GhostWire: Tokyo

Really, everything about Ghostwire: Tokyo is amazing, and it makes me glad I own a PS5. There aren’t many games just justify going out and buying a system for, but you could make a pretty convincing argument that this is one of them.

After watching the credits roll on Akito and K.K.’s journey, I still find myself itching to finish up every single thing in Ghostwire: Tokyo. Pray at those last few Jizo statues. Find the remaining tanuki. Figure out how to get inside of the 24th floor of the shopping complex so I can take out its pesky corruption spot. I’m forty hours in and counting and one hundred percent willing to do it all over again.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is the game I think we were all hoping for when it was announced. The eerie streets of an empty Tokyo draw you in and promptly scare you senseless with some fascinating enemies lurking around every corner. The story shines exactly when it needs to and then fades into the backdrop, allowing you to experience this sensational world. From the incredible voice work and writing, to the well-paced combat and city exploration, this is a must-play experience with plenty to do across its 20 hours.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a game that makes no effort to define itself with specific premises and, paradoxically, it ends up being what catches you the most.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a title that astonishes with its proposition. An open world horror game that knows how to blend these genres. Hundreds of activities to do, with an emphasis on showing us Tokyo from a ghostly point of view.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a very deep experience full of great ideas. The way that Tokyo was build, combine perfectly with it's ghost story, open world and combat system.

Explosive combat, fun activities and a beautifully realised city makes GhostWire: Tokyo stand out as a truly unique experience.

Shinji Mikami relies on the talent of Kenji Kimura to offer something different and refreshing within the studio's catalog.

Ghostwire Tokyo is a peculiar and charismatic open world, with a rewarding combat system and a fascinating location to explore.

Shinju Mikami does it again, this time in a new genre. Ghostwire: Tokyo brings inspirations from the horror genre into the open world, finding great success with this combination. Despite its hiccups, Ghostwire: Tokyo is another compelling experience from the mastermind behind Resident Evil.

A smaller, more condensed open world hides the ethereal reality of a game which has a touching narrative, beautifully conceptualised neon Tokyo to explore and a wealth of folklore tales to weave your way through. Ghostwire: Tokyo stays true to the well-worn formula of open-world games, but the genuineness of its ideals make it a compelling and at times, other-worldly experience. Find the time for this next 2022 gem. It deserves it.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is set up to be one of the most unique and interesting titles of the year, and it doesn't disappoint. Darken the room, turn the volume up loud, and keep out any distractions; Ghostwire: Tokyo is one hell of a spooky ride.

Ghostwire: Tokyo blurs the line between the first-person shooter and horror genres. It blends the two so naturally with the help of excellent level design, interesting characters, clever mission types, and some tense action. I had a great time exorcizing the streets of Tokyo. There are some growing pains in the opening chapters, but this game opens up in some bold ways that will keep you engaged until the final yokai is vanquished.

Ghostwire: Tokyo has a unique combat system, fantastic narrative, and a recreation of its titular city that is intricate and immersive, even if it feels a bit empty at times.

It’s a little bogged down in video game chores in the open world. However, when you’re on the trail of the main quest or any given side story, Ghostwire: Tokyo is a compelling adventure worth seeing through to the final spiritual release.

With plenty of fun and engaging diversions across its expansive map and a polished narrative that draws you into the plights of its compelling protagonists, Ghostwire Tokyo makes an impressive impression for a new IP from Tango Gameworks.

From story to combat, exploration and setting, every little detail stands out and combines to deliver one of the best games of the year. Ghostwire: Tokyo is a true love letter to Tokyo and Japan, with all its peculiarities and mythology treated with well-deserved deserved respect, delivering a unique experience that can only be created by a studio truly in love with a project.

Ghostwire: Tokyo really surprises by delivering a perfect balance of horror and action. It Exceeds initial expectations, and makes you feel more fear than expected thanks to the great transversal work of the Tango Gameworks team. With a nice gameplay, although not much in-depth, you'll find yourself in the midst of an incomprehensible chaos that will make you fall in love with it when unraveling it. Finally, the title will give you the best thing in a work of horror: not feeling momentary fear from an animal survival instinct, but a constant fear that makes you restless when you close your eyes before going to sleep.

