Was Ghost of Tsushima Really a Masterpiece? - An in Depth Analysis of Sucker Punch's Magnum Opus

Ghost of Tsushima was/is a beloved game developed by Sucker Punch Productions. This story follows a character named Jin on his quest to understand if honor is something really worth fighting for. Ghost of Tsushima is an action adventure RPG set in feudal Japan. Dealing with the Mongol invasion of the island of Tsushima.
Please show some love, I chose to finish this video over doing University homework.
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Time Stamps:
0:00 Intro
0:50 Narrative Act I
36:40 Narrative Act II
48:46 Narrative Act III
55:50 Combat
59:35 World
1:04:02 Side Quests
1:08:24 Conclusion
#critique #ghostoftsushima #gamecommentary

[@giovanniciccone1323]

Almost done with my second play through And yeah it’s predictable but to me it doesn’t affect how great the game and the story is and it isn’t repetitive to me at all and the pacing is one of the best.

[@StreetSweeper5605]

I almost think this dude played a different game or just copied things other people have complained about. 😂

[@ErnestoAguila-mk5oi]

The game can only do so much. That is why it gives you so much to work with to also be creative in your play through.

[@closelaugh185]

Facts dude. I wonder who shat in the creators breakfast cuz he sounds like a brat complaining about absolutely everything with no real points being made

[@professorhelsing7305]

Your channels growing! Good work my dude

[@ImGardenGnome]

Thank you!

[@joshanjorin]

No way dude YOU’RE A LEGEND!! Not even 2 weeks since you dropped the absolute banger that was GOD OF WAR RAGNAROC and that was 4 hour’s long for you to immediately come back with another hour and 12 minutes is CRAZY big name youtubers take months to do that. Hope your channel grows expeditiously and you get the recognition you deserve. You got a faithful subscriber in me

[@LockhartTx]

I’ll look forward to you reaching 1 mil eventually and I’ll know I subbed before 3K. Criminally undersubbed. Great work.

[@darkcloud2442]

I have to disagree with you on the over arching story, but I agree that the game loop made me a little bored. I grew up with a father that I was not really close to, but alway wanted to make him proud. But when it was time for me to be my own man, I did make him disappointed. My life wasn’t his life, I had to make choices that he never had to make. I saw life differently then he did, he would always talk about doing things the way the right way. I’m not a dirt ball, but I had to live a different life from him. We grew up in to different worlds, and it hit to close.😊

[@protruth1449]

I wholeheartedly disagree on the story and plot. I think it’s emotionally rewarding and compelling. Jin sacrificing everything about who he is to become the “ghost” and save the island is very predictable, that doesn’t make it bad. Lord shiners is a samurai, and a daimyo at that (highest rank under shogun). Samurai adhere to the bushido, honor is all they know, calling him “one note” isn’t untrue but that IS his character. The by the book samurai, the whole story is how Jin goes from samurai to ghost I think you’re missing that main point. Also maybe try the Japanese subbed version? The voice acting is way better instead of Japanese people speaking English with Japanese accents. That just personally cringes me out. Plus they’re all the Japanese voice actors from one piece, Jin is voice by Zoro it’s sick.

[@oikiyaa3762]

Its geinually insane how you have such a low subscriber count with the high level of quality ur putting out I came from your tlou video and im astounded it only got 37k views ive been watching a couple of ur "was it really a masterpiece" series and im honestly impressed honestly youve got urself a sub cant wait to see more 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@closelaugh185]

I believe he has a low sub count because all he does is complain and bitch like an angry feminist

[@talib1822]

glad to say, i’m here before your channel blows up

[@jamescarr8196]

I love these videos so much! I would love to see a critique of TLOU2 next

[@ImGardenGnome]

I will cover it a couple videos from now! Gotta couple more games to do first :)

[@jamescarr8196]

@@ImGardenGnome such as? :)

[@monsieurchaunceman1679]

About you’re critique of the repetition of the gameplay loop I think you would benefit from trying some of the side content as it is a good space between base clearing.

