Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

There's not much to explain the timing behind Beeline Interactive's new Ghostbusters game for iOS. It's not like there's a new movie coming out, nor even a Blu-ray or 3D re-release of the original.

But here it is all the same, a cartoony but complex resource-management sim that's reminiscent of other freemium games like Men in Black 3 and The Simpsons. If you're into that sort of thing, I'd say you're in for a treat.

The new Ghostbusters (not to be confused with Ghostbusters: Paranormal Blast, an augmented-reality action game) tasks you with clearing the spooks from a 50-story haunted tower.

To do so, you'll need to expand your team, conduct research, upgrade your equipment, and, of course, answer ghostbusting calls to earn money and other resources to fund it all. (This being a freemium game, you can also pony up real money for game money and/or "power cores.")

There's a lot of complexity to this Ghostbusters universe, and although there's a lengthy tutorial that helps guide you through it, you'll no doubt need to spend some time learning what to do, how to do it, and when. On the flipside, all that complexity lends itself to a rich, diverse simulation that offers a ton of play value.

Unfortunately, don't expect to hear any familiar voices, or even unfamiliar ones -- the game relies on music, sound effects, and word bubbles. Also, I found it extremely cramped on my iPhone, with a lot of the text and buttons just too small for comfort. This is a game best enjoyed on an iPad, or at least an iPad Mini.

Of course, because it's free, you've got nothing to lose by trying it yourself. Just remember: Don't cross the streams.