddenly gain a lot more context.
@mineimusprime7004
25 күн бұрын
The other context is just she doesn’t care for shandor but the Video Game one is more interesting
@MyFootballManagerSeasonsnStuff
24 күн бұрын
Exactly
@Keepit10011
11 күн бұрын
Seems a real shame to take all that hard work and throw it down the toilet like that but that's humans for ya
I still believe GB: VG is cannon
@slickmanfonzthatanti-troll
27 күн бұрын
Same
@nightwingkid_1018
27 күн бұрын
Same
@danielweak7641
27 күн бұрын
I will always believe the VG to be cannon since it was in my heart it's the 3rd movie
@notjexital4801
27 күн бұрын
True believer
@youknow9092
27 күн бұрын
Well Ghost Corps representatives have said its not.
If Dan Aykroyd says it's canon, then it's canon.
@NohjAnec
21 күн бұрын
He said it was canon a long time before Afterlife ever came out. At that point he wasn't sure that there would ever be a third GB movie. I really don't think it's canon anymore.
It makes sense that the video game is still canon though.
@NordicDan
27 күн бұрын
As much as I enjoyed Afterlife and even Frozen Empire, I would still much prefer the video game to be canon if I had to choose between that and the two new movies. It just worked so incredibly well.
I'd really like it to remain canon because it's the last time Harold ramis portrayed Egon
@TheRealGhostbuster5
24 күн бұрын
I would to but…. Since they literally filmed half of afterlife in 2019 it might be a choise of all of them.
Not having the video game as part of canon is kind of disrespectful at this point.
It kind of makes sense why the librarian and slimer are out of the containment unit at the end of Ghostbusters, the video game it exploded again
Harold Ramis being present will always make this game canon to me. We got so many good extra Egon lines we’d have never gotten without the game.
@AustynSN
24 күн бұрын
Strangely, my 3 favorite Egon lines are all from non-canon material. "We eat gods for breakfast" (Ghostbusters VG) "Wow! This place brings back memories. You know, Ray and I got kicked out of here back in 1982 for trying to reanimate the dead." (Extreme Ghostbusters) "We don't steal, your honor, If we needed nerve gas, we'd make it ourselves." (Lost version of mayor's office scene from original film)
@rickyhyppa7960
23 күн бұрын
Ray: "we gave this building a bill of cleaning 5 years ago?" Egon: "New people die everyday, Ray"
Ghostbusters The Video Game is still the best sequel to the original 2 films. It’ll ALWAYS be canon to me.
The Video Game was the last time we got the whole crew together. As well as being penned by both Aykroyd and Ramis, and the incredible level of talent and passion that went into it, yeah, TVG is the third Ghostbusters movie.
Dan akroyd decides canon to me
I think Phoebe saying "It happened 20 years before we were born" isn't a point against the video game being canon bcus she was probably talking about the video of the Gozer incident that they were watching which was 25 years before Phoebe and Podcast were born
There is nothing presented in the newer films that contradict the game’s story in any way. The game is still absolutely part 3 of the overall story.
Ghostbusters: The Video Game is the third Ghostbusters film.
The video game is canon. Too many callbacks to say it's not.
@sharpie3811
14 күн бұрын
What do you mean?
I still treat the video game as cannon. It just makes sense for it to be. And there are ways you can look at all the discrepancies that make sense for cannon. For example: Gozer being in its traveler form instead of Stay-puft could be because of how it manifested in Afterlife. In AL it climbed out of a portal instead of popping into existence like in TVG. And the Mini-Pufts could be explained as residual waves of that destructor form being dispersed so that it doesn't have to have a destructor form. In a roundabout way it satisfies the "one destructor form, per-god, per-dimension" rule. Also the news sighting GB2 and the Statue of Liberty as the last time the Ghostbusters caused a large amount of damage could be explained as the damage caused to the streats, the museum, the cop car, the building where the statue fell, and even the statue itself. Hell the only way they could've moved the statue back is by disassembling it, shipping it back, repairing the base, and reassembling it. All of that was something the Ghostbusters directly caused. Gozers appearances, and Central Park turning into a graveyard weren't the fault of the Ghostbusters directly.
Really the only way we can get confirmation if the game is still canon is to simply Ask Dan Ackroyd.
@b.lloydreese2030
25 күн бұрын
Get him on an interview on this channel
So stoked to see Channeling Spirits with new videos! Keep up the fantastic work!
I mean Ivo Shandor was in Afterlife and he played a significant role in the game. If that doesn’t make the game canon, I don’t know what will.
