@RogerRoger Having recently tried the game, it’s a pleasant surprise to see and read your review of Rez Infinite. And I appreciate the anecdote of how it helps you to relate to your Nan.
Honestly, I put the game on a couple months ago when it was offered on PS+ on a whim. Hearing that it was short I figured it would fit in nicely on a Saturday afternoon before devoting my time to other endeavors that evening. Unfortunately, I found it strangely difficult to play and not enjoyable. It felt more dated than I was expecting, and the input, albeit simple, didn’t feel intuitive at all to me. I probably gave the game 15-20 minutes of a trial, and quickly ended my gaming session, whether because I wasn’t enjoying it or because something else pulled me away I can’t remember — but the end result was I didn’t make it very far and really haven’t had a desire to go back.
I don’t mean to be too much of a wet blanket on your chiefly positive review, and in fact am glad to see the title get some attention. Reading your experience has me now contemplating if I could gel with it if I gave it another shot where it wasn’t an afterthought squeezed into a open half hour on a busy weekend. …Or maybe I really am as musically incompetent as my school instructors used to say 😅
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
First off, can I just mention I really like these title banners you've been using? I don't know where you're finding them or how you're making them (photoshop?), but they look extremely nice.
Second off, really effective way of drawing on your personal experience via your anecdote about your nan's chromesthesia. The human brain really is a fascinating thing. That very personal touch really added to the piece, and I thank you for sharing it.
I've wanted to play this game for a long time. I didn't actually know it was on the PS4, if I'm being honest! Nevertheless, given my time with another one of Mizuguchi's sense-tingling games (Tetris Effect), I definitely get what you mean about the almost hypnotic way it probably combines music, sound, movement, and color
Not surprised it's short if it's a rail shooter, which tend to be games designed to be replayed for score-chasing purposes, or maybe, in the case of a game like this, to enjoy an afternoon once in a while with something utterly entrancing.
As always, very, very well-written. Your command of the written word is fearsome.
Considering how focused you usually are on harvesting gorgeous screenshots, I'll take the fact that you were so engrossed in this that you only got (perfectly serviceable) normal ones to be a sort of recommendation of the game in its own right.
@RogerRoger Great write-up mate! The way you describe the game makes me very eager to check it out for myself. I believe it was given away for free during the PlayStation Stay At Home campaign, so I think I have it in my PS4 library to play. Surprised to hear that the game is so short though, but hey I don't mind short games every now and then! Not to mention that it looks like a very unique game and you know how much I love unique games. Will definitely have to give it a go soon.
@Th3solution Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed the read, despite not fully agreeing with it. Your honesty is hugely appreciated, and I'm grateful you took the time to explain your experience. Particularly since you're not wrong, Rezis quite dated, and I'm sure a big part of my continued enjoyment of it is because I've been playing it, on and off, for a couple of decades now, so I simply won't notice its shortcomings anymore because hey, it's just comfortable, familiar Rez to me.
I'm sorry you didn't get along with it. Thank goodness it was free! If you do find yourself booting it back up, but still struggle with the core game's levels, try Area X. It's worth seeing, even just once, and its freedom to fly through at your own pace makes it a much more relaxing prospect.
***
@Ralizah Again, thank you! You're always very generous with your feedback. With regards the banners, I'm not clever enough for Photoshop. Where possible, I take a screenshot of a game's title screen and crop it using Paint. If that won't work, I just Google the game's logo and, again, stick it in Paint.
Funnily enough, I saw your post about returning to Tetris Effect shortly after posting the review, and the coincidental timing made me smile. I haven't played Tetris Effect yet, but I keep meaning to, given its shared heritage with both Rez and good ol' Tetris, which I used to play with my father. I reckon Rez Infinite on PS4 would be your best bet for experiencing the game, out of all the platforms that it's currently available on, so I hope it crops up in a sale for you soon. I neglected to mention that there are several score attack and alternate modes included in the base game, which just repeat the same levels with different criteria, so you might get a little more mileage out of it, if you're tempted by that kind of gameplay loop.
And thank you, that's an elegant way to spin my lack of boss battle screenshots into a positive!
***
@LtSarge Thank you, also! It's always flattering (and a little scary) whenever my random trains of thought generate some interest. Absolutely, "unique" is one way I'd comparatively describe Rez and so, knowing your approach to gaming, I think you'd get a real kick out of the experience, regardless of your final opinion about the game itself. You'll have to let us know what you make of it!
