Ghostwire: Tokyo is a curious game. In my recent summation of my Ghostwire experience, I mentioned that I enjoyed it quite a bit, despite a laundry list of design issues. But even though that list is rather long, there is one shining aspect of Ghostwire that is unquestionably a homerun: Tango Gameworks’ version of Tokyo. This is hands-down one of the most incredibly detailed depictions of a real-world location that I’ve ever played (despite all of the fictional stores, restaurants, and advertisements).
I don’t know whether or not Ghostwire is enough of a financial success to qualify for a sequel — if Tango Gameworks is even planning a sequel (which based on the ending might not be likely). But one thing is clear: This version of Tokyo needs to be utilized in another game. If that’s a Ghostwire sequel, count me in. But what I would love to see is a game that focuses on the setting a bit more than Ghostwire did — Ghostwire really only highlighted the Shibuya Scramble and Tokyo Tower, but otherwise didn’t utilize the setting to its fullest potential.
If you were to tell me that this version of Tokyo was going to be the setting for an open-world crime game, perhaps similar to Yakuza or a Sleeping Dog-esque spiritual successor (although that one is Chinese and not Japanese)? Well, then you’d have a stew going.
Hell, I would even settle for a tourist-themed walking simulator mode that simply allowed the player to explore the city at their leisure. This would of course be without the constant mobs of ghouls nipping at your heels, and perhaps with the option to take in the sights both at night and also during the day. And maybe you could even walk around when it isn’t constantly raining! Although, if that were the case, then how would one marvel at all of the rays being traced? The Rays! The Tracing!!
So, you know, get on it, Tango Gameworks, as easy as I’m sure it is(n’t) to just crank out another game using this open-world masterpiece simulacrum. Or, at the very least, take a page out of Ubisoft’s book and add a Discovery Tour mode to Ghostwire so that, if nothing else, all of the hard work that went into creating this version of Tokyo can really be absorbed and appreciated.
