Ghost of Yōtei Art Director Reveals Details About PS4 to PS5 Transition

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As the release of *Ghost of Tsushima: Legends: Ghost of Yōtei* approaches next week, Joanna Wang, art director at Sucker Punch Productions, has shared details about how the studio upgraded the game for PlayStation 5. In an interview with Automaton Media, Wang explained that the PS5’s increased power allowed them to improve things like how far you can see in the game, and to add features that utilize the DualSense controller’s unique haptic feedback.

When creating Yōtei, we soon discovered we needed to significantly increase how far players could see. To truly capture the scale of the Hokkaido map, we had to render distant scenery with great detail and realistic depth. Now, the game can load millions of objects, with tens of thousands visible at the same time. We also added a huge number of real-time effects, like leaves, snow, ash, and fog-hundreds of thousands of them, both close up and far away.

The PlayStation 5 enhances immersion by letting players *feel* and *hear* in-game actions – like the impact of a sword fight or the music of a shamisen – directly through the controller.

The PS5’s powerful hardware allowed Sucker Punch to create a more beautiful and immersive world in *Ghost of Tsushima*, especially with details like realistic day-night transitions and incredibly detailed starry skies. They were also able to add features that make the environment feel more dynamic, such as snow realistically falling from trees.

We enhanced several visual elements, including starry skies, the Northern Lights, how time of day changes, grass, and terrain – even things like realistically kicking snow off trees. These improvements combine to make the game world feel more vibrant and responsive, and that’s what the PS5 allows us to achieve.

When creating the world of *Ghost of Yōtei*, the developers at Sucker Punch paid special attention to reducing visual noise. This process, called denoising, is commonly used in photography. Because the game aims for a beautiful, ‘painterly’ look, it was crucial to minimize noise and achieve a clean visual style.

We also worked on reducing visual noise through a process called denoising. Real-world photos often have random patterns, but because we wanted a painted style, we removed these patterns from both the textures of individual objects and the overall scenes. For instance, when creating a grassy field, we might only include white flowers for horses to run through, keeping the colors simple. This connects to the minimalist approach we discussed – it helps focus the viewer’s attention on the important elements, like the white flowers standing out against the green grass.

Every detail, from the smallest surface to the broad environment, is designed with a consistent approach. When combined with the stunning lighting, skies, and clouds created by our rendering team, it all comes together to create a world that feels both beautiful and balanced.

The game *Ghost of Yōtei* will be released on PlayStation 5 on October 2nd. You can learn about the game’s artistic choices, including the significance of the color yellow, in a recent interview with Wang. A new trailer is also available, demonstrating how the game utilizes the PS5’s capabilities.

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2025-09-24 15:41