Review Ghost of Tsushima: The Last Samurai

Producer: Brian Fleming

Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment

Developer: Sucker Punch Productions

Release date: 17/7/2020

Platform: PS4

Ghost of Tsushima is an exclusive game on PS4 that is cared for every hair by the manufacturer Sucker Punch - the father of many famous game series such as Sly and Infamous. Expected to create a big buzz like its predecessors, this game has attracted the attention of the gaming community since the early days of its launch. Not disappointing viewers, Ghost of Tsushima succeeds in portraying the majestic Japanese nature, breathtaking sword fights in relation to a thoughtful plot.

Plot

Set in 13th century Japan invaded by the Mongols, the story of Ghost of Tsushima (GoT) takes place on the island of Tsushima where Jin Sakai - the hero of the story inherits the family responsibility. Fight the Mongols to take back the island. With what he has trained on the path of a monk, Jin must use both his samurai (swords) and ninja (hidden) skills to fight against the mighty army.  

In the role of Jin Sakai, players will step into Jin's journey of resilience, inner torments when standing in the middle of the Samurai spirit - always facing the enemy and fighting for honor with change to confront against the power of foreign invaders. Along with the fighting phase, the game's artistic graphics somewhat soften the tense moments.   

Graphics

Ghost of Tsushima is a testament to a Japanese philosophy: to be a good Samurai must know how to connect with nature. Because the skill of using weapons lies not only in strength, physicality and technique, but also in the ability to observe trees, mountains, and rivers. GoT did it very well.

The GoT world is a symphony of contrasting and saturated tones. Every little detail such as leaves blowing in the wind, petals, butterflies and grains of sand are meticulously depicted to make everything come to life: the red-leaved forest on the hilltop, the inviting green trees at dawn, the sunlight. The sparkling moon on the lake is the delicacy that entertains all your senses.

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The manufacturer was intentional when integrating the lack of navigation information into the game so that users focus on the landscape. There's no option for an on-screen minimap or a compass to see which direction you're going, and there are almost no target markers there. Instead, the game has a device called Guiding Wind - following the direction of the wind helps you move in the right direction and more clearly.

Every detail plays a role in guiding the player into the ultimate game design. Guiding Wind makes you pay more attention to the surrounding environment such as smoke plume, flying bird, fox, Torii gate. The fox will invite you through the alluring route to Inari Shrine, the Torii gate leading you through a simple yet daring climbing challenge with the reward of breathtaking views. 

Haikus asks you to sit down and reflect on the nature in front of you, and the singing of crickets allows you to control the weather to your liking. Some nifty keys like the quick-travel system make Tsushima an extremely pleasant place to navigate, especially when equipped with the game's powerful photo mode for screenshots.

Sound

GoT has the perfect backend sound system for endless adventures and endless combat. The combat experience is backed up by powerful music that builds moments of suspense, tension, and can control your emotions, no matter how carefree you are.

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While investing in a spectacular graphics system, it is difficult to understand that Sucker Punch does not focus on facial expressions and the smooth coordination between movements - words of the character line. The face is depicted in detail but lacks natural expressions, the mismatched dubbing also makes these defects easier to detect. This, unfortunately, detracts from the perfect visual experience that has been refined by all of the above.  

Style play

As an open world game, GoT has a well-rounded gameplay to spark your own exploration with a system of main and side quests (Tales). Some Tales can be silly, but the main Tales are still the backbone that connects the story: Jin transforms from an exemplary samurai into a man who is sometimes cruel for his goals or father-son relationship, allies - confused enemy. This is Sucker Punch's intention to deviate from history wisely.

Mythic Tales is GoT's most interesting quest although quite few. Players are asked to do things like look at a hand-drawn map and use reasoning to find a location or perform an unexpected action. In addition to the main tales, Mythic Tales rewards will provide players with a variety of new weapons, armor, and skills, usually after a 1-1 boss fight.

The samurai cinematography is conveyed in such hand-to-hand battles: a genuine samurai atmosphere for all battles whether it is with a common bandit or a master swordsman. In his hand is a Katana, Jin can knock down enemies in a few hits and vice versa, ending in defeat in just a few seconds. This means that blocking, dodging and dodging are key skills that players need to learn how to use. 

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The Resolve meter you get when you win helps you perform devastating attacks or heal yourself. Meanwhile, regularly changing active combat positions (unlocked after each fight) will help you better handle different types of enemy weapons. Additional tools collected can help Jin fight enemies in a "deceitful" way, but easier.

You can use Ninja's stealth skills to kill people without anyone knowing, especially when the Mongol opponent doesn't have the spirit of Samurai. Jin will get used to hiding in the shadows, stabbing in the back, and using a variety of tools to create an unfair advantage - a tactical creation from Sucker Punch that has not been recorded in 13th century Japanese history.   

This is a simple skill of GoT, especially when enemies are placed in convenient and immobile positions. This makes the game's stealth function a bit tasteless, but it can't be blamed because the game focuses mainly on upgrading swords with Ghost Tools to take down enemies. Instead, you can find some guilty pleasure in this function, such as terrorizing soldiers by distracting, causing internal discord causing enemies to oppose each other with hallucinogenic darts .

CONCLUDE

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GoT has built a beautiful open space with a navigation mechanism that focuses on the player's visual experience. The cinematic-enhanced combat scenes give off a great "samurai feel" and the stealth skills make it fun to toy with enemies. 

However, the structure of the mission is still quite tedious, focusing too much on the graphics reduces the attention to the combat of the game, and the character voice system has many holes that will probably make the experience worse. This loses a little bit of interest.  

David Pac

Update 05 January 2022