Ghost of Yōtei: A masterpiece full of sucker punches.
Legends say, “Revenge is often described as a dish best served cold.” Ghost of Yōtei makes that truth come alive, and in the process, it redefines what a revenge-driven narrative can feel like.
Sucker Punch Studios isn’t new to stories of retribution (Ghost of Tsushima, looking at you), but this time, they deliver something far more personal that honors the ghost of the past. It’s a tale that walks familiar moral lines while giving them a new spin.
But Yōtei is also a game that feels more like a redo than a sequel. If, like me, you put hundreds of hours into Tsushima and the Iki Island DLC, some moments won’t be as exciting, and many of the unlocks you earn along the way are ones you’ve already used before.
You might catch echoes of Jin Sakai’s struggles or the haunting beauty of Tsushima Island, but it would be disrespectful to Ghost of Yōtei to label it as just another sequel; it’s a world where the impossible is possible. After nearly 40 hours in Atsu’s world, I can confidently say, Ghost of Yōtei, you have earned my respect.
The main protagonist in the plot is Atsu, a mercenary who returns to Ezo after being away for years to seek revenge for her family. When she was a youngster, a gang called the Yōtei Six viciously killed her family and left her for dead, stuck to a burning Goko tree.
Surviving that itself is superhuman, which fuels local superstitions that the grown-up Atsu is an Onryo, a Yuri who will stop at nothing to exact vengeance. Her reputation isn’t just a rumor; she’s one lean, mean, and hungry-for-revenge enigma.
The game’s stylish opening sets the tone beautifully.
Atsu may find some dialogue a little heavy-handed, especially the more emotional stuff, but she’s out for blood, as we all know, so that just adds to the drama. Revenge has been her life’s guiding principle, shaping every decision she makes.
By the way, in Tsushima, you had to complete a lot of main missions in one region before you could move on to the second and then the third. In Yōtei, most of the map becomes available relatively early, and it’s up to you in which order you want to tackle things.
At first, I worried the story might be predictable, but it’s a revenge tale that surpasses anything Hollywood has produced in recent years. Ghost of Yōtei cleverly uses narrative as a double-edged sword that challenges Atsu’s and our understanding of mere right and wrong.
The game explores issues like childhood trauma, how those early “monsters” affect us for the rest of our lives, and if we can ever really go on without facing the past. It questions whether there is a life after violence and if atonement is real. Sucker Punch has hit me with a lot of emotional punches that will take me a while to get over.
The campaign itself is a masterclass in pacing and mission design. It balances grand set pieces with quieter moments, giving you the chance to engage with the narrative while also letting you take in the world of Mount Yōtei.
While the companion system can feel a touch overused, the supporting characters—the Wolf Pack—are deeply integrated into the experience. They provide critical support, which can range from different weapon masters who teach new skills to blacksmiths who upgrade your armor. The Wolf Pack even has its own dedicated menu.
As such, the core cast is strong here, without it feeling extra. As a result, the main cast is powerful without being overdone. The main cast is completely developed, with each character having realistic motivations and feelings that don’t feel like they need to be overacted
English voice acting, particularly Erica Ishii as Atsu, delivers nuance that brings out everything from icy calm to deadly rage. However, a few minor side characters could have been given slightly more narrative weight.
One of the most fascinating relationships in the game is Atsu’s bond with her mysterious Wolf companion. It’s handled with subtlety, yet it adds a critical layer to Atsu’s development. Comparisons to Tsushima are inevitable, but Atsu and her allies are in a league of their own.
Exploration in Ghost of Yōtei is both rewarding and breathtaking. While Tsushima’s beauty was undeniable, some of its gameplay loops became repetitive over time. Here, Sucker Punch has diversified the experience without losing the charm.
So already early on, while exploring the world, you will run into Saitō’s men, who attack you on sight, as well as ronin who saw the bounty on your head and are looking to hunt you down. The cool part is that your interactions with these enemies are always a little different.
You might come across a roaming Ronin questioning settlers about your whereabouts or someone pretending to need help fixing a broken cart, only to ambush you with his friends. Surviving these encounters often lets you interrogate the last remaining enemy for intel on key objectives.
But there’s a high chance that on your way to your next main story mission, you will constantly get distracted.
NPCs around campfires might ask for your help. Sometimes it’s a short 10-minute side quest. Other times, it’s a longer one that rewards you with an entirely new armor set. Atsu has a wolf companion that shows up randomly.
But to strengthen your bond, you’ll need to look out for the Wolf dance. Saitō wants these animals gone, so it’s your job to rescue them from nearby encampments. Each camp also comes with its own little twist. And saving these wolves always gives you a skill point to invest in the Wolf skill tree, so the creature can more frequently help you out.
However, my favorite new activity is pursuing the bounties in each region. Each target has a unique personality and a brief story to tell. It’s a pleasant way to make some quick money, and occasionally you’ll also get something special.
However, you should seek out the mythic stories for the most thrilling rewards.
They let you explore some very cool environments and feature unique gameplay twists. It’s really some of the most exciting content in the game, which you ought to try out yourself before seeing any spoilers.
The world is dense and layered; every corner seems to hide something new, whether it’s a side quest or a collectible. Bamboo Strikes offer varied challenges that test button precision and timing, while hot springs and collectibles include subtle bonuses for fulfilling specific conditions. Even enemy camps feel unique, with changing objectives and setups.
Side content is where the world truly shines.
You might help a man search for his missing brother while fending off hidden shinobi or assist a skilled woman crafting kunai while uncovering her personal story over several quests. Mad Goro, a legendary figure with a twisted reputation, adds his own flavor to the lore.
