The Best PlayStation Game Every Year 1994 - 2024
5. 2020 - Ghost of Tsushima
Whilst 2020 was a pretty terrible year for just about everyone, it was at least a decent year for video games. PlayStation had a big three of exclusives: the long-awaited Final Fantasy VII Remake, the (controversial) masterpiece that was The Last Of Us Part II and a wonderful little adventure from Sucker Punch by the name of Ghost of Tsushima.
Considering the state of the world in 2020, this might well have been the most important title of the three.
More than just a cool concept, which paid respectful homage to samurai motion pictures, Ghost of Tsushima dared to be more than just a historical Japanese open world. Whilst the stealth might’ve been unfortunately lacking, Ghost of Tsushima’s head-on combat was a brilliant display of building outwards from a simple system. Swordfighting variety came in the form of stances, with each one exciting to get to grips with, and the choice of stream of constant new abilities over a tired level-up system was a breath of fresh air.
This was also true of the game’s minimal HUD, as the player chases the wind across the gorgeous island of Tsushima; taking part in some truly engaging side content alongside the main campaign that not only helped to teach players about Tsushima’s history and people, but also its geography.
As previously noted, the PS4 is a system that will be remembered for its deep single-player experience. Ergo, Ghost of Tsushima’s thorough level of immersion was the perfect game to lose oneself in to see off the end of the generation.