#ghost of tsushima fox dens

[wftjd95-gaming]

[ayrennaranaaldmeri]

Ghost of Tsushima - 5/?

[master-of-heroes]

yeah i guess ghost of tsushima is a good game

[skoulsons]

I love how tainted the Ghost of Tsushima world is

Sure, the scenery is remarkable and when you visit places like Tadayori’s rest, field of the equinox flower, the kishi grasslands, or even the view from atop Jogaku’s pagoda

But the world is tainted. You can ride anywhere and find burned bodies on pikes. Peasants killed by small boats on a coast somewhere. Families killed together. Even places considered sacred, like fox dens, can be not so beautiful—there’s a guy dead on a goza mat at the one in Kashine

Most of the side takes involve death to some degree. The man who ran from his wife and child and basically left them to die. The woman who drowned herself bc she carried so much guilt. Even some mythic tales with people like Yasuhira Koga who used the heavenly strike to kill innocents. Burned farmsteads. Burned homes. People taken hostage in the street and in the comfort of their homes

Even more so on Iki! Mongols hurt the areas of animal sanctuaries and even kill the beautiful animals that find solace in those places. They cage monkeys and cats and make the people there drink poison that torments them unless they cave in to the Mongols

I don’t know. The game is so much more than ‘wow look at that pretty sunset’. Even something as normal as riding your horse around, you see so much violence and death from what the Mongols inflicted on the people of Tsushima. You see the hurt and the pain and the heartbreak as Jin’s journey continues and, as the player, grow to also want to protect the people of the island

[wtfjd95]

Just realised I brought a brand new game in Assassin's Creed Mirage and maybe spent 2 hours max in it and a second hand game in Ghost of Tsushima at less than half the price of AC Mirage and spent like half a day or more on that.

Don't get me wrong both I enjoy for different reasons and thoroughly enjoy playing both but Ghost of Tsushima has captured my mind & heart in almost the same way as RDR2 did when i first got that. I can see myself just running around either completing Fox Dens & Shrines just like how I would go randomly hunting in RDR2 with Arthur & John.

One thing i am slightly annoyed with is how PlayStation only decided on PS5 that they should have a in game time tracker for how many hours you've spent on a game for the owner of that console intead of just having PS friends being able to see them. I would've like to of seen how many hours I've pulled already in Tsushima without asking a friend to look.

[bitchofedensgate]

Yua-The Kitsune

Name: Yua [meaning-binding love, affection]

Age: 35

Species: Kitsune

Human Form:

Yua often is naked when she transforms back in her Human Form. In her Fox Den, she keeps beautiful Kimonos. She prefers wearing following one:

Fox Form:

Her fur color is a indication for her element she can control-fire.

Family: Yua is the oldest sibling from her family which consist of her younger sisters Niko and Yui. Her brother Rei is just 5 minutes younger than her. Her mother was a Ninetailed Fox. Unfortunately she got killed by the M9ongols in her Human Form as they raided the Palace in Tsushima.

Motives: Yua her siblings got caught by the Khan, making it her goal to save their Life and take revenge for the death of her mother. But rescuing her family, is far more complicated and takes lot of Deals with the Humans...

Likes: Bathing under a Waterfall, hunting mice, sleeping on a sunny Rock, the scent of the ocean

Dislikes: fatty food, Mongols, brushing her hair out [her hair gets knotty very fast]

Body scent: Jasmine, Grapefruit, White Sage

Love Interest: Yua is not highly interested in love. She does romances many rich Humans, but this is only to get Power and money. If she had to decide, she chooses to marry a male Kitsune because there is no danger to acidentally take their soul. She is afraid to love a Human due to her nature to destroy their Soul over the time. Her touch and love is like a drug for weak minded Humans, making them addicted and loosing their mind and free will until they die due to the broken heart Syndrome.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

NEW OC DROPPED FOR MY NEW FAVOURITE GAME GHOST OF TSUSHIMA.

Ohhhhh the Drama that unfolds in my head for Yua and Jins Story. This will probably my First written Story with an OC. I am so excited!