This is basically an open-world first-person shooter that’s visibly inspired by and using a lot of the toys from survival horror, and it doesn’t quite manage that fusion with grace. However, Ghostwire is charming, interesting, and creepy enough that I’ve enjoyed my time with it.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a brilliant experiment in the clash of style and substance. Tokyo exists as an open world reminiscent of older games whose design may now feel ancient. Yet Tango Gameworks infuses nearly every aspect of the journey with a new, weird twist that no developer has thought to do before. Combat is striking and frenzied, even if it never reaches true complexity. And while the side content and the story may falter in their variety, enough praise cannot be heaped on the handling of Japanese folklore and the devotion towards cultural expression. Ghostwire: Tokyo may not be for everyone but I guarantee there is something in it for every single player to love.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is bursting with originality and also looks great. However, that can't prevent that typical open-world game routine creeps in towards the end of the game.

Ghostwire Tokyo is such a well-rounded game that it's clearly one of the best titles so far this year. The combat, the progression, the way in which Japanese folklore is introduced and the design of the scenarios are the strongest points of an experience that is easy to recommend.

A unique game, set in modern Tokyo but full of references to Japanese folklore, yokai and oni. We love exploration and side missions, designed as small ghost stories, but combat mechanics are too basic because of the limited enemy AI.

It was a real pleasure to send the Yokai back to their world. Ghostwire: Tokyo certainly has evident qualitative yields, sometimes leaving room for a certain playful and content redundancy, but as a whole it has a charisma that we believe deserves to be rewarded, either for the evocative reconstruction of Tokyo, or for the presence of a gameplay as simple as it is compelling, you want the attention paid to the writing and symbolism that characterize the stories of the city. Myth, folklore, irony and existential drama are then amalgamated in an adventure that has been able to prove to be a pleasant surprise.

Ghostwire Tokyo is another great addition to the PS5's growing library and we'd definitely recommend experiencing it. It's not perfect, but there's more than enough to keep you engrossed as the city slowly expands and offers more to explore. Between a gallery of ghouls, exciting combat, and a stunning recreation of Tokyo to wander through, it stands alone as something unique. Plus, you can pet dogs - what more could you ask for?

If Ghostwire Tokyo does not escape the "one more open world" syndrome, this is almost its only default. If the general structure is undeniably classic, the environment is fortunately much less so. The districts of Tokyo are faithfully represented, and exotic for us Westerners, while the morbid supernatural bestiary from Japanese folklore really does not lack charm.

In the end, Ghostwire: Tokyo will satisfy that weeb-y curiosity when it comes to Japanese folklore while also giving you a fair bit of busy-work to keep your playtime high. Its overall gameplay is pretty solid, the story is above average when it comes to games from Bethesda-owned studios, and the feeling you get when you reach that points of unease can hit you like a ton of bricks, even if it does get repetitive from the second you capture your first set of lost spirits and send them off to Ed.

Where Ghostwire: Tokyo loses some love is in the overall imprecision of its movement and mechanics, and a few elements that seem arbitrary or unexplained. Ghostwire: Tokyo’s combat is engaging and its environments are impressive, but that same combat can also frustrate and the environments are balanced against less impressive character models. As a new IP or franchise, Ghostwire: Tokyo is a great, but rough-around-the-edges step in a really interesting new direction.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a memorable journey that never overstays its welcome. With a unique combat system and plenty of options for exploration, it makes an admirable effort to keep players engaged even after the credits roll.

You will fall in love with Ghostwire Tokyo's visuals. The way Tango Gameworks designed the city of Tokyo and the ghosts that wander around it is amazing. And gameplay is pretty fun too. But, if you compare it to some of the main releases of the year, it is not enough. Maybe because the developers did not have time to create something really unique. This is a good game, but it could/should have been a great one.

Ghostwire Tokyo is essentially what I thought it would be, for better and for worse. It's charming but empty, ambitious but too formulaic, and it's got the most personality of any game I've played this year. I sincerely hope Tango has more Ghostwire in store, either as DLC or a sequel. Despite its issues, there's nothing else quite like it.

Any story may have been exorcised, but Ghostwire: Tokyo's collection of Japanese mythology, plus the potential for exploration, will spirit you away. [Issue#13, p.82]

Ghostwire: Tokyo stands out with distinct elemental combat that feels fun to perform, and great care has been put into its haunting urban settings. The story and tactics lack development and variety in later chapters, but it’s still worth exploring Tango’s spooky rendition of Tokyo.

