Sierra Games

Ghostbusters II

Last updated: October 19, 2026

Overview

Ghostbusters II is an action game for MS-DOS based on the 1989 film, developed by Dynamix and published by Activision. MobyGames dates the US release to October 1989, with distribution by Mediagenic.12 The game opens with the Ghostbusters fighting the Scoleri brothers’ ghosts in a courtroom. From their headquarters the player then picks jobs: busting ghosts for money, collecting slime from beneath the city, testing it, and rescuing teammates from the Parkview asylum. With $55,000 earned, the team walks the Statue of Liberty to the museum for the battle with Vigo the Carpathian.31 Jeff Tunnell is credited as director. Computer Gaming World named Doug Barnett as designer, and MobyGames credits the design to Barnett, Michael Latham, Piotr Lukaszuk and Tony Van.43

Which Ghostbusters II this page covers. Dynamix’s game was made only for MS-DOS. Activision also published a different Ghostbusters II, developed in Britain by Foursfield, for the Commodore 64, Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum, and converted to MSX by New Frontier. That version has three action levels based on the film.256 The NES Ghostbusters II is a separate product again.7 This page covers only the Dynamix MS-DOS game.

The game predates Sierra’s March 1990 purchase of Dynamix.8 In February 1989 Dynamix signed an “Affiliated Publisher” agreement with Mediagenic, and Jeff Tunnell said the firm planned “several development projects for Activision”.9 Ghostbusters II was a game Dynamix developed for Activision.12 SierraVault covers it because the vault’s inclusion criteria take in Dynamix’s complete catalog, including work done before the acquisition. The real publisher was Activision, not Sierra.1 Reviews were mixed. Computer Gaming World praised its design and humor but questioned its value for money, and the German magazine Power Play scored it 30%.310

Story Summary

MobyGames summarizes the film’s set-up. Five years after the first film, the Ghostbusters are bankrupt and retired. A river of slime has built up under New York, feeding on the city’s negative energy, while the painting of Vigo the Carpathian waits in the Museum of Art to use it to escape.1 Computer Gaming World’s David Wilson described Vigo, “scourge of Carpathia”, gathering “his forces of evil in New York”.3

The game begins in court. The judge fines the team $10,000, and his anger makes a beaker of slime explode, releasing the ghosts of the Scoleri brothers, whom he had sentenced to the electric chair.3 After that the story advances through the player’s choices of jobs. It ends at midnight at the museum, where the Ghostbusters slide down ropes for a final fight with Vigo and his “hypnotized lackey”.3

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

After the courtroom, the game is run from the Ghostbusters’ lab. There the player moves an arrow to choose what to do next. A wrong choice, such as testing slime when you have none, brings up a portrait of Bill Murray with a comic thought balloon.3 MobyGames lists keyboard, mouse and analog joystick input.1 Wilson, siding with personal computers in the “Nintendo versus Personal Computer controversy”, said he would rather not have seen “a Nintendo type game controller” used to guide the Statue of Liberty.3

Structure and Progression

Wilson’s review and MobyGames describe these sequences:31

  • Courtroom: a side-scrolling fight against the Scoleri brothers’ ghosts while dodging ectoplasm. Wilson advised trapping “the fat brother” first. Winning gets the sentence suspended, and losing leaves the team $10,000 in debt.31
  • Ghostbusting jobs: taken by phone in three parts of town: Central Park, Northrone’s department store and the Docks. Each pays 10,000 to 20,000, minus charges for damage.3
  • Slime collection: climbing down a rope into an abandoned train tunnel while slimers attack and a green arm reaches up from the slime river.3
  • Slime testing: playing tracks on a CD player to find three of nine songs that calm the slime.32
  • Parkview rescue: a Ghostbuster who loses a job or the slime run is committed to the Parkview mental ward. A teammate can swing into its windows to rescue him.3
  • Statue of Liberty: after $55,000 is earned and three positively charged slime samples are ready, the player walks “Libby” through New York between 11:00 p.m. and midnight. Stepping on cars drains her energy.3
  • Museum finale: the battle with Vigo, in which a single fireball kills a Ghostbuster and the next one takes over.3

MobyGames notes that newspaper editorials sum up each victory or defeat against the ghosts.1

Puzzles and Mechanics

The game turns on money and slime. Egon needs $55,000 to build the slime blower, and the endgame requires three good slime samples, so the player has to balance paying jobs against trips to the tunnel.3 Wilson thought it “advantageous” to get the whole crew out of Parkview before the final battle. He warned that the proton packs bounce back off Vigo’s lackey, and that letting the slime blowers “get too hot allows Vigo to gain considerable advantage”.3

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

PublicationDateVerdict
Computer Gaming World (David M. Wilson)January 1990Mixed review, no numerical score3
Power PlayNot recorded30%10
Computer Gaming World readers’ pollMay 19907.91, ranked 94th12

