PROS
e- Graphics/Visuals/Environments. While this game doesn't have the best looking graphics on the PS4 it most certainly has the most visually pleasing I've seen on the PS4. There are multiple different environments spread across the 3 part map that all have their own unique look. There are places filled with multi-colored trees with the winds blowing the leaves across the environment. All the leaves have their own physics with their own shadows and don't just vanish, they can land on the ground or even in the water. It's quite impressive. There are places that look like your average forest filled with bright green trees and bushes & there are places filled with snow and ice capped hills. The visuals & environments will leave you in awe and have you constantly pressing right on the D-pad to bring up the photo mode for a sweet screen shot.
- Photo mode. This game has one of the most indepth photo modes I've seen in a game. It allows you to have an animated environment so you can create an array of visually stunning gifs. It's also filled with all different kinds of settings such as color grading, field of view, depth of field, weather change, time of day change, wind speed, a range of particles to choose from and more. I've probably seen more GoT photo mode screen shots on Twitter than I have from any other game released over the years with a photo mode. That's because it's that good.
- Gameplay/combat. The combat is super satisfying. It truly makes you feel like a bad ass Samurai. One of the most hyped up combat features is 'The Standoff' which allows you to challenge a group of enemies to fight & when this happens you have to hold down triangle & release just before an enemy attacks for a slow motion cinematic kill. Once upgraded you can do up to 3 enemies at once and with a certain type of armor you can do up to 5 enemies at once. There are also 4 different stances you can switch between during combat, all of which have their own benefits. Wind stance is good for taking on enemies with spears, Stone stance is for enemies with swords, Moon stance is for the bigger brute enemies and Water stance is for the enemies with shields. If you're surrounded by a variety of different enemies it can get a bit overwhelming trying to switch between the stances needed for each enemy type while also trying to block and parry but after a few hours of playing, you'll get the hang of it and really start to enjoy it. On top of the stances, you have other weapons in your arsenal to help make easy work of your enemies such as Kunai which are throwable knives, sticky bombs which stick to enemies & do sizeable amounts of damage, smoke bombs which allow you to feel like Batman cause you can toss one down if you're feeling overwhelmed and it will give you a short opportunity to run away and get to high ground or you can do a sweet 2 or 3 enemy takedown by pressing triangle and thin the herd. On top of the weapons used for Samurai fighting, you can also be the Ghost which means you will be taking down enemies stealthly. You can do sneak kills from behind, aerial takedowns from above, use a bow & arrow for long ranged takedowns or use a dart gun and poison your foes. The variety in combat is fantastic & if you mix it up throughout your whole playthrough I really don't see it ever getting repetitive.
- Main story/Side Quests. The main story isn't revolutionary or super creative but it is still pretty great. You start off the game losing a battle against the Mongols who have taken your uncle hostage and killed a lot of your people. The Mongols have no honor and kill in the most brutal ways, so as an honorable Samurai named Jin, you must make the dishonorable decision to kill the Mongols in the ways of the Ghost in order to liberate the island and save your people. I'm not going to spoil anymore but just know it's good and it has it's hell yeah & wtf? moments. There are also branching side quests that you take on for various allies that expand the further you advance in the main story.
- Customization. The customization in this game is wonderful. Normally you only get deep customization options in RPGs which Ghost is not but there are so many ways to make your Jin feel unique compared to another players. Throughout the game you either find or unlock new head gear, masks and outfits along with new skins for your Katana. You can mix and match the different clothing options to make your Jin look however you want him to. You also get technique points that you can use to level up Jin & unlock new moves & tactics.
- Photo mode. This game has one of the most indepth photo modes I've seen in a game. It allows you to have an animated environment so you can create an array of visually stunning gifs. It's also filled with all different kinds of settings such as color grading, field of view, depth of field, weather change, time of day change, wind speed, a range of particles to choose from and more. I've probably seen more GoT photo mode screen shots on Twitter than I have from any other game released over the years with a photo mode. That's because it's that good.