A compelling story steeped in Japanese folklore is enough to overcome the repetitive battles.

Ghostwire Tokyo is rarely a scary game, Tango stopping short of full horror, but it still has the ability to unsettle. It may be an acquired taste and far from flawless, but its distinctive approach and commitment to its ethos has plenty of spirit.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a great addition to the Tango Gameworks catalog. Its handling of Japanese mythology, main characters and side quests make exploring this haunted city something special to experience. However, the game had some monotonous combat and character movement that felt heavy and odd at the same time.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a fascinating and very worthwhile new title from Tango Gameworks. While there’s plenty of room for improvement in the main narrative and in establishing its antagonists, the content of the side missions ensures the game remains interesting throughout. Its ability to transport players into its supernatural Tokyo is not to be understated, and uncovering the different Japanese spirits while helping those unable to move on gives the game a thoroughly engaging loop that is hard to put down. In an already strong gaming year, Ghostwire: Tokyo is another title absolutely worth investing time into.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a first person horror game, nothing too revolutionary in this day and age, but this game has a ton of personality, something that is very hard to say about other horror games today. I would love more attention to the soundtrack, but it's amazing visuals and fun gameplay are amazing enough.

If you like games that are fast-paced and that don’t bog you down with gameplay elements that can feel like busywork, Ghostwire: Tokyo may not be for you. If you don’t mind the slower pace, however, and are excited by the prospect of busting ghosts with magic thrown from your hands, chances are you’ll love it. It may feel like virtual tourism during a cataclysmic event at times, but that’s the charm of it. And there’s plenty of it to be done as you traipse back and forth across Tokyo trying to thwart a Hannya mask-wearing psycho.

Ghostwire: Tokyo mixes unique ideas with formulaic design, and though the latter does affect the experience, it is ultimately still a solid, enjoyable game that's well worth experiencing.

Ghostwire: Tokyo will provide fun experience for horror games lovers with solid gameplay and good variety for its imaginative enemies. However, we can't help but feel the game is a bit forgettable overall.

I didn’t know what to expect with Ghostwire: Tokyo at first. It uniquely meshes aspects of horror and action with the deep mythos of Japanese folklore. The game absolutely crushes it in terms of visual and technical performance, utilizing every feature of next-gen on the PlayStation 5. However, its disappointing narrative and repetitive open world features hold it back from being truly amazing.

Ghostwire: Tokyo’s biggest problem is that it takes very few chances. Unfortunately, the gameplay is just too familiar for its own good. It’s got a great premise, and I loved its version of Tokyo. However, the story and setting are in a framework that’s all too familiar. It also has a hard time figuring out whether it wants to be a linear or open world title. Despite these issues, it has a compelling story, and I enjoyed the journey from start to finish. It’s great seeing an accessible AAA title like this utilize Japanese folklore as its inspiration and shows just how far we’ve come from the 90s where JRPGs were downplaying those sorts of things.

Tango Gameworks' video game proposal will be a milestone. Without ever reaching perfection, Ghostwire Tokyo marks the spirits. The 1:1 scale reconstruction of the Japanese capital, the exploration of a supernatural and urban open world as well as the ethereal combat system alone are worth the detour. Admittedly, the story is sometimes set back and a certain feeling of repetition appears at the end of the course, but these few flaws are compensated for by the very singularity of the work imagined by Shinji Mikami and his teams. Ghostwire Tokyo is indeed that long-awaited memorable trip.

The gameplay won't let you down, and the combat never feels lacklustre but, unfortunately, Ghostwire's story isn't what I hoped it would be.

While it still has room to grow, Ghostwire: Tokyo is truly a one-of-a-kind experience thanks to its breathtaking atmosphere, gorgeous open world, impressive stories, and exhilarating combat.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a unique blend of FPS, RPG, and horror with a creative twist on how we approach fighting in an FPS. Despite a few grievances about the length and ambition of the project, it is still a good game, but unfortunately it merely toes the line between good and great, never quite finding its footing. Still, Ghostwire: Tokyo is well worth picking up.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is an impressively bold step in a new director for Tango Gameworks, and it pays off beautifully. Tango’s artists and designers are working wonders with zany and menacing creatures, set against the wonderful backdrop of a colour-struck Shibuya. While its leading pair and open world design stumble at times, Ghostwire’s wonderfully weird side stories and engrossing combat, more than pick up any slack and work in harmony with the game's more zany and offbeat elements to create a world that hasn't just got looks, but one hell of a spirit, too.

