Sony Ghost of Tsushima OT - Mud, Blood, and Steel, update: Rivals mode added to Legends

[skillzdadirecta]

Just did the 

Spoiler

The Siege at Yarikawa 

That was some Game of Thrones ish right there.

[Spork3245]

2 hours ago, best3444 said:

 

And?

... and... I love you?

[JPDunks4]

Just finished it.  Really enjoyed it.  Not really too much too dislike or complain about.

 

My biggest gripe would probably be it was too easy overall.  It was challenging early on, but they give you way too much Resolve that makes you basically invulnerable.  Pretty minor gripe though.

 

The side missions did get a little repetitive, but compared to other open world type games, it didn't feel nearly that bad.

 

The main story beats were all very well done and had a nice epic feel to them.

 

World was stunning.

 

Spoiler

Act 3, due to the snow, was by far the least pleasant of the areas to explore though.  If the entire game was in the snow, I think I'd enjoy it far less, but the first 2 Chapters were just stunning, and the beautiful World really bumped up my enjoyment overall.

 

I think I'd give it a solid 8.5/10

[Littleronin]

My favorite weapon so far has been the wind chime bell with the Charm of Toxic Demise. Toss it near a camp leader and let the magic happen. 

[ARZ]

Man, I swear at the end of Chapter 1 that

Spoiler

the uncle was going to turn and join Khan to keep you alive and stop your path of dishonor

Made the Ryuzo turn more impactful for me, lol

 

[Spork3245]

2 hours ago, ARZ said:

Man, I swear at the end of Chapter 1 that

  Hide contents

the uncle was going to turn and join Khan to keep you alive and stop your path of dishonor

Made the Ryuzo turn more impactful for me, lol

 

I was expecting the same lol

[SaysWho?]

tbh, I expected 

Spoiler

exactly what happened. The Straw Hats were plentiful, so I thought they might make better enemies with my allies potentially being fewer in number. And his demeanor, along with hanging onto that duel, had me wondering about him. I wasn't shocked at his turn.

Which is surprising because I'm usually guy #1 who doesn't see a story point coming.  

 

[JPDunks4]

 

Too bad I just finished it.  Lethal Difficulty would be interesting.

[SaysWho?]

Really enjoyed The Art of Negotiation, Kenji's last Tales mission

 

Spoiler

I kind of wish, if you killed everyone, that the man with whom he spoke freaked out over a lack of backup. But end of the day, it does make the other ambush easier to deal with.

 

[SaysWho?]

 

 

[eggydoo]

10 hours ago, JPDunks4 said:

 

Too bad I just finished it.  Lethal Difficulty would be interesting.

  I just tried it and I'm struggling at the first ishikawa mission due to all the archers.  Some archers will one shot you.  I got it down to one archer left and he got me...womp womp.  It is fun though cause the enemy also die really quick.

[Spork3245]

[skillzdadirecta]

Great article about Kurosawa, Samurai and Bushido in Japanese politics

 

Quote

I do not believe Ghost of Tsushima was designed to empower a nationalist fantasy. At a glance, and through my time playing the game, however, it feels like it was made by outsiders looking into an otherwise complex culture through the flattening lens of an old black-and-white film. The gameplay is slick and the hero moments are grand, but the game lacks the nuance and understanding of what it ultimately tries to reference. As it stands, being a cool pseudo-historical drama is, indeed, what Ghost of Tsushima’s creators seemingly aimed to accomplish. In an interview with Famitsu, Chris Zimmerman of Sucker Punch said that “if Japanese players think the game is cool, or like a historical drama, then that’s a compliment.” And if there is one thing Ghost of Tsushima did succeed in, it was creating a “cool” aesthetic — encompassed by one-on-one showdowns with a lot of cinematic framing.

 

In an interview with The Verge, Fox said that “our game is inspired by history, but we’re not strictly historically accurate.” That’s keenly felt throughout the story and in its portrayal of the samurai. The imagery and iconography of the samurai carry a burden that Sucker Punch perhaps did not reckon with during the creation of Ghost of Tsushima. While the game doesn’t have to remain true to the events that transpired in Tsushima, the symbol of the samurai propagates a nationalist message by presenting a glossed-over retelling of that same history. Were, at any point, Ghost of Tsushima to wrestle with the internal conflict between the various class systems that existed in Japan at the time, it might have been truer to the films that it draws deep inspiration from. However, Ghost of Tsushima is what it set out to be: a “cool” period piece that doesn’t dwell on.

 

@Emperor Diocletian II

 

[Commissar SFLUFAN]

8 hours ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Great article about Kurosawa, Samurai and Bushido in Japanese politics

 

@Emperor Diocletian II

Ahem...

