If you’re scrolling through PlayStation game forums right now, you’ve probably seen the same question pop up dozens of times: should i play ghost of tsushima before yotei? As someone who’s platinumed Ghost of Tsushima twice, played through the Iki Island DLC three times, and spent 20 hours with the Yotei preview build last month, I’m in a good spot to break down exactly what you’re getting into with either play order. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer, but your choice will drastically change how much you get out of both games. I’ll cover all the key factors, from story connections to gameplay learning curves, so you can pick the order that fits your schedule and playstyle best.
Should I Play Ghost of Tsushima Before Yotei? Core Story Connections First
Let’s start with the biggest factor for most players: story. Yotei picks up roughly six years after the end of the base Ghost of Tsushima story, following Jin Sakai as he leaves Tsushima Island and travels north to the frozen island of Hokkaido, then called Ezo. Core narrative clues directly pick up where the original game’s secret ending left off, so if you don’t know how Jin’s conflict with his uncle, the Mongol invasion, and his choice to become the “Ghost” ended, you’ll miss 90% of the emotional weight in Yotei’s opening hours.
Even small throwaway lines and side character cameos tie back to the original game. For example, there’s a side quest in Yotei’s first area that references a farmer Jin helped back in Tsushima’s northern region, and the game never pauses to explain who that character is for new players. Jin’s entire motivation for traveling to Yotei and his core personality traits are directly built on the events of Tsushima, so you won’t understand why he makes certain choices if you skip the first game.
Gameplay Differences You’ll Notice If You Skip Tsushima First
Even if you don’t care about story, the gameplay experience will feel different depending on which game you play first. Ghost of Tsushima laid the foundation for every core mechanic you’ll use in Yotei, from the four stances for fighting different enemy types to the slow-mo archery and stealth takedown system. The stance system’s base logic is entirely pulled from Tsushima, so if you learn it in the first game, you’ll be able to jump straight into Yotei’s new advanced stances and combo moves without fumbling through the basics.
Yotei adds a lot of new mechanics on top of that base, including snowboarding, eagle scouting, and new ice-based combat abilities. If you play Yotei first, you’ll still get a full tutorial for all of these systems, but you won’t have context for how much the gameplay has improved. For example, I let a friend who never played Tsushima test the Yotei preview, and he had no idea that the new parry window adjustment was a huge quality of life upgrade, while it was the first thing I noticed when I started playing. Stealth mechanics’ core rules were fully established in the original game, so players who know those rules will be able to tackle Yotei’s harder stealth side content much faster. That’s one of the biggest perks of choosing to play Ghost of Tsushima before Yotei – you’ll catch all the small improvements that make Yotei feel like a polished, evolved version of the first game’s already great mechanics.
Scenarios Where You Can Skip Tsushima and Play Yotei First
That said, playing Tsushima first isn’t a hard requirement for enjoying Yotei. There are plenty of cases where jumping straight into the new game makes more sense for your situation. I’ve compiled the most common scenarios where skipping the first game won’t ruin your experience:
- You only care about open-world action gameplay and have zero interest in story continuity, Easter eggs, or character backstory
- You only have 10-15 hours of free gaming time right now, and don’t have extra space for the 30-40 hour playtime of the base Tsushima game plus DLC
- You’ve already watched a full, well-edited Ghost of Tsushima story recap that covers the base game ending and Iki Island plot points
Yotei’s dev team knew a lot of players would jump into the series for the first time with the new game, so they added plenty of small quality of life touches for new players. Yotei’s opening includes a 2-minute official story recap that covers all core plot beats from the first game, so you’ll have enough context to follow the main story even if you never touch Tsushima. You won’t get the full emotional impact, but you won’t be completely lost either.
Our Final Recommendation for Your Play Order
So what’s the best call for most players? If you have the time, absolutely play Ghost of Tsushima first, and make sure you play the Iki Island DLC while you’re at it. The Iki Island DLC plot directly sets up the core conflict of Yotei, and introduces a character that plays a major role in the new game’s main story. It only adds 5-6 hours of playtime, and it’s easily one of the best DLC releases of the last five years, so it’s well worth your time.
If you don’t have 40 hours to spare right now, don’t stress. You can still play Yotei first, and go back to play Tsushima later if you end up loving the world and characters. A lot of my friends did that with the God of War 2018 and Ragnarok series, and they still enjoyed both games, even if they got the story in reverse order. Just make sure you watch that opening recap carefully, and don’t feel bad if you don’t recognize every side character that pops up.
At the end of the day, whether you should play Ghost of Tsushima before Yotei comes down to how much you value story context and how much time you have to play. If you want the full, uncompromised experience that the devs intended, play the first game and its DLC first. If you just want to have fun with a gorgeous new open-world game right now, jump straight into Yotei. Either way, you’re in for a great time with one of the best action game series out right now.