Ghostwire: Tokyo doesn't reinvent the wheel when it comes to open-world games, but its unique setting, tremendous attention to detail, and singular combat make it stand out amongst its contemporaries. The story stumbles and not all of the side missions are particularly engaging, yet these aspects are easy to push to the back of your mind when you're using finger guns to tear through corrupted spirits with dazzling aplomb. Shinji Mikami is a legendary director, but taking a backseat and letting new voices come to the fore has paid off.

Ghostwire: Tokyo looks stunning throughout, with impressive enemy designs and interesting locations, despite a few issues with its gameplay.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a shooter unlike anything I’ve ever played before. Its depiction of Japan is frighteningly lifelike in its execution, begging for us to explore its abandoned streets and dimly lit alleyways in search of wayward spirits that all have stories to tell. Whether you’re bounding across rooftops or doing battle in construction sites, it is constantly surprising in ways that few games in recent memory have managed to. It is fresh, exciting, and a demonstration of what a major studio is capable of when they’re given the freedom to tackle a new universe without compromise. It isn’t perfect, but it’s so different, and that should be more than enough for people to take notice.

Ghostwire Tokyo pays tribute to japanese folklore and criticizes the contradictions of society. it deals with existential themes and tells a story of loss and resilience.

I fully expect some people won't be smitten with the game the way I am, and I think it's completely understandable if you don't want to forgive the game for that. But if GhostWire connects with you, I think it'll really connect with you. It's weird and unique, and I think it's great to see this kind of game get this kind of budget, put it all on the table, and use that money to do some baffling and great art. And for that alone, I can't help but love GhostWire.

Ghostwire: Tokyo offered Japanese developer Tango Gameworks a chance to mix things up after the first two The Evil Within games, and the result is an open-world action adventure that definitely has its moments. Unfortunately, those moments come together with some missed potential and a lack of truly fleshing out all of the ideas presented. In the end, Ghostwire: Tokyo is a good game—but one that could have been something more.

Shinji Mikami's latest game is an engaging and mesmerizing trip into Japanese horror folklore.

Ghostwire: Tokyo ends up being a satisfying experience. With a wonderful world to explore, excellent combat that gets quite deep over time, and an interesting story, there’s a lot to recommend about it. Somehow it also ends up feeling a bit incomplete, though. There was room here for more gameplay variety and to really explore more with some of these characters, and doing so might have turned a good game into a great one. As is, the ending feels like it comes a bit out of nowhere, leaving me to wonder if the team's original vision was a bit larger. Still, if you’re looking for a creepy game where you strike fear into the creatures that go bump in the night, check out Ghostwire: Tokyo.

Ghostwire: Tokyo brings a unique world bursting with atmosphere, making Tokyo a pleasure to explore. The entire game is steeped in Japanese folklore, giving it a unique twist. Thanks to the battles and engaging characters, Ghostwire: Tokyo is worth a purchase. The combat can feel a bit limited in the long run and technically it's not perfect, but we'll look past that with love because the core of the game is so cool.

Ghostwire: Tokyo was not the game I was expecting from Tango Gameworks, but I definitely enjoyed it. Blending magic-filled FPS action with Japanese mythology and an open world Tokyo that reminds me of the Yakuza series, it stands out from the crowd even if it’s not truly groundbreaking. Ghostwire has a lot of potential as a new franchise and I’m looking forward to seeing what Tango Gameworks does with it next.

Ghostwire Tokyo is a great adventure that manages to deliver a unique experience and shows true love for Japanese folklore. Even though some aspects like the combat and the story can be improved, we have enjoyed every second we’ve spent playing it.

An unusual spellcasting system and many interesting references to Japanese folklore make Ghostwire: Tokyo a unique experience that’s worth your time despite the game’s disappointingly small variety of enemies and their poor AI.

