Like most new IPs, Ghost of Tsushima left itself wide open for a sequel. Is it going to get one on PS5? Will it even get some DLC in the meantime? Questions are high with no 100% answers. However, as it has been selling well so far, along with getting great reviews, Ghost of Tsushima 2 will probably happen.
So, while fans wait, this article tried to round up the lingering questions that will hopefully be answered in the first game. They range from story beats to mechanical issues. As this does deal with the entire story, there will be spoilers.
Updated on September 4th, 2021 by Hodey Johns: Ghost of Tsushima appeared to be a standalone game, and many thought it would a while until players were treated to the next big thing in the franchise. However, to everyone's delightful surprise, Sucker Punch continued to add content to an already complete game. After adding more cosmetic options and a New Game Plus, they came out with cooperative Legends mode. And now, there's an entire Iki Island expansion! While fans might want a full-blown sequel, it's hard to argue against more being added to the base game. Of course, these new additions also come with new questions, which have been added to the list.
15 Is PvP On The Horizon?
Fun as it would be to picture players charging at each other with brand new, fully armored warhorses, the game isn't really designed for that kind of PvP combat. But that doesn't mean that playing against human opponents is impossible.
Taking on rival fans of the game count be done a number of ways, like taking out a cluster of enemies in the quickest time, or seeing how many enemies they can take down before getting killed. With the Legends update, it seems like nothing is impossible.
14 Might The Arsenal Expand?
Nobody is complaining about the number of gadgets Jin Sakai is capable of using. And the samurai sword works astonishingly well when achieving victory during the Bokken duels and other challenges.
But with enemies able to wield spears and shields, why not let the player do this as well? Sakai has already defied the samurai code, it would not be too surprising to see gamers get a selection of weapons eventually.
13 What Is That Poison Jin Takes?
There have been some creative poisons in the history of gaming with dubious historical accuracy. Truth serum, laughing gas, ooze, the list goes on and on. But the poison fed to Sakai during the Iki Island expansion is unlike any other gamers have seen.
This guilt potion is fascinating and helps flesh out Jin's character. It works as a plot device. But gamers have to wonder what it is, exactly, and if it can be somehow used on enemies to make them lose it or on friends to explore repressed truths.
12 Is A Civil War Coming?
Try as he might, it's made clear at the end of the game that there is no more running for Jin Sakai. He's at the end of his rope and the bulk of the Japanese army is supposedly going to be turned loose against him for his breach of honor. And hiding inside the spirit of a monkey isn't a permanent solution.
But might he somehow avoid punishment? Japan might have its own problems and Lord Shimura might have a change of heart. While it seems like fighting against other Japanese warriors might be the next step, it's still not a sure thing.
11 Where Is The Next Game Going To Take Place?
Tsushima Island is beautiful, undoubtedly, but vigilant players have explored every bit of the main island even before heading out to Iki Island. While the gaming community has fallen in love with Tsushima, it would be hard to believe that Jin's journeys will keep him here.
Is Tsushima going to be a permanent base of operations? Might Sakai head for mainland Japan? Or is there a chance that the samurai are going to go on the offensive and launch a strike against Mongolia? Anything is possible.
10 The Tengu Demon
In the Mythic Tales mission, The Curse of Uchitsune, players are sent to retrieve a legendary longbow. This eventually leads to an alter wherein Jin gets doused with something and imagines fighting a Tengu demon.
Once defeated, Jin snaps out of the trance. Here’s the odd thing though. There was nobody. Did the person he fight escape and if so where did he go?
9 Is There Magic?
Ghost of Tsushima is mostly a grounded tale of samurai, but there are magical elements to it that don’t make a lot of sense. For example, there was the aforementioned Tengu demon fight.
What was that powder made of? Then there are the foxes that guide Jin around. Are they that well trained or are they wandering spirits? Those are just two major examples in a litany of odd encounters.
8 Tomoe And Ishikawa
Sensei Ishikawa is in pretty much a blood rage about Tomoe’s actions in the game. He wants her dead, but by the end, even without much discussion with her, he just sort of shrugs.
He could easily snipe her from shore on the boat. The change of heart comes out of nowhere but could sort of be believed. More curious than that is what will happen to Tomoe at her destination.
7 Norio’s Blood Rage
Speaking of blood rages, this might either fall into the realm of magical and or senselessness.
In Norio’s final side tale, Jin falls asleep and then wakes up to find Norio is gone with screams being heard nearby. Norio seemingly Hulked out and destroyed an entire complex singlehandedly without much explanation. Now, granted, players do this in Ghost of Tsushima as well with Jin, but it still breaks the illusion that Norio is just a man.
6 Jin’s Imprisonment
Why does Jin let himself be captured by his uncle? Does he think he will have a fair trial? He knows based on the samurai code that he is doomed and yet he just lets it happen.
This doesn’t make sense in that Jin is doing these underhanded deeds for his homeland. He knows time is of the essence and yet he just decides to chill out in prison, wasting precious time.
5 Jin’s Poison Resistance
After he escapes prison, Jin soon succumbs to the poison he helped create. When shown on other people, they die almost instantly. However, Jin just shrugs it off like it was nothing. He gets poisoned again by random enemies.
Here, players can also use Resolve which is basically just sheer will embodied by a meter in order to heal. There is an odd disconnect between playing Ghost of Tsushima and watching it.
4 The Remaining Mongolians
After the game players can clear the map of any remaining Mongolian camps. Not much happens with it in regards to a story beat.
Even if all camps are destroyed, because this is a video game, Mongolians as enemies can never be completely wiped out. This then leads to a question. Will Mongolians be in the sequel, or is the enemy going to vanish and be replaced with another threat?
3 Yuna And Jin
Are they ever going to get together? Ghost of Tsushima turns out to have a good story, if not somewhat cliche and predictable, because it doesn’t rely on the typical narrative boundaries of love.
It instead deals with family which is another kind of love, but there is no romance. That said, the subtle looks between these two toward the end may suggest otherwise for the sequel. Some players were hoping they might make their way to Iki Island and settle down, but it was not to be.
2 What Will Be The Canonical Ending?
There are two choices Jin can make in the end. He can kill his uncle the honorable way, or he can spare him. Killing him will still have the Shogunate chase after Jin, but at least family won’t be involved.
On the other hand, even though sparing his uncle would mean they’d have to clash again, at least Jin knows he would be alive. It will be interesting to see what ending Sucker Punch uses for a sequel.
1 Ghost Of Tsushima 2: Ninja Brotherhood
The title for this entry calls back to Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood wherein Ezio started to build up the assassin’s guild. Jin could do the same for what will become ninjas. For those unaware, Ghost of Tsushima takes place in the 13th century.
Ninjas were not established by name until about the 15th century. That’s why no one says ninja in the game but a sequel could fudge the timeline and or just call them ghosts.