When the final PlayStation 4 exclusive, Ghost of Tsushima, came out in 2020, the main campaign ran like a Hollywood movie. A devastating Mongolian invasion had left protagonist Jin Sakai wounded and thirsting for revenge. But beat by beat, the slick combat was punctuated by an utterly predictable story full of forgettable characters. Sakai himself came across as a stoic samurai who didn’t get to kiss anyone.
Four years later, Sucker Punch Productions may be set to improve upon the experience. Details of Ghost of Tsushima 2 were just announced by PlayStation, and we now know the game will be called Ghost of Yōtei. It looks a lot like the original — the same pretty trees and gorgeous horseback rides — even if this version takes place 300 years later in 1603, in what’s now known as Hokkaido, Japan, surrounding a mountainous peak. The sequel also moves the action from Tsushima Island to the mountainous region of Hokkaido, Japan.
But there’s reason to believe Yōtei could be more exciting than the original, and it all comes down to our new female hero, Atsu, who appears in the trailer wearing a feral mask, à la Sakai.
In the original Ghost of Tsushima, one of the highlights was a side-quest featuring a queer woman samurai named Lady Masako who understands Jin Sakai’s need for vengeance and seeks her own. Her story added depth and intrigue to an otherwise predictable tale. Back then, I asked Sucker Punch’s creative director, Jason Connell, about the character and the inclusion of a samurai who’s not just a woman but a queer woman.
“There are instances of, when you look through history, that there were female samurai, and even in this time period, there were these stories, so we wanted to make sure that they exist,” Connell said. “That was an important thing to put in to show that the world is real and they’re humans.”
From the little we’ve seen in the new trailer, Yōtei’s protagonist Atsu feels like she’s cut from the same cloth as 2020’s Lady Masako. They’re both strong women facing difficult circumstances who pick up the sword to empower themselves. They might also have more than just that in common. Atsu is voiced by Erika Ishii, who’s been all over the video game voice-acting map lately with major roles in Dragon Age: Veilguard, Destiny 2, Cyberpunk, and more. Ishii self-identifies as queer and genderfluid and voices Valkyrie in Apex Legends, who is a lesbian. While Atsu’s sexuality hasn’t been officially confirmed, it’s easy to see what sort of direction Sucker Punch could be headed, given the choice in casting.
Open-world adventure games like Ghost of Tsushima can often feel more like a technical demonstration with gorgeous windy grass to sparkling stars than a narrative experience with well-developed characters. That emphasis is even obvious in PlayStation’s blog post, which teases “sprawling grasslands, snowy tundras, and unexpected dangers.”
The PlayStation 5 isn’t at the end of its lifecycle like the PS4 was when Tsushima arrived, but it’s not a new console either. Sucker Punch has had plenty of time to optimize Yōtei for the PS5, which likely means another stunning visual presentation. (Back in 2020, Connell told me his favorite part of Tsushima was climbing mountains and taking scenic photos.)
But great video games need to be more than great landscapes. It’s the characters that make a game unforgettable — especially a narrative-heavy one like this. If Atsu is an empowered protagonist with an intriguing story, that will lift up the dullest parts of Ghost and give us a world worth revisiting. Tech demos aside, Ghost of Yōtei will really shine if there’s a beating narrative heart and characters worth caring about.
