Ghost of Yotei: The Big Interview With Sucker Punch

Hot connected the heels of Ghost of Yotei’s precise ain State of Play showcase, we sat down for a chat with originative directors Nate Fox and Jason Connell to speech astir what we saw of Sucker Punch’s upcoming PlayStation 5 exclusive — and what we were near wondering about. Read connected for answers!

IGN: The backdrop of Ghost of Tsushima was a real-life penetration by Mongol forces connected the land of Tsushima. With Ghost of Yotei, what's the humanities mounting of what's going connected successful Japan astatine this clip and however volition that play into Atsu’s journey?

Nate Fox: The crippled takes spot successful the twelvemonth 1603. Peace has conscionable breached retired successful Japan aft decades and decades of civilian warfare and determination are a batch of sellswords that abruptly are retired of work. So they question northbound to the borderline of the Japanese empire, an land called Ezo, modern time Hokkaido. And this spot becomes a pulverization keg. It's very, precise unsafe with each these sellswords walking astir trying to marque a buck. This infinitesimal successful past combined with the quality of Ezo, these lush mountainscapes and forests and rivers, creates a dynamite operation for an unfastened satellite game, and it's wherever we wanted to acceptable Atsu’s quest for vengeance.

IGN: During your presumption astatine the State of Play, you mentioned that Ghost of Yotei focuses connected much state than immoderate crippled Sucker Punch has ever made. That's a ample assertion considering the magnitude of state that was already offered successful Ghost of Tsushima, I tin decidedly attest to that. Can you elaborate connected immoderate of the ways successful which you've enhanced the feeling of state compared to what the subordinate could already bash successful Ghost of Tsushima?

Jason Connell: When we started to deliberation astir what the adjacent crippled would beryllium for america astatine Sucker Punch, we truly had to instrumentality banal of what we loved and what our fans truly loved, and however we saw radical play Ghost of Tsushima. And 1 of the aspects of Tsushima that we wanted to transportation guardant was the consciousness of exploration. We saw radical play precise wide successful their experience. We saw immoderate radical driblet 80, 90 hours and conscionable exploring and utilizing modes similar photograph mode conscionable to soak successful the quality and the quality of the world.

That truly resonated with us. We're large wide players arsenic well, truthful erstwhile we acceptable retired to marque Yotei, particularly erstwhile we decided that it was going to instrumentality spot successful Hokkaido — backmost past it was called Ezo, this vast, immense scenery that conscionable frankly had a bully overlap with america having a tendency to person a much unfastened crippled plan due to the fact that it's specified a immense spot — led america to a full big of features, ranging from elemental inferior features similar spyglass, being capable to propulsion your spyglass up truly rapidly and look astir the situation truly is the mode that I deliberation Nate and I some truly emotion to play, conscionable spot thing connected the skyline and spell to it, to traversal features. We person angiosperm streams that are conscionable woven into the situation and assistance you get crossed immense landscapes. If you travel those flowers you'll get a small spot of a velocity boost due to the fact that they're joyful for Atsu to thrust in, but they besides mightiness pb you to something. Or processing features similar our hint system, oregon camping features, which conscionable truly observe the wilds of Ezo.

IGN: One of the coolest moments astatine the State of Play was the seamless power from contiguous time to Atsu’s past erstwhile she was looking astir the remnants of her puerility home, and past you really saw her reliving those memories successful the past with conscionable the property of a button. I wondered wherever this thought came from, and is it the benignant of happening wherever it'll beryllium tied to circumstantial spots passim the crippled world, truthful there'll beryllium an country wherever it's intelligibly clip to power backmost to the past? Or is it up to the subordinate to observe those for themselves?

Nate Fox: In Ghost of Yotei determination are a fig of places successful the satellite that Atsu visits successful which she has a batch of memories from her youth. And astatine the interaction of a button, you tin spell backmost into the past and you power Atsu arsenic a child, you get to play arsenic her interacting with her member and her parents and different radical successful Ezo.

We wanted you to beryllium capable to truly power her arsenic a kid truthful that you would consciousness similar you knew what her beingness was like, you could acquisition that, and of people due to the fact that this shows you what she lost. It’s a diagnostic we truly emotion due to the fact that the subordinate is successful command, they tin deed the fastener to spell backmost and spot what it utilized to beryllium similar and past deed it again and spot what it's similar now, comparing and contrasting for instance, what her ain homestead looked similar successful her younker to what it looks similar present aft it's been tally down by upwind and deficiency of use, it's go a ruin. So you get to spot the earlier and aft of her acquisition successful the landscape.

IGN: So was it from day-one enactment connected the sequel? Did you cognize that you were starting caller with a marque caller character, oregon were determination ever immoderate archetypal ideas for possibly continuing Jin’s communicative connected aft the events of Ghost of Tsushima?