[thedevilinbloodminor]

I just started playing Ghost of Tsushima this past week and basically will play it for five or so straight hours after work until I’m so tired that I have to force myself to go to bed. I love finding fox dens and getting to pet some of the foxes I encounter. I also love watching enemies from a distance trying to fight off a bear attacking them only to get their shit absolutely rocked, then I’ll finish off whoever’s left and take all the loot & hides for myself. I won’t even get started on all the lush, verdant, idyllic landscapes and scenery—the level of detail is insane.

[multi-muse-transect]

It would be funny if we do get the long rumored Last Of Us Part 2 Director’s Cut that’s basically an expansion but also get an unnamed expansion with it and the title is revealed to be “The Ghost” as its a may or may not be canon crossover story with Ghost Of Tsushima involving Ellie teaming up with the descendant of Jin Sakai, Jim Sakai (Daisuke Tsuji) who requests her help to fight off Rattler remnants a day after Part 2 with new weapons like the grapple, katana, smoke bombs, spear, etc alongside a Kuniochi armor for Ellie alongside a standoff mechanic and other Tsushima-isms like hot springs, fox dens, and bamboo strikes as Ellie learns to find inner peace.

[lmaverick123]

Lucien's First Take: Ghost of Yotei - Announce Trailer

One of my new favorite game is Ghost of Tsushima.  It was basically Sucker Punch taking the tired, bland formula of Assassin’s Creed, dressing it up, adding in some homage to old samurai movies, and going to Japan with it.  And the final product was NIGH FLAWLESS!  A few less fox dens, and it would have been a flawless game.  Did you know they have still been adding stuff to the game?  Like how…

[frostehburr]

The Most Ninja AAA Game (so far)

Aside from recent trauma I've been going through, I managed to complete Ghost of Tsushima as well as its DLC Iki Island. I know, I know, super extra late to that party but I had it on the back of the shelf and didn't think of it until last month.

The setting of the game is really old Japan, like I think the date was 1275 or something close to that. All I know is that Mongols invaded and the main character, Jin Sakai the Last Samurai of Tsushima, has to do everything he can to drive out the invaders. Which means sacrificing his honor... I think...

Yeah, I know little to nothing about the honor thing. It's apparently a big deal in the game and I assume eastern countries.

I think the idea behind the game was to have an origin story for ninjas and how iconic/legendary they became. In turn making this game about a samurai becoming the first ninja out of desperation to defeat an overwhelming force.

So you see a lot of ninja stuff as you progress through the game. Such as a grappling hook, poison darts, and of course the classic smoke bombs.

I've been playing Sucker Punch games since Sly Cooper (I missed out on Rocket for N64). It's quite nice to see the developers go from 3D Platformer to Full Open World RPG over the years. They may have gained a lot of experience with the inFamous franchise. You can see a lot of Cole in Jin's parkour movements.

Speaking of Sucker Punch's past games; there's a few references via murals in Iki Island. I caught Delsin's karma birds and a very Japanesey Cold from inFamous 2 on some rocks.

The combat is fluid and smooth as are the stealth mechanics. Variety in choices on how you take out enemies is super fun. One camp you can pop in and out of cover until everyone is dead without knowing they were being killed off. Another camp you can charge in with a flaming sword, throwing bombs and knives at people for immediate action. All play styles are thought of.

Outside of combat, the environment work is gorgeous! For a moment I was sure the developers programed real photos of Japan to place in front of you at all times but nope they really did model and textured everything that well. Certainly hit the peak of 3D software with this one.

The plants, mud, and water was all so breathtaking I spent a long while walking around the colorful landscape. Even the fire and snow was super good! I took a screen shot of this one scenery where the blacken earth from a fire met the white snow because it looked like a museum painting and I wanted to keep that image. Also there was a lot of yellow plants. I mean a LOT of yellow plants. Despite what Goombah sensei says, I'm convinced real ninjas wore yellow if they lived with so many yellow plants like what I saw.

