Trek to Yomi - Review
Trek to Yomi is a new Samurai game from publisher Devolver Digital and right after the first announcement trailer, I was looking forward to game. I was immediately reminded of the beautiful game Ghost of Tsushima. With the setting and the deliberate black and white colors, Trek to Yomi is strongly reminiscent of the masterful movies made by cult director Akira Kurosawa. And in this area the game does everything right. But let's start with the story.
Story:
The name "Trek to Yomi" actually tells you the background story of the game. "Yomi" is the Shintō term for the underworld as the land of the dead. From the point of view of your main character "Hiroki" you're traveling to that exact place. But I don't want to describe everything to you. The story is told in an exciting way and captivates you for around 6 hours of your first playthrough.
Presentation:
The real star of the game is the presentation. Just really unique and incredibly good. I strongly suspect that after seeing the first trailer, a lot of people were interested in the game precisely because of the design and presentation. If so, you won't be disappointed.
The backgrounds, the attention to detail and the dynamic camera shots are just great. Often I had to accept a death because I just stood there and watched at the beautiful panorama.
Gameplay:
Gameplay-wise, the game reminded me of the old God of War games on the PlayStation 2 and the recently released SIFU. You often move from left to right, while in certain sections you can move freely in all directions. In these sections you can discover all sorts of collectibles, ammunition for your bow and other secret locations. I love that exploration is rewarded. You can also simplify encounters with small tricks.
Here you can, for example, destroy a bridge and 3 opponents are defeated directly. Great solution. This is how you explore the game world and fight your way to the next checkpoint, which is considered a safe point and refills your life.
Combat:
Combat feels methodical. Especially in one of the higher levels of difficulty. I finished Trek to Yomi in the normal mode and currently working trough a new mode in which every hit automatically kills you, but you also kill every enemy (except bosses) with one hit. You have to look out for your opponents, wait for moments to parry and strike at the right time. The "parry window" was very pleasant and I was able to use this function very well. Especially since a successful parry and subsequent hits lead to healing.
There is no ordinary skill tree in which you can use different skill points. Simply by defeating different enemies, you get new attack techniques and even various weapons.
I would describe the level of difficulty as demanding but never unfair. Furthermore, you can freely design your "path to Yomi" by choosing different levels of difficulty.
The scenarios are all beautiful and very varied. I was always looking forward to every new area, because there is really something for the eyes on offer here. When it comes to enemy diversity, things are a bit different. The existing enemies are nicely designed, fit the respective area, but could have been just "more" for my taste. The bosses are also hit and miss. The attack patterns are hard to figure out and I got really stuck on one boss. I didn't like the bigger enemies in this game but I don't want to give too much away.
There are some light puzzles that are never particularly difficult but offer a nice change from fighting.
Replay Value:
The replay value is just great. I started a new game right after the first run. Also one the hardest level of difficulty. Since there is a lot to explore in the levels and only a few players will find all collectibles the first time, you can catch up on this. Sadly there is no new game plus. After the end of the game, your progress will be reset to zero and you can start the game with a new difficulty level. Sadly all the collectibles must be collected again.
In certain sections there are also different in dialogue options that lead to different endings. I haven't seen everything yet and I'm looking forward to many more hours in this game.
Platinum Trophy:
I've looked at the trophies and I'd say the platinum trophy is very within reach. This requires several playthroughs on different levels of difficulty and you have to reach all collectibles. I only see problems with the bosses that kill you with one hit. You should be able to reach the rest almost without additional reading. So I would give the platinum difficulty a 7/10.
PlayStation 5 Features:
I played the game on the PlayStation 5 with an LG OLED TV. The game ran smooth at 60fps and looks stunning. I also have to give credit for not having experienced any bugs or game crashes.
The DualSense features are also great. Once again I have to say that the DualSense enriches every game from my point of view. You can feel bow shots again via the trigger and your life bar is also displayed in different colors on the controller (green -> red) - nice detail!
Verdict:
I highly recommend this game to any Samurai or Akira Kurosawa fan. The setting is great, the combat system is fun and the replay value is also there. In my opinion, for the good price point you not only get one of the Indie games of the year, but also one of the best Samurai games in recent years. At every corner you can feel the attention to detail. If you've seen a trailer and you like the setting, buy the game. You will not be disappointed.
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