I believe the best video-game tie-in doesn't make too much of a change that couldn't fit into a possible sequel, in such a way it could plausibly be canon. At least, it should still be a fun experience without sacrificing too much to make it work. I believe the Ghostbusters Video-game fits fairly nicely, if there are a few strands loose, it isn't anything too bad. The first sequel was undetermined if it was still canon till Frozen Empire, so maybe the next film will confirm the Video-game as canon?
I hope the video game is still canon
I've missed you guys so much. So glad you're back, and on exactly the topics I'd been hoping you'd do vids on. Loved the previous (timeline) one, and that got me thinking about this topic. DARN! I don't wanna wait six more hours!!! Just kidding. Well, I don't, but I'll live with it.
Im still on the fence that just by removing Gozer and the Mandala from the equation, TVG still works perfectly into AL given the established timeline spoken to the side and the time gap letting things not overlap.
I think they’re leaving the video games canonicity open to interpretation on purpose for all the reasons you mentioned. So they can reference it as a nice call back and avoid having to retcon things if they decide to go with a different story. Also my goodness the game still holds up amazingly!
In my opinion (as a new fan btw). Looking at Akroyd's' statement, and the connections explained in this (and other) videos. I believe that the timeline is as follows: Ghostbusters 1, 2, The Video game, Afterlife and Frozen Empire. The real Ghostbusters (tv show) and 2016 are not canon, or even connected in 2016's case.
WHO YA GONNA CALL?
@scottkehoe9514
27 күн бұрын
He-Man
Alot of those feel a little too on the nose to not be direct references. Sure shandor's design is coincidental, but the reference to the library differences for example seem like a pretty clear allusion.
One major problem: in the video game, you find Ivo's skull. In Afterlife, his body is perfectly preserved.
@snowthelegowolf4230
25 күн бұрын
He could have gotten another one.
@b.lloydreese2030
25 күн бұрын
Yeah, thats a big detail. Tho some say that body in the mine was an ecto construct since there was no blood. I say having it be a homonculus makes sense
@WraithTDK
25 күн бұрын
@@b.lloydreese2030 maybe. But that just feels like stretching for a way to MAKE it fit, instead of it actually being means to fit. And between Shandor and Gozer, you have to do far too much of that in order to make everything fit. Especially if you're going to work on the comics, as well. Personally, I loved afterlife dearly, but my favorite timeline still remains Movie>GB2>Game>IDW comic. The comic even setup the GB multiverse, so I just look at the game, the new movies and even RGB as all being canon....just not in the same timeline.
It can still fit as it is so close to GB2 it still fits into that 30 time gap
Such great videos! I absolutely love this channel!!
Thing is Gozer doesnt assume a distructor form in Afterlife just Travaler form. The distructor form lock may still hold true
@jimsy3342
27 күн бұрын
But didn't the Keymaster in GB1 mentionned that Gozer took different forms by the past ? Ray's theory kind of doesn't work because of that. Personally I think Gozer came back as Stay Puft in the video game because it was the most recent form it had taken and also as mentioned in the game, Gozer was weaker so that's probably another reason why.
@Spazy912
27 күн бұрын
@@jimsy3342Gozer did take more destructor forms, in other dimensions
What about the movie Casper, is that cannon? It has a brief cameo by Ray Stantz.
@Spazy912
27 күн бұрын
Yes they said it was
@ThomasAndSkye
26 күн бұрын
I highly doubt that was canon. the timeline, the location, and how out of character Ray was, definitely couldn't be and shouldn't be canon
I still consider the game cannon. Now that we have a look inside the pack, some of the mechanics are altered but I still think the events are all there
I've always liked the idea of the GB Videogame being canon, so I'm inclined to go with your thoughts on this. Sadly as much as I love the IDW books, those can't really be canon to the films as there's too much happening after the videogame to line up with what people were saying in Afterlife. A thought I had when you were talking about Shandor moving operations. Maybe he abandoned NY because something else took control of his slime operation. We don't know when Vigo's portrait came to NY, other than it had been in storage. Maybe it arrived during that time, and Vigo latched onto the slime for his own power, thus weakening it for it's intended purpose. By the time we get to the videogame, Vigo is seemingly weakened and trapped inside his painting with no extraordinary abilities outside of talking and sass.
I havent gotten a notification for this channel in for ever
So is Ghostbusters: The Video Game basically the Schrodinger's Cat of the Ghostbusters franchise where it's both canon and non-canon at the same time?