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
Platform: PS4 and PS5 (version played) Release Date: August 2021
***
At several points during my sixty hours spent with Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut, I felt weary. My horse would be galloping across the countryside, taking me to my next story mission or fog-covered map icon, and I would just zone out. The rhythm of the ride swayed me into an awkward realisation that, despite being a newcomer to the game, I'd played this before. When I'd finally arrive at my destination, I'd dismount, equip my longbow, and spend a couple of seconds scanning the horizon for Tallnecks, Thunderjaws and Freeze Bellowbacks before the penny dropped.
This isn't me knocking the variety (or apparent lack thereof) found in Sony's first-party offerings, nor is it me criticising developer Sucker Punch Productions for choosing the tried-and-tested open world approach when deciding how to tell their tale. If you've got the time to spend, if you like the genre, or if you haven't played in a giant sandbox for a while, then Ghost of Tsushima won't disappoint. Explore its map and you'll be rewarded with landscapes so beautiful, you simply have to stand still and take a minute to admire them. Moreso than any other constructed reality in recent memory, everything around you feels alive, packed with particle effects and foliage blowing in the breeze. Animals of all shapes and sizes dart about, startled by your presence. Stick on a headset with 3D audio, and the immersion becomes palpable. It's like taking a vacation without having to actually go anywhere.
The year is 1274, and the place is Komoda Beach, on the Japanese island of Tsushima. A vast Mongol invasion force has just arrived and you, playing as the dashing samurai warrior Jin Sakai, must fight a losing battle to defend your home. Some time after this inescapable defeat, you wake to discover Tsushima occupied by Mongol forces. Your uncle has been captured by the fearsome Mongol leader, Khotun Khan, and the only way to rescue him (and subsequently drive the Mongols from Tsushima) might be by abandoning the samurai's Bushido code, and therefore your honour.
Jin & Tonic: Whatever emotional turmoil befalls him, and no matter how violent his actions, this chap remains a refreshingly calm protagonist throughout.
The lines between reality and fiction are deliberately blurred for ease of gamification. Yes, there was a Mongol invasion of Tsushima, but it wasn't led by anybody named Khotun Khan, who the game pitches as being "the grandson of Genghis" to give Jin's narrative a villainous focal point. Despite such embellishments, it's clear that Sucker Punch have a great reverence for the period and culture (the credits carry a dedication an' everything) and, as such, nothing feels appropriated; in fact, certain story beats are a little too cautious, as though dialled back in service of what is ultimately a restrained, surprise-free journey. It's all about atmosphere, setting an expected tone of stoicism which, for the most part, holds up.
Unfortunately, this also makes long stretches of it rather boring. The pace picks up towards the end, as the conflict between Jin's samurai upbringing and his emergence as the titular "Ghost of Tsushima" appears to impact the story's course, but it's all talk. None of your choices (whether presented in dialogue or during gameplay) alter the outcome, nor will they change how the extended cast of NPCs react to Jin. They still need his help to fulfil a range of loyalty quests and secondary objectives, so the script keeps any potential conflicts from really kicking off. They're still great characters, some of whom I really connected with and felt for, but most are lacking that spark to make them truly special. My favourite ended up being Kenji, a merchant con-artist who wouldn't have been especially memorable in isolation, but he injected some much-needed levity to the otherwise sombre proceedings, so I liked him.
Combat is, like Jin himself, divided between honourable, calculated swordplay and a suite of sneaky stealth options so large, it'd make Solid Snake blush. On approach to any Mongol camp, you're given the option to call out and engage in a tense, reaction-based standoff with the enemy, which then means you'll be noisily parrying and thrusting your way to victory, but you can entirely circumvent this mechanic and instead snipe sentries with your longbow, throw black powder bombs into crowds, and poison unsuspecting patrols with blowdarts. Whatever you choose, the controls are effortless, and the resulting power fantasy can be intoxicating. When I was "in the zone" there'd be glorious moments where I'd plant Jin amongst a dozen Mongols and wait for them to lose their patience (or their nerve) and rush me, at which point a quick flash of steel and splash of claret would seal their fate.
