Summary
Ghost of Tsushimareleased in 2020 as a game that was largely praised for its presentation. Sucker Punch’s relatively grounded and gritty take on 1274 Japan, particularly the titular island of Tsushima, centers on themes of traditional and cultural honor. Protagonist Jin Sakai struggles with his desire to avenge the island and to do so he dabbles in dishonorable means of killing, such as stealth assassinations or inflicting enemies with poison. However, most deaths in the game are swiftly administered throughGhost of Tsushima’s use of different combat stances.
As far as stealth is concerned, players could get fairly creative with how they navigated encounters and silently took out Mongols within encampments. It is rewarding when players are able to traverse unseen into a home and kill a Mongol by impaling him through the doorway with a shoji assassination, for example, but many encounters can be swept through easily if players have an abundance ofGhost of Tsushima’s OP Ghost Weapons. Stances are what players will abide by in ordinary offensive combat, though, and could fare better by taking fromStar Wars Jedi: Survivor’s lightsaber stances.
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Ghost of Tsushima 2’s Stances Could Be More Like Star Wars Jedi’s
Ghost of Tsushima’s Combat Errs on Being Too Simplistic
Ghost of Tsushimavaried combat through stances, where the protagonist’s fight stance determines how quickly his move set was, but most importantly it determines which enemies can be opened up. The enemy types inGhost of Tsushimaare incredibly simple in this way, creating sort of a matching game-esque language in each encounter. If players see an enemy approaching that wields a spear, they know which stance they need to swap to in order to break their guard and make them vulnerable.
Otherwise, sword-oriented combat is as rudimentary as being able to time parries between hack-’n-slash strikes with the correct stance equipped. Obviouslyharder difficulties help to amplify the lethality of enemy attacksas well as the player’s own, making each duel and sword-clash more authentically engaging. But besides inorganically increasing difficulty there is no way to make stance-matching more fun or innovative, especially as the game progresses.
Star Wars Jedi: Survivor’s Stances Gave Cal More Customization
On the other hand, the reason whyStar Wars Jedi: Survivor’s lightsaber stancesare great is that they contribute to customization. Players can only have two out of five total stances equipped at any given time, giving them a tough choice to make when it comes to any combat encounter or setting.Star Wars Jedi’s enemies aren’t necessarily vulnerable to specific stances asGhost of Tsushima’s enemies are, either, and that lets players enjoy their own preferences in combat instead of having to swap around repeatedly to stances they may not enjoy as much.
That said, whileSurvivor’s stances were great for allowing players to freely experiment with ones they like, this also meant that some stances would inevitably fall on the back burner and never be used if they were able to immediately form an attachment to two of them. Still, it’s debatable whether that’s a worse route to go than having all stances be important in any random enemy encounter while they’re also less memorable and impactful, and Sucker Punch could learn fromSurvivor’s approach when the developer has to eventually decide how it will iterate onGhost of Tsushima’s stylish combat.
Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut
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In the late 13th century, the Mongol empire has laid waste to entire nations along their campaign to conquer the East. Tsushima Island is all that stands between mainland Japan and a massive Mongol invasion fleet led by the ruthless and cunning general, Khotun Khan.As the island burns in the wake of the first wave of the Mongol assault, courageous samurai warrior Jin Sakai stands resolute. As one of the last surviving members of his clan, Jin is resolved to do whatever it takes, at any cost, to protect his people and reclaim his home. He must set aside the traditions that have shaped him as a warrior to forge a new path, the path of the Ghost, and wage an unconventional war for the freedom of Tsushima.