- Gameplay/combat. The combat is super satisfying. It truly makes you feel like a bad ass Samurai. One of the most hyped up combat features is 'The Standoff' which allows you to challenge a group of enemies to fight & when this happens you have to hold down triangle & release just before an enemy attacks for a slow motion cinematic kill. Once upgraded you can do up to 3 enemies at once and with a certain type of armor you can do up to 5 enemies at once. There are also 4 different stances you can switch between during combat, all of which have their own benefits. Wind stance is good for taking on enemies with spears, Stone stance is for enemies with swords, Moon stance is for the bigger brute enemies and Water stance is for the enemies with shields. If you're surrounded by a variety of different enemies it can get a bit overwhelming trying to switch between the stances needed for each enemy type while also trying to block and parry but after a few hours of playing, you'll get the hang of it and really start to enjoy it. On top of the stances, you have other weapons in your arsenal to help make easy work of your enemies such as Kunai which are throwable knives, sticky bombs which stick to enemies & do sizeable amounts of damage, smoke bombs which allow you to feel like Batman cause you can toss one down if you're feeling overwhelmed and it will give you a short opportunity to run away and get to high ground or you can do a sweet 2 or 3 enemy takedown by pressing triangle and thin the herd. On top of the weapons used for Samurai fighting, you can also be the Ghost which means you will be taking down enemies stealthly. You can do sneak kills from behind, aerial takedowns from above, use a bow & arrow for long ranged takedowns or use a dart gun and poison your foes. The variety in combat is fantastic & if you mix it up throughout your whole playthrough I really don't see it ever getting repetitive.
- Main story/Side Quests. The main story isn't revolutionary or super creative but it is still pretty great. You start off the game losing a battle against the Mongols who have taken your uncle hostage and killed a lot of your people. The Mongols have no honor and kill in the most brutal ways, so as an honorable Samurai named Jin, you must make the dishonorable decision to kill the Mongols in the ways of the Ghost in order to liberate the island and save your people. I'm not going to spoil anymore but just know it's good and it has it's hell yeah & wtf? moments. There are also branching side quests that you take on for various allies that expand the further you advance in the main story.
- Customization. The customization in this game is wonderful. Normally you only get deep customization options in RPGs which Ghost is not but there are so many ways to make your Jin feel unique compared to another players. Throughout the game you either find or unlock new head gear, masks and outfits along with new skins for your Katana. You can mix and match the different clothing options to make your Jin look however you want him to. You also get technique points that you can use to level up Jin & unlock new moves & tactics.
CONS
- Side content. I feel like the side content is lacking in the game. Most of it consists of following a fox to a shrine, following a bird to a hot springs where you look at Jins hairless cheeks like 20 times, following a bird to do a Haiku or going through an Uncharted style climbing puzzle to the top of a hill to honor a shrine. The first few times you stumble across these, they're pretty cool but start to get repetitious & make you crave more variety.
- Lack of gore. In a game where your main weapon is a big, sharp sword, you'd think there would be a lot more gore than there is. Sadly, during combat with the main enemies you won't be dismembering any heads or body parts. You'll just be doing a lot of stabbing and slicing. Over the course of the game you will unlock 2 moves called 'Heavenly Strike' & 'Dance of Wrath' that can dismember a hand but that's it. No chopping enemies in half or decapitating them. You also unlock a move called 'Slaughter' that allows you to decapitate a camp leader but it's a sneak only move, so you can't do it mid combat. I really don't understand why they would add decapitations but make it where you can only do it to one enemy type. There are so many times I kill a regular enemy and they drop to their knees & I think it would have been cool to give me the option to press square to decapitate them. I've read around and seems like I'm not the only one disappointed in the lack of gore. It'd be cool if Suckerpunch would put out a Gore update in the future but I don't see that happening.
- Stand Offs Get Old Fast. The stand offs that happen in the game are amazing the first 20 times or so but after that you realize they're exactly the same every single time. There are no variations in animations & no dismemberment just the same exact sword slashes over and over again. It got to the point where I just stopped doing stand offs and went into regular combat in order to get some variety with the kills. Stand offs are a big feature in the game, so it's sad they didn't think to add multiple versions of it to keep it fresh throughout the 40+ hour experience.
- Lack of gore. In a game where your main weapon is a big, sharp sword, you'd think there would be a lot more gore than there is. Sadly, during combat with the main enemies you won't be dismembering any heads or body parts. You'll just be doing a lot of stabbing and slicing. Over the course of the game you will unlock 2 moves called 'Heavenly Strike' & 'Dance of Wrath' that can dismember a hand but that's it. No chopping enemies in half or decapitating them. You also unlock a move called 'Slaughter' that allows you to decapitate a camp leader but it's a sneak only move, so you can't do it mid combat. I really don't understand why they would add decapitations but make it where you can only do it to one enemy type. There are so many times I kill a regular enemy and they drop to their knees & I think it would have been cool to give me the option to press square to decapitate them. I've read around and seems like I'm not the only one disappointed in the lack of gore. It'd be cool if Suckerpunch would put out a Gore update in the future but I don't see that happening.
- Stand Offs Get Old Fast. The stand offs that happen in the game are amazing the first 20 times or so but after that you realize they're exactly the same every single time. There are no variations in animations & no dismemberment just the same exact sword slashes over and over again. It got to the point where I just stopped doing stand offs and went into regular combat in order to get some variety with the kills. Stand offs are a big feature in the game, so it's sad they didn't think to add multiple versions of it to keep it fresh throughout the 40+ hour experience.