Ghost of Tsushima was a phenomenal swan song for the PS4, delivering an immaculate open-world experience that replicates the engaging elements of games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I loved it, and it did pretty damn well to warrant a sequel.

In a special State of Play held for the upcoming samurai title, Sucker Punch showed off 20 minutes of what the sequel holds. My biggest takeaway is a rather unsurprising one: it looks very identical to Ghost of Tsushima…

But I’m not complaining, the first game ruled.

One of the first thoughts that came to mind was how similar to Netflix’s Blue-Eye Samurai due to Atsu’s goal of demolishing the Yōtei Six. She’s not a samurai; she’s someone with a thirst for vengeance after the previously mentioned group murders her family.

There are plenty of cool systems in place like the bounty system and a card system that rewards exploration clues. Hell, you get and recruit allies dubbed the “Wolf Pack” who will aid you in combat or teach you a thing or two.

Whether it be the world as Atsu rides through the various locales on horseback or the visceral combat as she swaps weapons on the fly to murder her foes, Ghost of Yōtei looks stunning.

Art, if you will.

My only concern lies within the game’s nonlinear approach to its narrative. The recent Assassin’s Creed titles have adopted this approach, but it felt like a huge misstep since the stories felt so unimportant. I would like to hear more about how Ghost of Yōtei looks to avoid those missteps, but with the October release rapidly approaching, who knows if that’s in the cards.

If we’re being honest, I feel like Sucker Punch didn’t show too much that we didn’t already know we’d get from Ghost of Yōtei. It looks like a careful improvement of the rock-solid formula, much like God of War Ragnarök was to 2018’s entry.

Again, it’s not a bad thing whatsoever, Ghost of Tsushima rocked.

Ghost of Yōtei drops October 2, 2025, alongside a slick looking PS5 bundle.