When Ghostwire: Tokyo capitalises on its spooky surroundings by whisking you off into strange dimensions, fighting evil with powers you shoot from your hands, it’s excellent. The haunted, deserted Shibuya is a thrill to explore, and helping spirits with their final requests provides some engaging mini-adventures. Where it fumbles slightly is in the delivery of its open world, which regularly feels a bit old school as you chip away at the fog of the map, cleansing fast travel points as you go and repeating some filler tasks. Still, with a curious mystery laid out before you and a creepy atmosphere that will keep you on your toes, Ghostwire: Tokyo provides plenty of spooks and intriguing diversions around every corner that are just begging for your attention.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is by no means a perfect video game. Ultimately, I was less interested in the story than the city it takes place in. I never quite found myself with skill points left unused, but the benefit of using them didn't scale particularly well as somewhere after level 20 it became increasingly incremental at best. And while it took much longer than it has for me historically, the game's open-world nature did eventually wear on me and I found myself skipping more optional content than at the start. It is, however, a perfectly fine video game, and an excellent example of what the PlayStation 5 can do in the right hands.

GhostWire: Tokyo has managed to present a realistic Tokyo atmosphere with its basis based on Japanese folk tales, and despite its shortcomings in storytelling, it has managed to be a fun action-adventure game.

The story is there just to make you mildly interested in the game, which is kind of disappointing. Such an interesting world truly deserves much more exposition and deeper characterization of the cast, but if you’re looking for these traits in Ghostwire: Tokyo, you’re not going to find them. What you’ll find though is an interesting eerie world and lots of Western-like gunplay where you’ll be using your fingers to spit out psychic abilities rather than bullets, and that’s perfectly fine.

Atmospheric, pretty ego trip through a Tokyo full of spooky creatures - with an open game world according to scheme and expandable shooter mechanics.

If Ghostwire: Tokyo appeared bewildering in promotional coverage it’s not because it’s unlike any other game so much as because it’s like so many all at once. Mechanically unfocused though it may be, it still earns stripes through sheer dint of atmosphere.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is neither a failure nor a huge success, as it fails to offer anything new in terms of story telling, gameplay or world design, but it can still be an entertaining action adventure.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a game that fails to live up to its potential, trapped by a lack of ambition and an uninspiring old-school open world. The audiovisual presentation is good, if flawed, but on its own it can't elevate a short and monotonous game. A pity.

A compelling concept and a beautifully realised world, Ghostwire: Tokyo leverages Japanese folklore and a unique combat system to provide a unique open-world experience. While some aspects of the combat feel underdeveloped and the game structure has been done-to-death, Ghostwire: Tokyo’s uniqueness helps it stand well above where you’d expect it to.

Ghostwire Tokyo shines for its setting and development of its protagonists, although it abuses narrative that does not contribute much in its final episode. The work at the level of creating a desolate world has been perfect by Tango Gameworks. The main problem of the adventure is that it is halfway between genres.

In the end it’s interesting because even though there’s thematic weight and meaning behind all of the open-world elements, they never really come together in a way that feels in-line with the smooth hand movements of Akito and KK performing a charged up elemental attack. Disappointing combat, lacklustre progression, and way too many collectibles-to-find aside, the Tokyo you get to explore serves as an impressive and memorable backdrop for a supernatural tale. With some great cinematic storytelling across the main narrative and the many side-missions you discover, Ghostwire: Tokyo becomes more than the sum of its parts.

Despite my perceived flaws of Ghostwire: Tokyo, I'd still recommend it as something to experience to players of all levels, simply for the fact that I did enjoy playing it and learning from it. Also, I wanted to give respect to Tango Gameworks for heading in a somewhat different design avenue. It's a ghostbusting romp through Tokyo, and if someone asks if you want to play it, say yes.

Ghostwire Tokyo is a good game, with an interesting combat system and a very peculiar atmosphere, enclosed in a bland open world. We would have gladly preferred a smaller/linear map in exchange for more interesting contents and missions. Luckily, cast and main missions won't disappoint those looking for a fun weird story full of phantoms and shinto stuff.

Ghostwire: Tokyo isn't for everyone, but it gives us a glimpse into what Tango is capable of, and I hope they push the envelope a little further next time.

For those that like the supernatural and action-adventure games you’ll have a great time with Ghostwire Tokyo. If you’re coming into it expecting a terrifying horror experience you’ll be disappointed but there are still moments there that will get under your skin. Bethesda’s PlayStation swan song might not hit all the right notes but it still delivers a melody that’ll be stuck in your head for a while.

