Ghostwire: Tokyo (2022)

Ghostwire Tokyo: Spider’s Thread may be a free update, but it is integral to taking a good game towards something truly great. The few additions to combat genuinely help the game flow, and new missions and a roguelite mode are just the icing on the cake. Tango Gameworks is dedicated to making Ghostwire a worthwhile game, and it won’t be long before it sits in a similar cult classic spot as The Evil Within 2. I hope that Ghostwire gets a sequel one day because it is one of many titles on the cusp of something extraordinary, but it just needs a little more room to grow.

Anyone who played and enjoyed Ghostwire: Tokyo the first time, and has Xbox Game Pass, will certainly want to make another run at it and check out the improvements and new content. For those who missed it at release, it’s maybe even easier to recommend Ghostwire: Tokyo now. Be warned that the first few hours ramp up fairly slowly and the supernatural combat is both creative and a little unpolished. Still, the narrative, world-building, lore, and unique approach to the first-person action game help make Ghostwire: Tokyo both successful and a bit different.

Ghostwire: Tokyo possesses a culmination of a good story, fun side missions, tightly written dialogues, great combat, and much more to furnish a fundamentally unique open-world action adventure that will surely give you the heebie-jeebies from start to finish. While it isn’t perfect, Ghostwire: Tokyo still a fine project that Tango Gameworks can be proud of, and seeing that it’s now on Xbox Game Pass, it’s a huge bonus. Plus, the inclusion of The Spider’s Thread provides more content to have you sticking around a lot longer.

Listen, I really liked Ghostwire Tokyo quite a bit; the story of Akito trying to save his sister and KK’s need for revenge made a good pairing. As I said above both men grew over the course of the adventure and ended it differently than they began and that is what I love to see from any story…. growth. The spooky bits here aren’t as intense as Tango is usually known for and that may be due to the FPS nature of the action in the game but nonetheless Ghostwire Tokyo is a game that should be played and since its finally come home to Xbox the barrier of entry is even lower and if you like ghosts and things this one won’t disappoint.

Ghostwire: Tokyo as a whole though is a very unique experience with few issues working against it. The sidekick KK stood out to me. But I was not a fan of protagonist Akito as well as most of the main cast. Even Akito’s sister felt very underutilized in the story. The gameplay and enemy variety is great. But the game’s map gets in the way of a lot of it. While only one of the four bosses was truly enjoyable. The spider’s thread game mode is great but only highlights the negatives in the bloat. For every pro there is a con, making this game only recommendable for its stellar gameplay and enemy design.