 

[best3444]

I'm about 8 hours or so into ghost of tsushima and I say its solid, not amazing thus far. It's been there done that a little bit but also it is a little unpolished in areas too. 

 

I enjoy it and will finish it. Maybe it will get better. I'm at the very end of act 1.

[Mercury33]

4 hours ago, best3444 said:

I'm about 8 hours or so into ghost of tsushima and I say its solid, not amazing thus far. It's been there done that a little bit but also it is a little unpolished in areas too. 

 

I enjoy it and will finish it. Maybe it will get better. I'm at the very end of act 1.

It’s unpolished? In what ways?

 

And this “been there done that” nonsense this board is so in love with has got to end. When was the last truly original game you played? They all borrow from each other. Witcher 3 did basically nothing original and it’s arguably the best open world game of all time. 

[Greatoneshere]

14 minutes ago, Mercury33 said:

It’s unpolished? In what ways?

 

And this “been there done that” nonsense this board is so in love with has got to end. When was the last truly original game you played? They all borrow from each other. Witcher 3 did basically nothing original and it’s arguably the best open world game of all time. 

 

I agree, not sure what people are expecting out of games. Shenmue III disappoints, Death Stranding disappoints, the end of FF7R disappoints, The Last of Us Part II disappoints, and now Ghost of Tsushima isn't original? I mean, all these games deserve criticism, of course, but at some point we have to realize not every game will be Disco Elysium or Super Mario 64 but can still be good or great. It's like the old adage, "don't let perfect be the enemy of good".  

[best3444]

I'm too lazy to type my thoughts. It's an enjoyable game but it's not blowing me away like TLOU2. 

[Greatoneshere]

1 minute ago, best3444 said:

I'm too lazy to type my thoughts. It's an enjoyable game but it's not blowing me away like TLOU2. 

 

I think that's fair (I agree with you!), my point was definitely about more than just your post.

[JPDunks4]

By far and away the most memorable thing about this game was the beauty of the world.

Combat was good, story was good, but the most distinctive part that continually impressed me was how beautiful the surroundings were through most of it.

[skillzdadirecta]

Unpolished is the ONE thing I wouldn't say about this game. I've had ONE bug in the amount of time I've been playing... that's it. I would argue this is one of the more polished games I've played in recent times. In addition to the beauty of the world, I can't say enough about how good the combat is. It has definitely got some of the best open world combat gameplay we've seen to date. 

 

52 minutes ago, Mercury33 said:

 

And this “been there done that” nonsense this board is so in love with has got to end. When was the last truly original game you played? They all borrow from each other

 

Not to single out @best3444 but I've found that this particular "critique" is one of the laziest I've seen thrown around regarding games and movies. True "originality" is so rare and oftentimes overrated because some games and movies get "extra points" because they are perceived as being "original" when they aren't even that good or entertaining. Ghost of Tsushima doesn't reinvent the wheel... it doesn't have to. It does what it does VERY well though. Shit, The Last of Us 2 did absolutely nothing "Original" at all... It's still a masterpiece.

[Spork3245]

This game has the best use of HDR I’ve seen. The difference provided to lighting from the HDR contrast is insane. When I saw a non-HDR YouTube video between plays it was almost jarring.

[Brick]

Ugh I came across assholes on Twitter that were complaining because of at least four women in the game that are fighters. Do they not realize that there were indeed women samurai, and that the naginata was designed for women to protect the homestead? Between this, and Abby in The Last of Us Part II, there sure are a lot of guys that are insecure about their masculinity. 

[Brian]

→The protagonist isn't handsome.They spent so much budget and technology on that middle aged guy. He would be negated by market research (in Japan). I can't count the number of things I admire about it. For example, its historical settings. I can't stop admiring." pic.twitter.com/md9idSfzGz

— otakujp (@otakucalendarjp) July 28, 2020

[best3444]

On chapter 2. The game world is stunning as well as the combat. I shouldn't have said the game is a bit unpolished. Not sure where I was going with that, lol. It's a technical marvel with a solid story and gameplay.

 

I was being too hard on the game earlier. I'm on chapter 2 and really enjoying myself. 

[Keyser_Soze]

6 hours ago, skillzdadirecta said:

Not to single out @best3444 but I've found that this particular "critique" is one of the laziest I've seen thrown around regarding games and movies. True "originality" is so rare and oftentimes overrated because some games and movies get "extra points" because they are perceived as being "original" when they aren't even that good or entertaining. Ghost of Tsushima doesn't reinvent the wheel... it doesn't have to. It does what it does VERY well though. Shit, The Last of Us 2 did absolutely nothing "Original" at all... It's still a masterpiece.

 

 

[Keyser_Soze]

3 hours ago, ManUtdRedDevils said:

 

Yeah I was going to bring up the other day how in Japan the biggest critique is that they think the characters are ugly but couldn't find the sauce.

