Ghost of Tsushima is the last major PlayStation 4 exclusive on the horizon – or is it? We’ve been speculating for some time that we believe the feudal affair may make the switch to the PlayStation 5, but the title was recently reconfirmed for Sony’s current-gen console in a PlayStation Blog post by CEO Jim Ryan.
Here’s what we know: the Sucker Punch developed open worlder was announced at Paris Games Week as a PS4 exclusive in 2017. It was then featured heavily at E3 2018, before going undercover in the months since. There’s no public release date attached to the title, but trusted Kotaku scribe Jason Schreier has suggested that The Last of Us: Part II’s recent delay has pushed the project back.
This all makes sense, but with Ellie’s sophomore outing due on 29th May and the PS5 likely to launch in November, does anyone really want Ghost of Tsushima on the PS4 anymore? There are over 100 million people who own Sony’s current console, of course, but there’s no doubt the ex-inFAMOUS developer could utilise the power of the company’s next-gen console to make an even better game.
We personally believe that this will end up being a The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild-esque situation, where the title accompanies the PS5 at launch, but also releases on the PS4 as promised. But wouldn’t it be better if Sucker Punch wasn’t forced to compromise its vision by ageing hardware? Or does it, at this stage, have a commitment to current-gen console owners to fulfil?
Comments 57
They should make it a PS5 exclusive at this point for me.
Assuming the PS4 version is almost finished I see no reason not to launch it on both. It may as well come out when the PS5 does and even if it did come earlier I wouldn't buy it until I have the PS5. After TLOU 2 I'll be saving to get one of the next gen consoles at launch, so I wont be buying anymore games for this generation after that
Ps4 for the win.word up son
Not everyone will be able to afford a ps5 straight away and if the ps4 launch is anything to go by then units may be hard to get hold of. With 100 million ps4 owners no company would be stupid enough to cancel an almost complete game to sell it at a later date to a limited consumer base.
Why is this even a topic? They have said many times now that it will definitely be on ps4.
The real question is what is the difference? With PS4 library being a part of PS5 library, all games are cross-gen.
I am kind of hoping Sony does something bold where you get the PS5 version of a PS4 game for free.
So, if you bought the physical game, inserting the PS4 version into the PS5 downloads the PS5 version for you. If you buy the game digitally, then downloading the game on PS5 downloads the PS5 version, instead.
Sony did something similar with PS4 at launch for select PS3 titles, but at a $10 charge for the upgrade - of course, the biggest difference there is that PS4 wasn't backwards compatible.
@RenanKJ well a genuine PS5 version will likely be double the framerate amongst other things
@hulkie Because clicks, comments and engagement, son
See, it's working.
I'm fascinated to find out how they're gonna handle these PS4/PS5 cross releases if backwards compatibility works as it should next gen.
I think it should still come out on PS4 and maybe just have it perform better on PS5.
I don’t care and I guess I’ll play it on PS5 as it seems like it’s release will be close to it. I’m really looking forward to it but as with many other games this gen they are taking forever to release. Yes, delay them so they are good but the wait still sucks. Dec-March is pretty barren for me.
I'm not picking up a PS5 at launch so, yes, I want it on PS4. Especially considering it was, and still is, being pitched as a PS4 game.
With that said, as long as it runs well on the base PS4 hardware, I don't see any harm in it launching separately for PS5 as well. Although, if it's true that the PS5 will run PS4 games with performance enhancements, I'm not sure it's needed.
@RenanKJ True, but if they developed specifically with PS5 in mind they could push the open world much harder than they'd be able to if they had to build with 2013 hardware in mind.
Of course it needs to release on ps4 AND ps5.
I dont even know why it's a question.
Actually it's not
PS4 has a huge install base. It's guaranteed sales. But it would be awesome to have a PS5 "Pro" version. Just pull a botw and call it a day. It would give the most people what they want. Seems like a no-brainer to me.
@hulkie @Turismo4GT I mean, yes, it's our job to engage readers with content we think they'll find, y'know, engaging. But also the poll results are genuinely interesting: at the time of writing 45% of people say they're most likely to buy this title currently only confirmed for PS4 on the PS5.
Don't you find that interesting? Because I do!
Sony could do with a big launch title for ps5 but given this has been built for ps4 it's hard not to see it being both. At this stage of development,
what would be the difference between ps5 version and ps4 game backwards compatible?
@get2sammyb
Not that interesting because it only makes sense with the ps5 launch and people not optimistic about the game release soon.