Arterial Motive: The fact that the game never dwells on its gore helped desensitise me enough to be able to capture a small handful of blood-soaked screenshots.
Nevertheless, I became frustrated with just how many missions ended up forcing me into a fight. No matter who I assisted, a good 90% of Jin's guided gameplay can be summarised as "go over there and stab those people" and again, no matter how brilliant the combat, I grew tired of it. There was one instance where I accompanied a civilian to check their hunting traps, chatting all the while, and then a blizzard set in, forcing us to dash back to her home. "This is nice," I thought to myself, "making nature the obstacle to overcome instead of spawning in more Mongols... like the ones standing up there, blocking our path. Oh, for goodness sake!" It illustrates how persistent the open world sandbox has become, and how developers design their games with the expectation that we've all been conditioned to indulge in exploratory distractions between quests both major and minor, in order to strike a better balance of activity for ourselves.
To its credit, Ghost of Tsushima does offer you a good amount of peaceful busywork, which is then expanded even further on Iki Island, the recent chunk of DLC included by default in the Director's Cut. Alongside a bunch of fresh fiends to fillet, your trip to this separate, smaller map also introduces target practice platforms, shrines with riddles to solve, and a minigame in which you play pleasing tunes on your flute by tilting your controller, in order to charm nearby animals. These new ways of interacting with your environment make for welcome surprises, particularly if you're like me and leave Iki Island until after forty-odd hours of clearing the mainland's main story.
Monkey Business: Seeing that Sucker Punch had actually made an effort with the Iki Island DLC ensured that, likewise, I made the effort to stick with it, and I'm (mostly) glad I did.
In fact, the only problem I have with Iki Island is its execution of the ol' hallucination trope. At the beginning of its self-contained storyline, Jin is drugged and must suffer the indignity of constant interruptions as he's taunted by a creepy voice and shown a bunch of swirly purple visions. These don't just trigger at pre-determined points during missions, either, but can randomly occur at any time, anywhere, at least until you've cleared the story. There's one for the first time you perform a stealth kill, one for the first time you summon your horse, one for the first time you climb some rocks, etc. etc. and okay, sure, it's technically impressive to have so many squirreled away for so many different eventualities, but it's also infuriating because they lock Jin out of interacting with anything and, if you're in the middle of clearing a Mongol camp or a tricky bit of traversal, this arbitrary restriction can prove fatal. It's 2021, Sucker Punch. Even if that whole Batman: Arkham Asylum bandwagon hadn't collapsed under the weight of every other developer years ago, you should've handled this much, much better.
That's perhaps the biggest shame about Ghost of Tsushima, and these kinds of Triple-A, first-party games in general. They've reached such a consistently high quality threshold that all we can notice are the mistakes, the slip-ups and the wonky bits. Every game has them, it's impossible to not, and yet here I sit, feeling like I've been taking this gorgeous, compelling experience to task for ten paragraphs. The combat is amazing, but it's too pervasive. The story is authentic, but that makes it tedious. The world is achingly beautiful, but I've seen its like before, so now it's just getting in my way.
And, as a fan of linear action-adventure games with locked, cinematic narratives, I hate to say this, but it's also a shame that my choices couldn't impact the story in any way. Playing the whole game according to Bushido would make it much more difficult, but it would also make it much more satisfying if doing so unlocked some sort of honourable alternate ending. I'm not saying "it's bad because it didn't do what I'd have done" because I loved the ending we got, and heck, it would've required almost double the amount of writing, as it would've totally transformed the second and third acts, but I gather that I'm not alone in wishing this wish. Maybe it's something that Sucker Punch could implement in a sequel.
But, as much as I would look forward to playing it, I hope that it's a while before we get that sequel. If it arrives too close to Aloy's next adventure, or another Days Gone, then I can see myself agreeing with those who criticise Sony's first-party output for being too samey. In all honesty, I thoroughly enjoyed Ghost of Tsushima and would highly recommend it but, for now, I've had my fill of its formula.
Which regrettably means that, come February, I might not be in a hurry to ride around yet another sandbox, tidying up yet more map markers with yet another longbow.
In other words, my sojourn in the Far East might've made Forbidden West a literal title.
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger Great write-up mate and I'm glad to see you back, haven't seen you on the forums in a while now!
