im already getting tired of tsushima but for reasons i didn't expect. it's not the giant Map O' Shit that's dragging the experience down, in fact it's the contrary. tshushima shines when you're left to your own devices; following gusts of wind to whatever catches your fancy and activities having just enough mental engagement not to bore. ive had a wonderful time riding my horse through forests, drinking in the immersive serenity and pretending to be the wandering hero.
no, it's the missions that suck.
it (was) a sony exclusive, meaning the ambient storytelling in the open environments is not the focus. instead, tsushima has a grand, epic character-driven drama to tell in the exact same way all these games do. you're a bespoke protagonist wrapped up in long-winded cutscenes and dialogue that, for all its dedication to the time period, bores me to fucking tears. i got enough of this "cinematic" presentation from TLOU but here it's at the cost of some genuine strengths.
it's also beholden to the same issues alot of videogame homages are known for. tsushima is very inspired by classic theatrical depictions of feudal japan and resultantly, has no creative ideas of its own. by ignoring the medium's inherent ability to, yknow, place you in the environment of those works, you're instead getting a big-budget copy-paste fanfiction layered on top that, at best, acts as an advertisement. boasts of historical accuracy only goes so far in engaging storytelling.
and it's used constantly as a framing device for things i can already accomplish on my own. why would i want to sit there for 10 minutes of exposition only to fight a bog-standard group of soldiers, when i can find camps of them dotted all around the island? it's functionally the same, except im funnelled through identical setups repeatedly which feels unbelievably inorganic. i don't need a reason to sneak around, i can sneak around whenever i want.
all of them are long, all of them play out the same way and there isn't a setpiece in sight to add variety. the best lessons from asscreed mechanically, the worst lessons structurally.
i think if tsushima dropped the Sony Wants To Be A Film Studio angle and took cues from more spontaneous fare, it could've stood out as a uniquely calming, enveloping open-world whose pace is dictated by the player's involvement. there's an opportunity here that, by grafting this AAA framework on, has gone completely untouched. a shame really.
