Month: May 2020

Sucker Punch Productions showed off Ghost of Tsushima in the latest State of Play. The showcase provided an in-depth look at the game and many of its features, one of which is a Japanese voice track that will be available from the very outset of the game. Since the game is set in Japan and the main character, Jin Sakai, is Japanese, this is good news for those that want to immerse themselves deeper into the setting and characters.

Jin didn’t speak much during the State of Play demonstration, but fans of One Piece may have had their ears perk up when he did. That’s because the Japanese voice actor for Jin is Kazuya Nakai, who plays the Straw Hat crew’s very own swordsman, Roronoa Zorro. As fans of One Piece will be able to attest to, Nakai’s voice is iconic, and, across the series, he has delivered some stunning performances as Zorro, which certainly bodes well for Jin and Ghost of Tsushima. The Japanese voice track for the game also includes the option to turn on subtitles.

The English voice actor for Jin, meanwhile, is Daisuke Tsuji, who has previously appeared in Death Stranding, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Prey, and Letters from Iwo Jima.

The State of Play provided lots of other details about Ghost of Tsushima, including how its combat works, the breadth of customization options that will be available to players, and cool visual options that can enhance the cinematic experience, such as an Akira Kurosawa-esque black and white film grain filter. You can rewatch the entire Ghost of Tsushima State of Play to see it all.

Ghost of Tsushima was originally set to release in June, but its new release date is July 17. The Last of Us Part II, the other major remaining PS4 exclusive, will now launch on June 19, while Iron Man VR is coming on July 3. You can read more about the game’s pre-order bonuses and special editions in our Ghost of Tsushima pre-order guide.

Nintendo has rolled out a new update for Mario Kart Tour. The version 2.1.0 update is available to download on both iOS and Android, and it introduces a couple of new multiplayer options to the mobile racing game.

First is Team Race. As in the mainline Mario Kart games, this mode divides racers into up to four teams. The points your teammates earn based on how well they place will be pooled, so you’ll need to work together to win. You’ll also be immune to friendly fire from your teammates.

The second new multiplayer option is Room Code. This allows you to create your own room and invite other players via a specific code. Up to eight players can join a custom room.

The new update arrives shortly after the start of part two of the Flower Tour, which introduces another first-time racer to the roster: Monty Mole. The ranked cup this time around is the Baby Daisy Cup and takes players through 3DS Toad Circuit R, RMX Choco Island 1T, and 3DS Mario Circuit R, among other courses.

Mario Kart Tour launched in September 2019 and has become one of Nintendo’s most successful mobile games so far, although the title initially lacked a multiplayer mode. That was added as part of a free update back in March. A variant called Gold Races, however, is exclusive to the Gold Pass, which costs $5 USD a month.

During Sony’s latest State of Play livestream, we got a much closer look at the upcoming PS4-exclusive open-world game set in feudal Japan, Ghost of Tsushima. Everything from exploring the world, stealth mechanics, combat encounters, and even character customization were on display in the gameplay walkthrough. You will play as Jin, who can either be a Samurai or Ghost throughout the game depending on your playstyle, but regardless, you’ll have customization, and even fashion on the mind.

One part of the gameplay reveal showcased a number of ways you can make Jin your own. Different sets of armor apply to either playing as a Samurai (combat-focused) or as the Ghost (stealth-focused), and they give you specific advantages for either playstyle.

There are also Omamori Charms, which you equip to grant specific perks. For example, the Charm of Okuninushi is a defense charm that slowly recovers your health out of combat, while the Charm of Unseen Respite grants 25% health recover when using smoke bombs. The menu screen shown also stated that you earn more Charms by finding Inari Shrines which are scattered across the open world.

In addition to Charms, you’ll earn Technique Points to learn and upgrade skills, further fleshing out some RPG-like mechanics in Ghost of Tsushima.

Where you can start to personalize Jin’s clothing is with dye flowers, a resource you collect in the environment. If you collect enough of them you can change the color of your armor, clothing, and even your sword’s handle and sheath. And we also got a peek at several different armor sets, which you can see below (or in the video above).

Ghost of Tsushima launches exclusively on PlayStation 4 on July 17 this year. For more on the game and the detals that were revealed during Sony’s State of Play, check out the stories below.

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The gameplay demonstration for Ghost of Tsushima showed lots of details, including exploration, customization, and most importantly, adorable wildlife. But the vast majority of time was spent detailing the combat, which comes in two distinct types: the honorable direct combat, and the dishonorable fear-based stealth.

Game director Nate Fox walked us through the differences between the two. When engaging in direct combat, you essentially march up to the enemy and announce your presence, thus starting a combat sequence. The combat seemed very parry-based in this way, as the hero Jin waited for his opponent to strike and then countered with deadly force. Other combatants took swipes after dispatching one soldier, and Jin took them all down with one-hit finishers in quick succession.

Fox said you can use normal sword swings, but it’s better to use timing and precision for exacting damage. You can switch between combat stances, and you’re adept enough to counter both sword swipes and arrow shots. And true to the honorable path, you can pay respects to the deceased after you’ve dispatched them.

The stealthy combat is seen as dishonorable by comparison and uses a variety of traps and distractions to lure enemies into areas when they’re vulnerable. This section saw Jin quietly killing foes from a distance with heavy arrows and kunai, disorienting enemies with smoke bombs, and using fireworks to prompt them to move. It’s also the more acrobatic version of combat, having you grapple between points and use parkour.

The Ghost of Tsushima presentation also made a point to show how customization can impact your combat efficacy, since it augments your abilities for your chosen playstyle. The game is coming on July 17. For more details check out our Ghost of Tsushima pre-order guide.

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A lengthy gameplay demonstration for Ghost of Tsushima gave us all kinds of new details, from exploration and combat to customization options. But there was one tiny detail that took us by surprise: you can pet a fox.

The adorable detail didn’t last long, but it came just as creative director Jason Connell was starting to wrap up his segment on exploration. He mentioned that there are details all over the world to explore, like mountainous paths marked with gates, or foxes showing you a hidden den to explore. Over that segment we saw a brief glimpse of the hero, Jin, scruffing the fuzzy mane of a fox.

There’s no indication elsewhere that you have the fox as a companion, so it seems more likely that it’s just a feral creature that you’ll run into once in a while. And since petting a real wild fox is probably not such a good idea, this is one more fantasy video games can help you live out–along with being a samurai.

To that end, the lengthy gameplay demonstration also showed us quite a bit of combat, including two distinct forms of combat: the honorable traditional samurai battles, and the dishonorable stealthy “ghost” combat. You can also customize Jin with armor and gear that will accent your combative or stealthy playstyle, and Tsushima even sports a film filter to imitate old Japanese samurai movies.

Ghost of Tsushima is set to release on July 17, roughly a month after Sony’s other big first-party PS4 game, The Last of Us 2. For more details check out our pre-order guide.