I feel like Ghost of Tsushima is the perfect example of PlayStation exclusives feeling too similar. Not only did it come out on the tail-end of PS4's life cycle when most people have already experienced the likes of Spider-Man, God of War and Horizon Zero Dawn and are most likely tired of the formula, but it just seems to play things way too safe. I remember watching new gameplay of the game before it launched last year and everyone was comparing the combat to other franchises such as Assassin's Creed.
I made a thread last week about games being more of the same and I feel like Ghost of Tsushima is a good example of that. It's probably a solid title for those that haven't played many of these games before, but it doesn't do anything new and different compared to previous games for us who have played tons of these games already. Games in general are simply becoming more of the same and I hear that from a lot of people as well because so many on this site are constantly saying that they are bored of playing certain games, which I'm guilty of as well! There's nothing wrong with that, it's just how the state of the industry is like right now.
I don't know if you read my first post in that thread, but yeah I just feel like most games these days are just more of the same compared to the 90s when we were constantly getting brand new experiences. Video games have obviously never been as good as they are today, but is that actually a good thing? There's no progression in the industry anymore, we're constantly seeing similar experiences.
Getting back to your review, it is kinda weird that Sucker Punch made a game where there aren't different choices that affect the story. I mean, their last franchise, inFAMOUS, was all about having good or bad karma based on choices you've made. So to not see something like that in Ghost of Tsushima is quite disappointing and I definitely agree with you there.
I haven't played Ghost of Tsushima yet but I'm definitely afraid that I'll end up with the same opinion of it as you, which is why I've been holding off on getting it. And even if I buy it, it might take years before I stomach up the courage to start it up as I really want to like it but I absolutely have to be in the right mood for it.
@RogerRoger Wonderful review and I can’t disagree with some of your criticisms (and points of praise). Specifically the issue of copy and paste gameplay is one that can’t be ignored. For me, the nuance of how the world is navigated, and the really stellar artistry of the world made the ‘samey’ gameplay formula more palatable. Perhaps it’s telling that I haven’t run out and grabbed the Iki Island DLC yet. Nor have I yet wanted to tackle another huge open world map icon-chaser from my backlog yet (Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, Days Gone, Miles Morales, Immortals, and heck even Frozen Wilds all sit there perched at the ready but I can’t bring myself to dive into). Open world fatigue is definitely a thing.
I think that when I played GoT I did so over an extended period of time, I think the game took me on the order of 3 months to finish, and I had a few short breaks in the middle where i played little diversions like Erica, NBA2K and DOOM intermixed between chasing the Ghost platinum. With a little self-imposed pacing, I found the experience to be fantastic.
Speaking of which, did the redundancy of the open world experience thwart a platinum attempt or do you reckon you got it in you?
Whilst I haven't been posting, I have been occasionally lurking, and I did follow your "more of the same" topic with interest, as it landed just after I'd wrapped up Ghost of Tsushima's main story. The timing couldn't have been better, as it reinforced some of the feelings I'd been wrestling with.
That being said, I must again stress that Ghost of Tsushima is a beautiful, compelling experience worth playing, and a very high-quality product from start to finish. There's nothing inherently wrong with it; the problem (if there even is one, as I still haven't committed to a position on the issue) is its placement amidst all of these other beautiful, compelling experiences that are equally worth playing. But you're right, for all of the charming nuance Ghost of Tsushima adds to its open world, you can tell that Sucker Punch started with a cookie-cutter blueprint and never really escaped it. I didn't even mention the whole "Detective Vision" mechanic being right where I expected it to be, even though it makes zero sense for a 13th Century samurai to be able to see through walls. We've been trained to expect it, so we got it.
You're also right about inFAMOUS and its binary morality options. Because I'm me, I was actually reminded of Star Wars: Dark Forces II - Jedi Knight from way back in 1997, which gave you access to Force powers from both the Light Side and Dark Side and then, at a certain point in the story, analysed which ones you'd used the most and split your endgame path accordingly. The Dark Side abilities were more powerful, and therefore more tempting to use, just like Jin's stealth made clearing Mongol camps easier. If they could provide that divergence almost 25 years ago, y'know, what the heck are we doing here?!
When the time (and price) is right, I'm sure you'll find plenty to love about Ghost of Tsushima. It really is a wonderful slice of digital escapism, so I hope you enjoy it, as and when!
