Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective gives new life to a Nintendo DS cult classic

Ghost trick follows Sissel, a recently deceased ghost who can’t remember who he is or how he died. But he can possess objects and set up the game’s mechanical core: meddling in the Rube Goldberg-esque puzzles to save others from their own horrific fates. The game alternates between these puzzle sections and dialogue-heavy story segments where a twisty plot unfolds in sweet and surprising and surprisingly sweet ways.

Originally released for Nintendo DS in 2010, Ghost trick didn’t sell particularly well. But it did develop a cult following, especially among those who were already fans of writer-director Shu Takumi’s better-known series, Ace Attorney. I’ve been involved in the latest fandom for almost 20 years and have heard the pleas, “Play Ghost trick! Don’t look anything up first, just trust us!” – since it first came out.

Now that I’ve played it, I’ll give it to them: they’re right. I may not be so unconditional in my love for Ghost trick as someone who’s been trying to convince people to play it for a decade or more (there’s a really awful stealth section to begin with), but it really is a little joyful gem of a game. Fiddling with ghostly interactions until the puzzles fall into place is satisfying, the characters are great and feature arguably the best dog in video games, and both the music and animations are incredibly characterful and vibrant.

But even as I spent the 12 or so hours of its run time glad I finally got around to it, it was also impossible to ignore that Ghost trick is now a huge outlier of his generation. When Nintendo shut down the 3DS and Wii U eShops in March this year, access to the game was severely restricted. Still, it was one of the luckier ones, with an iOS port and a physical release (although those cartridges eventually stop working). For thousands of digital-only games, the only way to play them was to already own them digitally or emulate them, something Nintendo is cracking down on updates for the already defunct consoles as well as jail terms and huge fines.

The remaster gave Ghost trick a second chance, but it’s not a lasting solution for every game in Nintendo’s back catalog that is now vulnerable to becoming – or already is – lost media. And which games are chosen for treatment is entirely up to the whims and financial calculations of the companies involved. Nintendo’s back catalog is available in a patchwork fashion through its online services, but the Switch and DS versions of said service aren’t the same, meaning many went missing again in March. Meanwhile, Capcom recently celebrated its 40th anniversary by putting playable versions from some of his early big hits, such as Mega man And Street Fighter II, online. But while these and other big hitters like Resident Evil 4 may be kept by frequent ports and remakes, smaller titles probably not.

Image: Capcom via Polygoon

Image: Capcom via Polygoon

Image: Capcom via Polygoon

That Ghost trick was one of the lucky ones feels like a fluke, like a phantom behind the scenes manipulating things just like that. Perhaps the persistence of the fandom contributed to the feeling that re-releasing it would be a financial success. But in today’s ecosystem, being loved isn’t enough to prevent art from being erased. Returning to Takumi’s library (although he was not directly involved in the spin-off), Ace Lawyer Investigate 2 was never released in English, but a dedicated team put in years making its own localization. The English-speaking fan base is probably as large and loud as Ghost trick‘s has ever been, but it’s hard to imagine it ever getting its own re-release.

Even that’s just one game, and it’s big enough that I’m aware of it. It’s hard to imagine the size of the games that are now vulnerable. View the animations in Ghost trick, you can see the consistent care and attention the developers have put into this game. Detectives dance, puppies bounce and novelists – well, I can’t do justice at all in words to how this woman pulls up a chandelier. The team absolutely went Everything in making Ghost trick as stylish and funny and wonderfully overdramatic as possible. But every game (and other piece of media, such as the recent spate of TV shows removed from streaming) has something similar – something in it that someone poured their heart into.

I am very happy that the remaster has given Ghost trick revived. But Sissel spends the entire game making sure nothing falls through the cracks – and that just doesn’t fit with his game’s now solitary survival.

Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective was released on June 30 on Nintendo Switch. The game was reviewed using a pre-release download code from Capcom. Vox Media has partnerships. These do not affect editorial content, although Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased through affiliate links. You can find additional information on Polygon’s Ethics Policy here.