I’ve spent the last 27 hours playing through Ghost of Yotei’s main story, side quests, and most of its hidden open-world content to put together this Ghost of Yotei IGN review, and I came away with far more mixed feelings than I expected going in. As a huge fan of the original Ghost of Tsushima, I went into the Hokkaido-set sequel expecting more of the slick swordplay, beautiful landscapes, and heartfelt storytelling that made the first game a modern classic. But Yotei changes a lot of the core formula that worked so well before, for better and for worse. This review breaks down every key part of the game, no spoilers included, so you can decide if it’s worth picking up for your collection.
Core Takeaways From This Ghost of Yotei IGN Review
Before diving into the deep breakdown, here are the high-level pros and cons I noticed during my playthrough that will matter most to casual and hardcore players alike:
- Pros: Refined, fluid combat system with new stance switching and weapon customization options that make every fight feel unique
- Pros: Stunningly rendered Hokkaido open world with dynamic weather and seasonal changes that make exploration feel rewarding
- Cons: Pacing issues in the middle third of the main story that drag on without meaningful character development
- Cons: Repetitive side quest design that relies too heavily on fetch tasks and generic enemy encounters
Combat and Gameplay Changes From the Original Ghost of Tsushima
As I noted earlier, the combat is the game’s strongest point, building on the already excellent foundation from Tsushima in almost every way. You still get the four core stances for fighting different enemy types, but you can now unlock hybrid stances that let you mix moves from multiple styles to take on mixed groups faster. I found myself using the new snow stance, which blends heavy and fast attacks to knock enemies off slippery ice surfaces, more than any other option by the end of the game.
Weapon customization is another huge improvement that lets you tweak your katana, tanto, and new bow types with unique perks that fit your playstyle. If you prefer a stealthy approach, you can add perks that make your silent kills grant extra resolve, or if you like charging into fights head-on, you can add damage resistance perks that activate when you’re outnumbered. The only downside to the combat system is that the new enemy types feel a bit too spongy on higher difficulty levels, which can make some boss fights drag on longer than they need to.
Exploration also got a big upgrade with the new dynamic weather system, which can change from clear sunny skies to blizzards in a matter of minutes. Blizzards don’t just look cool, they also affect gameplay: visibility drops sharply, ice patches make movement slippery, and some enemies will be less likely to spot you if you’re moving through heavy snow. I spent almost three hours just wandering the mountains around Mount Yotei during a blizzard early in my playthrough, and I found three hidden shrines and a rare side quest I never would have stumbled on in clear weather.
Story, Character, and Open-World Content Quality
The story of Yotei follows a new protagonist, a samurai named Kaito who’s sent to Hokkaido to investigate a series of mysterious disappearances tied to a rebel group fighting against the shogunate. The first third of the story is incredibly tight, with well-written character interactions and high-stakes twists that had me hooked from the first hour. Kaito is a far more flawed protagonist than Jin from the first game, and his arc of learning to balance his duty to the shogunate with his desire to protect the local Ainu communities is really well executed for the most part.
The biggest issue with the story is the middle third, which gets bogged down in repetitive fetch tasks that don’t move the main plot forward at all. I spent almost six hours running back and forth between villages delivering supplies and tracking down missing tools, and none of those sections added anything meaningful to Kaito’s arc or the overall conflict. The story picks back up in the final few chapters, with a truly shocking twist ending that feels earned, but the slow middle section will be a dealbreaker for players who prefer tight, focused storytelling.
Side content is a mixed bag as well. The main side quests tied to the local Ainu communities are incredibly well written, with heartfelt stories that explore the tension between traditional Ainu culture and the invading shogunate forces. But most of the generic side quests you pick up from random villagers are just fetch or kill tasks that feel like filler content. You can skip almost all of the generic side quests without missing any important lore or rewards, so I’d recommend sticking to the marked character side quests if you want to get the most out of your playtime.
Performance, Accessibility, and Overall Value for Money
I played Yotei on both the PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 5 Pro to test performance, and I was really impressed with how well the game runs on both systems. On the base PS5, you can choose between a quality mode that runs at 4K 30fps with ray tracing enabled, or a performance mode that runs at 1440p 60fps with ray tracing turned off. On the PS5 Pro, you get a third mode that runs at 4K 60fps with ray tracing enabled, which is the way to play if you have the upgraded console. I only noticed a handful of frame drops during large open-world battles with more than 10 enemies on screen, and there were no game-breaking bugs or crashes during my entire playthrough.
Accessibility options are more robust than almost any other first-party PlayStation game released in the last few years. You can adjust difficulty sliders for combat, stealth, and exploration separately, turn on subtitles with adjustable size and color, and even enable a one-handed control scheme if you have mobility issues. The only accessibility feature missing is a difficulty setting for puzzle sections, but there are so few puzzles in the game that it’s barely a problem for most players.
As for value, the main story takes around 18-20 hours to beat if you only do critical path content, and 35-40 hours if you do all the side content and explore the entire open world. At full price, that’s a solid amount of content for most players, but if you’re on the fence, you might want to wait for a sale if you don’t think you’ll get through all the side content. If you loved the first Ghost of Tsushima, though, you’ll almost certainly get enough value out of Yotei to justify the full price tag.
At the end of the day, this Ghost of Yotei IGN review lands at a solid 8/10, with the game’s excellent combat, beautiful open world, and strong first and third acts holding it back from a higher score thanks to its slow middle story section and repetitive generic side content. It’s not a perfect sequel, but it’s a worthy follow-up to Ghost of Tsushima that expands on the original’s best parts while adding enough new ideas to feel fresh. If you’re a fan of samurai games, open-world exploration, or heartfelt character-driven stories, it’s well worth adding to your library.