***
@Th3solution Thank you! Real pleased to see some alignment of opinion here, as I feared I was being too harsh on the game. And I can totally understand how its unique party pieces could've helped offset any open world burnout; heck, there were sessions I had with it which, just by luck of the draw, were packed with duels and haiku and I would think "yeah, this has such a distinct identity, I love this" only to then come back the next day and be forced into a mandatory stealth mission, followed by a lot of galloping between points of interest, and the boredom returned.
That's quite a backlog of similarity you've got there! At least they've all got distinct settings or art styles that should keep them from blending together too much but sure, I totally understand your hesitance. I would absolutely break them up with other types of games, if you can. And yes, I ended up taking a mid-point break from Ghost of Tsushima as well, something I never usually do. Abandoned it for almost two months, right after Act One, and doing so definitely helped.
Congratulations on getting the game's platinum! On those aforementioned good days, I considered chasing it, and I was also gonna check out the game's multiplayer Legends mode (because, as you know, I won't make a platinum attempt unless I can get 100% of a game's trophies, and there are two Legends sub-lists). By the time I finished the DLC, though, those annoying hallucinations had destroyed the last of my patience. I went back the next day and mopped up a few remaining trophies, saw all the side quests through to completion, and then promptly deleted the game from my console. I think I will return to it someday (there's a NG+ trophy, and sometimes I'm in a better mood for safe, mindless wandering) but heck, I've played Horizon: Zero Dawn twice, and I still don't have its platinum, either!
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger Nice thoughts and much I agree with. The duels always felt really cool and were normally impressive set pieces with their location too.
But the main combat did get samey. It was nice that failing a sneaky approach didn’t feel like it punished you but it was rare that multiple enemies attacking you felt like a threat.
I also felt that it let you unlock all the cool stuff really early on, other than Ghost mode, so there didn’t feel much combat progression after the first “chapter”.
@Thrillho Thanks for reading! You know, after it got unlocked, I often forgot about Ghost Mode. I mean, I was playing on Easy, so I can imagine it being more essential on higher difficulty levels, but yeah, even when I screwed up a stealthy approach (and remaining undetected wasn't mandatory) I didn't feel panicked. If anything, I guess I was relieved that I could just cut loose and duel my way out.
That's the one thing I really appreciated about the Iki Island DLC, because it added a bunch of new moves and mechanics that actually felt worthwhile, after that early imbalance. It's a shame they couldn't retrofit them into the main game, but I expect they'll be front-and-centre in a sequel.
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger I really liked the special armour set on Iki that removed blocking but increased the parry window. The special duels with the wooden swords were a cool addition too.
I have to admit I used the combat items very infrequently as I often forgot about them or felt it was too much fiddling around to swap items around in the middle of combat. Ghost mode was fun to use when there were lots of enemies but rarely a game changer.
EDIT: I also really like your Iki monkey pic from the review!
@Thrillho Oh yeah, those bokken duels were great, but I couldn't figure out the appropriate style for one of them, and it took me far longer than it should've to clear! Some of the armour did have some really interesting perks that might help make a NG+ playthrough feel fresher.
And yeah, my default approach was "rush in, kunai to the face, then mash triangle" so stuff like the sticky bombs and poison wind chimes barely got used.
Thank you! It was a toss-up between that shot, and a similar shot of Jin with a deer. @Voltan will be pleased to know that a relevant deer-related pun would've accompanied it, as well. I'm glad they make somebody laugh, as they're often the hardest part of writing these damned things!
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger Welcome back! And with another great review.
Your point about all of the game's objectives boiling down to 'go here, stab these guys' is fair, and I could see how playing multiple objective-laden open world map games in a row would exhaust you a bit. The trade-off between freedom and content diversity in open world vs linear games has long been an issue, of course, since there's arguably a degree of uniformity required in the content of games that allow you to run around and do whatever you want on the map. And for people who aren't fans of cinematic video games, the same sort of weariness can set in when the player has to spend long stretches of time tilting the analog stick up as the player is slowly railroaded through a series of set-pieces and environments that amount to little more than pretty scenery. This is why, more often than, mixing elements of these two design extremes produces better games overall.
