Five years after the release of Sucker Punch Productions’ Ghost of Tsushima, its sequel Ghost of Yõtei has arrived.
Unlike its predecessor, Ghost of Yōtei takes place in a different era of Japanese history, following the story of Atsu (portrayed by Erika Ishii), who is on a quest for revenge.
So far, Ghost of Yōtei has received generally favourable reviews from critics. At the time of writing, the game has a score of 86 on Metacritic.
Critics have been enamoured by the game’s writing and its varied side activities alongside the main story. But there are concerns that it may be a little too similar to the original game.
Captivating narrative
The Washington Post‘s Gene Park, who gave Ghost of Yōtei 3.5 out of 5 stars, was captivated by the game’s narrative and the depth of Atsu’s character, making it “play like a page-turner.”
“Every story beat drives the protagonist Atsu – and the player – forward, anchored by Erika Ishii’s fierce performance as a snarling, vengeful mercenary,” he said, noting that while Ghost of Yōtei uses “common storytelling devices” it “wields them to great effect.”
“Flashbacks woven through the 40-hour journey keep Atsu’s pain immediate and fresh, acquainting us with her family and stoking the player’s desire for revenge. Though video game tropes – such as a villain escaping at the last moment to extend play – can frustrate initially, they often pay off with thrilling conclusions.”
Ishii’s performance also stood out to The Guardian‘s Keza MacDonald, who gave Ghost of Yōtei a 4 out of 5 rating.
“Ishii gives such a good performance here as a stony-faced killer that I was fully drawn into Atsu’s bloody quest,” MacDonald wrote. “No matter how many other characters sombrely remind her of the consuming of vengeance, she just keeps slicing up her enemies. You get the impression that she rather enjoys it. And honestly, I enjoy it. The fighting in Ghost of Yōtei is deliciously brutal.”
Wccftech‘s Alessio Palumbo, who scored the game 8.8 out of 10, observed that while Ghost of Yōtei is “less historically accurate than its predecessor,” it doesn’t detract from the revenge story it’s aiming to tell.
“This was never meant to be a historical game,” Palumbo emphasised. “It is instead largely a classic type of revenge play, where the main character is nearly consumed by their desire for vengeance. Unlike in Greek tragedies, though, Atsu eventually heeds her allies’ warnings and understands that the way of the onryō (a type of ghost) can only bring death.”
Not all critics were as impressed with Ghost of Yōtei’s narrative. Radio Times’ Rob Leane, rating the game 3 out of 5, found the storytelling to be “a bit more of a mixed bag.”
“The game starts very abruptly and doesn’t give the characters much time to make an impact before chucking you into the open world,” he noted. “From there, you can tackle your targets in a number of different orders, which makes it difficult to deliver major story beats in a way that feels satisfying.”
Comparisons to Ghost of Tsushima
Leane’s criticism of Ghost of Yōtei’s narrative lies mainly within comparisons to its predecessor, Ghost of Tsushima, and the recently released Assassin’s Creed Shadows.
Simply put: “If you’ve seen one Japanese orphan avenging their parent’s death, have you seen them all? That’s the question that I can’t seem to shake after spending the last few weeks sinking all of my spare time into Ghost of Yōtei,” Leane wrote.
He also felt that Yōtei relied too heavily on the mechanics Tsushima debuted. “Despite the freshly made surroundings, you are still following the guiding wind around on your horse, galloping through beautiful scenery, stopping off at hot springs and bamboo-slicing challenges along the way. So far, so Tsushima.”
As for Shadows, both games share similar stories of a female protagonist avenging their family. Though, as Leane makes clear, “there was an overlap in the production schedules of these two games, so you can’t entirely blame the totally separate creators for having similar ideas.”
“The writing, once again, saves [Yōtei] from feeling laborious, but I wish it dared a bit more to push the genre further”
Gene Park
But both Tsushima and Shadows hung over Leane while playing Yōtei. “Between the open world exploration that reminds me so much of Tsushima, and the lengthy story missions that remind me so much of AC Shadows, it’s hard to shake the feeling that there isn’t a huge amount of originality here.”
The Washington Post’s Park also found that Yōtei “isn’t dramatically different” from Tsushima, and it relied too heavily on “adhering closely to genre conventions” of open-world games such as “walk-and-talk scenes and horseback journeys with companions to build character and fill space.”
He added: “The writing, once again, saves all of this from feeling laborious, but I wish it dared a bit more to push the genre further.”
On the other hand, The Guardian’s MacDonald found that Yōtei pushed the genre conventions of the Ghost franchise further.
“I found Ghost of Tsushima to be extraordinarily beautiful, but also shallow and oddly dour,” she wrote. “Its protagonist Jin couldn’t stop talking about how dishonourable he found the whole business of sneaking around and cutting Mongol invaders’ throats to save his island. Yōtei’s hero Atsu, meanwhile, is much more comfortable in her role as vengeful mass-murdering spectre.”
She continued: “There’s probably more action and blood and death-defying climbing than in any samurai movie, but is that a bad thing? If anything Ghost of Tsushima was held back by its slavish devotion to a sombre tone that was at odds with the game’s very high body count. Yōtei does not overcomplicate things.”
