Ghost Line: Tokyo Weird. Tango Game Studio‘The latest you’re racing in Shibuya, fighting demon yokai by releasing the energy in your hands, wriggling in possessed houses, interacting with dogs and cats by reading their thoughts, and finding tanuki’s buddies who came to Tokyo Day trip.
Yes, it’s really weird. Ghostwire: Tokyo’s opening hours put you in the role of Akito, a Tokyo native who has died but has now been raised from the grave due to being partially possessed by a vengeful spirit known as KK. Shibuya unravels why everyone suddenly disappeared, leaving only the clothes, and why a guy in a prajna mask is pursuing Akito’s sister.
Akito took control of his body, leaving only his right arm, which KK requisitioned to spray psychic energy at the demons around Shibuya. Within hours, a bizarre police buddy dynamic emerged between the two, as KK kept talking to Akito while the latter did his best to scold KK for his filthy apartment and other odd habits. Akito did a great job of “everyone disappearing from the face of the earth”, while Ghostwire shot to fame with its overarching narrative of saving the city.
The actual act of saving the city usually involves using contortionist magic to drive away demons. Akito uses KK’s arm to fire fireballs, water wheels, and gusts of wind at Yokai, and even uses a sharpshooter that can take enemies out of stealth. There are a lot of tools at Ghostwire that can be used — and that’s before the system stops working. You can disperse fast enemy attacks with just the right time to block, and if you have the right rhythm, you can make the movement smooth. Especially in boss fights, it makes for some great and fast gameplay as projectiles whizz past you.
If Ghostwire’s main story is straight to the point, it’s the side-by-side where things get hilarious. Akito’s supernatural abilities extend to reading the minds of Tokyo animals for unknown reasons, and at one point he is summoned by a tanuki to find his friends. The tanukis came to Shibuya to see the scenery, and the tanukis wanted to see them too, but now they’ve all been separated because of the demon invasion, and it’s your job to track them down and reunite the furry followers.
It’s almost commendable that the whole thing is so bizarre and eccentric. Ghostwire really didn’t worry about juxtaposing two very different things — like saving thousands of lives by reading a dog’s mind to find out that they were hungry — and it turned out pretty well. You can fight the yokai with arm-sized scissors, gnashing your teeth at your throat, and turn around to find a tanuki beckoning you on new adventures.
Story-related hijinx are only matched against Ghostwire’s enemies. Since Shibuya was inexplicably abandoned, youkai called “tourists” have set up camps throughout the ward. In Japanese folklore, yokai are otherworldly visitors, often starring in children’s books to deliver messages and morals on how to be a better human being. Ghostwire kind of ditched the yokai moral trap to conjure up the demonic entities of modern horror games; for example, some of the students’ heads were missing, or an imposing, thin man with an umbrella, admittedly having an amazing relationship with Slideman of similarities.
Yokai is the perfect tool for Tango Gamesworks artists to stretch their legs. A demon with giant scissors looks majestic enough, but then they pull back the brim of their oversized hats with a sadistic smile that burns on their faces. A kid in a funky yellow raincoat will dance in the roads and alleys, but get too close to them and they’ll let out a creepy growl and dig out other monsters to try and murder you. Both Evil Within games are deeply rooted in Western art elements, which isn’t surprising considering studio head Shinji Mikami’s history of Western survival horror games, but Ghostwire represents a chance for the studio to get away from it over the past decade or so , and venture into new artistic realms.
Ghostwire is very stylish. The opening two chapters unfold entirely at night, and a stroll through Shibuya’s neon-lit streets is a treat, with the drizzle coating everything in a smooth glow. The Ghostwire is also surprisingly vertical, as you can grab a flying tengu sprite and zip it up and glide a short distance across the towering rooftops of Shibuya. Ghostwire’s Shibuya feels ready to get lost in dozens of hours, all of which will be filled with eclectic characters, quests, and enemies.
Ghostwire: Tokyo’s preview restrictions only allow us to cover the first two chapters of the Tango game, but it already feels like something pretty unique and original — especially by AAA game standards. It’s both weird and wonderful in equal measure, pitting players against shapeshifting houses, terrifying demons, and talking animals that ask your world about half the chance.
If those first few hours were worth it, it’s unbelievable to think that the rest of Ghostwire: Tokyo could be tucked away in neon-lit, rain-drenched streets.
Ghostwire: Tokyo launches March 25 for PS5 and PC. If you want to learn more about Mikami Shinji and his other projects, you can read his hopes that any potential Resident Evil 4 remake will improve upon the original story he wrote himself, and how he hopes to direct at least one more game wishes.