Jason Connell: For america astatine Sucker Punch, 1 of the things that, particularly if you look backmost connected our catalog of games, we person a heavy emotion for making root stories. It's thing we person a batch of passionateness for. We similar coming up with those stories, those arcs, the characterizations, however they mightiness travel done successful the crippled experience, what benignant of features it mightiness benignant of spark arsenic we make this caller character. And truthful truly from the opening we knew that we were going to beryllium charting connected caller territory here.

And past erstwhile we beauteous rapidly started looking astatine Hokkaido and this portion and this clip play and conscionable however immense and stunning and large and filled with wilderness, and you harvester that with this thought of doing a communicative of vengeance wherever Atsu is hunting idiosyncratic wrong of that landscape, it was conscionable specified a large match.

It's not hunting for idiosyncratic successful a harmless environment. This is simply a monolithic scenery that she'll beryllium going nether rather an undertaking hunting them here. We felt similar that was an breathtaking connection. I'll accidental besides the communicative of the people fable of the onryō, this Japanese people fable of communicative of vengeance, often women who've been wronged successful beingness and present they've travel backmost to question vengeance, we got truly excited astir that people fable and decided that we were going to inject that beauteous heavy into our mentation of a Ghost story.

IGN: One of the different caller features involving campfires you mentioned was a strategy that allowed members of your wolf battalion to sojourn you astatine night. You benignant of hinted that you don't person to permission wherever you're exploring, the crippled comes to you. Can you archer america a small spot much astir that?

Jason Connell: First and foremost immoderate diagnostic that makes it into the crippled has to beryllium tonally celebrating the onshore of Ezo. And arsenic I mentioned earlier, this immense landscape, there's thing amended than celebrating the camping aspects of it. That is thing we felt was truly important.

Now secondly, I indispensable accidental we're ever looking for ways to marque the crippled consciousness approachable. And I mentioned it a small spot successful the State of Play, is that, unfastened satellite successful large games, managing resources is benignant of challenging. In our crippled you tin accelerated travel. In our past game, you could accelerated question anywhere. If you privation to spell upgrade your bow, you could accelerated question implicit present and upgrade your bow, that's good and you tin bash that again successful this game.

But aft you conscionable radical and your wolf battalion grows, we amusement this surface briefly, you tin spell into those wolf battalion screens and spot what radical person to connection for you. Say you similar that bow here, if they person an upgrade disposable to you, you mightiness beryllium capable to propulsion them into your campsite. So if you're exploring a portion of the game, it sometimes tin beryllium truly discordant to conscionable similar halt there, spell warp to different area, upgrade, and past travel backmost to wherever you're exploring. This is what we mean. You tin really conscionable enactment here, acceptable up camp, concisely prosecute with this person, this bow, your idiosyncratic comes over, you get your upgrade and past you spell backmost connected your mode each portion celebrating the wilds of Ezo. And that's wherever camping has been an iteration and improvement of the Ghost game.

IGN: Ghost of Tsushima Legends was objectively awesome. How blessed were you with that mode arsenic a squad and is determination a anticipation to spot thing similar it again for Ghost of Yotei, either astatine motorboat oregon possibly successful the acold disconnected distant future?

Nate Fox: We were highly blessed with Ghost of Tsushima Legends and allowing players to link with friends and usage their skills warring with the katana against a assortment of enemies. We loved it. Right present we are precise focused connected completing Ghost of Yotei to the highest prime imaginable and putting it successful players' hands precise soon connected October 2. That is our implicit absorption close now.

IGN: Masterfully answered! What has it been similar processing combat based astir a full arsenal of weapons this clip arsenic opposed to conscionable a katana and the assortment of antithetic stances?

Nate Fox: In Tsushima, we truly loved our stance strategy wherever the subordinate could take 1 of 4 ways to clasp the limb to combat a peculiar benignant of enemy. In Ghost of Yotei we took that strategy and we expanded it. Instead of 4 stances, determination are present five. Instead of stances with 1 weapon, we took that aforesaid strategy and we said, okay, alternatively of stances it's caller melee weapons. Functionally it's the aforesaid arsenic stances but it's more. For instance, if you usage a spear, you tin usage that limb to sound enemies backwards successful space. So if you're lasting adjacent a cliff warring them, you tin sound them disconnected the cliff into the abyss. Works conscionable similar stances, but determination are other abilities attached to each of these weapons to springiness the subordinate much options.

IGN: So should the subordinate beryllium expecting to juggle weapons and larn which is going to enactment against which benignant of enemy, possibly what limb they're using? Or is it much a lawsuit of unlocking the close skills for the close weapons?

Nate Fox: The crippled decidedly would similar players champion to larn however to power weapons erstwhile it is appropriate. It is the astir businesslike mode to play. Let's look it, radical sometimes privation to play successful the mode that makes them consciousness the coolest and the crippled volition not wounded you if you bash that. If you privation to play with conscionable 2 swords successful each manus due to the fact that it looks cool, you tin play done the full crippled that way. It's A-okay.

IGN: Can you notation immoderate of your favourite skills that you're capable to unlock oregon moves you're capable to bash with immoderate of the weapons?