[Phaseknox]

7 hours ago, Mercury33 said:

this “been there done that” nonsense this board is so in love with has got to end. When was the last truly original game you played? They all borrow from each other. Witcher 3 did basically nothing original and it’s arguably the best open world game of all time. 

The Witcher III is not arguably the best open world game of all time. I'm personally enjoying Ghost of Tsushima more myself, it has a better game world/combat and is just more fun to play in general IMO. The Witcher III is definitely a solid open world fantasy action RPG with a good story and cast of characters, but there are other open world games that I like more.

 

5 hours ago, Brick said:

Ugh I came across assholes on Twitter that were complaining because of at least four women in the game that are fighters. Do they not realize that there were indeed women samurai, and that the naginata was designed for women to protect the homestead?

And this is precisely why male main characters are still the most prominent in video games. I personally prefer female main characters in games, and almost always choose the female option when given the choice to do so. The female fighters in Ghost of Tsushima are some of the best characters in the game IMO, and I've seen others agree stating that if there's a sequel that they hope that it has a female lead.

 

2 hours ago, best3444 said:

On chapter 2. The game world is stunning as well as the combat. I shouldn't have said the game is a bit unpolished. Not sure where I was going with that, lol. It's a technical marvel with a solid story and gameplay.

 

I was being too hard on the game earlier. I'm on chapter 2 and really enjoying myself. 

I'm glad that you're enjoying the game more now, I personally think that it's one of the best of the generation.

[CastlevaniaNut18]

I’ve still got a long ways to go in the game, but I could conceivably see this one being in my top 10 for the generation. Top 20, anyway. 
 

 

But Witcher 3 still remains my number one and I don’t see anything coming close. 

[skillzdadirecta]

4 minutes ago, Phaseknox said:

The Witcher III is not arguably the best open world game of all time. I'm personally enjoying Ghost of Tsushima more myself, it has a better game world/combat and is just more fun to play in general IMO. The Witcher III is definitely a solid open world fantasy action RPG with a good story and cast of characters, but there are other open world games that I like more.

Personal preferences aside, I think what @Mercury33 was saying is that the Witcher 3 is REGARDED as one of the best open world games of all time, if not THE best. Some would say Breath of the Wild is but in most conversations it would be these two games. I'm loving Ghost of Tsushima as well and it's high up on my list of open world games but it hasn't quite reached Witchr 3 quality for me just yet. I'm about halfway through the game though.

 

But yeah, The Witcher 3 is WIDELY regarded as one of the best open world games (and games period) of all time, that's not in dispute.

[Phaseknox]

6 minutes ago, CastlevaniaNut18 said:

Witcher 3 still remains my number one and I don’t see anything coming close. 

3 minutes ago, skillzdadirecta said:

I think what @Mercury33 was saying is that the Witcher 3 is REGARDED as one of the best open world games of all time, if not THE best. Some would say Breath of the Wild is but in most conversations it would be these two games. I'm loving Ghost of Tsushima as well and it's high up on my list of open world games but it hasn't quite reached Witchr 3 quality for me just yet. I'm about halfway through the game though.

 

But yeah, The Witcher 3 is WIDELY regarded as one of the best open world games (and games period) of all time, that's not in dispute.

RPGs are one of my favorite genres, but The Witcher III didn't appeal to me nearly as much as I was expecting it to based on its universal accolades and praise. Outside of its story and characters I found it to be a somewhat standard open world fantasy action RPG. While I don't deny that it's a great game, the pure fun factor just wasn't really there for me for some reason. But despite it not appealing to me as much as it does with the majority, I fully acknowledge its overall quality and understand why it's deemed one of the best open world games ever made. I just don't agree that it's arguably the best open world game of all time, that's all.

[CastlevaniaNut18]

I mean, there's always gonna be some outliers.

[johnny]

The Witcher 3 is the 🐐 

[Mercury33]

18 minutes ago, Phaseknox said:

RPGs are one of my favorite genres, but The Witcher III didn't appeal to me nearly as much as I was expecting it to based on its universal accolades and praise. Outside of its story and characters I found it to be a somewhat standard open world fantasy action RPG. While I don't deny that it's a great game, the pure fun factor just wasn't really there for me for some reason. But despite it not appealing to me as much as it does with the majority, I fully acknowledge its overall quality and understand why it's deemed one of the best open world games ever made. I just don't agree that it's arguably the best open world game of all time, that's all.

Sooo I’m confused. Do you just not know what the word arguably means?

[Keyser_Soze]

In order for Phase to praise Witcher 3 it would have had to get 6 average review scores and Geralt would have to have been a sexy waifu.