To the surprise of many fans, a new trailer of Ghostwire: Tokyo was dropped during yesterday’s Sony PlayStation Showcase. This trailer was the first bit of information fans received of the game since the announcement that it would be delayed in July. The new trailer made sure to showcase horrifying enemies and a few glimpses of gameplay.
Ghostwire: Tokyo is a first-person action-adventure game in which the player uses various paranormal and psychic abilities to defeat the variety of spirits and monsters infesting the streets of Tokyo. One night, out of nowhere, the main character finds themselves alone in Tokyo, all other civilians having vanished. Almost immediately, the character’s paranormal and psychic abilities manifest and he begins fighting spirits, looking for answers. The combat-oriented gameplay takes inspiration from kuji-kiri hand movements and translates it into the way the player-character moves during fights.
Most of the gameplay appears to involve defensive mechanics, having the player block attacks from the enemies as they slowly push towards him. A few elemental abilities seemingly pop up, particularly at 0:42 of the trailer, where the player counters an attack with a sort of fire ability. Other abilities shown include the power to use a sort of force field to knock down enemies in the player’s path and a wrist-crossing block that appears to do some sort of damage. By far the coolest ability, however, is a sort of grapple-hook power that allows the player to leap up skyscrapers and lasso in enemies. Enemies appear to be killable when a player does enough damage to them, wherein they reveal their ‘core’ for the player to destroy. It is only by destroying these enemies that the player can beat them.
The most interesting facets of this game are, obviously, the enemies. Each, terrifying in their own right, appears to be based on different Japanese horrors or folk tales. Characters such as the Kuchisake-onna (“slit-mouthed woman”), malevolent headless school children, and even Slenderman-like enemies make an appearance in the trailer. The Kuchisake-onna, in particular, is the clearest example of an enemy based off of legend. In Japanese folklore, the Kuchisake-onna was known as a maimed woman who carried around a large pair of scissors in order to maim and kill people. This inspiration provides a recognizable yet unique set of enemies bound to have unique attack types to keep players on their feet.
Although having two trailers now, much of Ghostwire: Tokyo is still unknown. The main plot of the story has yet to be shown, the trailers only providing fans with a few hints. It appears that the main antagonist of the game is a character clad in a bleeding Oni mask. A woman by the name of “Mari” appears to be the main character’s driving motivation, as a scene of her in a hospital bed with the enemy looming over her flashes by briefly. Whether the player will be fighting to save her life is still unclear.
The game was first announced back in 2019 at Bethesda’s E3 conference. Since then, development has steadily continued. Besides the July delay announcement, production has appeared to have gone smoothly for the much-anticipated game. Although Ghostwire is being produced by Bethesda, it is unique in that it will remain a timed console exclusive.
Although no clear release date has been issued, Ghostwire: Tokyo is expected to release in Spring of 2022.