Despite its awkward pacing, one-note combat and tedious open world collectible hunting, Ghostwire: Tokyo is as unique and atmospheric as they come. Side-stepping its horror roots, Tango Gameworks delves into the depths of Japanese folklore and urban myth through the lens of the modern world and the results are as refreshingly charming as they are routinely unnerving.

As a brand new IP, Ghostwire: Tokyo shows a lot of promise with its strong animation work, solid combat and interesting world design, but it falters along the path to the finish line with a story arc that feels rushed along with an excessive use of typical and tired open world game design tropes.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is an interesting new mix of horror 'shooter' with excellent enemy design and aesthetics, but relies strongly on its eastern thematic to stay interesting past a certain playtime. However, despite the repetition, it does it's best to offer enough to keep players invested and interested enough with its variety and story, especially if you have even a slight interest in Japan or its vast mythology.

For the duration of its story, it grips like a grasping, otherworldly arm. [Issue#371, p.104]

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a game that we greatly enjoyed. Unfortunately, Tango Gameworks' approach was to create a game where style is dominant and little substance is offered. In terms of setting and art design it is one of the most unique games we have seen in a long time. However, it is a bland and run-of-the-mill title gameplay-wise.

Ghostwire Tokyo has some weaknesses, but with its fun to play combat and the beautiful presentation of Shibuya and its “visitors”, it will definitely pique your interest.

Ghostwire: Tokyo turns out to be a huge disappointment. Despite its fascinating setting and its interesting plot, the open-world-gameplay turns out to be boring and monotone. The overall game lacks variety and depth.

Quotation forthcoming.

Ghostwire: Tokyo doesn't tap into all of its potential. There's nothing wrong with it per se (save for some repetitiveness) but there's nothing really unique about it either. Maybe except the visuals? It looks really nice, and all in all, it is a sturdy, by-the-book game with mediocre gameplay.

Ghostwire: Tokyo has a unique "modern ghost" cultural setting, but the tedious open-world design dilutes this feature, leaving the gaming experience repetitive and monotonous. The boring battle experience and dull main storyline will down its rating from "worth a try" to "not very recommended". Of course, for players who love Japanese "oni" culture and various urban legends, or who don't feel repulsed by checklist-based open-world games, this game is still worth watching.

When it comes to presenting an accurate and impressively detailed version of Tokyo, Ghostwire makes a great first impression. Despite literally being a ghost town, the city feels alive and captures neon-soaked pop-culture as well as ancient mythology and folklore. The two main characters deliver a convincing performance, too, and their story is entertaining, despite being quite short. Everything else, though – the combat system, the progression and the quest design – is the bare minimum of what’s acceptable from a big budget open world game. The combat, while fun to a degree, is especially thin with just three laughable spells and enemies without any special tactics or weakpoints. The unlockable upgrades are boring and unoriginal and the side quests, while having interesting setups, are mostly short and lack satisfying payoffs. Still, there is fun to be had in exploring ghost-infested Tokyo – it’s just not a creative, unique sort of fun, but rather a pretty mindless and extremely familiar one.

Most potent of all, there is a strain of urban fear running through its design—not of monsters but of the city itself as an isolating entity, rendering you unreachable.

Ultimately, Ghostwire: Tokyo's world-building, Japanese folklore, and character dynamics are engaging, but the pacing and combat weigh down the middle section.

Tango Gameworks' latest outing won't scratch that survival horror itch the same way The Evil Within does, but Ghostwire: Tokyo has more than enough going for it to warrant at least one playthrough. A creative skill set keeps combat fresh and engaging even if enemies aren't the most in-depth when it comes to challenging the player. Exploration is enhanced by parkour-esque platforming that makes navigating in first-person a thrill. Tokyo is a moody, lonely setting dripping in atmosphere at all times. Level design is perhaps too restrained when it comes to eclectic set pieces, but the open world packs itself full of secrets while pacing its main content out appropriately. Ghostwire: Tokyo is a worthy entry in Tango Gameworks' catalogue.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is an odd but thrilling adventure that mixes action, horror and Japanese traditions. Exploring a demon-filled Tokyo is decently frightening, while the battles are both intense and somewhat original. Some repetitive moments and an uneven story lower the experience a few notches, but in the end, the positive parts outweigh the bad ones.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a gobsmackingly gorgeous action-horror with enemies that you won’t forget any time soon, not only for their eclectic appearances but their formidable ferocity in combat too. It’s a moreish game, and I want to trawl through every inch of this odd facsimile of the capital city, though I hope that Tango Gameworks rolls out an accessibility settings update to allow even more fans to enjoy this glittery and ghostly game.

