Sony has truly upped the ante with their first-party output this generation. Many of their biggest titles of the past several years have either been true open-world experiences or at least included large play areas begging for exploration. One of their biggest accomplishments is 2018’s Marvel’s Spider-Man by Insomniac Games, which innovates on many fronts.
More recently, Sucker Punch Productions unleashed Ghost of Tsushima, an open-world epic heavily influenced by old samurai films. Both games have their merits, though which one is the best PlayStation 4 exclusive is ultimately up to each individual player.
10 Ghost Of Tsushima: Setting
While some may prefer swinging through the streets of New York City, no one can deny the untapped vein Sucker Punch claimed when they decided to travel back in time to thirteenth-century Japan. Few open-world games are historical fiction in the first place, save for Assassin’s Creed, and among those almost none are in Japan.
9 Spider-Man: Movement
One key element of a great game is perfectly nailing down the simple act of moving. Marvel’s Spider-Man accomplishes this in spades. Swinging between skyscrapers is an endlessly satisfying method of transportation. It is easy to grow accustomed to within minutes, but also provides depth and ways to improve for players who understand the timing of swings.
8 Ghost Of Tsushima: Graphics
This is not to say Spider-Man is a bad-looking game. On the contrary, two years after release, the superhero game is still an astonishing sight to behold. However, Ghost of Tsushima pushes the visual envelope for open-world games in a way only a cutting-edge console can do at the end of a generation. The weather, colors, particle effects, and character models all come together to make each frame look like a real-life image. Even more impressive, the game manages to run smoothly — most of the time.
7 Spider-Man: Story
Everybody loves Spider-Man’s powers, delighting in every moment at the opportunity to stop thugs and supervillains. However, the game really shines narratively in the moments when Peter Parker steps out of the costume.
The conflict between living a normal life, maintaining relationships, and saving New York is what the best Spider-Man stories are all about, and the 2018 title showcases this in full. In comparison, Ghost of Tsushima‘s narrative is compelling, but doesn’t reach the same emotional height. The concept is ultimately more promising than the execution.
6 Ghost Of Tsushima: More Original Idea
While not every open-world superhero game is based off of a comic-book property, plenty of them run with the idea of traveling through a city with immense powers. Sucker Punch Production’s prior franchise, Infamous, is all about people gaining superpowers and showing off their greatness to the world. Ghost of Tsushima takes a more subtle approach to the genre, and stands out all the more for it. Players are not able to run rampant and cause mindless destruction. Instead, it is about existing in the world as a samurai and deciding whether or not to play honorably or indulge in the ways of the ghost.
5 Spider-Man: Combat
Spider-Man‘s combat takes a page out of the Batman: Arkham series’ playbook. A relatively simple combo system is given increased depth with a focus on twitch reflex reactions to incoming enemies and counter-attacks. It is made all the sweeter by its smooth animations and the way enemies fly up in the air upon defeat. The web-slinger has an ardent no-kill rule, but how does he expect people to survive twenty-foot drops onto their heads?
4 Ghost of Tsushima: Photo Mode
Insomniac’s 2018 superhero adventure gained notoriety for its photo mode, a feature which comes almost standard in every PS4 exclusive. Ghost of Tsushima truly runs with this idea, however, offering a bigger variety of options than almost every other game before it. Weather and environmental effects can be changed in each image for more control over the snapshot, in addition to a slew of other options. For proof of its effectiveness, look no further than the plethora of social media posts showcasing fans’ exquisite in-game photos.
3 Spider-Man: Side Missions
Like any open-world game, both titles are packed with optional side content. Ghost of Tsushima has numerous narrative-based side quests and the typical combat encounters in the form of Mongol camps. The former are usually enticing for their rewards, but offer little gameplay satisfaction.
Spider-Man‘s side content, on the other hand, offers a whole host of both gameplay and plot bonuses. The backpacks, for example, each contain a small memento from the character’s past, and he comments on all of them as they are collected.
2 Ghost Of Tsushima: Reduced Hud
Ghost of Tsushima‘s major innovation in the genre is forcing players to rely on the world for reference instead of a map. The title eschews any sort of mini map, instead using nature to guide players to destinations. Other cues throughout the world also help Jin Sakai uncover secrets and hidden bonus activities. Spider-Man takes a more traditional and less organic approach to the map and finding side quests.
1 Spider-Man: The Novelty Of A Great Comic Book Game
Games based on comic books have not had the best track record. Though Batman: Arkham Asylum broke this negative stereotype in 2009, it was still an outlier among a crowd of mostly mediocre titles based on famous characters.
When Insomniac announced their Spider-Man adaptation, fans were optimistic the new superhero game could match what Rocksteady did with Batman using the friendly neighborhood web-slinger. Upon release, players were delighted to see Insomniac lived up to its reputation, making not only one of the best superhero games, but one of the best titles of the generation.
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