Ghostwire: Tokyo PS5 showcase reveals first gameplay, new details

Ghostwire: TokyoThe Evil Within’s next title, a collaboration between Bethesda Softworks and Tango Gameworks has been shrouded by mystery ever since its unveiling in 2019. On Thursday, Sony, Tango shared new information about the next exclusive PlayStation 5 title. The game is due to be released on Xbox One and Windows PC on March 25th.

Tango Gameworks founder Shinji Miami asked his coworkers to explain the video during a recent showcase. Ghostwire: Tokyo, soliciting diverse responses. Character designer Reiko Hiroshima called it “paranormal,” while programmer Tsuyoshi Okugawa described the game simply as “authentic Tokyo.” Game designer Suguru Murakoshi, however, had an unexpected response: “strawberry shortcake.”

“The origins of it are truly Japanese,” Murakoshi explained. “In a Japanese studio, and a game set in Japan, it’s a game where everyone can find something to love. With some sweet and tangy parts, just like a strawberry shortcake.”

It is easier to say: Ghostwire: TokyoIt is about the Tokyo paranormal events. The city’s residents disappear, a deathly fog overtakes much of the city, and it’s up to protagonist Akito and his partner KK — a spirit who inhabits Akito’s body and grants him supernatural powers — to cleanse Shibuya’s streets of yokai, ghosts, Slender salarymen, headless schoolkids, and other paranormal creatures. Hannya is a mysterious, malicious, masked man who tries to stop Akito & KK.

Image: Tango Gameworks/Bethesda Softworks

Ghostwire: Tokyo is unlike Tango Gameworks’ earlier catalog. It’s a first-person spellcasting action-adventure game, not a linear survival horror game. There’s similarity to Bethesda’s existing catalog of open-world adventures and first-person shooters. However, in Ghostwire: TokyoYour weapons are yours, and the monsters that you kill are based on Japanese folklore and legends.

“The power of the hands plays such an important role,” game director Kenji Kimura says. Akito will be able to manipulate the elements — earth, wind, fire, and water — against strange creatures. He’ll also get a bow and arrow, grapple-hook his way across rooftops, and use stealth to overcome combat situations. And it’s not just the ghosts and demons trying to stop Akito from succeeding; Tokyo itself will get twisted and corrupted to mess with our hero’s mind.

Ghostwire: TokyoIt will officially arrive on March 25, at 11:59 p.m., for both the PlayStation 5 and Windows PC. The game will be available for early access starting March 22, through the PlayStation 5 (where it will be a one-year console exclusive) and Windows PC. Ghostwire: Tokyo’s Deluxe Edition.