I consider it canon for the fact alone that Harold was a active part of it alone and they had Alyssa Milano voicing Shandor heiress😍and after watching the first two movies it makes so much fun playing the game seeing references to the old Movies. And it just supports the new Movies with much more lore to it. Heck perhaps the Rookie The Apprentice maybe could even have been Phoebe´s Father who knows???😂 At least storywise a lot of time has passed since the story of the game so that it could fit. They even where inspired of the Games Ghosts since those new ghosts looking more like the ghosts from the game stylish. The question could be made how could Shandor layed in the coffin casket when he was destroyed in the Game or did I messing with the memories is the Architect that turns into that giant destroyer someone else and not shandor himself haven´t played the game for longer time so not sure but it is sweeter and funnier considering the game being Part 3 since the new ones having just subtitles to it. Hope we will get a lot of more Films coming our ways with hopefully more ghosts that´s the only complain I would have to less ghosts they are hunting and catching. And wasn´t it in talks that they would have global teams hunting for ghosts and what about the lame claim that it would be in the UK what wasn´t true for the latest thought they would be in a haunting house in england???? Hopefully the OG´s will be at least one more time being in a Movie with Rick Moranis finally agree to reappear how cool it would be if he and Janine together again fighting side by side with the Boys and damn it Sigourney Weaver Dannah must be back as well what a joke teasing her in afterlife just for fun dang it bring some funny moments with her and Bill. 🤣😛
It appears the mini-puffs are a result of Gozer shedding or syphoning it's energy form into lesser bits in order to return to it's original form
Stunning video. Thanks for much to doing these.
6:23-6:28 I hate how brilliant that edit is...
And speaking of videogames, the next logical step is to expand spirits unleashed and let us have our teams working for winston's ghost lab. Would love to see it expanded so i can take my custom busters on more adventures!
6:23-is the best joke on the Internet I’ve heard this month!!!
Something possibly not worth mentioning is during the final battle Ray says he quit smoking in the 90s. In the game he doesn't smoke but he smokes in the first two movies.
Ghostbusters the video game I believe should still be Canon because it's the last time the band got back together as one unit before the passing of Harold Ramis AKA Egon Spengler.
This game I still believe it’s canon it’s to good to not be👻🚫
New movie said the sewer dragon bust was the most damage the GBs had caused to the city since Statue of Liberty in 1989. To me, that was the nail in the coffin for video game canon.
Here's an idea. The video game itself might not be cannon. But some of the events are. The video game is something that exists in the GB universe, but it's a fictional telling of events that occurred in 1991. It's possible the 1991 in reality was less destructive. Hence why nobody remembers it. But for a fictional retelling in a video game you'd want the visuals to be interesting.
@SuicidalImpulse
27 күн бұрын
I could see it being a retelling by Peter (specifically playing up the "got the girl" angle lmao), if that was an angle they went with I think that would be perfectly fine.
@Dargonhuman
25 күн бұрын
That's the same logic that says The Real Ghostbusters is what actually happened and the first movie is a Hollywood retelling of those events. Which would mean all four movies and the video game are fictionalized media _within_ the cartoon series and therefore canonical with the cartoon.
@b.lloydreese2030
25 күн бұрын
@@Dargonhumanmakes me hope the new cartoon series they were working on is in the RGB xgb universe and that they explain those two series as well to keep the continuity going
all i can say is thank you for this. i say we mix the games and movies. cut the bad stuff that doesn't make sense and add everything that embellishes the solid good canon.
@b.lloydreese2030
25 күн бұрын
There was no bad stuff in the game
@Kelko-Zamba
24 күн бұрын
@b.lloydreese2030 correct. Hey read my comment again but read ALL of the words.
8:35 that's because they took a picture on the top of the empire state building and added effects to it
I still believe The Video game is canon. Also I believe Ecto-1 & Ecto-1A (who also became Ecto-1B, since in the video game. There's an easter egg of the Ecto-1A door being there) are separate cars of the same model
6:22 amazing bit lmaoo
Yes Ghostbusters The Video Game is Canon they can't just retcon this game because Harold Ramis and the entire original cast is in it
I imagine that Ghostbusters has something of a split timeline.
@ThomasAndSkye
26 күн бұрын
it does
I like to go with the multiverse canon where everything is canon but in their own universe. In the comics, both the video game and 2016 and RGB are canon but in their own dimensions. They are all real in their own sense to me anyway.
