You don't need magic bullet to make the game look snazzy, I did most of my stuff without them because of the same issue. Just experiment with effects, try multilayering, put the top at 25% or so, add some new blue ghost (beautiful, beautiful effect, if used correctly) & mess around with colors & contrasts 'til you get something that you're amazed by yourself. And of course listen to the music your editing under to match the colors with the vid.