Much like all good open world games, the majority of the fun is exploring to find cool collectables. My millennial brain obsesses over finding things! I have to have collectables in my game to really enjoy it! And Ghost of Tsushima delivers on that promise. Artifacts, fox dens, haikus, and hot springs are all over. It's all so worth seeking out and never feels like a chore. What I listed wasn't all there is, either, there's more out there.

Jin Sakai's story in both Tsushima and Iki Island were as dramatic as a hollywood film... a good hollywood film. One that would get an entire fanbase for. Maybe a tumblr sexy man. Hey, I'm certain someone has the hots for Kenji.

Anyhow... Ghost of Tsushima was a thrill to complete and I'd make another account to do it all over again. But for now, it's the shiniest platinum on the shelf and I look forward to the next experience.

oh right, there's the Legends Mode... eh, some other time, maybe never. I hate multiplayer trophies.

[felrend]

My first fox!!

[arthurmeowrgan]

very important images

[littlesmokecloud-yan]

They killed MY HORSE!!!

[serene-faerie]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Ghost of Tsushima (Video Game) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Jin Sakai/Yuna Characters: Jin Sakai, Yuna (Ghost of Tsushima) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - No Mongol Invasion, Courtship, Courting Rituals, Class Differences, Foxes, Bonding Series: Part 3 of In Pursuit of a Thief Summary:

In which Jin gets Yuna's permission to officially court her, and commences the courtship with a little trip to a fox den in the woods near Omi Lake.

@dicax-asina Here’s Scene 3! I hope you like it! <3

[danwhobrowses]

Ghost of Tsushima: Thoughts, Ideas and Hopes for DLC and Sequels

So I recently Platinum’d Ghost of Tsushima, I finished the story last week after 30 entries of livestreams which saw a whopping viewership of at most 2 people including one asshole that decided to spoil the end of Act II before I got there because I was playing stealthy and the way I wanted to play. But then wrapped up the Achievements on my own time. After a bit of stewing I’m ready to talk gush about it, including what I liked, a small bit of stuff I disliked and stuff I would suggest for future DLC and Sequel(s)

Spoilers for the Game, unlike that Commenter on my Stream I will not Spoil you on this, it is truly something you should experience for yourself

Because Good Lord, What A Game. Easily my Game of the Year, which compared to all the big hitter titles released is amazing, I mean Crash Bandicoot could still blow me away and Cyberpunk, Watch Dogs, Godfall, AC Valhalla and Miles Morales in waiting but probably not in this way. It is a magnificent game, one made with fantastic care and beauty, but before I go all out, let’s get the negatives out of the way 出る杭は打たれる。: A Flawed Masterpiece Ghost of Tsushima is brilliant but not without its faults. Most of these faults are admittedly minuscule and fixable, but until they are fixed they remain flaws. The biggest disappointment for me with the game was the lack of Japanese lip syncing. I loved the Japanese track, it also highly appealed to me to hear One Piece’s Roronoa Zoro voice Jin, but you have to kinda avoid looking at the mouths because it doesn’t match up, the models still speak in English and it’s a heavy shame that can kill some immersion. I guess they didn’t have the finances for it, because they could’ve done the lip syncs at the same time as they did the English ones if they had the Japanese track too. Combat for the most part was great, aiming could be wonky at times and Jin’s attacks didn’t carry on to a 1 foot ledge, but my main gripe with combat was the Camera getting in the way. It was adjustable most times, but other times it was not. Doing standoffs in the tall grass was night impossible at the later stages without the knees giving us a tell, one standoff I had was completely obstructed by a tree - I’m not making it up, a tree was literally all I saw for the Standoff. You lose so much health for failing a standoff too, bit harmful in later levels. The remaining issues are probably more personal, I didn’t quite like some of the sword kit designs - the ones with fluffy sleeves and I didn’t really like the armor dye you get for 100%ing the achievements, some weapons seemed to lose their luster in later parts of the game (particularly the half bow and Explosive Arrow, the former was only good for killing the angry doggos and the latter only killed Mongols if near another explosive to stack), that one Masako quest mission where you have to follow and pick off Straw Hats one by one without being seen, but will fail if you pull a triple assassination before the outpost where Masako’s lesbian lover was leading them all to so there’s more Straw Hats to blow my cover! (it wasn’t difficult it just annoyed me that it failed me for killing them all early) and the completionist in me hates that there are empty slots in the arrow and blowgun sections, but they can be worked in what I’ll talk about a bit later down the line, alongside some minor loose threads. Also you killed my horse man!