David Wilson’s Computer Gaming World review, “I Still Ain’t ‘Fraid of No Ghost!”, listed the game for IBM PCs with 512K at $44.95, with a Commodore 64 version “soon”.3 He thought the graphics “nice, if not overly impressive”, liked the “cutesy” details, such as a giant cockroach in a Central Park outhouse, and said the “digitized voice tracks add to the whimsical feeling that permeated the movie”.3 His reservation was about value: “Since the game can be played in less than an hour and players will probably play the game, at least, fifteen times before mastering it, some may feel that this is less than a bargain.” All the same, he called it “well-designed and easily learned”, and closed with “Bustin’ will make you feel good!”3

Power Play was much harsher. Its 30% review noted that the PC game “hat nun gar nichts mehr mit dem gleichnamigen Programm für Amiga und ST zu tun” (“has nothing at all to do with the program of the same name for Amiga and ST”), and said its new graphics and action sequences could not hide “katastrophale Spielbarkeit” (“catastrophic playability”).10 Computer Gaming World’s May 1990 readers’ poll rated the IBM game 7.91, 94th on its list of games.12

Modern Assessment

The abandonware site Abandonia rated the game 80 in a later review. It called it “the secret alternative” to the better-known Ghostbusters II, which “even most Ghostbusters fans have no idea” existed.10 On MobyGames the DOS game averages 52% from four critic ratings, and player reviews there are mixed.13 Wikipedia’s article on the computer Ghostbusters II games discusses the Dynamix version through Wilson’s review. Its reception section otherwise covers the Foursfield versions, which drew praise for their graphics and criticism for loading times and disk swapping.2

Development

Origins

Computer Gaming World’s report from the summer 1989 Consumer Electronics Show noted that “Activision contracted for permission to digitize images from the film in their Die Hard and Ghostbusters II action games”. It described both as having a “heavy action emphasis”.14 Wikipedia’s Dynamix article names Die Hard and Ghostbusters II as the movie tie-ins where the studio’s digitized graphics, animation and sound effects were used “most notably”.15 According to Wikipedia, the DOS version “includes digitized voice tracks and images from the film”, while the Foursfield versions include only the images. It also reports that Activision planned the DOS, Commodore 64 and Amiga versions for October 1989 in the United States.2 In December 1989, Computer Gaming World reported that Mediagenic was “optimistic about its entertainment products”, naming Ghostbusters II first.16

Production

MobyGames lists the team:411

  • Director: Jeff Tunnell
  • Design: Doug Barnett, Michael Latham, Piotr Lukaszuk, Tony Van
  • Programming: Bob Arient, Gregg Hango, Piotr Lukaszuk, Richard Rayl
  • Graphics / Artwork: Chuck Austen, Doug Barnett, Brian Hawn, Ron Winnick
  • Art Director: Brian Hawn, Steve Snyder
  • Music: Russell Lieblich; Sound: Bryce Morcello
  • Music / Sound Programming: Glyn Anderson, Michael Latham
  • Producer: Mark Johnson, Michael Latham
  • Project Manager; Writing / Dialogue / Story: Kelly Flock
  • Documentation: Hunter Cone, Mark Johnson, Leslie Roth
  • Packaging: Robert Schonfisch
  • Playtesting: Stewart Perkins

The credits mix Dynamix staff, including Tunnell, Rayl and Morcello, with names that also appear in Activision’s own credits of the period. Michael Latham and Russell Lieblich, for example, are credited on Activision’s 1990 MS-DOS F-14 Tomcat.417 The sources consulted do not say how the work was divided between the two companies.

Technical Specifications

  • Requirements: an Intel 8088/8086 PC with 512 KB RAM.1
  • Media: 3.5” and 5.25” floppy disks.1
  • Graphics: CGA, EGA, Hercules and Tandy/PCjr.1
  • Sound: AdLib, Roland MT-32, Sound Blaster, Tandy/PCjr, Tandy DAC and an enhanced (“tweaked”) PC speaker mode.1
  • Input: keyboard, mouse or analog joystick.1
  • Price: $44.95 according to Computer Gaming World.316
  • Modern fix: Steven Don’s patches page offers a fix for a freeze in the intro of Ghostbusters 2 when digitized sound is enabled.18

Version History

VersionDatePlatformNotes
Original releaseOctober 1989MS-DOSActivision, US; developed by Dynamix, distributed by Mediagenic1
European release1989MS-DOSActivision in France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom1

The Internet Archive’s floppy-image preservation item for the Dynamix game is dated October 1989, matching MobyGames.191

Not Dynamix versions: Foursfield’s Ghostbusters II for the Commodore 64, Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum (1989), the MSX conversion, and a 1992 Atari 2600 release grouped with them by MobyGames.52 Activision’s player’s guide for the Foursfield version lists its own programming team (Colin Reed, Stefan Ufnowski, Andrew and Phillip Oliver, and others) and its three sequences: Van Horne, Broadway and the museum.6

Legacy

The game shared its approach with Die Hard, Dynamix’s other 1989 film licence for Activision. Both used digitized imagery from their films.1415 The Foursfield version reached more platforms and accounts for most of the reviews Wikipedia collects for the computer games, and Abandonia’s reviewer later called the Dynamix game “the secret alternative”.210 Sierra bought Dynamix on March 27, 1990.8

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

  • Not currently available. As of October 2026 we found no GOG or Steam release.

