Spoilers ahead for Ghost of Yotei and The Last of Us Part 2Ghost of Yotei brings forth a strong story steeped in revenge and violence, which sounds pretty similar to another PlayStation exclusive: The Last of Us Part 2. In fact, Atsu and Ellie are two sides of the same coin in a lot of ways, as their devotion to their lost loved ones sends them down a dark path. Ghost of Yotei definitely isn’t as bleak as The Last of Us Part 2, but its story is bound to resonate with a lot of fans of the latter.
That isn’t the only reason why many The Last of Us Part 2 fans will be interested in Ghost of Yotei, though. Beyond the similarities between Atsu and Ellie, there is a shared feature that adds a surprising dose of fun to The Last of Us Part 2 that Ghost of Yotei also embraces: their protagonists taking breaks to play string instruments.
Gamers Who Enjoyed The Last of Us Part 2's Guitar Moments Will Love Ghost of Yotei's Shamisen
Peaceful Breaks From the Violence
- Ghost of Yotei‘s instrument of choice is the shamisen.
- The Last of Us Part 2 makes the guitar a significant symbol in its story.
Throughout Atsu’s journey, the shamisen serves as not only a musical companion, but as a reminder as to why she’s on this mission in the first place. Her mother taught her how to play the instrument, but now that she’s dead at the hands of the Yotei Six, the shamisen remains one of the few tokens Atsu has left of her. This is incredibly similar to Ellie and Joel. He taught her how to play, and after his death, her ability to play is one of the few ways he lives on.
It’s a great example of how the things our parents or mentors teach us as kids help their legacies continue, but even beyond the deeper meaning, both the shamisen and the guitar give players the opportunity to take relaxing moments to breathe in a chaotic, violent world. Atsu playing her shamisen showcases a very different side to the character. Instead of slashing her way through the Yotei Six, she takes these moments to collect herself.
Ghost of Yotei's Shamisen Plays Very Differently Than TLOU Part 2's Guitar
The two games share a similar feature with their string instruments, but The Last of Us Part 2‘s version is definitely more involved. Granted, the introduction of the shamisen includes a moment that requires players to use the DualSense’s touchpad in order to hit the right notes, but for the most part, Atsu learns songs along the way instead of requiring players to manually hit notes and chords, even though players can still play songs freely now and then.
When it comes to The Last of Us Part 2, though, the controls are more specific, as players select chords from a wheel. Both are strong guitar mini-games, but with different approaches, so for fans looking for the exact same experience, Ghost of Yotei may not exactly deliver in that regard. Atsu’s emotional narrative still has meaningful ties to the shamisen, but not as deep as The Last of Us Part 2 emphasizes.
There are eight shamisen songs Atsu can learn.
Ghost of Yotei Can Help Fill the Hole Left by TLOU Part 2
Ever since The Last of Us Part 2 launched in 2020, fans of the series (me included) have been craving something similar, and Ghost of Yotei may do the trick. The shamisen and guitar are far from the only similarities, but this feature is a fun start. Ghost of Yotei improves upon its predecessor in plenty of great ways, and Atsu’s narrative may be a wonderfully familiar one for The Last of Us Part 2 lovers.