Your horse will accompany you on your entire journey - Ghost of Tsushima UI Message

Don’t you dare lie to me like that again Sucker Punch! Just because you’re named that doesn’t mean you can live up to it, we already lost one horse at the beach! Had to spend the final act with Not-Sora and Kaze with a hole in my heart never to be filled. But with that dealt with, let’s talk about some things I loved about the game

花は桜木人は武士 :  Living into a Legend With these games it is very easy to fall into the Elder Scrolls prototype of an array fun side quests and exploration and a so-so main story. Ghost of Tsushima though decided to have both the array of side quests and exploration and a great, complex and partly tragic story. There were many times I wanted to get back to the main story but held off because I wanted to be prepared. Long distances didn’t feel too bad to travel when the roads were uncharted either thanks to radiant battles, new settlements, vanity gear and side missions to ease you on the way. Additionally, the characters are for the most part fantastic, I cared for the safety of most of my allies and Jin himself, I wanted the Khan dead in a cerebral villain (albeit one whose final battle fell into cowardice) and I was open to the complexities of Ishikawa and Tomoe. I did feel that Shimura was being a tad ungrateful but I think it was intended for us to be frustrated to the edicts of the Samurai code - my frustration led me so much to deep dive to prove myself justified since the code was subjective and many agreed to aspects of ‘win no matter what’ and ‘do what protects the people the most’. Along with the main quest was paired with the character journeys of our allies as well as the Mythic tales which granted some extra strength and challenges to overcome in order to expand Jin’s arsenal. I particularly liked the observation and killing of leaders to learn new stances, as well as the widely acclaimed Stand-Off and the duels. The Arkhamverse fan in me did appreciate the focused hearing for stealth and that assassination speed could be upgraded. The idea of collecting vanity gear, armour dyes and equipment that are remains of the conflict showed that SP had completely immersed their plot into the world of Tsushima, with a great amount of exploration and nuances nodding to Japanese folklore And Tsushima is certainly stunning, it’s amazing that the PS4 can hold this much when we know how the PS5 is meant to be with ray tracing. The landscapes are beauteous which makes exploration and travel much more fulfilling, as well as the photo mode and the scenic builds to some of the major battles. What’s also wonderful is the calligraphy cutscenes for Mythic Tales and the loading screens, some wonderful artistry. Artistry which is added to by the brilliant uses of Haiku spots, Bamboo Strikes, Lighthouses, Shrines, Altars which you bow to, Fox dens where you can pet the Foxxos and even the Hot Springs for some ‘Man-Butt Action’, each positions that fit to Japanese media in soaking in a moment without killing any pace, especially added to the fact that each one contributes to a purpose. I will admit, I chose wrong at the end, I was thinking more of Shimura (said ungrateful uncle)’s honour rather than what Jin would what, feeling that Shimura would’ve done it himself had Jin not. But seeing the spare ending made me wish I chose that one and it’s something I’ll touch on later. But both endings are fitting and tragic for Jin’s journey from Samurai to the Ghost, being inspired by his allies and his connection to Yuna, there has been conflict throughout regarding the line of protection, honour and vengeance explored through other people’s tales that blend together perfectly with the main plot.  It is pretty political as well with the argument presented by Jin and Shimura’s conflict. Samurai while still romanticised were still shown to be bound to the blind loyalty towards the Shogun and Jito, you did not defy because it inspired others to think freely. Jin became a champion of a people by defending the people rather than listening to the jito - represented by the shogunate - and their stringent ideas that the Samurai who failed on the beach would be able to out-muster the force and brutality of the Mongol invasion regardless of the collateral and yet still call that honour. In the current climate in 2020, that hits a chord a little closer than expected. And the main story certainly has their stellar moments, the ups and downs really hit you - like killing my freaking horse! I had to lose Yuriko, Taka and Sora in a single playthrough. Losing Taka was inevitable, but still heartbreaking because of how much we struggled to save him and how much we want to still be Yuna’s friend, but then the highs just blow you away from the opening act, Ghost Stance, raiding Castle Kaneda and Shimura and the final raid at Port Izumi. Also did I mention that you can pet the Foxxos? Because that’s very important, also NPCs walk at your pace most of the time, which is a fantastic addition. I could probably go deeper but there’s other stuff I want to cover, but understand that the world and the story is wonderful and if you’re a fan of Assassin’s Creed, Arkhamverse and just Japanese culture in general this should tick your boxes. And hopefully there’s more to come.