Combat is a natural evolution of what Sucker Punch did for Tsushima. Rather than relying on a stance system, players now engage with a variety of weapons. Atsu starts with a katana and gradually gains dual swords, the yari, the kusarigama, the Odachi, and new firearms.
Traditional tools like smoke bombs and oil for setting weapons ablaze remain, but the combat system prioritizes your creativity. Each weapon has unique strengths, and upgrades allow you to try out combos according to your playstyle.
You can easily switch between weapons, going from twin sword assaults to deflecting yari blows to long-distance Kusarigama murders. The disarm mechanism adds a level of danger and reward. It’s really pleasant to throw weapons, whether you’re using a Katana, Yari, or Sickle.
Loadouts at launch let you prepare for range, stealth, or direct duels, and the game’s challenge is more demanding, though adjustable to suit your comfort level. Boss duels occasionally become pattern-based.
However, the downside of these weapons, which essentially replace Tsushima’s stone, water, wind, and moon stances, is that it’s challenging to stick with your favorite.
If you do pick a favorite, it will be less effective than picking the “right” weapon. Luckily, this is where the Odachi comes in. This enormous sword is great against brutes but also really powerful against the other enemy types, letting you basically ignore the whole rock-paper-scissors gameplay.
Now, I do wish the RPG elements went a bit further, though. A cool new addition is the ranks for the charms, which increase their effectiveness as you complete certain challenges. This really entices you to play in fun new ways. But that said, the armor sets are once again tied to a single play style.
Even though Ghost of Yōtei’s combat is at its best when you mix things up, sneak around, then pick off enemies, maybe with a ranged weapon, and then finish the rest off in melee combat, an armor set will only benefit one of these play styles. It would have been cool if we could grab one perk from one armor set and put it on another armor set to make our own play style.
Another issue is that we’ve seen most of these armor perks before in the first game.
Yes, it would have been much stronger if it had introduced more new ways to play, rather than bringing over some of the old mechanics from Tsushima. Over the course of the game, Atsu is basically catching up to where Jin was at the end of his journey.
Many of the main story unlocks or even rewards from the 30-minute-long mythic tales give you things that you’ve already used countless times before. Sure, give Atsu the ability to listen again or set her weapon on fire or use tools like a smoke bomb or kunai, but it still feels like a little bit of a letdown.
What I do like is that once again, you can easily miss certain unlocks if you don’t explore. The skill system is actually brutal this time if you don’t search for altars scattered across the world. You could finish the main story with only a few skills unlocked. In Ghost of Yōtei, that will significantly impact your experience.
Next to a lot of skills, you will also miss out on some melee weapons and tools if you just focus on the main story. You will only have three armor sets. It will really feel like a completely different game. So, if you usually do the main story content first and then the side content, reconsider that approach because it’s much better to just explore the world and take things as they come.
Collectibles and environmental challenges reward exploration. Platforming elements are integrated seamlessly. Puzzles are light, often requiring observation and timing rather than trial and error. The gameplay for Ghost of Yōtei gets an A+ in my books.
Graphically, Ghost of Yōtei is stunning.
This game looks insanely good. The draw distance is incredible. If you have a big screen, you’ll be blown away by what Sucker Punch has achieved. The PlayStation 5 Pro offers a mode that still targets 60 fps with a higher resolution than the base PS5’s performance mode, and also still has ray tracing.
The DualSense features are also a great addition. They make smart use of the touchpad for the sumi painting that you sometimes have to do. They did not need to go as far as the forge or camping mini-games, but the nice thing is that you can skip them all if you want.
So, the elements that Sucker Punch set out to improve in Ghost of Yōtei, like the open world and its activities, are some of the best we’ve seen in the genre. Almost every activity or character you encounter has a fun twist or side story worth exploring.
The world of Ghost of Yōtei is as much a character as Atsu herself.
The world of Mount Yōtei itself is much more diverse now, with snowy regions, huge mountains, and a wide range of new enemies. Now, I do wish the weapons weren’t as heavily tied to the first game, but they still add a lot of variety.
The soundtrack is also very strong, although not as instantly iconic as Tsushima’s. The main theme for Ghost of Yōtei does stand out, but overall, it feels like there are a few less memorable bangers. Atsu’s Shamisen is used throughout the game, with you learning and performing new songs as you progress. When you combine this with the controller features, the game’s sound design feels very hands-on, if that makes sense.
We can’t discuss Ghost of Yōtei without mentioning Ghost of Tsushima.
Ghost of Yōtei refines and expands upon the original’s formula. Every mechanic feels both familiar and improved. Combat and weapons are similar, as I said earlier, but the depth is undeniable.
Atsu’s journey isn’t about rewriting the AAA genre; it’s about personal growth in a world where you’re an outcast. Sucker Punch has created a game where every encounter and decision feels meaningful.
I would go as far as to say that Ghost of Yōtei surpasses Ghost of Tsushima. Don’t get me wrong, the original is still a classic. But Ghost of Yōtei just makes you think. Not only about the game, but also about reality. And how the world isn’t all sunshine and roses like we oftentimes think it is. The good thing is the story is just as much yours as it is Atsu’s.
Ghost of Yōtei delivers on all fronts: story, combat, exploration, and atmosphere.
You can enjoy the world at your own pace, doing whatever there is, from combat to exploration to missions. The game rewards patience. It challenges you to consider the possibilities of redemption and the meaning of moving on.
Ghost of Yōtei is a big win for the PlayStation brand and for contemporary gaming. This game shows that vengeance isn’t only about getting back at someone; it’s also about the quiet before the storm, which is just as important. But for us gamers, Ghost of Yōtei is taking over our world in the greatest manner conceivable.