[@Nixus237]

I love the fit this game it was one of my favorite game stories in recent memory

[@jc._.goated]

1. The Khan wanted to use Jin for so everyone would obey the Khan and Mongols and for Jin to serve under him. You might ask why would the Khan try this when it didn’t work for Lord Shimura that’s because Jin is more like to break his code and rebel 2. Yuna found Jin and killed the Mongols that were attacking and then ran away from the mongols while taking away Jin (but I do agree Jin’s plot armor in this game can get silly this man is always in a near death situation lol) 3. Like I said in number one he was trying to convince Lord Shimura to make the people obey the Khan it would be much easier for him instead of taking more time to try to rule over 4. What would they have done with the poison? They needed a large army to attack the main land and without the Khan they would be missing their leader and also like in the beginning of the game the Samurai already knew the mongols were coming so if the mainland saw mongols coming to them they would be ready (that’s only if they don’t know that Tsushima is under war but I don’t think they know :p) Those are you answers and while I do agree with you that the story has problems like for example Jin being the ghost was under developed but I still consider it peak story telling. The ending is so good and probably my favorite of any game (kill>>>>>spare)

[@ImGardenGnome]

Though you do make good points, the Khan would have made it so much easier on himself if he would have taken out Shimura and Jim. Not to mention, after some time in the game, it should have been clear to the Kahn that both of them are not willing to turn on their own people. Therefore, the points you made are kind of redundant. I am happy that you love the game and I don’t wanna take that away from you, but this game runs on coincidences 80% of the time.

[@ImGardenGnome]

Jin**

[@jc._.goated]

I would call the game a masterpiece. It fills out everything I want in a game and the game is so polished. Everything it does is basic but it plays out so good. I’m hyped for a sequel I hope they add parkcore and more depth in combat

[@ImGardenGnome]

@@jc._.goated everything is very polished for sure. Minimal bugs and the combat is so dang crisp.

[@jc._.goated]

@@ImGardenGnome he learns that Jin and Shimura won’t be convinced at the end of act 2. He also left Ryuzo behind to kill Jin while he is getting to leave Tsushima readying the poison and what he learned to attack the mainland

[@chrisharris5497]

Personally I can’t believe TLOU2 beat GOT to game of the year. I was disappointed with TLOU2 myself, I’ve repeatedly loaded it up and I just can’t be bothered to finish it, I was hugely disappointing with it. I guess it’s always harder for a sequel to outshine the original, again Forbidden West isn’t a patch on the first HZD but tbf it was always going to be difficult to outdo the first Horizon storyline, but yeah I thought this game was incredible as well as visually stunning. I’d love to watch one of your videos focusing on HZD. Keep up the great work bud, really enjoying the videos. As for Ghost of Tsushima, I guess you didn’t enjoy it 😂😂😂

[@ImGardenGnome]

Thanks man! And it wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy it…cause I did! It’s just not a masterpiece imo

[@chrisharris5497]

@@ImGardenGnome That’s a fair comment bud, we’re all different, we all look for different things out of games and films etc, be boring if everyone was the same.

[@SayMy_User_Name]

the gameplay is phenomenal, parkour, combat, stealth, horse combat, many different weapons and devices u can use to take out enemies.. rhe open world activities r mostly lackluster and very repetitive, but everything else is wonderful.. some of the best and most in depth combat gameplay I’ve seen in recent years.. rhe story is not the best, but it’s good enough .. I’ll take a decent story with great gameplay over a really great story with weak or a lack of gameplay every time

[@lordjm7265]

Great review brother keep up the content I'm definitely subscribing! I think you missed a trick not playing the game with the Japanese dub. English dubs tend to lack the emotion and seems to be robotic like Yuna

[@abbigail030398]

Regarding Yuna’s speech, I don’t think it was her trying to make this passionate thoughtful moment - I feel like she did this to invoke fear / motivation in the people and hoping the legend spreads so everyone can fight back

[@ItzM1ST]

;0; THIS IS A GREAT GAME I FORGOT ABOUT!! tbf it was also a game i got half into and also stopped playing. I Absolutely Love The Games You Do Content On!

