Ghost of Tsushima is an Honor to Play [Busy Gamer Review].

Every once in a while, a game comes along that must be given your time and attention. It has been an honor to give my time to Ghost of Tsushima. Let’s find out why in our Busy Gamer Review of Ghost of Tsushima. Welcome back to No Time Gamer. The channel helping your gaming sessions be time well spent.

There is little reason for suspense. Ghost of Tsushima is well worth your time. You take up the sword as Jin Sukai, a Samurai warrior trying to reclaim his home island of Tsushima from the invading Mongol army. After a significant loss during the invasion and the capture of his mentor and uncle, Jin must do whatever is necessary to save both his uncle and his home.

To do this, Jin will risk his honor by becoming a legendary spirit of vengeance. You chose the balance between the honorable samurai way and the assassin-like methods of the ghost. This choice is not a morality system that forces you down one path or the other, even if the game makes you feel guilty the more you sacrifice Jin’s honor.

No matter what balance of Ghost and Samurai you chose, you’re in for a treat. Combat in Ghost of Tsushima is an absolute blast. While the sneaking combat of the ghost is great, I need to discuss the more unique combat of the samurai first. One of the coolest features the game has is the standoffs.

When approaching an enemy group, Jin calls out to his foes and faces them head on, prompting a dramatic scene where Jin, waits for his opponent to strike, and attempts to strike first. Its tense, immersive, and make you feel like a badass. Just don’t screw up or Jin will be gravely injured.

And Jin’s vulnerability is what make combat so engrossing, Jin and his sword are powerful, but so are his foes. It only takes a few strikes before Jin is cut down. This makes every clash tense. It makes every move critical. It means that combat is based on skill and not reliant on a series of growing stats.

This doesn’t mean upgrades are useless. Jin develops skills, improves his armor and weapons, and earns tools over the course of the game that make him deadlier against his foes. One of the better systems that gets upgraded is the stance system. Enemies come in 4 main types, beside archers, and each stance gives Jin an advantage against each type of enemy.

You’ll be switching from one stance to another as hordes of enemies challenge you with shear numbers. But any fight can be overcome with skill and patience making this a great combat system. And this extended to the way of the ghost. As the titular ghost, Jin deals death to his enemies from the shadows and strikes fear into the Mongols.

You get tools such a Kunai, sticky bombs, black powder bombs, and more to keep the enemy off balance and fearing the ghost. A great unlock, is the ability to chain assassinate enemies. You’ll also get a grappling hook that will help you get around encampments even quicker and remain undetected.

Hours in, it’s still a blast to clear a base using the tools of the Ghost. The final combat feature I must discuss is the boss fights. These fights show up periodically and are dramatic and awesome. They start off with a drawn-out stare down between Jin and his foe.

Once the combat starts, patience and timing are the keys to winning these epic samurai battles. I failed at most of them the first time, but victory is satisfying once achieved. The rest of the game is just as worthy of your time as the main story and combat.

Side missions have worthy rewards and are tales crafted with more care then just a series of fetch quests. They have personality to them and enforce the ways of honor and justice expected of the samurai. While not having the same level of depth as the main story, the side missions always felt worthwhile.

This continues to the other morsel hidden around the island of Tsushima. Foxes help you find shrines, yellow birds help you find many hidden items, and hot spring restore and increase your health. And each of these elements is imbued with care and a sense of spirituality to them that most games would never bother with.

There are even more secrets and tasks around the island, but not one thing feels out of place and they all serve a purpose. Finally, this is perhaps the most beautiful of game this generation of consoles. We don’t usually get too hung up on how a game looks, but Ghost of Tsushima is a rare exception.

While other games may have more fidelity, the color pallet, the arts style, and the shear number of particles on the screen make for a game that requires for your attention. It’s truly a breathtaking game and you can capture it all with one of the best photos modes in gaming.

Ghost of Tsushima is one of my favorite games I’ve played this generation. Its setting, story, combat, beauty, spirituality and attention to detail have made for a truly immersive game that keeps me coming back for more and staying way longer then I had time for.