Few video games have such an intense story and beautiful landscape that draws you in as much as Ghost of Tsushima. This riveting tale is influenced by true events of the Mongolian invasion of Japan. The story follows a fictional hero that rises from the ashes of a near death experience to become the champion of his people fighting the Mongols throughout the story until finally defeating Khotun Khan. The choices you make determine the path that your character takes and can affect more than just your character, it can affect the weather as well. “As you do, and Jin evolves, the weather, too, will evolve. Your path as a Samurai becomes darker and the weather follows suit. If you choose to remain honorable the weather will remain calm like it is in the beginning, but if you start playing dirty, storms will become more frequent and areas a bit darker.” (Moore, Robert. “There’s a Hidden Meaning Behind Ghost of Tsushima’s Weather”) The creators basically created an in game “morality meter” that makes it obvious if you’re going down a grim path. This was an incredibly creative way for the creators of the game to use code to push players in the right direction while still allowing them the freedom to make their own choices. Using the weather as a visual indicator of whether your decision are moral or not is one of the most unique processes I have seen in a game thus far.
The story is deep, and the graphics are captivating. It is a game unlike any other, easily one of the top games on the market. Before the game Tsushima wasn’t very well known even in Japan. It may not have been the intent of the game, but the creators persuaded people to want to visit and learn about the history of Tsushima. With this accidental persuasion they’ve been named ambassadors of Tsushima as a thank you for bringing their history to the forefront for the entire world. People have become so intrigued by the games locations, events, and characters that they’ve taken the leap to learn more. Whether it was the creator’s intention or not, the game still effectively persuaded people across the globe to dive into the history of Tsushima to the point the Mayor and Sony may even do special tourism for the game. While the story and characters are not real, the invasion of Tsushima was so this game brought that history to the world. Impact tends to matter over intent. When we think about how a game, movie, book, or tv show influences people we usually think about the writer’s intent. It seems in the case of this game though, they persuaded millions without even meaning to. It seems that rhetoric can be accidental and still have a major impact.
Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/video-games/2020/10/01/ghost-of-tsushima-reviews-discourse/
Weather
Metro UK
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