[@dupedick]

Do I think this game has a story as good as something like the Last of Us? Not quite. I still think the story is good but not as great as some others. In broad strokes I like the story and characters, I think if you get this close to a lot of game characters there will be some different things that don't make sense or you would have done differently. I would not categorize really any of the characters as ass. To be completely honest the Yuriko questline had me in tears. The ending had me quite emotional as well. The reason I love this game is the structure. Everything has a reason for you to do it. Most collectibles in other games are just collect them if you want I guess. In this though there are actual reasons. In TLOU why would I collect the firefly pendants? Well they give you a trophy I guess. Why would I collect the sashimono banners in GoT? Oh they give you a reward for collecting them and a little story from the banner collector, neat. The records and artifacts are still your typical video game text collectibles but there aren't too many. Why should I do bamboo strikes? Resolve gain. Why should I do hot springs? Health gain and story. Why should I do side tales? Crafting mats, a new charm for each tale, and decent side stories. This is the best example of a game where I DID NOT feel like I was checking boxes. As someone who completes most of my games, I wanted to do everything here and not for some dumb reason like a trophy or getting my money's worth. A good example of me doing this was Uncharted Drakes Fortune. Why did I collect all the treasures? Trophy and unlocking extras. Why did I play on Crushing? Trophy and extras. Why did I feel I needed to do all of this? Well the game was full price and is only about 6 hours long. Compare this to GoT good length, fun side content with a narrative and gameplay reason to do it. I love this game. Not for the narrative but for the gameplay and world. It is just designed perfectly for me. For me gameplay is king, then world, then story. That is the exact order that this game prioritizes. In addition, I love the updates to this game that were not paid. Legends got me another 60+ hours easily and there is still stuff I can do. Good narrative, awesome combat, a really vibrant and fun world to explore, and solid free multiplayer that shows off the combat in a great way. Iki is an excellent expansion and just gave me more of what I loved. Out of the PS exclusives I have always enjoyed, the gameplay has always been more important, I always preferred GoT to TLOU2, Infamous 2 to TLOU, Ratchet and Clank A Crack in Time to Uncharted 2, etc etc. Narrative driven games are great for sure but I am usually playing games for the gameplay. The sole reason I think God of War 2018 is better than Red Dead Redemption 2 is the gameplay was more enjoyable. All in all I disagree with your video, however it is very well made. You earned a sub and I am looking forward to your future content.

[@chukmbanye5794]

Watching this video made me so happy I chose to play this game in the Japanese dub. The English sounds so cringe

[@ItzM1ST]

Do you think you'd ever make a video on like why minecraft is so simple yet a masterpiece?

[@closelaugh185]

"the Samurai leaders only personality trait is being a samurai" uhhhhhhhhhhhh yeah....???

[@t-vis7724]

actually crazy how you only have 600 subs. I'd expect video quality like this from channels with 1+ mill subs. Crazy underrated 🫶

[@ImGardenGnome]

Much love 🖤

[@protruth1449]

I wholeheartedly disagree on the story and plot. I think it’s emotionally rewarding and compelling. Jin sacrificing everything about who he is to become the “ghost” and save the island is very predictable, that doesn’t make it bad. Lord shiners is a samurai, and a daimyo at that (highest rank under shogun). Samurai adhere to the bushido, honor is all they know, calling him “one note” isn’t untrue but that IS his character. The by the book samurai, the whole story is how Jin goes from samurai to ghost I think you’re missing that main point. Also maybe try the Japanese subbed version? The voice acting is way better instead of Japanese people speaking English with Japanese accents. That just personally cringes me out. Plus they’re all the Japanese voice actors from one piece, Jin is voice by Zoro it’s sick. And bruh hearing you complain about how much honor is brought up in the game is mind blowing, they literally commits ritual suicide if they’re honor is even slight tarnished, and not just the samurai but his retainers have to do it also. They can’t make a game about samurai and not have honor be the main theme.

[@alexanderfaulkner4972]

The game is so much better in Japanese. Also adds to the overall immersion.

[@ImGardenGnome]

I’ll fs need to try that

[@alexanderfaulkner4972]

The dialogue is the same, but Yuna isn't acted as wooden. Also Lady Masako seems much better by comparison in the Japanese version.