Nate Fox: I emotion the kusarigama due to the fact that portion it's truly bully for taking down radical with shields, it besides allows you to bash an country of effect onslaught by spinning that concatenation supra your head. If you're surrounded by enemies, you tin deed them all. This is thing we ne'er had successful Tsushima, but successful Yotei it's perfectly determination for you. It is simply a infinitesimal wherever you're benignant of improvising, and these weapons let you to bash a broader enactment of abilities that springiness you much prime and much state successful however you woody tactically with the enemies astir you.

IGN: Jason, bash you person 1 arsenic well?

Jason Connell: I deliberation my favourite erstwhile it comes to combat is the dual wielding. It truly rewards the feeling of being truly fast, and erstwhile she hits with those 2 swords you tin benignant of get into a flurry and get into a groove wherever it conscionable keeps going. You're like, this is going to stop, but it conscionable keeps going. There's velocity there, it feels truly lethal. It doesn't consciousness similar you're swinging a batch and doing small damage. It feels similar you're really truly hurting them. I similar dual wielding... that’s my phantasy melee limb acceptable up for me. That mightiness beryllium antithetic for different people, but that's wherefore there's 5 of 'em. Everybody's going to effort thing caller and different.

IGN: So Jason, successful a New York Times interview, you mentioned that you were near successful awe by the show of Mount Yotei reflected crossed Lake Tōya during a probe trip. Was that the tract that inspired the mounting of Ghost of Yotei, oregon were determination ever immoderate different locations oregon humanities settings that could person possibly been the location for Atsu?

Jason Connell: By the clip we had gone connected the probe trip, we decidedly knew that we were making a crippled up there. We had seen capable images. We had embraced the thought that this is wherever our crippled was going to instrumentality place, and it was astir conscionable getting immersed successful the civilization up determination due to the fact that it's rather antithetic than Honshu mainland Japan. A fig of us, it was our archetypal time.

So truly opening the doorway to each of the unknowns that we could instrumentality location and beryllium inspired by and make caller relationships for caller advisors. That's the existent crushed to go. But that Lake Tōya infinitesimal wherever — and I stake Nate had a precise akin acquisition — surely was immoderate of the birthplaces of reasoning astir what the existent sanction of the crippled would be, due to the fact that it was conscionable specified a majestic infinitesimal wherever the upland is benignant of towering implicit you. It was a bully mediate constituent of the travel for us, and truly symbolized a batch of what we learned and felt portion we were there.

And past determination were a clump of earthy decisions and immoderate implicit decisions that were made implicit the people of the crippled that suddenly, our location is astatine the ft of Mount Yōtei, this monolithic upland that’s casting this shadiness implicit and we were naming things based disconnected of it. It truly felt similar it was the geographical bosom of the experience, and the communicative was spiraling retired from there. It felt similar conscionable a large infinitesimal for america arsenic we were getting towards the aboriginal parts of making the game, and it ended up transforming into the existent name.

IGN: And I cognize this is going to beryllium hard, but Nate, starting with you, I'd emotion to cognize 1 happening you're ace excited for players to beryllium capable to spot and play with erstwhile the crippled comes retired successful October?

Nate Fox: Oh, I'm precise excited for players to get retired into the wilds, the unsafe lawless wilds of Ezo and hopefully they're truly entranced by Atu’s quest. The wind's blowing them towards a ngo start, but what's that implicit there? They spot thing connected the skyline that stokes their curiosity and they say, you cognize what? I'm going to spell cheque it out. And they thrust to that happening and they're going to find thing worthy discovering, whether it's a communicative oregon immoderate portion of invaluable treasure, you sanction it. We wanted to marque definite successful this crippled that we honored players' curiosity, that we would reward exploration. And to maine that's the magic of Yotei. It's those spaces successful betwixt missions erstwhile players conscionable find themselves propelled by the smallest small puff of curiosity and it takes them connected an escapade they hadn't anticipated doing.

IGN: What I'm proceeding from that is I'm going to beryllium having a batch of precocious nights, mode aboriginal than intended. Jason?

Jason Connell: I really privation to accidental thing we haven't talked astir much, which is Atsu’s shamisen, which is the instrumentality that she carries, which is her mother’s shamisen. Just similar successful Ghost of Tsushima, we had features successful that game, I deliberation it was called the Traveler's Attire successful the past game… it would assistance you find contented nearby, you could usage it astir similar a completion instrumentality oregon a navigation instrumentality successful bid to get done the world.

I emotion that the shamisen exists and there's really songs that you tin larn wrong of the unfastened world, and those songs tin past usher you to definite types of things. So you privation to cod immoderate of these songs due to the fact that they'll usher you. The Song of Vanity mightiness usher you to cosmetics, and we cognize however radical emotion dressing up successful the crippled and putting connected chill outfits. So I'm truly excited astir showing much of that and for players to get an accidental to usage that.

Interview conducted by Rachel Weber.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].