Luigi's Mansion: Secret of the Specters

Luigi's Mansion: Secret of the Specters is the latest instalment in the Luigi's Mansion series, released for the Nintendo Switch in 2020.
==Synopsis==
There's something that the ghosts have been keeping a secret from the rest of the Kingdoms, and it's up to Luigi to get to the bottom of it before the power behind this secret tears the world apart. A secret that has affected him long before his adventurers.
==Storyline==
Dear Luigi
How are you my fine fellow? I trust you're well, what with partially having overcome your fear of ghosts and what not! That actually has something to do with why I'm writing to you. You see, I've discovered a strange underground tomb with paranormal readings which are off the charts! Naturally, I considered calling upon you to help me investigate it. What do you say, you up for it? Course you are! See you there!
E. Gadd
After receiving a letter from Professor E. Gadd, Luigi, alongside his Polterpup, travel to a dig-site where E. Gadd has been studying the recent paranormal spikes and has been digging to discover a strange tomb buried in the ground. In spite of his worries, Luigi descends down into the tomb, eventually coming to the very bottom where their is a pedestal with something sitting upon it; a green triangular item that seems vaguely similar to Luigi. The instant he picks it, a wave of spectral energy booms out of the tomb and across the land, sending Luigi flying back. As he gets back up, he sees a mysterious creature rising up in front of him, resembling a tall man in orange overalls with a wooden chest for a head and a large hammer in one hand. The being appears to cause Luigi more panic than even his previous encounters with ghost, running for the exit to the tomb as the entity chases after him, eventually leaping out of the tomb just as the entrance collapses, seemingly trapping the strange being inside.
Whilst Luigi attempts to recover from his harrowing experience, E. Gadd explains to Luigi that by removing the triangular item, nicknamed as a Spectral Slot, his sensors indicated a surge of paranormal energy from a long abandoned town called Spookdon, mirroring the same energy output as the first Spectral Slot, leading the professor to hypothesis that there are more of the Slots, and asks Luigi and Mario to go collect them. In spite of his previous fear, Luigi shows an unusual desire to go to the obviously haunted location, with Mario also commenting that the name of the location sounds familiar.
Soon, Luigi, Mario, several toads and the Polterpup are travelling via bus to Spookdon, but upon getting to its boarders the bus comes under attack from strange new ghosts, causing it to crash. Coming to among the wreckage, Luigi retrieves his latest piece of equipment, the Poltergust-800, outfitted with the Dark Light and Strobe Bulb. However, upon encountering one of the new types of ghost, a ghostly goomba, Luigi finds that none of his equipment is effective at first, until he accidentally looks through the Spectral Slot, rendering the goomba ghost vulnerable to the Strobe Light and thus capture. Luigi then sets about finding Mario and the Toads, rescuing them from ghosts who have imprisoned them within houses. Having done so, Luigi then sets about looking for the remaining Spectral Slots, encountering both King Boo and the Boogeyman and uncovering the mystery behind Spookdon, the Slots and his own connection to the town.
Over the course of the game, is it revealed that long ago, a group of Ghosts known as the Specters had sealed away an ancient entity known as Soulberus, who has the potential to empower all other ghosts and drive them to commit great atrocities. Although the Specters were successful in sealing him away, Soulberus' influence continued to empower other ghosts, such as King Boo, having once been a normal Boo. In order to fully defeat Soulberus, the Specters created the Spectral Slots as a means of opening Soulberus' prison so that he could be permanently put down. However, the slots where scattered when an explorer named Scott Spookdon, whom Spookdon was named after due to his digging sites, attempted to take them in order to obtain Soulberus' power, himself getting banished into the ghost world in the process.
Luigi also uncovers his own previously forgotten history; he had once had an uncle called Ronaldo, who would look after him during holidays. It was during these times that Luigi came to be afraid of ghosts, as Ronaldo's studying of ghosts was incredibly unnerving. In particular, Ronaldo would guard his research intensely, creating the idea of a monster that guards his private areas of study, which has the exact same description as the Boogeyman pursuing Luigi.
Luigi eventually finds all five slots but cannot confront Soulberus just yet, as if he goes unprepared, Soulberus will be able to free himself. After conversing with Scott Spookdon's ghost, he learns of the Spectral Spear, a weapon that he can use to defeat Soulberus, hidden away in the Exorcist Empire. Luigi travels their via the bus from the opening converted into a plane in search of the Spear. There, he encounters the Boogeyman and King Boo, the latter who wishes to use the Slots for himself to free Soulberus and increase his power. Luigi is able to best him however and claims the Spear, popping King Boo with it.