This was another well thought out and entertaining video. I love your deep dives into the lore of Ghostbusters. I definitely think the video game is still cannon. As you eloquently pointed out it adds so much to the movies that came after it. I feel the video game is the third part of the original ghostbusters story and the new films are the beginning of the Spengler family's story.
Maybe the Video Game adventure is classified
I re-installed and started playing it again... forgot how good it was. It’s definitely Ghostbusters 3 for me! Seriously, the cut-scenes alone are better than 90% of the movies coming out of Hollywood today!
9:21 actually Shandor did this when possessed as the mayor
Ghostbusters 2016 and the comics seem to establish the multiverse theory in the property with 2016 being an very extreme universal variant. My head canon is that the video games (as there are two different versions) could exist in a slightly altered universe where events still support a similar outcome resulting in Afterlife and beyond. Even the cartoons kind of support that being the case.
What happened to Heidi BTW?
This is the same universe where the vast population of NYC were fooled into thinking that Stay Puft was a mass hallucination despite city damage. I wouldn't trust civilian perspective on what happened when in the Ghostbusters verse. Meanwhile, the events of the video game beautifully explains why Egon went nuts and isolated himself.
I think that because not everyone plays video games that whether or not the game is canon is up to each fan. there's not really anything that directly links the events of the game to the new movies aside from a few winks and nods like you mentioned, but there's also nothing that overwrites the events of the game either. so it's basically if you're a gamer and want the game to be canon then it is, but those who aren't gamers aren't required to play the game to enjoy the full storyline of the movies.
Excellent analysis. It'll always be canon in my heart.
Yes in my book!
Obviously the game is canon; the real question is, "Are Afterlife/Frozen Empire canon?" ;P
@Spazy912
27 күн бұрын
Yes since there are a couple references to the game in afterlife
@ThomasAndSkye
26 күн бұрын
canon to the films? unfortunately for some, definitely
Apparently theres alot ofstuff in the new one, that is from a mat landis script look it up it sounded awesome
17:25 they're actually marketing toys
I gotta play that.
I really want the ghostbusters the video game to be cannon
The real question, is GhostBusters: Spirits Unleashed cannon?
@jimsy3342
27 күн бұрын
We can only assume it takes place shortly after Frozen Empire, since they would have to recapture all the escaped ghosts, so they decide to hire several teams, and also because of the redesign of the containment unit.
@Spazy912
27 күн бұрын
@@jimsy3342but they say at the end of the game the Spenglers were coming back to New York City
@jimsy3342
27 күн бұрын
@@Spazy912 Ah yeah... well...bad continuity....I guess. 😬
@Spazy912
27 күн бұрын
@@jimsy3342 i guess they just moved them somewhere else
@andrewscherman6165
25 күн бұрын
Yes
I believe the game does exactly what you said and that spring and tie in a lot of things. I believe it is Canon.
I like how you managed to thread some things together but I always believe that canon is driven by the creators and it’s clear that GB1, GB2, Afterlife and FE are canon but the game isn’t. I’d love it to be, but there’s too many differences and there no way that the GB’s would wind back improvements in the vehicles, containment unit, packs etc. awesome video though - always love the GB content 👍
Love the game. I'll always be part of the lore in my book. However.... what's become of the franchise, and the rookie? lol. And whatever other employees/ ghostbusters that worked at those other locations?
Game still canon for me ❤🎉 a lot of great memories especially in multiplayer
As much as I love the game, it really doesn't make sense for it to be canon anymore. Cause if it is canon, are you telling me that after Ivo Shandor KILLING Gozer at the end of the game (yes, he actually KILLS Gozer because they even show Gozer's remains like his skull) Gozer somehow comes back to life yet again in Afterlife? And also, after you defeat Ivo Shandor as the final boss, he still somehow lives only for him to want to bring back Gozer to be his servant again even though he tried to kill Gozer? Nah, that's too much of a stretch and IT MAKES NO SENSE.
It is to me. I dont care how many fan fictions they make in the afterlife series. Someone needs to get reitman to acknowledge it Its sad, they dont even acknowledge spirits unleashed directly and that takes great pains to tie into the new movies. Wouldve loved seeing cat and eddie. Tho there are slight nods. Its always bothered me.how movie directors largely ignore any material not a film. Like dude, we fans have been consuming you expanded universe material, least you can do is hold yourself to it too
I believe it to be canon it features the original actors
Ramis and Aykroyd didn't write it. Aykroyd has always been an enthusiastic marketer.
If the games are canon, how come you could find Shandor's skull in Central Park?