Might as well buy it on a system that will show it off to its full potential which is the PS5. They should just do what they did with the Last Guardian keep saying it will release on PS4 then just launch it later on PS5
If it comes out after PS5’s released I’ll get it on that, if not PS4...
What if the retrocompability will be tested with GoT, meaning there will be only one version that runs on both?
@Dodoo same for me
I would love to play this game on my PS4 Pro! But unless its a confirmed upgrade to PS5 I highly doubt I will purchase any 2020 games on PS4. The same as I did on PS3 back log and Plus games mostly. I will limit myself to PS Plus and PS Now games to the Holiday 2020 launch of PS5! At that point I will go hog wild buying everything PS5.
Honestly if they push this back and make this a launch title I'd be pretty pissed. If they do there press event for the PS5 and this is featured as their big launch title I'd be highly disappointed seeing as this was announced for the PS4 all the way back in 2017. I've got a gut feeling that is what Sony is gonna do.
I'm not likely to get a ps5 at launch and would be happy to wait until, a year or two down the line, they release a newer/better/slimmer model- as they surely will. Nevertheless, this is one of the games I've been the most hyped for, and feel it would compromise a lot of opinions if SP decide to push for just a ps5 release. A lot of people will be missing out! Even better if they release it on ps plus a few years after, as with the last of us, so those who have bought the next gen console later would have the chance to revisit a favourite game in higher detail.
@get2sammyb I mean, before TLOU Part II was delayed, Tsushima was supposed to be out in the first half of 2020, so presumably the vast bulk of development work for the game is done. It's a PS4 game built with the PS4 in mind.
What they can, and should, do is launch it around the holidays as a cross-gen launch title for PS5, like BotW. Give early adopters a 4K/60fps version to sink their teeth into on the brand new hardware.
It should launch on ps4 and ps5, 1080p & 30 fps on ps4, 4k & 60 fps on ps5
don't care if it's on PS4, might as well buy it on PS5
@hotukdeals but the last guardian was rubbish compared to shadow, and that released on what...ps2, ps3 and 4! And still managed to get better every time. I can see how it would make for a better game if they had always started to make the game for a superior console, but there's still a lot to be said for creating timeless classics, regardless of specs.
I don't think there is any way this isn't coming to PS4 before the PS5 launches. This game has been in development for 5 years specifically for the PS4. It seems it was scheduled to come out around where TLOU2 is now releasing so could come out within a couple of months after. It's been promoted multiple times for PS4 and has 100 million potential customers as opposed to a couple of million launch consoles. They can still work on an improved version after it's finished for the PS5.
This would be the perfect launch if it did. I adore sucker punch and if they made mechanically and graphically a PS5 game my life would be complete. Sony gave it’s word, but if we disregard that, it’d be awesome. The poll is interesting too.
@get2sammyb I'd imagine that would mean rebuilding a significant amount of the game at this point in development
Cross-gen and handle it just like Nintendo did with Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Have a great day one game for the new console and for those not ready to make the jump, they can get the PS4 version. Everybody wins.
@get2sammyb It's 2 minutes to midnight Sammy. Yes, if they built it with ps5 hardware specific in mind, they'd be able to push it as you say, but I don't think that can be done so last minute. If they did that now it would just look like a PS4 game that for some reason is a PS5 exclusive.
@get2sammyb That is interesting. I am interested in the game but won't be getting a PS5 until at least a year after launch. let's see how Sony rolls this one out as the generation draws to a close.
@get2sammyb Isn't it true that game devs make higher-fidelity assets and then scale to the specific needs of each platform? I'd imagine if this is the case, Sucker Punch would already have the baseline assets ready for the PS5 and should be not much of an issue adapting the code to PS5 hardware since it's technically similar to that of PS4.
PS4 version please. I don't tend to buy consoles at launch, and instead wait until it gets a big library of games.
@get2sammyb The poll does show that more people would get it on PS5 than the PS4 (currently 42% vs 35%), but it's worth remembering that the people who regularly visit this site are going to be the biggest PlayStation fans, and presumably more likely to pick up a PS5 at launch than the average PS4 owner.
I'm not sure.
On one hand, a PS5 version would clearly be better than a PS4 version.
On the other hand, a PS4 version would has a gargantuan install base when compared to the PS5's.
As a frugal person, I am biased towards a PS4 version.
Furthermore, I remember hearing that God of War 2 was slated for the PS3, but ultimately ended up being a generation ender for the PS2. That ended up being a big part of its success (though, the PS3's ridiculous asking price at the time may have helped too).
