What is Ghost of Yotei?
Ghost of Yotei is an open-world action RPG from Sucker Punch Productions, set three centuries after Ghost of Tsushima. Instead of Tsushima’s southern islands, you explore the wild lands surrounding Mount Yōtei in Ezo — the region we now call Hokkaido. It’s a PlayStation 5 exclusive published by Sony Interactive Entertainment, and it blends role-playing progression with adventure-style exploration in a place that sits outside the rule of Japan.
Getting started
The game opens in 1603 with Atsu, your protagonist, heading into the lands around Mount Yōtei. Your first hours should be spent learning the terrain rather than chasing the main story. The map covers sprawling grasslands, snowy tundras, and genuinely dangerous stretches of wilderness, so treat the environment itself as the first thing to understand.
A sensible early routine:
- Finish the opening story beats so you unlock the full map and basic travel options.
- Pick one direction and explore it thoroughly instead of zig-zagging across the whole region.
- Take on nearby side content before pushing into unfamiliar areas — RPG progression rewards you for being a little over-prepared.
- Learn how the game signals danger. Weather, terrain, and distance from settlements all matter here.
Because this is an RPG rather than a pure action game, your character’s growth matters as much as your reflexes. Don’t ignore equipment, upgrades, or abilities in favour of rushing the plot.
Tips for beginners
- Stay close to home at first. The region around Mount Yōtei is huge. Clear the area you start in before wandering into the tundra.
- Do side content early. In an RPG, the story missions assume a certain level of strength. A few hours of optional content makes the critical path far smoother.
- Respect the cold and the terrain. Snowy tundras are a distinct environment from the grasslands. Prepare differently for each.
- Don’t fast-travel everywhere. You miss encounters, resources, and the landscape that makes this setting unique.
- Upgrade deliberately, not constantly. Decide what kind of fighter Atsu should be and invest in that, rather than spreading resources thin.
- Read the world. Ezo is outside Japan’s rule, so the politics and people you meet won’t behave like a standard samurai story. Pay attention to dialogue and local context.
- Save your strongest resources for real threats. “Unexpected dangers” is not marketing — the wilderness will test you.
Is it worth playing?
If you played Ghost of Tsushima, the shift from Tsushima to Ezo is the main draw: a colder, stranger, less governed frontier, and a new protagonist with her own story. If you’re new to the series, you don’t need the earlier game — this is a standalone journey beginning in 1603. It’s a PlayStation 5 exclusive, so you’ll need that console, and it’s an RPG first and foremost: expect a long, exploration-heavy campaign. If you want a big, atmospheric open world to lose a hundred hours in, it delivers. If you want a short, tightly paced action game, look elsewhere.