The timeline has always been this: GB1-GB2-GB:TVG The shitty fan fiction we got in 2021 and 2024 can be safely ignored as it does not apply to the true canon
@ThomasAndSkye
26 күн бұрын
I agree. first thing I compared it to was fan fiction in the theater. unfortunately it is canon in thr current movie timeline but it was confirmed that the game has its own timeline that ends with the game so we can just stick to that one and not the current timeline
@RealGojifan2001games
25 күн бұрын
@ThomasAndSkye I don't give a shit what Sony says is the canon timeline. My perspective is this: Did Aykroyd and Ramis write the media in question? If the answer is yes, then it's canon. If the answer is no, throw it in the trash and forget it exists It's a pretty simple concept
So the Rookie moved to Chicago, Callie lived in Chicago. What if the Rookie is Trevor and Phoebe's father? Yes, Callie calls him a "dirtbag" but what if that is just because they had a bad breakup.
Hello there
I honestly dont see why not Its another franchise which doesnt get much content and every little bit matters
Why yes it is , it was written by the og team
Yes the game is still Canon they even brought of the game to new movies so I don't know why they said it not even Dan Aykroyd said is was the third that's why Bill Murray had no problem doing it so it Canon and they had all of the original actors in it pluse I don't want to see Harold ramis work go in the trash they wouldn't of done it if was going be Canon so it is .
To me; the game’s Semi-Canon. Which I mean that while the game obviously has a lot of connections to Afterlife & Frozen Empire, as well as correct timeline placements for many aspects, there are also just as many plot & logic holes when it comes to figuring out how the backstories of some characters line up. Like how Gozer popping up bin NYC or Graveyard in Central Park not making headlines, which is just plain stupid to ignore entirely. So I think of it like this; The game’s events did happen, but in an alternate timeline where Egon simply didn’t freak out about Gozer’s return & left the Ghostbusters, which led to the events of Afterlife. Egon stayed with the Ghostbusters & simply worked about on his work as always. That simple act changes everything & makes all of this work. Obviously, with timelines & alternate dimensions involved, there are going to be some parallels between both the game & the new movies. But they are not exact. Simply put; you can look at the game as supplemental material for various aspects of the movies, but it’s optional if you just see the movies & nothing else. To me, playing the game, I felt like I was taken for a ride or held by the hand to be WITH the Ghostbusters, not actually be a Ghostbuster. Even they so themselves to not get attached to the Rookie & the main reason why we get all these upgrades is because we were essentially the test dummy. 😂 I would have actually liked it if the Rookie had a speaking role to play around with the rest of the cast. But it’s clear what he’s intended to be as a player insert to be part of the story as it unfolds around them; which makes all the sense in the world considering both Ramis & Aykroyd was developing a script for 3 long before a game was considered a potential way to present it. All & all, the game’s really good & I consider it to be a fun addition to Ghostbusters canon, just not in the main timeline of events; but very close enough to pull some details.
❤️👻
2:24 the ghostbusters actually caused the statue of liberty. they did not cause the cemetery and stay puft.
@Tactical_Hotdog
17 күн бұрын
One comment is plenty.
@geggy310
17 күн бұрын
@@Tactical_Hotdog I always have lots to say
@Tactical_Hotdog
17 күн бұрын
@@geggy310 edit a single comment then.
I believe it’s Canon. I don’t get why they would try to unconanise someone that fixes Ghostbusters II and acts to the characters & lore.
The game IS Ghostbusters 3. My head canon is GB1, GB2, GBTVG, Afterlife. That's it.
The rookie moves to chicago and callie is from chicago🤷♂️ pheobes dad 100% 😂
onestly, for now, the videogame only add dept to things, so for me is still canon
I would argue that the game is 'soft' canon while the films are 'hard' canon. Meaning that the events of the game happened in the film's timeline, but not exactly or 100% as the game portrays them.
God i hate what they did with afterlife/empire. 😢
It's canon to me dammit and so is answer the call but in a different dimension 🤷♂️
As far as I'm concerned Afterlife and Frozen Empire are not canon. None of the events described by Ray to Pheobe make any sense. Egon most definitely would not have done those things. It felt more like Bill Murray describing how he felt about Harold Ramis, not how the character Egon would actually behave.
After the last two awful movies I'm happy to consider the game as cannon
Hehehe casually leaves out the GB movie with only a primarily female cast
I will always consider this game canon
Ya ever sit back and realize tmnt is just the same four guys, just turtles and then for that matter the four dudes from ff15 are just human ninja turtles lol