Ghost of Yotei is a cinematic and visually stunning PS5 sequel, but I wish it didn’t play things so safe

In many ways, Ghost of Yotei is the victim of unfortunate release timing. Its open-world design already feels unoriginal in a gaming space dominated by vast (often bloated) experiences, and it rigidly sticks to the rulebook established by its predecessor, 2020’s Ghost of Tsushima. It also releases just months after Assassin’s Creed: Shadows, an open-world RPG set in feudal Japan, and is centered on an eerily similar quest for vengeance in the wake of its protagonist’s family being murdered by masked assailants.

So, it’s fair to say that Ghost of Yotei isn’t going to win many points for originality. Everything from its open-world trappings and optional busywork (get ready for plenty of bandit camps), to its range of upgradeable skills, gear and weaponry feels extremely routine in this genre. If you’ve played an open-world game in the last decade, you’ll feel familiarity creep in quickly.

Nevertheless, good ideas never go out of fashion, and Ghost of Yotei stands as one of the most polished and cinematic versions of an open-world action-adventure I’ve ever played. Even if its core design lacks originality, I found myself lost in the land of Ezo, carving through foes in exciting and bloody combat, and eager to tick every icon (or card) off my checklist.

Developer Sucker Punch Productions may have stuck to what works when creating Ghost of Yotei, but it has polished up these common gaming concepts to craft a sprawling adventure that looks truly marvellous. Read my full Ghost of Yotei review to learn why I think it’s an essential exclusive for PS5 owners who want to get lost in a stunning historical setting.

Ghost of Yotei: The Basics

• What is it? Ghost of Yotei is the sequel to 2020's open-world action-adventure title Ghost of Tsushima. Set in 17th-century Japan, you play Atsu, a mercenary, known to her foes as the onryō, as she sets out on a quest for vengeance against those who murdered her family.
• Who is it for? Ghost of Yotei is perfect for players looking for a content-rich open-world title, and also those craving bloody and cinematic combat. It's also a great visual showcase for PS5 Pro owners.
• What's the price? The standard edition of Ghost of Yotei costs $69, or there's a Collector's Edition for $249 exclusive to PlayStation Direct.
• What other games has the developer made? Sucker Punch is the developer behind Yotei's predecessor, Ghost of Tsushima, and also created the Infamous and Sly Cooper series back in the day.
• What games is this similar to? Ghost of Yotei will feel familiar to anybody who's played a modern Assassin's Creed game, such as Shadows, Valhalla and Odyssey. It also shares DNA with PlayStation's own Horizon franchise and second-party titles like Rise of the Ronin.

On the road to revenge

Ghost of Yotei motivates you right out of the gate. The brutal opening cutscene introduces you to the new protagonist, Atsu (Yotei is set 329 years after Tsushima, so Jin Sakai is long dead), on the worst day of her life. Her home is burned to the ground, and her family is murdered in front of her eyes by a masked group known as the Yotei Six.

Surviving this ordeal after being left for dead, Atsu returns to the land of Ezo with one mission on her mind: Revenge. It’s easy to sympathize with Atsu’s plight, and the ability to travel to the past at key locations in the world (which happens seamlessly thanks to the PS5’s speedy SSD) fleshes out Atsu’s family and childhood. The tender time spent with Atsu’s mother and father made me just as eager as her to see their killers brought to justice.

You can hunt down select members of the Yotei Six in any order you wish. This offers some freedom in how you experience Yotei’s main quest. However, this comes with a significant drawback to the story’s flow and creates a narrative that occasionally feels disjointed.

For example, after a mandatory first kill, you can next track the fox-mask wearing Kitsune, or maybe you’ll pick the Oni, who’s holding up in a fortress. To account for this freedom, each of their unique quest chains has to be entirely self-contained. I opted to tackle the Oni first, and I became allies with a key character during my attempts to infiltrate the stronghold.

Upon completion of this portion of the main quest, I moved on to my next target, and that same key character had to be completely written out of Atsu’s journey (at least, until later in the story). Because Sucker Punch has to work around players tackling mandatory quests in different orders, each hunt largely stands alone with no direct references to what you’ve done previously. After all, you could decide to tackle the Kitsune before slaying the Oni, for example.

Keep your blade sharp

If there’s one thing you’ll be doing a lot in Ghost of Yotei, it’s clashing steel. Combat is fluid, slick, and brutal. Encounters aren’t too challenging, at least on the normal difficulty, but I enjoyed nearly every skirmish because striking down an enemy with a sharp katana or spear-tipped yari is always a blast. Plus, the handy blow and arrow, coupled with the ability to slow down time to line up lethal headshots, is similarly satisfying to wield.