Exploration is encouraged
While Yōtei does adhere to some open-world genre conventions, Comic Gaming Magazine‘s Zubi Khan, who gave the game 9.5 out of 10, found that the game excels in making every side activity something worth engaging in rather than a repetitive gimmick.
“Ghost of Yōtei fixes this common issue plaguing open-world titles in a simple but eloquent manner by making each and every activity, be it a shrine climb, Saitō enemy base battle, or random NPC encounter, feel distinct and spread out to the point where they don’t feel stale or derivative of each other,” Khan explained.
“The sheer volume of side content and unique scenarios that divert from the main campaign also helps Ghost of Yōtei feel more engaging as players explore its sprawling world.”
Wccftech’s Palumbo commended how the game encourages you to explore, forgoing points of interest on a map and opting for different ways of getting the player to interact with the environment.
“In most instances, you’ll have to seek high ground, pull out the spyglass, and slowly roam the land from left to right, scanning for places like the altars, fox shrines, enemy camps, and a lot more,” he wrote. “Together with the free-form approach to content (you can go after some of the Yotei Six in any order), it creates a more believable experience of actually finding your way across Ezo.”
As for the world itself, MacDonald described it as a “digital tribute to Japan’s natural beauty” that is “built to be admired” from the depictions of its “ginko trees and distant mountains, the sparse plains, rivers teeming with fish.”
“The wind shows you where to go to continue the story, but I truly felt free to wander, and it’s in that wandering that you find succinct side stories and moments of quiet.”
She also appreciated the use of the DualSense controller’s haptic feedback, which lets players take part in activities like sumi-e (black ink painting) by mimicking brush strokes on the touch pad or forging metal with the motion sensor controls.
For Park, it was happening upon these side activities and quests that made Yōtei stand out among other open-world, narrative-driven titles.
“The writing in Tsushima sang when it came to its samurai-tale side stories,” he noted. “In Yotei, the main plot is the highlight, but the side quests felt so important and consequential that I would often forget they weren’t essential.”
The art of combat
Another standout for Park was Yōtei’s artful approach to combat. “In gameplay, [Atsu] is a luxuriously animated tornado of blades, wielding two swords to slash across a 17th-century Japan, rendered here in painterly scenes of scarlet leaves, golden fields and flocks of birds moving like brushstrokes across a sky of vivid blue.”
Comic Gaming Magazine’s Khan appreciated the overhaul in mechanics from its predecessor, which leans more towards weapon types than the stances presented in Tsushima.
“This not only makes for a more varied experience but also suits the character of Atsu, who never claims to be a samurai or a high noble. Along with a wide range of katana, Atsu can train under various NPCs and gradually expand her arsenal with dual blades, yari spears, kusarigama (a chained sickle), two types of bows, firearms, and the return of kunai and bombs.”
These weapons are unlocked as the game progresses, which was something Radio Times’ Leane wasn’t too keen on.
“The combat is solid, ditching the stance system for more of a rock, paper, scissors situation where swapping weapons regularly will give you the upper hand against different enemies. Collecting all the weapons and throw-ables is a bit of a faff, though, and it would’ve been nice to start the game with a fuller arsenal.”
In terms of difficulty, Khan found that Yōtei was “well-balanced” – the game offers five difficulty settings: casual, easy, medium, hard, and lethal.
“Regular enemies fall quickly once the player adapts to the mechanics, while boss characters, including certain bounties, can test your understanding of Yōtei’s systems,” Khan wrote. “The result is a challenge that feels both fair and rewarding.”
For Palumbo, Yōtei’s combat mechanics shone the most during boss fights during the main story. “It’s an interesting choice and also one that generally makes sense. By and large, the boss fights are finely balanced, delivering a spectacular display of the game’s satisfying combat. They force players to play well without getting too frustrating.”
Overall consensus
As a whole, critics found that Ghost of Yōtei took what its predecessor established and built upon its successes to create something familiar but new.
“When it comes down to it, Ghost of Yōtei is an outstanding and hauntingly beautiful open-world game that manages to stand sword to sword with its already fantastic legacy,” said Comic Gaming Magazine’s Khan. “Regardless of your experience with the series thus far, Ghost of Yōtei is easily the best console exclusive to come out in 2025, bar none.”
Palumbo agreed: “Ghost of Yōtei is a worthy sequel to the already excellent Ghost of Tsushima, building upon that game’s foundation with an equally interesting (albeit quite different) plot and select improvements to combat and open world exploration. It may feel a little too familiar, not to mention similar to the previous game, but that sensation is quickly forgotten amidst all the fun you’ll have in Ezo.”
MacDonald concluded that while Yōtei is “a straightforward tale at heart” it “absorbed [her] more than any other historical action game.
“Ghost of Yōtei is an outstanding and hauntingly beautiful open-world game that manages to stand sword to sword with its already fantastic legacy”
Zubi Khan
“Even hours and hours in, I still feel a flicker of excitement whenever Atsu purposefully draws her sword at the beginning of a battle.”
Park, meanwhile, ended on a poignant note regarding the game’s overarching themes. “With writing that hits every note with precision and heart, Yotei understands how, throughout history, stories about ghosts hold us in their sway. Like Atsu, and like Yotei itself, a ghost lingers, refusing to let go as it draws us into the darkness.”
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