In my opinion, this game is quite possibly the best game to have come out recently in modern era gaming.
**WARNING: SPOILERS MAY BE CONTAINED WITHIN THIS REVIEW**
I'm not one who typically pays attention to little details in games, but Ghost of Tsushima made me hone in on this. My absolute favorite was during duels, the attention to detail of not fully drawing your katana out was my absolute favorite detail that was included.
The gameplay mechanics, to me, seemed to be the most fluent mechanics I have encountered in a very long time. The game forcing you to adapt to multiple various style-fighting NPCs, constantly causing you to switch between stances was an awesome addition, as you were forced to adapt your styles and not favor one. Additionally, each stance had their own unique attacks, instead of simple power attacks or quick jabs, the ability to unlock more damaging and complex moves motivated me to continue expanding each stance tree.
Another part I feel the devs did a great job with was the inclusion of "side quests" like completing various Inari shrines, hot springs, haikus and so on. The game gave these side quests a purpose, being able to increase some entity of your character to increase your capacity to survive in brutal fights.
The duels and standoffs were my overall favorites. The duels brought in an action-packed, exciting, and complex ways to better yourself in dodges and parries, as well as "aura farming" moments. But my god, the best duel for me was against the Eagle. I keep repeating myself, but it has been soo long since I've had a boss encounter where I feel exceptionally challenged to try and beat them, and the Eagle duel topped that off for me. From everything, to her erratic fighting style, to the musical score during the duel, this duel has easily become one of, if not my top, all time favorite boss fights.
Finally, and this is a first for my commenting of it, is the background content. By this, I mean the cinematics, the lore, scenery, and musical score. I haven't been invested in a game's lore more than this game. I grew a connection to Yuna's tale, was heartbroken during Masako's tale, stunned during Norio's tale, increasingly skeptical and annoyed at Ishikawa and his endless hunt for Tomoe, and increasingly became agitated during Kenji's shenanigans. The protagonist NPCs tales were a masterclass and I craved more and more content from each character. The game's map, terrain, and overall atmosphere was phenomenally designed and captured the true beauty of this game. The musical pieces composed for each scenario were perfectly written and added to the overall experience of the game (especially during the duel with The Eagle, quite possibly my favorite musical piece in gaming of all time).
Overall, it's understandable to be standoff-ish purchasing this game due to Sony's current practices they've chosen to make, but I assure you that this game is worth every penny that you pay for. Ghost of Tsushima is a true masterpiece and will always hold a special place in my heart as one of the most enjoyable games I have ever played.