Usually the best remedy for weariness with games designed in similar ways is to play stuff that's entirely different, so, yeah, maybe it's for the best if you delay your trip to the Forbidden West. It's not like the game won't drop in price. Sony was literally giving HZD away last year, and it was only a year or two after release before they had it down to bargain bin prices.
Your screenshots are stunning, and, given the beauty of the game in general, I imagine you must have spent a good chunk of those 60 hours fiddling around with photo mode.
I do think you're right about the experience being respectful to the culture. It was well-received in Japan, and the game, as I recall, stimulated interest in helping to preserve historical landmarks on the island. It's a cool way to draw attention to a thoroughly underexplored setting with a rich history.
Which language did you choose to experience the game in, btw? I recall one of the touted bonuses of this version of the game on PS5 was lip-syncing that matched the Japanese audio track.
Interesting point about games becoming so high-quality that we fixate more on their flaws, although this is probably to be expected from developers who are so accomplished that excellence becomes the norm. You often see the same dynamic at play in interpersonal relationships and in parenting.
I think it's easier to be critical because of the sheer number of high-quality games that are out there as well. We're drowning in very good-to-excellent games these days, so simply being very good-to-excellent is no longer enough for a game to stand out anymore.
Well, anyway, like I said, excellent review. Hopefully a sequel manages to make the dialogue choices more meaningful, and Sucker Punch finds a way to diversify its gameplay going forward so it feels a bit less like Assassin's Creed: Japan or whatever.
@RogerRoger I messed around with Legends mode once or twice. And although I found it to be a very high quality multiplayer addition, especially considering it was a free add-on, I couldn’t stick with it for any length of time. I’m not ruling out going back to it one day, but I just have too much on the single-player front to tackle.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
Yeah, for every gamer who laments being shown a vast, sprawling map, there'll be another who objects to the idea of replaying a linear game to find extra content or, as you say, slowly walking a protagonist through what amounts to a cutscene with camera control, so there's definitely a design trade-off discussion to be had at the development stage. Ghost of Tsushima isn't a bad example of either approach (as it does have linear story missions, some of which are very well-crafted) but it rarely manages to surprise, either, and that's why those samey feelings started to take hold.
Well, I have to chuckle at your advice, because I've started my next game and lo, I'm back in Japan, running around with a longbow on my back! At least it's linear-plus this time! Seriously, I do expect the Horizon hype train to hit me at some point, so I'm grateful for your point about its predecessor. It's also worth remembering that it'll only ever be a better game, the longer I leave it.
You're very kind. Looking at the discrepancy between a couple of concurrent timers (one measuring gameplay time, the other measuring time spent in the game), I appear to have lived in Photo Mode for just under three hours, capturing 250 screenshots in the process. Feels about right.
Ah, I played the game in English, alas. Subtitles in "live" things wind me up. I wouldn't have even noticed the fancy Japanese lip-syncing, as I'd have been too busy reading!
And I have nothing to add to your comment about relationships, except "yes".
Funny you should end on that Assassin's Creed joke, because I was describing Ghost of Tsushima to a friend of mine, and every other mechanic I mentioned received an immediate comparison to an Assassin's Creed game, so I cheekily added "...and then you swan-dive into a hay bail" and for a split-second, she believed me. Goodness only knows what'll happen if the next Assassin's Creed is really set in Japan, as I understand it's something fans of that series have been asking for.
My thanks again. I hope your fancy copy of SMT V arrives safely in the next couple days!
***
@Th3solution Yeah, I looked up some information about Legends, and got the impression that I'd think the same as you; initially impressive, but not likely to hold my attention. At least its associated trophies don't sound too challenging. There doesn't seem to be anything like "be the top of a global leaderboard" or other associated nonsense you usually get with such multiplayer lists.
Not knowing exactly how the mode works, and not being a particularly frequent multiplayer gamer either, I'd still offer my services as a wingman, should you ever return to it. No obligation, mind!
"We want different things, Crosshair. That doesn't mean that we have to be enemies."
@RogerRoger great review Rog… I thoroughly enjoyed GoT (‘uncut by the director’ version 😉) but I certainly see and understand your points. I am a sucker for open-world action-adventures though in fairness. Really well written too, it was a pleasure.