石の上にも三年 : Strait to DLC The sad thing that happens when a good game is over is the void. Even if its days, having nothing left of the game to play is still a shame, and I know that Legends DLC is announced, but multiplayer involving fighting Oni as mythic legends isn’t my pace, I’m still not done with Jin and I feel like there are things we could still do. There are still 3 conflicts Jin’s story never resolved that could still be resolved now, each as multi-layered quests. The first is this ‘Ghost Army’ mentioned by the wagon guy in Omi, we are not leading this so who is? We may not be able to stop them but we could reduce the amount of people thinking we’re leading them to fight. The second is Daizo, if you don’t know that name it’s because the guy is never seen in the game, you only read about him in the Records of ‘Conversations with the Khan’. This Japanese Monk clearly has a thing for the late Khotun and he feels that the Ghost is being a dishonorable monster, this Khan lover is still at large and a confidant of Khotun, we could link with Norio in a quest to ensure he doesn’t rally or try to spread his appreciation of the Khan to others to try and complete Khotun’s work. The final conflict is one that eats me up: How did the Mongols Know About the Poison? Yuriko died showing me how to make the poisons, made more potent from her own herbal poisons which were crushed down, if she didn’t tell and I didn’t tell, who told? Because the Mongols drank the evidence and we could make a story of an Omi village traitor or even someone from Shimura’s camp leaking the info to the Khan to try and preserve ‘honour’. On top of these loose ends I’d very much like to see our allies again, even if they’re just at their home doing their own thing, as well as some other minor side characters like the Tadayori descendant Kaede, Flame Swordsman Bettomaru (who would’ve both been mighty useful with this Mongol affair beyond their sole missions) and the Yarikawa Archer Daikoku, I also would like to see confirmation on Jin and Yuna - there is clearly something there but that could be just me. What is also just me would be the suggestion of a shrine that can let you redo the Shimura decision, it’s not a too ‘out-there’ thing to do either considering we fought a Tengu. The shrine could be for Omoikane, Kami of wisdom and intelligence or Ame-no-Koyane, the ‘First in Charge of Divine Affairs’ which’d subject the player to a gauntlet of bosses past; Ryuzo, Kotun and Shimura, if the player goes against their initial decision, they will trade their ghost armour dye for the other and get a Charm of Pondering, if they stick to their guns they get both ghost armour dyes and a Charm of Strengthened Stance. In similar vein we could have a master Mythic Tale that stacks the duels of those tales into one for another special attack, weapon or armour. It’s also possible that we could add more duels, some remnants trying to avenge Khotun or even some Samurai sent by the Shogun in promise of becoming Jito. Likewise we can use this to complete the weapons set; for the Half Bow, take the Mongols’ poison arrows (which can be a reward for finding who leaked the poison to them) which can just eat at lesser enemies’ health and take a chunk of stronger enemies’ health before resolving out of it, as well as a sticky arrow that could slow enemies or weaken their armour, or a perfume arrow that can mess with the falcons and angry doggo’s senses. For the Long Bow we could have...okay I’m drawing a blank here but I’m not meant to do all the work XD For the Blowgun at least you could have a Blinding Dart to aid in stealth and a Panic Dart to increase chances of Terrify. We could even have a few more upgrades to our ghost weapons and stance combats, even increase the amount of kills Ghost Stance can yield. In addition to more Fox Dens, Shrines, maybe new resources to bolster upgrades, Sword Kits, Haikus, Banners, Flute Songs, dyes and so on. But I know what you’re thinking, we can’t put that all in Tsushima? We’ve covered the entire island and it’s unlikely that SP would make a fictitious island. And to that I say, I have that covered. In the Tsushima Strait between the island and the mainland there is Iki Island, part of the same prefecture and equally ravaged by the Mongols during the invasion, it’s also the base of pirates which can offer a stop point for a Tomoe reunion or simply travel via Umugi Cove. A small bit of expansion wouldn’t hurt, as long as Iki isn’t planned for something else that is.

