[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/international\/ghost-of-tsushima-ps4s-swan-song-that-hits-all-the-right-notes\/#NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/international\/ghost-of-tsushima-ps4s-swan-song-that-hits-all-the-right-notes\/","headline":"Ghost of Tsushima: PS4\u2019s Swan Song That Hits All The Right Notes","name":"Ghost of Tsushima: PS4\u2019s Swan Song That Hits All The Right Notes","description":"Release date: 17 July 2020 Platform: PS4 Developer: Sucker Punch Publisher: Sony Interactive The good: Beautiful visuals, soundtrack, and story telling Kickass duels to keep you on your toes Petting foxes The bad: A bleak beginning to its last act   Assassin\u2019s Creed. But make it Japanese. A lesson in history, with rivetingly beautiful geography, […]","datePublished":"2020-08-04","dateModified":"2020-11-30","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/amos-chen\/#Person","name":"Amos Chen","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/author\/amos-chen\/","identifier":72,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c6c904695837c1318b62b8cbb0bbda0fb3020bfd5282927c18ace4244602381?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8c6c904695837c1318b62b8cbb0bbda0fb3020bfd5282927c18ace4244602381?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"TheHomeGround Asia","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/photo_2021-07-22-222533.jpeg","width":640,"height":640}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1597825851042_ghost_of_tsushima.png","url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/wp-content\/uploads\/1597825851042_ghost_of_tsushima.png","height":608,"width":1080},"url":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/international\/ghost-of-tsushima-ps4s-swan-song-that-hits-all-the-right-notes\/","about":["Esports","International"],"wordCount":698,"articleBody":"Release date: 17 July 2020Platform: PS4Developer: Sucker PunchPublisher: Sony InteractiveThe good:Beautiful visuals, soundtrack, and story tellingKickass duels to keep you on your toesPetting foxesThe bad:A bleak beginning to its last act Assassin\u2019s Creed. But make it Japanese. A lesson in history, with rivetingly beautiful geography, Ghost of Tsushima is a feast for the eyes that captures the heart of samurai fantasy. One that immerses you in an authentic, beautiful, and satisfying journey on the island of Tsushima, during the 13th Century Mongol invasion of Japan. What starts off with one catastrophic battle will leave you wanting more with its multiple endings.Beautiful storyline. Colourful characters.Though slow to start, the plot catches on fairly quickly as Jin, the survivor of the Mongol invasion attempts to rescue his uncle, Lord Shimura from captivity. As the story develops, so do the tales of the characters around Jin. From the secretive and anger-filled matriarch of clan Adachi, Lady Masako, to Taka, the warrior monk Norio who is swallowed by grief, you\u2019ll find yourself engrossed in these characters, just as you\u2019ll get thoroughly lost in this staggeringly beautiful world. Packed with action and filled with quests, including side quests to earn you weapons and armours, and Mythic quests to learn special combat techniques \u2014 that\u2019s how you\u2019ll find yourself falling deeper and deeper into this samurai epic.Fights that punch above their weightFrom blades and bows, to bombs, the real satisfaction from all the action comes from your parries and powers. Just as you\u2019ll feel the increasing adrenaline, every dodge, strike, and parry increases Resolve, which can be used to complete special attacks and heal. It\u2019s about stances as much as it\u2019s about swordplay in the Ghost of Tsushima. To succeed, you just need two things \u2014 mastering the four combat stances, and the art of timing. Because how you strike is just as important as when you strike. It\u2019s nuanced. It\u2019s calculated. And by the end, it should flow and feel right. It\u2019s brutal, yet beautiful. Gory, yet graceful. Each combat is a delicate dance. And every strike \u2014 the perfect screenshot.Beauty lies in the eyes of the PS4 controller holderJust as its intense fight scenes will leave you breathless, the beauty of Tsushima is equally breathtaking. If not, more. Taking cues from Mother Nature, you\u2019ll be led to waypoints by the wind, find bamboo strikes and hot springs with directions from golden birds, as well as foxes bringing you to Inari shrines. You can change the weather by playing your flute, and even learn new melodies from singing crickets. From pampas grass and bamboo forests, to lakes and mountains, it\u2019s lush with foliage and teeming with colours. You\u2019ll feel like you\u2019re in a painting, or better still, an ASMR video.And despite the vivid and vibrant colours that surround you, you\u2019ll still be able to find spaces of solitude. Places that will allow you to compose haikus, shrines that sit atop mountains, as well as hot springs to bare your soul (and butt!).You\u2019ll also occasionally stumble upon empty buildings, camps, and villages in comparison to the lush environment, which feel like missed opportunities where more could have been done to enrich and enhance gameplay. Not to mention the final act, a bleak and stark contrast to the onslaught of colours in the first two acts, that will throw you off slightly and don\u2019t quite match up to expectations.That said, not only is Ghost of Tsushima a visual treat, it’s also a work of art that\u2019s well thought, just as it\u2019s well made.The verdictStunning geography and rich in history, Ghost of Tsushima is a work of art. From the massive open world of Tsushima, right to the small details like the ink brush artwork that appears in cut scenes, as well as the Kurosawa Mode \u2014 a detailed black and white filter inspired by the samurai films of Akira Kurosawa \u2014 as much as it is flawed, the Ghost of Tsushima is a fitting swan song for the PS4.4.5\/5 stars"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"International","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/international\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Ghost of Tsushima: PS4\u2019s Swan Song That Hits All The Right Notes","item":"https:\/\/thehomeground.asia\/international\/ghost-of-tsushima-ps4s-swan-song-that-hits-all-the-right-notes\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]