Luigi arrives back in Spookdon where the next objective is to find where Soulberus was sealed in order to confront him. Luigi's remembrance of Uncle Ronaldo comes in handy here; not only was he researching into the ghosts and history of Spookdon, but he lived in Spookdon as well, which leads Luigi to believe he may have something as his home that can assist their search. However, where Luigi remembers the house being is mysteriously devoid of itself, so E. Gadd analyzes the maps of the town, realizing that Ronaldo's house was built on one of Scott's old digging sites and must have collapsed down into it. To get down to the house, Luigi acquires a digging machine and tunnels down to the House. Inside of the house, Luigi then finds first a map outlining a secret series of tunnels and the entrance from the house to it. The tunnels are home to the constructions that serve as the defenses of Soulberus' tomb, which Luigi has to use the Spectral Slots to get past. Eventually, he comes to the tomb itself, where Soulberus is held. Before he can use the Spear to slay the slumbering entity, he is attacked by the Boogeyman, although this time he is able to fight back thanks to the spear. Eventually he bests the Boogeyman, who reveals itself to actually be Uncle Ronaldo, corrupted in his ghost state due to being exposed to Soulberus' power during his research, having been turned into its enforcer. With the Boogeyman having preoccupied Luigi for too long, Soulberus is able to awaken and free itself through the tunnel the Spectral Slots had opened.
Ronald saves Luigi by putting him in the chest that was once his head, allowing him to survive the cave-in that follows. Emerging from the rubble, with Ronaldo nowhere in sight, Luigi rushes back to the surface, seeing Soulberus in the process of absorbing all others ghosts, including Boos, portrait ghosts, ghosts from Evershade Valley and the Hotel to transform into his original three headed form.
==Characters==
*Luigi
*Mario
*E. Gadd
*Polterpup
*Uncle Ronaldo
==Gameplay==
The gameplay for Secret of the Specters follows the long-standing gameplay of the Luigi's Mansions series; it is a 3D game with differentiating camera angles, with the objective of finding items or capturing ghosts. In order to do the latter objective, Luigi must use the flash from the Strobe-Light in order to stun the ghosts and then use the Poltergust-64 to suck them up. Where this formula differentiates from the other Luigi's Mansions' gameplay is that Luigi must first use one of the Spectral Slots in order to remove their invisibly by focusing on them with the piece's viewing hole, otherwise the Strobe-Light will have no effect.
Another additional change to the gameplay is the inclusion of Spectral Slots; aside from being major items in the story, they also give Luigi a unique ghost-based abilities. These range from intangibility, levitation, possession and invisibility. In a first for the series, stealth mechanics will be implemented in the form of Luigi being able to hide himself in objects or blend in with the area, such as by posing like a statue. This will enable Luigi to get the drop on oncoming enemies, hide from overwhelming encounters or observe what the ghosts do to learn clues on how to progress.
The game's progression can be considered a combination of the first and second Luigi's Mansions games; whilst missions are split up into levels, there is no level completed menu and the next one starts immediately from where the last mission left off. There is still the option to replay the specific mission sections, as certain things will change in the area, impeding or allowing access to bonus items.
====Controls====
*L-Pad=Moving
*R-Pad=Look around
*B=Run / Jump during sucking
*A=Strobe-Light
*X=Dark-Light
*Y=View through Spectral Slot
*R1=Suck
*L1=Blow
*L2=Switch Spectral Slot
*R2=Use Spectral Slot
==Worlds==
*Underground Tomb-The tutorial level, an newly discovered catacomb
**P1-New Tomb
***Journey into the newly discovered tomb
*Spookdon - A mysterious town connected to all the other worlds, serves as the hub area after clearing the levels
**A1-Wrecked Arrival
***Second rule of bus crashes; make sure you find all your lost luggage
**A2-Haunted Households
***To make his way through the town, Luigi must transverse through the empty houses
**A3-Unamusing Park
***Searching for the Key to the City takes Luigi into an abandoned amusement park
**A4-Boogyeman Begins
***Luigi has his second encounter with the mysterious Boogeyman, which persues him through the houses and amusement park
**A5-Mayoral Household
***Now within the house of the mayor, Luigi must track down the Spectral Slot's location
**A6-An Amoral Mayor
***The current owner of the Spectral Slot is less than willing to hand it over
*Poltergeist's Park - An overgrown nature park
**B1-Sheer Boredom
***There's a problem for Luigi; the entrance to the Park is covered in weeds. Maybe the next door Home Depo will have something that can help
**B2-A Sprinkle of Rain
***The garden's require a little bit of rain to get them back to their former glory. Rain from the Park's watering system
**B3-Glass Lass
***Luigi needs to get a special seed to progress and it may lie within the glass greenhouse
**B4-A-Maze-Ing
***Puns aside, Luigi needs to get through a giant maze. Don't ignore the sign before going in
**B5-Rising Rose
***The speed seems to be growing a little faster than expected. Best try and keep up with it
**B6-Roost for a Rumble
***Birds like shiny things and a Spectral Slot is especially shiny
*Exorcised Airliner - A crashed plane in a forest
