Ghost of Tsushima is celebrating its five-year anniversary today, July 17, 2025. Below, we revisit the juxtaposition between its revenge-soaked narrative and the calm, reflective moments of meditation.

Drenched in thick, burgundy-colored blood after tearing through dozens of enemy Mongol camps, I rode slowly through the Tsushima countryside searching for my next target. There was only one thing that would defer my thirst for revenge: a brief dip in a hot spring.

Ghost of Tsushima tells a complicated and deeply troubling narrative about revenge, possible avunculicide, and a warrior pushed to commit atrocities in order to protect the people he loves. The exploration of those themes gets more difficult with each passing mission as the Mongol invasion of Tsushima takes more and more–in terms of family, friends, and even his own home–from protagonist Jin Sakai.

The gameplay in Tsushima can be equally brutal, consisting of hour after hour of swords cutting through flesh, explosions ripping through homes, and innocent Japanese civilians laying dead on the ground. But Ghost of Tsushima offers pockets of respite in the form of brief segments, namely hot-spring soaks that increase Jin’s health capacity and provide short bits of dialogue about the game’s story. These moments not only slow the pace of the game down, but actively encourage the player to contemplate the themes of the story.

Many other action games follow a similar structure with their violent narratives–including other PlayStation titles The Last of Us and Uncharted–where the killing is relentless. But there are few games that offer similarly brutal themes in their story while attempting to give players the space to process it.

Jin Sakai lives a tragic life throughout the narrative of Ghost of Tsushima. Family members and friends die right in front of him and his living family turns on him after he uses brutal warfare tactics against the Mongols. One major story beat that resonated with me was how Lord Shimura–Jin’s maternal uncle–could not accept his nephew’s actions in the war. The rift between them can lead to a fatal clash of swords between the family members if the player chooses that route.

Open-world games structured like Ghost of Tsushima are sometimes hailed as “podcast games,” where players can explore the open world and complete copy-and-pasted side missions while part of their attention is focused elsewhere. That’s true for Sucker Punch’s title, but that exploration does include a handful of moments that require little to no input from the player at all. In a world filled with multi-tasking and an intense focus on productivity–even in our leisure time–trying to slow the player down for a few moments is a design choice not seen often.

When I came across hot springs on my journey to explore all corners of Tsushima, I actively listened to what Jin pondered during his soak. I often wondered about what happened in the story and I never quite could decide whether I was completely on Jin or Lord Shimura’s side when it came to matching the Mongols with their own brutal behavior. I don’t think I would have thought about it if the game didn’t let me stop for a few moments.

While these hot-spring moments are a unique element in a blockbuster like Tsushima, many other parts of the world are filled with generic fodder. Side missions involve the same steps of finding someone in peril, listening to their story, travelling to a new location, and then killing every enemy in sight. The other collectables–cosmetics, bamboo strikes, and platforming sections–were also steeped in monotony.

“One challenge that comes with making an open-world game is the repetitive nature of doing the same thing over again,” said Sucker Punch art director Jason Connell in an interview about Ghost of Yotei with The New York Times. “We wanted to balance against that and find unique experiences.”

Hot springs are exactly the type of unique experience that’s ideal for a game with a narrative as troubling as the one in Ghost of Tsushima. One thing I was eager to learn more about when Ghost of Yotei was announced was how Sucker Punch would expand on its open-world structure and if it would include the hot springs and equally meditative features.

The Bellevue-based studio is bringing much from Tsushima into its new game, while promoting the idea of the “podcast game” by introducing the “Watanabe mode.” The mode will play chill beats inspired by Shinichirō Watanabe in the background, giving players a built-in soundtrack that will make it that much easier to zone out and mesh with Yotei’s gameplay while roaming around.

“This is the most open game we’ve ever made. One of the greatest joys is just getting lost. You let your curiosity guide you through the landscape,” Fox said in an interview with Variety. “We view that as this holy moment that we want to uplift for players so that they can feel very present inside of Hokkaido, or Ezo, as it was called back when our game took place.”

Luckily, hot springs will also be returning, according to footage shown in the State of Play Demo Deep Dive. It’ll give players more chances to sit and process their thoughts with another troubling tale about revenge.

Creating engaging side quests and unique moments like this in a massive open world is difficult. Creating an engaging open world is a massive undertaking. New quests that aim to connect the player with Japanese culture, such as vegetable foraging, will hopefully set Yotei apart from Tsushima and offer other ways for the player to slow down.

Ghost of Tsushima gives future games the ideal blueprint for presenting controversial or violent stories within their narrative. It’s important to give players an opportunity to grapple with what they experienced, even if it’s only one small part of a massive game. Sometimes, less is more.

Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com