Download / Preservation

Manuals & Extras

See Also

Ghostbusters II comes from Dynamix’s year of work for Activision, between its Electronic Arts titles and the 1990 Sierra acquisition.89

References

Footnotes

  1. MobyGames – Ghostbusters II (DOS, 1989) – October 1989 US release (Activision, Dynamix, Mediagenic) and 1989 European releases; description; requirements, media, graphics, sound and input specs. Retrieved via the MobyGames API, 2026-10-09 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15 ↩16 ↩17 ↩18 ↩19 ↩20 ↩21

  2. Wikipedia – Ghostbusters II (computer video game) – Dynamix developed the separate MS-DOS version; Foursfield and New Frontier versions; digitized voice and images in DOS only; planned October 1989 US release; reception of other versions ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8

  3. Computer Gaming World #67 (January 1990), David Wilson, “I Still Ain’t ‘Fraid of No Ghost!”, pp. 22, 37 – Internet Archive – designer Doug Barnett, $44.95, C-64 “soon”, full walkthrough of sequences, money and slime requirements, verdict ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15 ↩16 ↩17 ↩18 ↩19 ↩20 ↩21 ↩22 ↩23 ↩24

  4. MobyGames – Ghostbusters II credits (DOS) – full DOS credit list ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9

  5. MobyGames – Ghostbusters II (Amiga, Atari ST, C64 and others) – the separate UK-produced version with three action scenes, its platforms and dates. Retrieved via the MobyGames API, 2026-10-09 ↩ ↩2

  6. Ghostbusters II player’s guide (Activision, 1989, Foursfield version) – Internet Archive – C64, Spectrum, Amstrad, Atari ST and Amiga versions; Van Horne, Broadway and museum sequences; credits ↩ ↩2

  7. MobyGames – Ghostbusters II (NES, 1990) – separate NES game. Retrieved via the MobyGames API, 2026-10-09 ↩

  8. The Digital Antiquarian – “The Dynamic Interactive Narratives of Dynamix” (Jimmy Maher, 2018) – Sierra acquired Dynamix on March 27, 1990 ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  9. Computer Gaming World #58 (April 1989), “Dynamix Joins Roster of Mediagenic Affiliates” – Internet Archive – February 14, 1989 agreement; Dynamix planning several projects for Activision ↩ ↩2

  10. MobyGames – Ghostbusters II (DOS) MobyRank page (Wayback Machine, 2010) – Abandonia 80 and quote; Power Play 30 and quote ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  11. MobyGames – Ghostbusters II credits (DOS) (Wayback Machine, 2012) – archived credits: “Sound Bryce Morcello”; “Music Russell Lieblich” ↩ ↩2

  12. Computer Gaming World #71 (May 1990), readers’ game ratings – Internet Archive – Ghostbusters II (Activision, IBM, action) rated 7.91, 94th ↩ ↩2

  13. MobyGames – Ghostbusters II (DOS) reviews – critic average 52% from four ratings; player reviews ↩

  14. Computer Gaming World #61 (July 1989), Summer CES report – Internet Archive – Activision contracted to digitize film images for Die Hard and Ghostbusters II; heavy action emphasis ↩ ↩2

  15. Wikipedia – Dynamix – Dynamix’s use of digitized graphics, animation and sound, “most notably” in Die Hard and Ghostbusters II ↩ ↩2

  16. Computer Gaming World #66 (December 1989), “Mediagenic Refocuses On Entertainment” and Taking a Peek – Internet Archive – Mediagenic optimistic about Ghostbusters II; preview listing, IBM, $44.95 ↩ ↩2

  17. MobyGames – F-14 Tomcat credits (DOS, 1990) – Michael Latham and Russell Lieblich among the credits of Activision’s MS-DOS F-14 Tomcat ↩

  18. Steven Don – Patches for old DOS games – Ghostbusters 2 patch fixing an intro freeze with digitized sound enabled ↩ ↩2

  19. Internet Archive – Ghostbusters II (Dynamix, 360KB floppy images) – preservation item dated October 1989, credited to Dynamix ↩

  20. Internet Archive – Ghostbusters II (MS-DOS, 1989) – listing: developed by Dynamix, published by Activision, 1989 ↩

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