能ある鷹は爪を隠す : Hopes for a Sequel Now part of me would be content if this was a one and done, the game shines perfectly on its own. But I would not turn one down. Though many would feel that Jin’s journey is done (I even heard a suggestion of Tomoe, I could see that but not right now, maybe for a third) but not me, there’s still a few glaring issues at hand. For one, the Shogun now wants you dead, new clans are moving in on you and there will probably be a new Jito regardless of the ending choice because of Shimura’s failure, Adachi will also need to look at another clan taking its land. There’s also the vacuum left behind by the clans’ subsidiaries; Nagao particularly but also Adachi’s rival clan Kikuchi, there’s easily possibilities to use canon Sō, Abiru, Shōni and Imagawa, there’s also room for Kikuchi Takefusa, who survived both Mongol invasions  . A sequel could offer some clan territorial tensions in that regard as the people of Tsushima side with the Ghost over the mainland. That conflict is one we have touched on in the end of the first, Jin has fought for his country’s safety so how will he act when his country wants him dead? The first was a story of sacrifice perhaps the next can be a story of maintaining his legend, inspiring the mainland Samurai and even redeeming himself in the eyes of the non-Tsushima natives. It’s also worth remembering that Komoda was the beginning of the invasion, and there was a second invasion 6 years later where Tsushima was attacked once more, the death of non-canon Khotun could spark other higher ups of Kublai’s ranks to avenge or clean up for Khotun, Kublai also had counsel from different nations to understand his enemy so we could have an even more vicious and cerebral enemy be made, or even a group of enemies led by advisors like Liu Kan or Yao Shu, maybe even Marco Polo if we move the time after the first invasion. In terms of gameplay we could also see Jin expand from Tsushima to Iki and maybe some more naval warfare, growing in his equipment (like Caltrops, Kusari-Fundo and Suntetsu) and maybe even his weapon, an Ono, Jitte or a Naginata to rotate with his not-yet-made Katana to combat with Samurai or the army of a Mongol threat, maybe even use the Bo-Hiya for ranged fire archery learned from the Hwacha. And like the Mass Effect games (or Dragon Ball Xenoverse if you wanna pick a franchise that didn’t end in a bitter aftertaste) you could have the option to transfer over some data from the PS4 save to the next one, which’d inevitably be on PS5 at the least - also don’t be surprised if this gets a PS5 remaster too, especially if it does win Game of the Year. What I suggested for DLC could be used here too, if there is a sequel with Jin I really, really hope that SP don’t opt for the route of killing Jin (or Yuna) off for effect, I was nervous about the current game ending with Hara Kiri and I’d rather not have that or a downer of a death for the legendary Ghost (I am a happy endings guy after all). An alternative route to go (other than following Tomoe to the mainland to rip off the Ghost) is to work backwards, call it ‘Ghosts of Tsushima’ working towards a story of a more ancient time, where a thief could become a samurai clan. A clan Sakai or Shimura origin would sell in that way too and avoid the idea that we have to start again from zero but still have the more ‘dishonorable’ stealth tactics.

