Last year, back when public events still where a non-taboo topic, Bethesda came out and announced they would be holding their own E3 conference once again, much to the sceptical raised eyes of the gaming world. Previous years had met such an announcement with excitement; "Bethesda's doing a conference? Well then they must have something to show, afterall they wouldn't just flush all those marketing dollars down the drain just to waste everyone's time, right?" But it seems we all underestimated the value of keeping up appearances because Bethesda had done exactly that for two years straight beforehand. E3 2019 was their chance to change all that, and what we got was- different from what I was expecting... I'll say that much. Instead of showing a brand new project that the studio was working on, Bethesda made appeasement announcements with Fallout 76 (or 'poor apologies', as some might say) and spoke about a great deal of games they were publishing for. It was through this event that I first learned about; 'GhostWire Tokyo'
Initially is stood out as quite the interesting title for a Bethesda game, as it seemed to aim itself at the horror market, but with a different approach than the typical 'survival horror' stance that we've seen a little too much with recent decent-budget horror titles such as 'The Evil Within'. (Which Bethesda also published, and who's team were behind this title.) 'GhostWire Tokyo' looked like more of a supernatural thriller that whirled around the weird and abnormal situations and encounters that can fit so nicely into the genre of horror. Whilst we saw precious little out of this game at the time, what we saw was enough to generate a little bit of buzz; alongside the memorable appearance from the hyper-animated representative for the game whom I believe now is no longer associated with the company or the game. (Which is a shame.) This weird surrealist take on the city of Tokyo seemed to really resonate with audiences and thus some anticipation began to build for our next foray into it's secrets.
Cue the Playstation 5 reveal event and expectations were reworked once more as it was revealed that 'GhostWire' found it's way into their presentation, instead of Bethesda's. This is doubly confusing as Bethesda has always typically held a tight-knit relationship with Microsoft in previous years but now they seem to be getting all buddy-buddy with Sony. Whatever could be the story behind this little discrepancy? Regardless of the truth to it, the result was that we all got see some new 'Ghostwire' footage running on a PS5, and that's something to celebrate no matter what console you own. Could the title still manage to maintain it's aura of mystery, or would the gentle unravelling of it's mystique prove detrimental to it's rugged allure? Well, let's assess!
'GhostWire: Tokyo' puts players in the shoes of one of the last remaining people in the city of Tokyo after a mysterious event has led to the disappearance of 99% of her residents. In the place of people, lie ghostly visitations from otherworldly creatures that are known as 'visitors', which only the player (as far as we know) has the ability to fight. Thus starts the plot of what sounds like a vaguely interesting anime, but I'd be lying if I said it didn't have some potential to grow into a interesting title if handled right. As is the trend with modern horror-adjacent titles; this game will take place in full first person, allowing the audience to be right-in-the-face of their spectral foes, only in this game we'll actually have the capabilities to fight back against them, so I think it'll be interesting to step into this perspective without it being a vehicle to highlight our helplessness. (Getting tired of running away in every horror game.)
Of the footage that we have seen thusfar, I think it's safe to say that the star of the show for this game is actually it's enemy design because wow, these 'vistors' look crazy'! In the Playstation 5 footage alone I spotted Slenderman-looking guys with umbrellas, these floating enemies who look like Ballade's from Kingdom Hearts and, of course, a headless girl wearing a Seifuku. (This is set in Japan, afterall.) A lot of these enemies have the trend of looking more creepy than outright horrific, and that's kind of the main takeaway that I get from 'Ghostwire'. (Something that is probably supported by the ability to fight back against these monsters.) One aspect of the game that all these enemies do contribute to is it's diversity, and I'm excited to see if these are going to be the sorts of enemies that all require some sort of special technique to 'seal' them; as one might expect from a title like this. Even if they do just turn out to be fist-fodder, however, I'm still appreciative of the chance to see other cultures showoff their cryptids and legends. (Some of the coolest legends are the local ones.)
The actual battling of the game is another feature we got a glimpse of thanks to the PS5 trailer, and I'm glad to say that everything looks quite dynamic and fun so far. Apparently the combat director has described this sort of gameplay as "Karate meets magic" and whilst that may make me personally shudder in recollection of 'Jade Empire', I understand where they're coming from. In the gameplay we can see our protagonist firing balls of chi from their hands and sticking their full fist through some creatures chest to drag out it's soul. It's a very 'hands on' combat system that I predict will gel very well in a creepy horror-esque aesthetic because of the way that it forces the player to get up close and personal with their attackers, rather than stay afar and shoot them from a distance. (Although, to play Devil's advocate, that forced-familiarity may result in the enemies losing their scare-factor a little too soon.) I'd imagine that the whole 'magic karate' angle will also leave ample room for RPG levelling mechanics down the line, which I'm almost certain will exist knowing both Bethesda and Tango Gameworks' last 2 titles.
If there is one complaint that I've having about this game thusfar, it's got to be the graphics which, once again, fail to scream 'Next gen' to me. Again, don't misread me, I do very much like the slightly stylised aesthetic direction which beautifully moulds with the surrealist angle behind the very concept, but in regards to the technological capabilities of what I saw achieved in that trailer, nothing astounded me. Nothing even made me stop and go "Well, I'm going to need a PS5 to play that!" Which is a shame considering that so far the game has only been confirmed for release on Playstation 5 and windows. What gives Bethesda? Don't tell me you're about to go down that cursed 'exclusivity' route; you've lost too much of my respect already. And I find it really hard to believe that this game can't run on current gen considering how the current footage looks. (Fingers crossed for a more inclusive platform announcement a little further along in development.)
In conclusion, 'GhostWire: Tokyo' looks to be the kind of title with the capacity to surprise, and that's the sort of trait that is severely lacking in modern gaming. Looking at the title from a narrative perspective (as I am often wont to do) I can envision a lot of potential from this title to escalate into abject insanity as things go on. And I say that as a fan who played and was enraptured by the developer's delightfully weird previous title; The Evil Within. My excitement is slightly sullied by the prospect of impromptu exclusivity, but I won't raise by pitchfork until anything is made official. So keep getting weirder, Tango; I want to see what sort of nightmarish studio you become 10 years down the line. (They may even start giving 'Red Barrels' a run for their money)
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