@RogerRoger Good to know and I’d echo the offer too, should you ever want to make a run at 100%-ing the trophy list and need a collaborator, or if you just feel the drive to jump back into feudal Japan from a multiplayer standpoint just for kicks.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
Yeah, for every gamer who laments being shown a vast, sprawling map, there'll be another who objects to the idea of replaying a linear game to find extra content or, as you say, slowly walking a protagonist through what amounts to a cutscene with camera control, so there's definitely a design trade-off discussion to be had at the development stage. Ghost of Tsushima isn't a bad example of either approach (as it does have linear story missions, some of which are very well-crafted) but it rarely manages to surprise, either, and that's why those samey feelings started to take hold.
The approach with most modern open world games is to mix the complete openness of exploratory game design with, yeah, highly scripted sequences more like something you'd encounter in a story game, and my experience is that the two aspects never fully sit comfortably together.
But yeah, if almost nothing ever surprises you, it'd get boring quickly. Which sounds like the fruit of an unimaginative script.
Well, I have to chuckle at your advice, because I've started my next game and lo, I'm back in Japan, running around with a longbow on my back! At least it's linear-plus this time! Seriously, I do expect the Horizon hype train to hit me at some point, so I'm grateful for your point about its predecessor. It's also worth remembering that it'll only ever be a better game, the longer I leave it.
It'll only get cheaper and better, yes. And the thing people really don't get is that the games aren't going anywhere. One doesn't miss out on a game if one doesn't gain access to it the moment it hits the open market.
Same issue with sales. People act like they'll never get a game at a certain sale price again, but, almost always, the price of the game is going to sink at least that low, if not lower, in the future, since demand tends to only sink over time. This is putting aside issues like games with small print runs running out, of course. It tends to be smarter to snag games like those ASAP if one want a disc or cartridge for their physical collection. There are still a few 3DS games I regret sleeping on.
Recognizing and defeating irrational consumerist impulses is important but difficult with so many high-quality games coming out all the time these days.
Ah, I played the game in English, alas. Subtitles in "live" things wind me up. I wouldn't have even noticed the fancy Japanese lip-syncing, as I'd have been too busy reading!
Heh. You sound like my mother. She always asks me how I watch what's happening on the screen when I'm reading subtitles. When I tell her one's brain kinda rewires itself to do both simultaneously, she looks at me like I'm an alien or something!
Funny you should end on that Assassin's Creed joke, because I was describing Ghost of Tsushima to a friend of mine, and every other mechanic I mentioned received an immediate comparison to an Assassin's Creed game, so I cheekily added "...and then you swan-dive into a hay bail" and for a split-second, she believed me. Goodness only knows what'll happen if the next Assassin's Creed is really set in Japan, as I understand it's something fans of that series have been asking for.
You know I've never actually played one of those games for more than 30 minutes or so? Something about the way they control drives me up a wall.
Also managed to have access to at least two Xbox consoles and still haven't touched a Halo game!
@RogerRoger Fabulous Rez Infinite and Ghost of Tsushima reviews. It's lovely how Rez Infinite put you in your nan's shoes and allowed you to imagine what her synaesthesia was like. The game certainly looks particularly striking, and I appreciate how it was part of the early push for "games as art" in the sixth generation, but I'm not at all good at rail shooters so would probably pass.
Ghost of Tsushima sounds like a game I should enjoy, and all the elements for a great modern AAA game are there, but as you note the problem is we've all played the same thing a million times before, right down to the hallucination sections. As a result it lacks adventure that earlier, more pioneering games exhibited. If we play a game almost on autopilot, then it's little wonder that the flaws are all we really notice. I sometimes find open-world busywork therapeutic: I have a busy, overthinking brain, and so like ticking off map locations in Assassin's Creed or Horizon in quite a systematic way. While it gives me something to focus on, there eventually comes a point where it's just too much. And so the great open-world fatigue syndrome sets in.
I get that Sucker Punch didn't want to anything that could come across as insensitive, but it's a shame that the game is overly cautious with its story. The deference for Japanese culture and desire to accurately portray the Kamakura period is something to admire, but it doesn't mean the story has to be dull. Anyhoo, I probably will play Tsushima in the future, but if I want to play Forbidden West near launch it's probably best to leave it for the time being. Really well-written and informative piece, and your screenshots are amazing.
Forums
Topic: User Impressions/Reviews Thread
Posts 2,161 to 2,180 of 3,218
Please login or sign up to reply to this topic