Hands-on with Luigi’s Mansion 2 on Nintendo 3DS

The original Luigi’s Mansion is one of those warmly remembered games from the GameCube era that, for one reason or another, didn’t quite reach the same level of adoration as a certain game featuring his red-capped brother.

It’s a shame, because the original was a great demonstration that Nintendo could still produce a new franchise that radiated originality from its bright torch.

Luigi’s Mansion 2 puts you in the shoes of the lanky one as he scuttles around a haunted house, using his special vacuum cleaner to suck up coins and notes. Oh, and ghosts - can’t forget the ghosts.

Although, during my brief hands-on with the game that's almost exactly what I did, because I was too busy hoovering up objects hidden around each part of the mansion.

Sucking and blowing is handled via the shoulder buttons, while aiming up and down is performed by pressing B and X - somewhat like an N64 game.

While the basic gameplay simply boils down to moving from room to room sucking up ghosts, the section of the game we played hints at greater things.

For instance, walk into the garage at the start of the game and you’ll find none of the restless dead creeping about -although the eagle-eyed among you should be able to locate a few hidden extras tucked away in the corners of the room.

However, after you’ve recovered a key from the chest (after sucking away the cover with an enjoyably physical wrestling match), the old 1910 motor vehicle suddenly honks its horn and lights up to reveal a poltergeist ready for capturing.

Battling this poltergeist is enjoyably tactile. First you’ll need to blind it with a quick stab of the A button (which lights up your flashlight). This gives you the chance to get in close before he vanishes (and reappears behind you).

But that’s not the end of the affair - you’ll be led on a merry chase as the ghost frantically tries to break free from your grasp.

Pulling him back with the joystick and hitting A when the button prompt appears eventually wears him down and pulls him into your trap.

It should sound familiar to those who have played the original, and in all honesty Luigi’s Mansion 2 comes across as more of the same.

But when that same thing is a great game originally hampered by its short length, that's nothing to be sniffed at.