Ghost of Tsushima is a Sony-exclusive video game developed by Sucker Punch (known for developing the Sly Cooper and Infamous video game series). This was a game nominated for numerous "Game of the Year" awards by many publications, and after playing the game, I can see why it deserved those nominations.
Ghost of Tsushima is one of the most beautiful and aesthetically pleasing games I have ever played. There were countless moments where the only thing I wanted to do was to ride my horse through the many different environments on the island. There were lush golden forests, quaint rice fields, and blustery snowy peaks to experience. The aesthetics of the game are not limited to the visuals. Other things I noticed helped give Ghost of Tsushima its distinct identity. Instead of a mini-map that shows you where your next destination is, you can activate a gentle wind that blows in the direction that you need to go, which was a welcome change to many other action-adventure games. I also liked the idea of finding mats around the area to compose haikus and reflect on a different topic related to Jin Sakai's journey.
I found the story of Samurai Jin Sakai and the Japanese people trying to repel a Mongol invasion to be engaging and, at times, emotionally charged. I also liked the use of the side missions to flesh out some of the side characters and give them a personality of their own. The combat feels fluid and I felt like there was great care in trying to make the combat controls feel as user friendly as possible. On that same note, you can either kill your enemies by way of stealth, or you can charge in with your sword swinging, and the game will not punish you for whichever approach you take. A plethora of secondary weapons are available to confound and murder your enemies, in addition to your katana. One last thing to note: this game is almost cartoonish in its violence. When you slice your enemies, blood will spew from them, and I found that to be a bit hilarious.
Ghost of Tsushima is not without its issues, and there are two big issues with this game. I found the missions (and the mission structure in particular) to be a bit repetitive. Either the missions are to kill an enemy/group of enemies, or you need to track an enemy/group of enemies with the intention to kill that enemy/group of enemies. There is not much deviation from that. The other issue I had from this game is that other than the main and side missions, there are many collectibles in the game, and the collectibles felt like lazy and mindless padding of the length of the game.
Overall, Ghost of Tsushima was a satisfying video game experience for me. I loved the Feudal Japan setting and the whole game felt like a samurai epic that Akira Kurosawa would direct (in fact, you can experience Ghost of Tsushima in a cinematic "Kurosawa mode" where the visuals and sound reflect that of 1950s Japanese cinema). Ghost of Tsushima suffers a bit from repetitive missions and boring collection quests (which are common issues with a number of action-adventure games), but Ghost of Tsushima is also one of the most beautiful action-adventure games there is, and that everyone who has a PS4 should experience.
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