Ghostwire: Tokyo feels like a throwback to a different era of action game design. It takes an off-beat approach to world design, story encounters, and combat pacing that won't be for everyone, but if you can get it to click into place you'll have a resoundingly chill time hunting ghosts throughout Tokyo.

With superb visual design and an incredibly well-realised rendition of Tokyo, Ghostwire gets a lot right, but just doesn't quite have the gameplay chops to push it over the top.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is at its best when it's reimagining Japanese folklore in visually astonishing ways and delivering moving visualizations of what it’s like to pass on. It’s less compelling as a checkbox-driven open-world game, with limited content stretched too thin across its apocalyptic version of Shibuya.

You’re going to have fun with this game. For the criticisms I list above, I do think that Tango Gameworks has, with guidance from Bethesda (no doubt), created a refined and highly playable open-world game. It’s one that ticks all the boxes and does so in such a way that’s hard to actively fault. Yet, it's also so frustrating. The hints of what the developers wanted it to be are there. They wanted to make a Noh-inspired, yurei-and-yokai drenched blend of Shinto, Buddhism and neon-modern Japan. That would have been incredible. Sadly that didn't happen. Instead, I was left with the impression that I’d just played a Ubisoft Goes To Tokyo farce, and that left me feeling very deflated indeed.

Ghostwire Tokyo is a pretty good game, entertaining, but it shouldn't be unforgettable. Artistically, it is very beautiful, the city of Tokyo is pleasant to explore but gameplay mechanics do not follow and are a bit outdated.

The moments in-between -- especially those the game deems most critical to plot and progression -- may not have the same punch, but Ghostwire: Tokyo though briefly just about shines through where it matters. A journey you will actively and quickly decide against sprinting through.

Ghostwire: Tokyo’s vision of Shibuya is eccentric and captivating. Exploring every nook and cranny to learn more about the Japanese myths and legends that inspired the game makes for a compelling gameplay hook. It’s a shame that despite some interesting ideas, parts of the story campaign feel like they were left on the cutting room floor.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a thrilling paranormal rollercoaster with ups and downs. Exploring the city of Tokyo is fun and defeating your first few enemies is a blast, its flaws also become apparent very quickly. The game lacks enemy variety and the same goes for Akito's weapon arsenal. Ghostwire gets a little repetitive and sadly doesn't find a way to fix that problem before the credits roll.

Ghostwire: Tokyo offers a lot of good but it’s hidden behind even more tedium. I'm left wishing that the team had more time to polish their ideas, so it's hard for me to recommend Ghostwire: Tokyo. That isn’t to say I didn’t have fun with what's well made. What doesn’t, though, feels like a patch was thrown on instead of fixing the larger issues, which ultimately bogged down my experience.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is now representative of games that have been severely damaged by an open world.

Without being catastrophic, the result is unsatisfactory in almost all areas, and we are saddened to see so many good ideas badly exploited, and with wasted potential. The combat system is original but badly balanced. The atmosphere is intriguing and the city has a real verticality, but it is completely flooded with repetitive fights and items to collect. The narration could have saved the whole thing, but it quickly stumbles, and ends after only a few hours without giving any reason to be interested. The direction is equally inconsistent, with significant ups and downs. If instead of investing its limited resources in a failed open world, the studio had focused on the rest, maybe Ghostwire Tokyo would have been a good game.

Ghostwire: Tokyo has an interesting setting, but a lackluster story, monotonous combat, and disappointing visuals make for a forgettable adventure that doesn't justify its next-gen-only status, or the full asking price.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a horror-themed shooter that features a cool, ghostly premise and a lavishly rendered open-world Tokyo. However, it doesn't provide many scares or particularly engaging action.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is not a bad game. I was interested enough to stick with it and engage with as much of it as possible. If you have more patience for open-world exploration and tedious collectable-finding than I do, then you might get more out of it. I didn’t go into detail about this, but the story is decent and well-told, and that counts for something. This game is also bursting with visual flavor and interest, the kind of which you won’t find elsewhere. But the majority of the game is spent in that open-world formula. Clear fog, gather items and souls, turn in for XP and money, do sidequests and tasks for that area. It’s all in the service of filling a percentage bar, and it just gets boring after a while. No matter how pretty or interesting the surroundings were, once I got well and truly stuck in the rut, I honestly stopped noticing.