The stance system of Ghost of Tsushima has been swapped for a focus on weapon variety. When you’re faced with an enemy cowering behind a shield, slashing away with your sword is largely ineffective. But when you swap to the Kusarigama (a sickle attached to a ball and chain), you can smash the wooden shield to pieces and then slice your foe to ribbons.

The rock/paper/scissors nature of the combat, where you must select the right weapon for each type of enemy, is easy to wrap your head around, and I loved how it forced me to use my full arsenal. I have a bad habit of sticking with a familiar favorite in most games (I beat Elden Ring with basically the first weapon I picked up). Still, Yotei’s approach ensured that each weapon wasn’t stuck in its sheath for long and was worth upgrading regularly.

Boss fights are also a surprising highlight of Ghost of Yotei. I came into the game having recently picked up Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice (again), and was pleasantly surprised to see some similarity. Naturally, Yotei’s named combatants aren’t in the same difficulty ballpark, but they are challenging enough that you need to deploy some strategy and parry whenever possible. Several of them are multi-phase as well, which makes bosses feel epic.

The peaks and valleys of Ezo

Much like in Ghost of Tsushima, the central setting, Ezo, Japan (Yotei is the name of the vast mountain within Ezo, known as Hokkaido in the modern day), is perhaps the star of the show. Ezo is a diverse map, with locations that range from snowy fields to stunning autumnal ridges. I was a little surprised how early in the game I was able to scale the eponymous mountaintop, but the trek up to the peak of Mount Yotei was suitably thrilling, and the view from the very top is something to behold. However, I did opt to simply fast-travel back down.

The hunt for the Yotei Six is compelling enough reason to focus on the golden path, but you’re well rewarded for stopping to take on optional side activities, and I don’t just mean in terms of valuable upgrades and crafting materials either. Side quests introduce you to the various inhabitants of the land and tell some engaging stories about honor and legacy.

Of course, alongside the more developed side activities, there is the usual assortment of bandit camps and returning pastimes like cutting bamboo to increase your “spirit orbs” and hot springs, which increase your maximum health. These distractions are routine, but the rewards make them worthwhile. Plus, you can stealth your way through bandit camps, assassinating enemies unseen, which serves as a nice change of pace from open combat.

Cinematic is an understatement

Ghost of Yotei is one of the most cinematic experiences on PS5. It’s the type of game where you’re likely to spend half your playtime just messing around with the in-game Photo Mode. Any time I found myself standing over an impressive vista (which was pretty often), I’d take a good few minutes to drink in my surroundings and mash the DualSense’s capture button.

It’s not just that Yotei looks phenomenal on PS5 Pro; it’s that every element of the game, from the slick menus to the striking world map (which uses a novel card system to track your progress), is dripping in flair and well-considered style. It’s just a sheer joy to look at Ghost of Yotei, and it’s not so bad to listen to either, thanks to the fitting score and some strong audio work that encourages you to stop and take in the sounds of this fascinating historical period.

There are more small, but impactful, visual touches that I can mention without this review becoming an overwhelming list of all the cool stuff I spotted. However, a personal favorite is the way that each quest is bookended with a title card that adds additional narrative gravitas.

However, if the default look of the game isn’t to your liking, Sucker Punch has added a trio of filters based on the iconic styles of three acclaimed Japanese filmmakers. The black-and-white Kurosawa Mode returns from Tsushima (and makes you feel like you’ve stepped into “Seven Samurai”), alongside Takashi Mikke Mode, which makes the already violent combat even more bloody, and Shinichirō Watanabe Mode adds low-fi beats over the action. I can’t say the latter mode appealed to me, but perhaps it’ll be to your taste.

Ghost of Yotei review: Verdict

Ghost of Yotei is a gorgeous and highly polished open-world experience. If you’re looking for a single-player title that you can sink dozens of hours into, there are few better options on the PS5. The world of Ezo is a joy to explore, combat remains thrilling throughout and Atsu’s story provides more than enough motivation to see this revenge mission through to the end.

However, anybody who has played basically any modern open-world game will face an inescapable feeling of familiarity, doubly so if you played the most recent Assassin’s Creed or Ghost of Tsushima: Director’s Cut. Nevertheless, while Ghost of Yotei walks a well-worn path, it does so with enough confidence and cinematic verve that I was able to overlook the fact that it has little to offer that you can’t already find in countless other games.