[@gaxpax8709]

Gotta do red dead redemption next

[@taimanslaughter4471]

I believe that the game was strongly predictable but at the same time I hoped that it wasn't for example even though it was clear that Taka was going to die I hoped that nothing would happen to him so when he did die I wasn't surprised but I felt completely dull because I liked him so much this was my case with many other plot points like Ryuzo's "betrayal" or betraying Shimura after he tells Jin he will adopt him I knew that the adoption wouldn't happen because Jin wasn't going to stop being the Ghost but I still believe that the game had a good story because of how the scenes made me felt besides what actually happened ngl the game definitely have plot holes like how Shimura was going to blame the dishonorable events on Yuna but at the same time I don't know the samurai laws in that period so something like that could have been completely acceptable in their culture even if it doesn't make any sense but I like this bc it shows that Shimura isn't honorable but just very lawful by his samurai codes that they depict as "honorable" for me it showed how Jin was more truthfully honorable by giving risking his life and code by protecting his island and people buuut Jin is also completely fine with killing strawhat ronin and Ryuzo which I felt like was unnecessary maybe if they showed more distrust between him and Ryuzo like a mission where Ryuzo and the strawhat are desperate for food so they raid and steal food from a nearby village which because they are currently in wartime with the mongols would obviously make Jin distrust the strawhat and Ryuzo which would explain why he felt killing his childhood friend was necessary but idk I'm just a mortal man. I feel like this game needed some more time to figure out what it wanted from the plot bc it's really good but it can be inconsistent especially when they give no explanation for plot holes that could easily be explained by npc dialogue or collectable notes. Also I wish that we could get more flashbacks of young Jin maybe more levels with Shimura so we can feel for him more, a mission where we meet Masako's family before they die or even a mission where we beat Ryuzo at that duel thingy in front of the Shogunate

[@crankysostik2478]

can you make one on rdr2?

[@ImGardenGnome]

That game takes so long to beat 😅

[@crankysostik2478]

@@ImGardenGnome worth it though!

[@Fall__Forward]

I largely had the same opinion. I felt like the narrative picked up towards the end of the 2nd act and into the 3rd act (as in it was more interesting, the falling out between Jin and his uncle was great character work, though there were some plot holes like you mentioned). But yeah, I felt like the game was a very good version of a Ubi-style game, the best part of the narrative was the relationship between Jin and his uncle and the way the themes shone through them. I don't think I liked the combat nearly as much as you did, but it was pretty good. I'm really tired of people saying this deserved GOTY over TLoU2 because though it is definitely a good game, it really doesn't compare to The Last of Us II.

[@saniakshay12]

I like both games but where GOT is a very good 8/10 for me or 9 with IKI DLC the Last of Us 2 is absolutely a 10. Both games tackle revenge as a major topic but TLOU2 actually explores it and how much it costs. GOT never fully goes into it.

[@BatmanWhoLaughs492]

I think your criticism for the story was far too much but I agree with pretty much everything else. 😅

[@patt6036]

The combat in this game was so fun and the world was so beautiful to ride around in. You’re spot on with the story being repetitive and boring. I really hope their next game is a tad bit more interesting because there could be a really good game here.

[@henrylangsford8845]

I agree that Yuna and some other characters have terrible dialogue delivery in English, that’s why I played with the Japanese dub. It made a huge difference personally

[@nicholasmajor4918]

This video is very well written and your points are clear but you couldn’t be more wrong about the narrative. Your issues with the stories can be debunked through the story and characters.

[@Nelster]

Great analysis. It's true, this game is like porn, you engage with it for the action while ignoring the plot (or have a laugh at its cheesiness). that being said, the plot would be a lot better if they changed the motive for the final confrontation to something like, say Ryuzo being Jin's cousin whom Jin was forced to kill/let die and now Uncle wants a piece of you, while keeping the ghost/samurai purely playstyle elements, because as a Japanese sword master commented in a relevant video 'there's no honor or dishonor in war, just kill em.'

[@ImGardenGnome]

That was the best analogy I’ve ever heard 😂

[@Bornz0r1337]

"unalive" am I on TikTok?

[@Jasjtkekwnf]

You didn’t like the game going into this and it’s very obvious