Ghost of Yotei’s Map Could Have a Hard Time Avoiding One Issue

By now, it’s fairly common knowledge that Ghost of Tsushima‘s open world is breathtaking to behold, even if it does fall short on the gameplay front. While Ghost of Tsushima‘s activities become repetitive after a while, its environments are nonetheless colorful and captivating, serving to break up the monotony of its open-world gameplay as players stop to simply take in the beauty that surrounds them. However, with Ghost of Tsushima now serving as a foundation for the franchise’s future, Sucker Punch’s focus shifts to Ghost of Yotei, set around Mount Yotei in Hokkaido, presenting the developer with the challenge of replicating, if not entirely surpassing, Tsushima‘s level of environmental variety.

The new setting in Ghost of Yotei presents both opportunities and challenges. Hokkaido’s natural beauty, shown off in its snow-covered forests and sprawling greenlands, provides a fresh visual backdrop for the sequel. Even so, to avoid monotony, Ghost of Yotei must ensure that its environments are as diverse and captivating as those witnessed in its predecessor. Incorporating varied biomes, dynamic weather systems, and perhaps even an annual cycle may be almost necessary to offer players an immersive world that they never grow tired of looking at.

Related

Ghost of Yotei’s Path to New Stances is Obvious, But That Doesn’t Mean It Won’t Be Fun

Even if the path to unlocking them feels predictable, Ghost of Yotei can still make mastering new stances enjoyable by looking to the past.

Ghost of Yotei’s Map Might Find Environmental Variety Challenging

Ghost of Tsushima’s Island Setting Allowed for More Diverse Environments

Thanks to Ghost of Tsushima‘s island setting, it came with the added benefit of having diverse environments. In general, larger islands are known for their ability to maintain diverse landscapes due to microclimates, which can occur with variations in elevation and proximity to water. Since Tsushima is an incredibly large island, it can host varied environments. When it comes to Ghost of Tsushima, the game, Sucker Punch then had the privilege of creating an open world that has plenty of different environments for players to explore.

Specifically, Tsushima Island in Ghost of Tsushima is split up into three distinct regions, which certainly helps with environmental diversity. However, it also consists of 40 different biomes for players to discover, including forests, swamps, and frozen mountainous areas, each with its own unique aesthetic and atmosphere. It’s apparent that Sucker Punch took creative liberties to ensure players rarely got bored with the sights Ghost of Tsushima has to offer, and that just so happens to be one of its biggest highlights.

Ghost of Yotei’s Setting Around Mount Yotei Could Monotonize Its Environments

Unlike Ghost of Tsushima, which takes place on an island with three distinct regions, Ghost of Yotei‘s Hokkaido setting, specifically around Mount Yotei, could result in some rather monotonous environmental design. Of course, this ultimately depends on how much of the area around or even on Mount Yotei Sucker Punch chooses to allow players to explore, as the larger the explorable radius is, the more potential there is for greater variety in the game’s landscapes. Its first trailer makes it seem as though players will mostly be traversing sprawling greenlands and dense forests, but anything is possible if Sucker Punch is liberal in its approach.

What Ghost of Yotei could do is incorporate a real-time annual cycle into the mix, which would presumably affect both the weather and the landscape. The leaves on the trees, for instance, might begin to change color as the seasons grow colder, just as they seemingly do in Ghost of Yotei‘s announcement trailer. However, it’s unclear whether the changing landscapes shown in the trailer are tied to the story or not. Ghost of Tsushima had seasons, but they didn’t change in real-time and were instead affected only by the player’s place in the story. Ghost of Yotei could improve upon this and feature diverse landscapes simultaneously by having an annual cycle that progresses in real-time.

If Ghost of Yotei hopes to meet the high expectations set by its predecessor, it needs to ensure it prioritizes environmental diversity. While Mount Yotei and its surrounding areas already serve as a stunning sight to behold, Ghost of Yotei still needs to dig deeper to provide players with an open world worthy of the Ghost name. Whether it incorporates features like a real-time annual cycle, dynamic weather, or simply adds plenty of different biomes as Tsushima did, Ghost of Yotei‘s open world needs to do whatever it can to keep itself from feeling monotonous.

Your changes have been saved

My List

My Favorite Games
My Played Games
My Games Wishlist

Ghost of Yōtei

Action

Adventure

Open-World

Systems

Released

2025-00-00

Publisher(s)

Sony Interactive Entertainment