Sony launches its new game, "Ghost of Yōtei," on October 2

 

Japanese giant Sony will release Ghost of Yotei on October 2nd, a sequel to the popular samurai game released in 2020.

However, Ghost of Yotei is facing a cyberbullying campaign on social media due to a comment posted by an employee of Sucker Punch, the American studio that designed the game, about the murder of pro-Trump influencer Charlie Kirk.

Some 180 people worked for five years to design Ghost of Yotei, which is exclusive to the PlayStation 5, as Sucker Punch is a subsidiary of Sony.

The developer did not disclose the game's production budget, but simply indicated that it was "similar" to its predecessor, Ghost of Tsushima, which some media outlets estimated at $60 million.

This is a relatively modest sum for a game that has sold more than 13 million copies, as the cost of major productions in this field sometimes reaches hundreds of millions of dollars.

This new installment centers on its heroine, Atsu, seeking revenge, and is set in Japan at the beginning of the 17th century.

"Our games are inspired by classic samurai films," studio design director Nate Fox told AFP.

"We do our best to pay homage to a genre we love... like Westerns," he added.

Fox noted that the game is similar to its predecessor "in terms of scale and length," and maintains the gameplay mechanics players love, such as using the wind to guide their progress.

The team also enlisted the help of historians and specialists in Ainu culture (the indigenous people of northern Japan).

Ghost of Ute was subjected to an online campaign in the days following Charlie Kirk's assassination, after co-designer Drew Harrison posted a comment on the social media platform Blue Sky about the killing of the pro-Trump influencer and activist.

The comment sparked a wave of hate mail against Drew Harrison and calls to boycott the game.

Studio director Brian Fleming confirmed in an interview with Game File that Drew Harrison is no longer working for Sucker Punch.

He added, "Trivializing a murder is unacceptable to us, and we strongly condemn it."