Summary
The creative director ofGhost of Yoteihas confirmed that the upcoming game will have a less repetitive open world design than its predecessor, 2020’sGhost of Tsushima. WhileGhost of Yoteiis bringing an all-new map, time period, and protagonist, it seems developer Sucker Punch is also keen on offering more streamlined and varied open-world activities to players.
Although the visuals and environmental diversity ofGhost of Tsushima’s open world were undoubtedly impressive, many players did complain about the game’s somewhat tedious missions and activities. Some even contended thatGhost of Tsushima’s world design possessed a lot ofUbisoft open world tropes, like clearing enemy strongholds, picking up various collectibles scattered around the map, side quests that more or less play out similarly, etc. Thankfully,Ghost of Yoteilooks to be addressing these concerns head-on.
Not much isknown aboutGhost of Yoteiat the moment, apart from its brand-new protagonist named Atsu, the 1603 time period, and the gorgeous island of Hokkaido being used as the game’s backdrop. Since Hokkaido is significantly larger than Tsushima in real life, fans have been wondering how Sucker Punch will handleGhost of Yotei’s open-world activities. Creative director Jason Connell brought this up in a recentinterview with The New York Times, stating that open-world game design comes with the “challenge” of repetitive activities, but Sucker Punch is working to “balance against that and find unique experiences” forGhost of Yotei.
Ghost of Yotei’s World Design Could Be Its Biggest Upgrade Over Ghost of Tsushima
A bit more detail about how Sucker Punch is improvingGhost of Yotei’s open world design would’ve been appreciated, but Connell’s affirmation spells good news for the upcoming PS5 exclusive nonetheless. A lot ofGhost of Tsushimaplayers enjoyed its storytelling, graphical fidelity, and freedom of traversal, but found the game’s repetitive nature to be its weakest link. IfGhost of Yoteican improve upon those three aspects while offering a leaner, more diverse world for players to explore, it could accrue even more success thanGhost of Tsushima.
Ghost of Yoteiis set to release in 2025, so it’s too soon to speculate on how the game’s open-world activities could play out. However, leaning harder into environmental storytelling seems a likely route for Sucker Punch.Ghost of Tsushima’s stunning world was packed with detail and the investigative tracking missions showed potential for environmental storytelling, but their extensive hand-holding was lamented by many players.Ghost of Yoteiconfidently makes big changes fromGhost of Tsushima, so sacrificing a bit of simplicity to enhance player agency shouldn’t be too much of a challenge for Sucker Punch.
Ghost of Yotei
WHERE TO PLAY
Discover a bold, new story of a warrior in Japan who is on a mission of vengeance all her own.Set 300 years after the critically acclaimed Ghost of Tsushima, Ghost of Yōtei is standalone experience set in 1600s rural Japan. The story follows a haunted, lone mercenary named Atsu. Thirsty for revenge, she travels through the beautiful, rugged landscapes of northern Japan, hunting those who killed her family many years earlier.
