Ghost of Tsushima Review

A dream come true:

In my childhood, I was always interested in stories about Samurais and Ninjas. Be it films, drawings or games. Ghost of Tsushima is the dream game for everyone who can even begin to deal with the topic. Sucker Punch creates a new IP that will be positively remembered for years to come as one of the best open world games ever made. But let's start from the beginning.

Honor died on the beach:

Ghost of Tsushima is based on historical events that happened in Japan in 1274. Mongols overrun the island of Tsushima. 8,000 Mongols against 80 Samurai. 
One of the most important story components comes into play here. Does honor matter? The Samurai fight with honor, but are quite predictable and are mercilessly knocked down by the Mongols. Our character named Jin Sakai is also involved in this battle. He survives and is rescued by a mysterious stranger.

The overrun island of Tsushima now has to be retaken and the Mongols and their leader Kublai Khan to be put down. Over the playtime of the game, however, the question arises in which way? Quietly as a Ghost or with honor like a real Samurai. This topic will be constantly taken up, remains exciting at all times and culminates in an unforgettable ending.

THE goosebump moment:

After the introduction you will be riding with your horse into the large and beautifl world of Tsushima. Your journey begins here with one of the best gaming moments of the year.
Accompanied by the amazing soundtrack, you ride across a grassy landscape and the titlecard of the game appears. This moment is mindblowing. The imagery with the epic soundtrack creates a real goosebump moment - just stunning.

The world of Tsushima:

Sucker Punch have previously said that they were inspired by games like Shadow of the Colossus and Zelda Breath of the Wild. Big worlds that can be explored with minimal Hud and waypoints.The world itself shows the points that can be interesting. Smoke from the campfire with people. Birds shows interesting places like hot springs or you generally let yourself be guided by the wind. One of the best gaming features of 2020.

The touchpad serves as a control here. You can swipe in different directions to respond to various commands. Let the wind show you the way or call your horse. Everything is intuitive and just right. I was very pleased by the minimal design. That way you will be better transported in the game world and also get off the main route to visit interesting places. And there are really enough of them. Shrines that first have to be climbed. Duel locations. Side quests with interesting stories. Mongol camps to fight and more. The short loading times are also among the best and makes exploring a real pleasure. A small taste of the future SSD that comes with the PlayStation 5.

Skilled warrior:

Experience give you skill points, which you can put into a large selection of different skills. There are many different options and you can skill your character to your playstyle. There are basically two ways that you can choose. Ghost or Samurai.

If you choose the path of the Ghost, you can improve your stealth ability and become a silent shadow. As a Samurai you will learn skills that bring you significant advantages when you're fighting with the Katana. You need any help, especially at the beginning of your adventure. The game is challenging but never unfair. As you learn new skills, you feel more and more powerful and the game becomes easier too.

The way of the Samurai:

If you choose the Samurai fighting style, you will confront the Mongols and prefer sword fighting. Blocking, evading and countering. Everything works well. After a certain amount of practice, you can get great combos and sword blows, which penetrate skin and bones and often cut off body parts. Exaggerated fountains of blood, death animations and screams are of course also included.

I always enjoyed these fights. As a point of criticism I see the camera work and the fact that you can not look on at your opponent. I didn't have any major problems with this, but you are used to playing better things from games like Sekiro. The combat system itself cannot keep up with the diversity of a From Software Title.

You can choose from four different fighting stances, all of which are better suited for different types of opponents. Easy too understand but hard to master.

One of the highlights are the so-called standoffs. If you are standing in front of a Mongol camp, you can call on your opponents to fight (Button press). Now, your're standing 
face to face, wait for the right moment and can eliminate multiple opponents at the same time. Here you feel like a real Samurai. The sound of the cut, the camera perspective and the stylish staging ensure great moments.

Fashion of Tsushima:

The choices of customization options are really great. Be it colors, hats or sword kits. The number of pieces of equipment is beyond any doubt and will certainly makes you smile. Only your Katana remains the same over the entire game. 

Also, your horse can be named and customized as well. I love those details. 

Presentation:

The beautiful vistas, an incredible number of moving details and the phenomenal 
soundtrack are among the best you can experience on the PlayStation 4. Bright colors are deliberately used in the game, which just looked great on my OLED TV. The HDR is also very amazing. Every new area, every change in the weather and every different time of day will let your eyes melt (in a good way). The game is just so well designed. It has a heart and you can see that in every corner.

On the PlayStation 4 Pro you could choose from two different modes. Image quality or performance mode. Here I would leave the image quality set at any time, since the performance mode does not increase the FPS that much (never above 30 FPS). From my point of view the game runs consistently at 30 FPS even in image quality mode.

Before starting the game you can choose between the normal mode and a black and white mode (Kurosawa Mode). Another nice addition is the existing setting of the original language. BUT a big point of criticism here is the lip sync, which is not optimal. I recommend you to play with English voices. These are great.

Photo Mode:

Without talking long. The photo mode in Ghost of Tsushima is the best we've ever seen in a game. You can set and adapt everything imaginable. It is really amazing. Many developers should be inspired by this. It not only increases the replayability but also makes for great marketing. In other words, a win-win situation. Maybe the pictures can convince you. For more, check out my photo mode gallery.

Verdict:

The PlayStation 4 gets a fitting conclusion with this game. For me, Ghost of Tsushima is one of the best open world games and a must-buy for all PS4 owners. The story reached me emotionally as only a few games before. I can't wait for Sucker Punch's next project. A hot candidate for game of the year! I recommend that you not only play through this game, but also complete it - It's worth it.

10/10

Code provided by PlayStation