This has to be studied. It seems gamers have a deeper attachment to the game protagonist than originally thought. I personally have never felt this way because games have had multiple protagonists for a while now, with a few examples being final fantasy, persona, Tales of series, Valkyria Chronicles, etc. I don’t want to just jump out and say those gamers are whiny idiots, but it is something that needs to be studied so we can have less devisive outcomes when these situations occur.
The only thing Ghost of Yotei needs to do is try to overcome the shortcomings of the first game. In the later half of Ghost of Tsushima, the game will start to feel very repetitive, leading to burnout. People like me who try to do all the side quests and activities end up not finishing the game or pausing for a period of time. I hope they bring in some new stuff and challenges in the second half to keep the experience fresh.