During Paris Games
Week, Sony announced a new IP from developers Sucker Punch, the game
studio behind the inFamous, and
Sly Cooper games. The
game in question is called Ghosts of Tsushima,
and I thought I would attempt a little light analysis of it.
To
start with, let's take a look at what Sony stated about the project.
Quoting from Polygon:
“The
year is 1274. Samurai warriors are the legendary defenders of Japan —
until the fearsome Mongol Empire invades the island of Tsushima,
wreaking havoc and conquering the local population. As one of the
last surviving samurai, you rise from the ashes to fight back. But,
honorable tactics won’t lead you to victory. You must move beyond
your samurai traditions to forge a new way of fighting — the way of
the Ghost — as you wage an unconventional war for the freedom of
Japan.”
 |
| Copyright © Sony Computer Entertainment |
So,
the first thing to note it the most obvious, this looks to be a
Samurai, action game, but one from a western developer, when most
such games come from Japanese developers. Judging from the trailer,
it also seems to be taking a much grittier approach to the idea, so
there'll likely be no flashy super moves, or brightly coloured
attacks, in contrast with Sucker Punch's earlier games; although I
suspect our protagonist will still have a little stylish flair in his
fighting style.
That's
not to say that the game is ugly, and full of various shades of
brown. Some of the scenery shown so far looks breath-taking, and
likely will motivate the player, by making them want to save these
beautiful vistas.
The
second thing to note is that the game is based on true events, at
least, in the same way that Hollywood movies are often “based on a
true story”. The invasion of the island of Tsushima is a Japanese
territory, that actual suffered from Mongolian invasions between 1274
and 1281. However, we'll likely be playing as fictional character,
and one who will probably play an unreasonably large role in
repelling the invasion.
 |
| Copyright © Sony Computer Entertainment |
The
Mongol invasion obviously forced some changes in the Samurai culture
of the time. For example, the Samurai clans had very heavy rivals,
and fought amongst each other; but were forced to put these aside,
and cooperate for the future of their country. The Mongols also
introduced gunpowder-based weapons to medieval Japan. It will be
interesting to see how these large changes are incorporated into the
story.
So there is already a general template of how we can expect the conflict to proceed, unless Sucker Punch creates an alternate universe. Although, Ubisoft does manage to put interesting twists on established history in the Assassin's Creed series, without having to fully deviate from the real-life timeline; perhaps Sucker Punch will be able to do the same.
So there is already a general template of how we can expect the conflict to proceed, unless Sucker Punch creates an alternate universe. Although, Ubisoft does manage to put interesting twists on established history in the Assassin's Creed series, without having to fully deviate from the real-life timeline; perhaps Sucker Punch will be able to do the same.
Interestingly, the game is based significantly earlier than is usual for a game about Samurai. Most Samurai fiction is usually based around the time Nobunaga attempted to unify Japan in the sixteenth century, such as Capcom's Onimusha series. Although, it remains to be seen whether Sucker Punch will use the actual weapons and armour of the period, or go with the more recognisable styles from later on in history.
The most interesting thing though, is this: "honourable tactics won't lead you to victory," and using the phrase "the way of the ghost". It may be that the game will see out Samurai protagonist transition into a ninja over the course of the story. Although, given the game's seemingly gritty trappings, I expect that it will be a much more realistic take on ninja, as you wage a guerrilla war against the occupying invaders. Well, as realistic as it gets when you're playing as a one man army, and cutting a bloody swath through the bad guys. Then again, maybe it will go the route of the Metal Gear series, and drawing too much attention will be a Bad Idea.
So
overall I think that it shows a good deal of promise, even with just
this early information, and is something to keep an eye on.
Until
next time,
PhoenixAct.
No comments:
Post a Comment