For the smaller, significantly less dangerous ghastly apparitions, see Ghist (2) or Ghist Shopkeeper (2).
The Ghost is an enemy in Spelunky 2.
Behavior[]
After 3 minutes have passed in a level, the Ghost will spawn in from the side of the level closest to a player. Its arrival is marked by the text "A terrible chill runs up your spine!" followed by a thick grey fog and the level's music lowering pitch and slowing down.
The Ghost passes through all tiles and entities with impunity and in and out of backlayers to chase the nearest player. It is impossible to damage, and players die instantly from touching it. The Ghost is approximately twice as fast as her original counterpart in Spelunky HD.
The Ghost's timer can be extended to 5 minutes if a Four-Leaf Clover is picked up. It spawns 30 seconds earlier if a player is Cursed, and another 30 seconds earlier for each dead or cursed player in multiplayer. The Ghost immediately spawns if the level's Curse Pot is destroyed, or if the player still has the Punish Ball given from destroying the third Kali Altar in a run chained to their leg.
The Ghost can be temporarily stunned by attacking it with a Camera, causing it to change appearance and freeze in place for a short period.
The Ghost targets Hired Hands and the Eggplant Child as if they were players, spawning by them if they are closer to the edge of the screen than the player is.
If playing multiplayer, dead players can blow the Ghost away to momentarily delay it.
The Ghost does not appear in the Cosmic Ocean, as instead a second Celestial Jelly will spawn once the player's time on a level is up.
Splitting[]
Two Ghosts[]
The Ghost, split into two.
After 60 seconds, The Ghost will split into two medium-sized ghosts. These smaller ghosts have different AI patterns.
- The sad ghost[1] acts identically to the original ghost.
- The happy ghost[2] moves faster than the sad ghost, but does not directly try to kill the player. Instead, it tries to circles around them counter-clockwise with the intention of jeopardizing any plans of escape from other threats.
Four Ghosts[]
The Ghost, split into four.
Quad Ghosts, explained in an image.
After 30 seconds, the ghosts will split into four small-sized ghosts that resemble Ghists. Each ghost also has their own AI patterns.
Note that with the original two ghosts, the sad ghost will split into the angry and sad ghosts, and the happy ghost will split into the happy and surprised ghosts.
- The angry ghost[3] acts identically to the original ghost.
- The sad ghost[4] is the fastest of the ghosts. She attempts to mirror the movements of the angry ghost in relation to the player, moving in wild directions and high speeds.
- The surprised ghost[5] attempts to circle counter-clockwise around the player instead of attacking them.
- The happy ghost[6] will typically be away from the rest of the ghosts, flying in small circles. It may sometimes chase after the player or follow one of her fellow ghosts around.
Notes[]
- As the sad ghost attempts to mirror the angry ghost when the Ghost is split into four, it is possible to kill it by herding the angry ghost near the top of the level then quickly descending to the bottom of the level, causing the Sad Ghost to fly far below the level and die.
- The happy ghost becomes increasingly opaque with the closer she is to her target. It is not possible to die to her while she is targeting another ghost, allowing the player to phase past her unharmed in certain situations.
Sounds[]
The Ghost's ambience. Heard throughout all forms.
The happy ghost, from the ghost is split into two. The smaller sad ghost (from while the ghost is split into 4) also makes this noise, albeit quieter and at a higher pitch.
The sad ghost, while the ghost is split into two.
The small, but angry ghost, slowly pursuing the player.
The surprised ghost, attempting to circle the player.
The happy ghost while the ghost is split into four, likely out in the distance.
Ghosting[]
If the Ghost passes through large rubies, sapphires or emeralds lying on the ground, they will be transmuted into Diamonds worth several times the value of the ordinary jewels. Gems still embedded in rock or in Chests will not be affected. Unearthing jewels and leading the Ghost over them deliberately is a strategy known as ghosting, and can result in astronomically high scores if done properly.
The key to ghosting is proper planning; the player should make sure of always having a way out from the Ghost and anticipating and taking advantage of when she splits into two and four ghosts.
The presence of two or four smaller ghosts may also allow for different ghosting strategies, particularly with the Happy Ghost or the smaller Surprised Ghost, whose AI of circling the player may result in easier production of diamonds.
Ghosting requires patience and practice, but if done in an area with a high amount of gems, such as Shopkeeper Vaults or the one found in Madame Tusk's Palace of Pleasure, the player can leave the level with massive amounts of money.
Trivia[]
- It is strongly implied that the Ghost is that of The Empress, an otherwise unseen character.
- The grave of the Empress found in Eggplant World always has a Diamond beneath it, a gem is most commonly obtained with the help of the Ghost. Taking a picture of the tombstone using a Camera will cause the Ghost to briefly appear over the grave.
- The appearance the Ghost takes on after being attacked by the Camera resembles a Chinese noble, similar to that which would match the aesthetics of Tide Pool.
- Entries for Tide Pool-related enemies and traps imply that the Empress was a ruler of Tide Pool prior to her disappearance.
- The behavior of the Ghost's four parts resembles the behavior of the four ghosts from the classic 1980 arcade game Pac-Man: The angry ghost directly chases the player like Blinky, The sad ghost charges in relation to its target like Inky, the surprised ghost attempts to obstruct its target instead of directly chasing them like Pinky, and the happy ghost wanders aimlessly nearby like Clyde.
Version History
Disclaimer: All content from Version 1.25 and onwards are currently unavailable on PS4.
In Europe, Africa, Middle East & Oceania, all content after Version 1.20.4d are also unavailable on PS4. This is due to multiple reasons, although content will be available in the future.
1.23 (Switch)
- Reverted: Fixed issue where the sad ghost could be killed by leaving the level bounds.
1.22.6 (Switch)
- Fixed issue where the sad ghost could be killed by making it leave the level bounds
1.21.0c (W64)
- Ghost split timers changed from 30s/30s to 60s/30s
Other games[]
Appearances in other Spelunky games:
References[]
- ↑ Spelunky 2 internal object name (ENT_TYPE_MONS_GHOST_MEDIUM_SAD)
- ↑ Spelunky 2 internal object name (ENT_TYPE_MONS_GHOST_MEDIUM_HAPPY)
- ↑ Spelunky 2 internal object name (ENT_TYPE_MONS_GHOST_SMALL_ANGRY)
- ↑ Spelunky 2 internal object name (ENT_TYPE_MONS_GHOST_SMALL_SAD)
- ↑ Spelunky 2 internal object name (ENT_TYPE_MONS_GHOST_SMALL_SURPRISED)
- ↑ Spelunky 2 internal object name (ENT_TYPE_MONS_GHOST_SMALL_HAPPY)