Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut (PS5)
By: Sony
RELEASED to much fanfare last July as Sony's last major PS4 exclusive, Ghost of Tsushima was a gorgeous take on the Assassin's Creed formula set in feudal Japan and without the bloat.
A ripping yarn of old-school samurai, its historic ballet of grand-scale cruelty shifted over 6.5 million units, nabbing a clutch of awards in the process, including a BAFTA for audio achievement.
It's also the latest PS4 hit to be given a makeover, leaning on the power of PS5 for even more jaw-drop and stuffing a brand-new island into the mix.
Sucker Punch's samurai adventure was a fittingly epic swansong for the PS4, as Jin Sakai took on a Mongol warlord in his backyard – and now one of last year's prettiest games is even more ravishing on Sony's newest, with razor-sharp 2160p resolution running at a buttery 60fps.
The PS5 controller's bag of tricks is milked mercilessly as every clash of steel and horse gallop is heard and felt through the Dual Sense. Pulling a bow is met with resistance on your trigger-finger while new mini-games bank on its motion controls. Best of all, loading times are practically non-existent.
But if all these bells and whistles aren't quite enough for Tsushima vets to double-dip, the main selling point is a brand-new chunk of content set on Iki Island, where Jin is forced to deal with his father's past cruelties as he takes on a shaman known as The Eagle.
Buffed to the same high shine that made the original game such a heart-breaker, Iki's landscape – all swaying palm trees and tropical beaches – offers even more oriental acreage to discover.
Its horror-tinged mysticism can be polished off in around five hours, though there's at least four times that for those prepared to ferret out every secret and Easter egg.
Exploring Iki involves new tactics and exploration techniques, including a horse charge, where your steed can gallop into enemies like Red Rum on Ritalin, while the chapter calls on beefy combat chops, presenting a welcome challenge to those who found the original too easy-peasy.
A resplendent rehash, Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut is arguably one of the finest games on PS5, chock-full of content for newcomers, while its Iki Island level is alone worth the price of admission – even if you've already been big in Japan on PS4.