@get2sammyb why ? that would be more difficutly for everyone to get PS5 on day one because they want play this on PS5 if it not coming out on ps4 first.. No way, Sony sell 5 millions units of PS5 on day one in USA because there are more than 10 millions people want get PS5 on day one for play Ghost of Tsushima. PS4 sold one millions units on day one in USA in November 2013 that why i didn't get one until they restock it that making me wait another month. i rather them to release it on PS4 first then play it again on PS5
At this point, my expectations are tempered to the point where I don't really care as much about the platform as I do about seeing more extensive gameplay.
I've yet to be convinced it's not going to be just a fairly basic hack-and-slash game, albeit a supremely pretty one. That's what the gameplay they showed seemed to imply, and we've had nothing else since.
I'm sincerely hoping I'm wrong as I had high hopes, but the gameplay I saw left me feeling a bit disappointed.
@get2sammyb They would anger a lot of PS4 players who expected to come to PS4, so they can't and shouldn't tbh. You also mention about Sucker Punch should not compromise their vision but they've been working on the game for 4 years now, changing the scope for a different platform would just complicate things.
I prefer it if they just released for PS4, if they held it back for PS5 it would imply that they don't have any exclusives for launch.
Plus the game is too far gone that porting it to PS5 would add much of a tangible difference.
People forget that PS3 finished with plenty of exclusives that they could have held back for PS4 (God of War, Sly, TLOU and Beyond) but didn't.
I'd rather get games that were made from the ground up for PS5.
i say at this point make it a PS5 launch title, it would probably help shift a few systems too
keep it as both a ps4 swansong and ps5 launch game.
no excuse to make it a ps5 exclusive when the game has always been marketed as a ps4 game by the sony executives in recent interviews.
it would alienate a ton of people,and frankly would be a very bad move by sony and SP.
it's not that this game has been in developent hell like the last guardian or anything.
@crimsontadpoles i would buy the game on ps5 but i also think that they should not make it a ps5 exclusive but also release it on ps4 as planned alonside a ps5 release.
@get2sammyb I agree, Ghosts of Tsushima would be an epic launch title for ps5.
Been confirmed already thats it coming out on ps4'. Probably aummer 2020. If ps5' are still do backwards compatible then can play on ps5 too buy have serious doubt with sony pushing ps now hard and the fact the head guy at sony hates backwards compatible. They'll probably do what they did for assassin's creed: black flag. Get a code so the disk words on ps5.
It's my most anticipated game so I'll happily play it on anything. If it went PS5 exclusive or enhanced, I'd play it on that. PS4? Great. I'd play it on Commodore 64 if it meant I could play it.
Given that games like Dragon Age: Inquisition and Metal Gear Solid V were able to launch on both the PS3 and PS4 without the latter versions looking that bad as a result, I don't see why they can't release this game on both PS4 and PS5 and give players more choice.
I realy don't uderstand this articles about PS4/PS5 release. As I understand it everything from PS4 will be playable on PS5. So why you still writing about it over and over again. I don't think that an anounced game will be a PS5 exclusive.
PS4. after 5 years in development,, not sure there's much room to change the scope of the game for PS5, bar some visual upgrades.. also most launch titles are bundled in with consoles as a loss leader, so launching it only on PS5 would be costly. suppose it might depend on whether game sales fall off a cliff next year, as people are either saving for new consoles or hedging their bets that next-gen versions might be announced later.
at present, i'm unlikely to pick up on either console, so have no personal preference either way.
It's already been advertised as a PS4 game. Not releasing it on the PS4 is false advertising and subject for a lawsuit.
I just want it to be released. Period.
And i think they are too far into it right now to switch development for the new hardware. I believe it will be a PS5 launch release with a PS4 version too, like BOTW was for Wii U/Switch.
@crimsontadpoles
Exactly. It's a Ninja question. They are asking if you want to buy a PS5 soon.
They should release it for PS4 and rerelease for PS5 later on. It was advertised as PS4 game, they cannot just move it to PS5. That's not how Sony's headquarters work. It would be treated as false advertisement and would piss of lots of people. There is no reason it should not be released on PS4.
@Callmegil that's exactly what it is, I am surprised there are people who do not understand it.
@get2sammyb No installbase or over 100 million gamers hmmm how stupid would Sony be if they skip PS4. 🤔
Even if i leave this out of the equation i own a PS4 and i dont know anything about the PS5 besides rumors so yes PS4 without a doubt. I rather see Heavenly Sword 2, Dark Cloud or even better Legend of Dragoon its all about the games. 😁
Pretty sure it'll be both, as it's the only approach that makes sense, but I'd be perfectly happy if it was only on PS5.
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