With Ghost of Tsushima launching this Friday, reviews for Sucker Punch Productions’ latest PlayStation 4 exclusive are filing in. What do critics think of the open-world samurai action game? Read below to find out.
Critical consensus on Ghost of Tsushima is relatively high, with the game receiving mostly favorable reviews on GameSpot sister site Metacritic. The gist of Tsushima’s reception is that it’s an enjoyable romp held up by its exquisite audio and visual design. Many reviewers, however, note the game’s rote combat encounters and overly familiar gameplay, with a few citing Assassin’s Creed and other open-world adventures as obvious comparisons. It doesn’t reinvent the open-world ethos or anything, but critics call Tsushima an worthwhile swansong that, alongside Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us Part II, properly wraps up this current generation.
- Game: Ghost of Tsushima
- Platforms: PlayStation 4,
- Developer: Sucker Punch Productions
- Release date: July 17
- Price: $60 / £50 / $80 AUD
GameSpot — 7/10
“Ghost of Tsushima’s story hits hard in the game’s third and final act, and ends in spectacular fashion. It left me with the same kinds of strong emotions I felt at the end of all my favourite samurai film epics, and had me eager to watch them all again. The game hits a lot of fantastic cinematic highs, and those ultimately lift it above the trappings of its familiar open-world quest design and all the innate weaknesses that come with it–but those imperfections and dull edges are definitely still there. Ghost of Tsushima is at its best when you’re riding your horse and taking in the beautiful world on your own terms, armed with a sword and a screenshot button, allowing the environmental cues and your own curiosity to guide you. It’s not quite a Criterion classic, but a lot of the time it sure looks like one.” – Edmond Tran [Full Review]
Comic Book — 4/5
“Even a world as robust as Ghost of Tsushima’s has to run out of things for players to do eventually, and depending on how invested you were in pursuing every thread and hunting for collectibles and ways to make Jin more powerful, you may not have much to do at a certain point other than barrel through the last few quests of the main story. My version of Jin was maxed out well before the narrative wrapped up with every ability and upgrade unlocked. That contributes heavily to the one-man army status he achieves, and it also takes some of your initiative away to clear out remaining random quests and strongholds when your main incentive of level progression is removed. It’s a situation players can only bring upon themselves by putting pretty much everything ahead of the main quest, so consider pacing out your exploits to avoid running dry towards the end.” – Tanner Dedmon [Full Review]
IGN — 9/10
“Ghost of Tsushima is an enormous and densely packed samurai adventure that often left me completely awestruck with both its visual spectacle and excellent combat. By steadily introducing new abilities instead of stat upgrades, its swordplay manages to stay challenging, rewarding, and fun throughout the entire 40 to 50 hours that it took me to beat the campaign. A few aspects are surprisingly lacking in polish in comparison to other first-party Sony games, especially when it comes to enemy AI and the stealth part of its stealth/action split. Still, this is an extraordinary open-world action-adventure game that solves several issues that have long gone unaddressed in the genre, while also just being an all-around samurai slashin’ good time.” – Mitchell Saltzman [Full Review]
Kotaku — Unscored
“Ghost of Tsushima is pretty as heck–sporadic capturing left me with almost 50 GB worth of screenshots and short video clips to sift through–but at its core, it’s just another open-world game. I found myself audibly sighing every time I crested a hill towards a mystery objective only to find another fox to follow or another haiku to compose. These diversions, while unique at first glance, proved to just be busy work as time wore on. I was so strong by the end of the game–filling up every skill tree is easy if you ignore the main story and just explore for a bit–that I didn’t even bother using stealth tactics for the last third. I don’t think I even died after the first few hours. There’s so little to get excited about in Tsushima once the initial wonder of the wind physics and lush environments wears off that the only thing that kept me going was my own innate desire to fill out the entire map. And that can only hold someone’s interest for so long.” – Ian Walker [Full Review]
Polygon — Unscored
“Ghost of Tsushima has a distinctive aesthetic, after all, but it’s only skin-deep. The core game underneath that alluring exterior is a pastiche of open-world game design standards from five years ago; it lacks a real personality of its own. Ghost of Tsushima offers a lovely world to explore, and there’s value in that, but it should have been so much more than a checklist of activities to accomplish.” – Carolyn Petit [Full Review]
USGamer — 4/5
“Sucker Punch’s first stab at a stealth action-adventure hits the mark. The island of Tsushima is a beautiful backdrop for this tale of revenge and honor and the environmental art is a visual treat. Combat and stealth are largely solid, though there are issues with the camera and hitting the right targets. The biggest stumble comes with the Japanese vocal track, which isn’t synced correctly with the character’s lips, a shame for a game like this. Ghost of Tsushima isn’t the most innovative way to end a generation, but it is a fun one.” – Mike Williams [Full Review]
Video Games Chronicle — 3/5
“While the studio has clearly studied this recent history, and incorporates many of its lessons, Ghost remains weighed down by the genre’s more perfunctory tropes. The combat almost lifts the whole experience, and the luscious expanses of wilderness are frequently wondrous. But the game needs something more engaging to frame that action and fill that space. No quantity of foxes can compensate for that.” – Jon Bailes [Full Review]
VG247 — 3/5
“It has its moments, but like Jin Sakai in the opening hours, the past holds it back. It’s Open World: The Video Game. It’s far too easy, too–the lack of consequence for failure makes it feel like you’re just going through the motions. If you’ll excuse the wind-based pun, it’s a breeze. While playing it, I often found my mind wandering. By the third and final act, I just wanted it to be over. Like the samurai, Ghost of Tsushima feels like a relic of a bygone era.” – Kirk McKeand [Full Review]
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