As Assassin’s Creed Shadows faces heat in Japan, Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Yōtei takes a respectful, research-driven approach to portraying feudal Japan.
Sucker Punch Treads Lightly With Ghost of Yōtei as Ubisoft’s Japan Game Faces Backlash
While Ubisoft is weathering criticism in Japan over Assassin’s Creed Shadows, Sucker Punch is taking a more thoughtful route with their upcoming title, Ghost of Yōtei. Set in feudal Japan, the game shares similarities with AC Shadows—a revenge-driven protagonist, open-world exploration, and a richly historical backdrop—but the vibe couldn’t be more different behind the scenes.
Ubisoft‘s game sparked a wave of backlash in Japan. The depiction of sacred spaces like shrines and temples in violent gameplay rubbed many the wrong way. On top of that, critics pointed out historical inaccuracies and a general feeling that the game exploited Japanese culture for profit without genuine respect. One petition against the game racked up over 100,000 signatures. Even lawmakers and religious figures weighed in, especially after trailers showed shrine destruction, prompting Ubisoft to later issue a patch to tone it down.
Meanwhile, Sucker Punch seems to have taken that controversy as a cautionary tale.
In a post on the PlayStation Blog, Game Director Nate Fox talked openly about the team’s efforts to approach Japanese culture with care. “As a bunch of Americans we knew how ignorant we were about Japanese culture,” he said. To close that gap, the team took multiple research trips, met with locals, and spent serious time at key cultural sites.
Ghost of Yōtei is set in 1603 Hokkaido—then called Ezo—an untamed, mysterious edge of the Japanese empire. The story follows Atsu, a woman driven by revenge, exploring a world both beautiful and dangerous. Fox explained that the team chose Hokkaido because of its dramatic, almost cinematic contrast. “Hokkaido is unbelievably beautiful and in 1603 it was the edge of the Japanese empire,” he said. “That combination of beauty and danger spoke to us.”
Their vision was shaped by hiking through forests marked by bear tracks and breathtaking landscapes. “That experience was magic,” Fox said. “A perfect marriage of beauty and danger—that was the exact feeling we wanted for our game.”
With Ghost of Yōtei launching this fall, comparisons to both Ghost of Tsushima and AC Shadows are going to happen. But so far, Sucker Punch seems to be doing everything they can to walk respectfully in the footsteps of the culture they’re portraying.
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