義は険しい山よりも重く、死は大鳥の羽よりも軽い : Conclusion In the end, this game was worth the wait, worth the delays and worth the price tag. I feel like this will be one of the games I’ll fondly remember when thinking of the PS4, which has truly had a stellar library of awesome games like Spider-Man, God of War, the Crash, Ratchet & Clank and Spyro Remasters, DMCV, Jedi: Fallen Order and more. This truly ticked the boxes for the anime nerd within me and the history buff, even the Haikus spurred the poet in me a little too. If anyone hasn’t played this game, they should, and I hope that Sucker Punch realises that people like me want to see more. If it stands alone so be it, but I’m not ready to leave Jin or Tsushima just yet. いってらっしゃい

[animalgirl-bodypart]

Ghost of Tsushima: Thoughts

Just like the shooters of the 2000s and the platformers of the 1990s, open-world sandbox games are undoubtedly the dominant genre of video games in the 2010s, and as someone who mostly grew up in that decade, I’ve played more than my fair share of them. So I was greatly surprised and satisfied to see a true innovation of that formula come at the end of its generation in Ghost of Tsushima. It has a lot of the issues of other open-world games, overly repetitive side tasks are abundant here, but it does enough right to make me consider the game to be the best of it’s genre, it’s legitimately tied with Breath of the Wild in my eyes.

For those somehow unfamiliar with the open-world formula, the main gameplay loop boils down to exploring the map, chasing down the next bit of story and coming across side tasks and other tales as you go. Because of the inherently open  nature of the game, the story is a bit less urgent than most games. It’s still there, and is absolutely the main focus of the game, it just takes place on a larger timescale, allowing you to accomplish tasks at your own pace while still retaining some realism. And the tasks on offer have some great variety. Some of them were a bit too repetitive, there are a mountain of fox dens and haikus to work through, but coming across mercenaries in the wild seeking to test their steel against the legend of the ghost always imbued me with a sense of sheer badassery.

Each of these collectables unlocks something, whether it’s a common piece of vanity gear or an optional upgrade called a charm, that you can equip to one of your limited slots. While it’s good to have an incentive to complete things, this desire to bar everything behind icons on the map becomes somewhat annoying. The worst example is the stances, of which there is one corresponding to every type of enemy in the game. They’re unlocked after defeating a certain number of mongol leaders, but they felt like they were designed as core parts of the combat, and then shoved behind grind walls for seemingly no reason. It’s very hard to take down an enemy unless you’re using the appropriate stance. I get dumping all the stances at once on the player might have felt overwhelming, but as it is I spent my first couple hours running around the map, hunting down mongol leaders, because I just couldn’t advance in the game otherwise.

Outside of the actual tasks, though, the way the open world is presented is what elevates Ghost of Tsushima to another level for me. So much care was taken by the developers to ensure that every element of the exploration was incorporated believably into the world. Nearby enemy camps produce plumes of smoke, fluttering gold birds lead you to nearby secrets, a strong gust of wing points you in the direction of your marked target, everything works together to create a fantastic sense of natural realism that really hasn’t been achieved before in games. It’s a truly immersive experience and it’s a large part of why I love the game as much as I do.

Beyond the realm of gameplay, it’s arguable that the story of Ghost of Tsushima is it’s greatest aspect. It’s really something special, and I’d recommend you stop reading here if you plan to play the game in the near future, because I’m going to dive into some pretty heavy spoilers, starting now. The tragedy of Jin is beautifully portrayed, and his arc from a strictly honorable samurai to a chaotic good assassin is entirely believable. Seeing him and his uncle grow apart honestly brought tears to my eyes, and their final battle stands out as one of the most powerful scenes of any game in recent memory, but I did have a slight problem with the very ending cutscene. The choice of whether or not to kill Lord Shimura clashed with the plot up until now, as all of the actions Jin had taken in the story so far made choosing to kill him very out of character. It wasn’t a huge issue, I didn’t even really think twice about it until a few days after I beat the story, but it was a bit disappointing. Overall, however, the story is one of the best gaming has to offer.

So there are my thoughts on Ghost of Tsushima as of right now! It’s a truly beautiful experience and I recommend anyone who hasn’t had the chance to play it yet seek out the opportunity to do so. Thank you to anyone reading this, and I hope you have a good night!