**C1-Up the Slide
***A plane isn't easy to board without a passport so Luigi will need to find another way in
**C2-The Boogeyman Comes Back
***The third encounter with the Boogeyman has Luigi hiding beneath the seats of any class
**C3-Chasm of the Cargo
***The Spectral Slot may be in the cargo hold. Too bad something else is interested in what is in there
**C4-First Class Clues
***The Spectral Slot is missing, but the thief must have left something to follow
**C5-There, Under the Chair
***Turns out, a key isn't so easy to hold onto when the entire plane tends to tilt
**C6-Pilot's Peak
***Blinding greed is not something a pilot should ingulf in
*Cursed Coves - A series of costal tunnels
**D1-Beachfright
***A beach crawling with ghosts needs a ghost hunter to free the sends
**D2-Beneath the Beach
***Tunnels hidden by the sand may lead to the entrance to the lighthouse
**D3-Light of the House
***A light house usually has light - both inside and outside
**D4-Ship Siege
***With the pirate ship newly beached, Luigi must now board it in search of the map
**D5-Missing Map
***The map is runined, but not unsalvageable - just need to find all the parts. And sticky tape
**D6-Claw of the Crab
***Finding the secret treasure was easy - it's getting it out the clutches of the crab that's the issue
*Terrifying Towers-A building with multiple purposes and a supernatural history
**E1-Avalanche Attack
***The biggest threat from snow is that it can come into avalanche form
**E2-Source of the Smoke
***With a red smoke cloaking the mansion and inducing all sorts of effects, Luigi will need to tell real from false to find the source
**E3-Ghosts of the Past
***There are residents in this old place and they never truly left their favourite meeting spot
**E4-Search for the Study
***The clues have been found, now use them to find something else
**E5-Turn down the Turrets
***With all that noise outside, it's no wonder you can't get to sleep! Get that noise silenced
**E6-Drive into Dreams
***When the Hypnotist said we were going to dive into dreams, I didn't know he was referring to a nightmare!
*Exorcist Empire-Ancient ruins in the middle of a jungle
**F1-The Golden Gate
***This empire was so rich, they had a solid gold welcoming mat! Only it's not so welcoming...
**F2-Jog of the Jaguar
***People love to run - in both sport events and when being pursed by a giant cat. In this case, it's a combination of the two!
**F3-Planet of the Plants
***Remember when you had to remove all those vines in 'Sheer Boredom'? Well, you kind of have to do the same thing again if you want to progress
**F4-An Alter-Nate Route
***There was always one place where lets of people went to, and then ghosts came out of. Something to do with snacks or something...
**F5-Boogeyman and the Bugs
***Horrible, creepy, distrubing, unstoppable and downright unpleasant. And if the Boogeyman wasn't bad enough he now has a horde of insects at his back and call
**F6-Getting to the Point
***The Spectral Spear is in range. To bad an old foe is there for it as well
*Ronaldo's Mansion-The final location, formerly owned by Luigi's uncle
**G1-Memory Lane
***Luigi is remembering the time he spent playing outside his uncle's mansion. Now he's gotta fight out in it
**G2-The Burrowing Boo
***Ghosts always move about graves, but now something else is as well
**G3-Mystery of the Missing Mansion
***An entire mansion does not just go missing for no reason, especially when there's something inside that nobody should have known about
**G4-Gate of the Ghosts
***The Secret of the Specters has been found
**G5-The Pieces fall into Place
***Each of the Spectral Slots have a story behind them. Now those stories are being repeated the further down you go...
**G6-Boogeyman's Battle
***One foe may be gone, but another remains for the prize. Time to settle the score with the Boogeyman
*Soulberus-The final boss
**H1-The Ultimate Ghost
***Stop him
==Items==
*Coins
*Dollars
*Gold Bars
*Pearls
*Ghostly Gemstones
**Spiders
**Bats
**Rats
**Ravens
**Snakes
**Scarabs
**Cats
==Enemies==
*Ghost Goombas
*Ghost Koopas
*Ghost Shy Guys
*Ghost Lakitus
*Ghost Wrigglers
*Specter Goombas
*Specter Koopas
*Specter Shy Guys
*Specter Lakitus
*Specter Wrigglers
*Possessed Stuffies
*Possessed Knights
*Possessed Pirate Skeletons
*Possessed Statues
*Boos
==Bosses==
===Mini-Bosses===
*The Boogeyman (Underground Tomb, Spookdon, Exorcised Airline, Terrifying Towers, Ronaldo's Mansion)
*Phantom Train (Spookdon)
*Shardina (Poltergeist's Park)
*Cousin Crow (Exorcised Airline)
*Creepy Cortez (Cursed Coves)
===Main Bosses===
*Mayor Malge (Spookdon)
*Park Pigeon (Poltergeist's Park)
*Captain Turbulence (Exorcised Airliner)
*Crawling Crab (Cursed Coves)
*Maddening Memory (Terrifying Towers)
*King Boo (Ectoplasm Empire)
*Boogeyman (Rolando's Mansion)
*Soulberus (Soulberus)
==Trivia==
Category:Luigi's Mansion Games
Category:ChaosSeether2999
Category:Nintendo Switch Games
Category:Fan Games