Ghost of Tsushima was 1 of 2020’s champion games. As 1 of the swan songs to the PS4’s exclusive room up of the caller procreation of hardware, Sucker Punch’s Japanese feudal epic ticked each the boxes – slick combat and stealth, breathtaking visuals, and a mature and thoughtful communicative astir the quality of loss. It besides featured 1 of the astir memorable crippled endings successful galore years. After that, what much could beryllium added that wouldn’t consciousness similar a retread?
Quite a bit, arsenic it turns out.
Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut includes everything that made the archetypal merchandise great, and is disposable connected PS4 oregon PS5 arsenic either a standalone purchase, oregon an upgrade from your existing copy. If you haven’t played the crippled yet, present is an perfect time. The caller mentation includes immoderate bonus upgrade items, similar skins and quality betterment points, and entree to a director’s commentary with input from a Japanese historiographer connected the existent events and play depicted successful the game. There’s besides the fantabulous Legends cooperative multiplayer experience, which is good worthy playing. If playing connected PS5, you besides get immoderate amusive caller DualSense haptic feedback connected your controller, caller 3D audio erstwhile utilizing compatible headphones, and a gorgeous 4K solution targeting 60fps, which makes for an exceptionally stunning show successful a crippled that already looked precise pretty. Even so, I’d question if a paid upgrade for existing players would beryllium justified if that was each you got.
However, the large gully is undoubtedly the Iki Island expansion, a multi-hour caller run built to impress. Acting simultaneously arsenic a standalone communicative and arsenic a coda and wrap-up for Jin’s quality arc, the adventures players uncover connected Iki Island are good worthy the terms of admission. It would beryllium a agelong to qualify this caller country and its missions arsenic a existent sequel, but respective caller communicative developments, unsocial broadside missions, and caller upgrades consciousness much important than I had expected. Closing an important communicative loop for the main quality besides leads to a precise satisfying addendum to Jin’s narrative, without losing immoderate of the interaction of the main game’s almighty conclusion.
Iki Island is acceptable isolated from the main crippled sections connected Tsushima, and if desired, you tin accelerated question backmost and distant betwixt the 2 landmasses. To get things going, Jin learns of an impending 2nd penetration of Mongol troops who person amassed connected the adjacent smaller land and sets retired to halt the threat. That means that there’s a caller representation to uncover, and since Jin’s fable is chartless there, it’s different spot to physique that fable up (and gain the corresponding method points). Crucially, we besides larn that Iki Island is wherever Jin witnessed his father’s decease arsenic a child. The struggle that led to that idiosyncratic calamity is simply a large absorption successful the expansion. That means that Jin indispensable question incognito without the markings of his Sakai clan presumption – hidden identities ever pb to a small added tension.
Conceptually, the communicative and its struggle enactment arsenic a leverage constituent to research Jin’s haunted past. Without spoiling precisely how, Jin is poisoned soon aft his accomplishment connected Iki, starring him to maddening visions astir the galore traumatic events of his life. These manifest in-game arsenic ocular and auditory hallucinations, forcing the honor-bound warrior to face his guilt and relive immoderate of his worst moments, some from aboriginal beingness and those witnessed during the main game. I emotion however these visions popular up passim the Iki adventure, often successful context-sensitive moments that thrust Jin into abrupt vulnerability. I besides bask the Eagle, a terrifying caller Mongol villain astatine the bosom of the Iki expansion. However, the Eagle’s looming menace is contiguous chiefly successful the opening and extremity of the story, letting the existent antagonist instrumentality halfway signifier – Jin’s self-doubt and regret.
Along the way, Sucker Punch has injected respective caller gameplay tweaks to support things interesting. One of the astir important changes successful combat is the summation of shamans, an force benignant whose chants goad the different force fighters into devastating conflict trances. Inevitably, these shamans bent retired astatine the backmost of a squad, truthful players indispensable dodge and slash their mode done the enraged regular enemies to instrumentality connected the shaman first. Normal enemies are besides precise dangerous, adjacent for players who’ve maxed retired their samurai abilities. Just a mates of hits from 1 of these foes are enough to deplete a afloat wellness bar. Many enemies power weapons mid-battle, demanding you show your stances carefully. Enemy positioning leads to challenging tactical dilemmas astir however to negociate a fight. In short, it’s each beauteous challenging.
Thankfully, Jin besides finds immoderate amusive caller tricks connected the land of Iki. Chief among them is the caller equine charge. Jin’s faithful steed, hardened by galore battles, tin present surge distant and trample foes successful his way to devastating effect. Enabled successful abbreviated bursts that you mightiness see a super-gallop, the enactment is incredibly potent erstwhile employed against larger groups. The equine complaint drains Resolve quickly, but it tin beryllium a worthwhile gambit to unfastened a large fight.
Iki Island besides features immoderate caller charms to heighten your conflict and stealth process, but it’s present that the enlargement failed a spot to tweak my playstyle. In a dilemma confronted by astir each crippled enlargement ever created, you commencement the crippled with a playstyle and chosen upgrades uniquely suited to your preference. While immoderate of the caller charms are interesting, arsenic good arsenic gorgeous caller armor with its ain unsocial bonuses, it’s hard to bushed retired that afloat upgraded loadout you’ve been rocking since the extremity of the basal crippled – particularly considering the situation level of the content.
I was happily amazed that respective existing broadside activities, similar crafting haikus and chopping bamboo strikes, are joined by immoderate clever caller additions. Dedicated bow enthusiasts are definite to bask the archery challenges, which connection a accidental to meaningfully amended the Charm of Concentration, extending your clip slowdown portion firing disconnected arrows. For me, the large victor was the carnal sanctuaries. Jin sits with his flute and plays a tune for animals similar cats and deer, tilting the controller up and down to enactment connected melody. It’s a elemental and amusing caller enactment that maintains the themes of earthy harmony that characterized Ghost of Tsushima’s archetypal release.
Beyond slug constituent diagnostic lists, Iki Island is besides a wonderfully designed playspace. Likely informed by the enactment undertaken to trade the basal game, Sucker Punch has enactment unneurotic a beauteous and compact escapade that flows smoothly from opening to end. New platforming locations are large fun. Side missions to assistance the inhabitants of the land are thoughtfully written and varied successful their objectives. And the main travel of tasks moves seamlessly betwixt large service battles, challenging duels, and sneaky infiltrations. On apical of it each is the developer’s attraction to creator grandeur; Iki Island is simply a onshore of vibrantly colored forests, stark wave-washed cliffs, and beauteous sunsets. The locale feels similar an hold of the creation benignant seen connected Tsushima, but with its ain identity.
I was happily amazed by the breadth, depth, and situation of the Iki Island expansion. For caller players, it volition widen an already lengthy escapade into thing more. Meanwhile, returning players should beryllium thrilled astatine however good this acquisition dovetails retired of an already stellar game. Iki Island is what I privation retired of single-player crippled expansions. And it’s further impervious (as if we needed immoderate much astatine this point) that Sucker Punch has a standout caller spot to proceed gathering on.
English (US) ·