Ghostwire Tokyo is a good game. It nails atmosphere and looks next-generation on the PS5.There’s clever use of the new controller options. But when it comes to video games, gameplay is ultimately everything and this title simply won’t blow you away.

This quest for the future of a cursed Tokyo is unfortunately a little bland, accompanied by a silly story and a combat system that feels too easy. If you like your Japanese mythology and eastern religions, however, this might just end up being a real treat for you.

There are plenty of action and horror games on PS5 that give you a much more varied experience and are paced in such a way that the engagement will last throughout a full runtime. Why Ghostwire: Tokyo couldn’t do that will always be a mystery.

Ghostwire: Tokyo could have been something really special, but Tango Gameworks misses the mark. There's a ton of work put in the creepy atmosphere of the game. But things get boring very quickly with very repetitive gameplay and frustrating combats. A true missed opportunity.

Ghostwire: Tokyo envisions a world that is wonderful and interesting to explore at first glance, but soon reveals itself to be shallow and lacking in its writing and combat.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a good open-world adventure that wishes it was a great scripted horror story. The game is at its best when it straps you on rails and breaks down reality around you, but all too often you’re left to wander an empty Tokyo with little to say for it.

Ghostwire Tokyo is not a bad game but it sounds hollow when we put down the controller after the few 10h of game he offers. His Tokyo is very beautiful and wonderfully transcribed, the power-based gameplay is effective, but it lacks possibilities and we repeat all the time the same thing and the same actions which makes the overall adventure redundant. In addition, it doesn’t tell much... Too bad, because the theme and the atmosphere are there!

Ghostwire: Tokyo’s open world city is beautiful, and its world-building, environment and creature designs are also excellent. But even with a sensible runtime and a brisk plot, the game spends too much time engaging you in repeating, unchanging, and unexciting activities. It’s the terrible and taxing curse of open world monotony, plaguing a piece of work that otherwise has so many unique and original ideas.

Ghostwire: Tokyo feels like a step back from what Tango Gameworks has produced in the past. While its combat system is fun in bursts, it becomes repetitive far too quickly. The open world is jam-packed with busywork, and the story doesn't go anywhere interesting either. Excellent PS5 DualSense controller support, haunting elements, and nice visuals aside, Ghostwire: Tokyo will have to go down as a miss.

I’d love to see what the initial vision for Ghostwire: Tokyo was, before former creative director Ikumi Nakamura’s sudden departure from Tango Gameworks, because what we ended up getting feels like the shell of a different, far more interesting game. A rendition of Shibuya that’s authentic, atmospheric, eerie, and brimming personality deserves better than the most banal version of a generic open-world formula that ran out of steam a decade ago. Despite all the potential in its concept, the Ghostwire we got is—despite its ghostly theme—soulless.

An unfocused jaunt around Tokyo’s unnecessarily open world will provide for a solid way to while away the hours, but don’t expect the nail-biting survival-horror experience that Tango Gameworks is known for as you pound the pavement ticking off boxes.

At times it feels like the game’s incredible art direction, music and visual style deserve a game that’s better mechanically, but when it all comes together, Ghostwire Tokyo is one of the more unique games in the triple-A space, if you can ignore its gameplay stumbles.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is, heartbreakingly, not spooky. It's also not particularly interesting, and I certainly didn't find it very fun to play. I'm sure genre-fanatics will find something to latch on to, but nothing ever quite hooked me enough to make the journey feel compelling.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is relaxing and pretty, and spending time exploring its rain-soaked metropolis is almost worth the price of admission by itself. It is also, however, a disappointing game that fails to fulfill its own potential with a repetitive combat system, too much checklist-ticking busywork, and an undercooked main storyline that fails to live up to its promise and contains no notable secondary characters. Ghostwire: Tokyo isn’t a bad game — it just feels like it could have been so much more.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is full of wasted potential. This insanely detailed, beautiful and atmospheric vision of the Japanese capital is lost to monotonous combat and gameplay.