GhostWire: Tokyo

This stylish first-person shooter stole many gamers’ hearts after Bethesda’s E3 presentation in 2019. GhostWire’s eerie trailer piqued the interest of thousands of fans online, and many were eager to find out more about the new IP. Years later, we still don’t quite know the ins and outs of GhostWire: Tokyo, but we have been treated to an extended trailer that highlights exactly what gamers can expect after the release date in October 2021.

Left My Heart In Tokyo

One of the things that drew so much attention to the yet-to-be-released game in 2019 was the unique setting. GhostWire: Tokyo, to nooone’s surprise, takes place in modern day Tokyo. The plot centres around a mysterious rapture-like event that has made practically all of the city’s citizens disappear completely.

While the humans residents may be missing, the city is now flooded with evil spirits known as Visitors. This is all combined with the fact that the player’s character is starting to show signs of supernatural powers, which they must use to defeat the evil presence that has invaded Tokyo.

Action Over Horror

Tango Gameworks are probably best known for their previous release The Evil Within. That game gave players a spooky and atmospheric experience of which many were expecting to be replicated in GhostWire: Tokyo. However, it seems like GhostWire has a much brighter and action-oriented style of presentation, though some horror elements will be incorporated.

This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise considering that the game shares previous developers of the hit Doom remake. Clearly, both fans of the bombastic hellscape seen in Doom, as well as the creepy hospitals and forests of The Evil Within.

Hand-To-Hand Combat

While other games might opt for a third person perspective for their combat, GhostWire takes the approach seen in games like Dishonored. Players make use of their paranormal powers that are summoned through stylish hand movements in order to defeat the ghosts that have haunted Tokyo city.

This has led the game’s combat director Shinichiro Hara to describe the game’s main mechanic as "karate meets magic", with the team using Kuji-kiri hand gestures as a large inspiration.

These martial art hand movements help to whittle down enemies’ health bars so that their inner core is eventually revealed. Once this happens, players are able to take down ghosts in a single strike.

PROS:

• Incredibly setting and concept
• Interesting first-person combat
• Unique blend of horror and action elements

CONS:

• Doesn’t have the tone that many players were hoping for
• Was originally pegged as a Playstation exclusive, but is now coming to XBOX
• Still yet to be released