Ghostwire: Tokyo is launching soon, and Tango Gameworks’ newest adventure is going to transport players to an eerily empty Tokyo, blanketed in a suffocating, ethereal fog and crawling with nightmarish Visitors from a ghostly world. As an open world game, there’s plenty going on in Ghostwire: Tokyo that’ll be demanding for your attention, so as you prepare to dive into its offerings, here, we’ve compiled a few handy tips and tricks that you should keep in mind while you’re playing the game.
TORII GATES
Torii gates are essentially the backbone of Ghostwire: Tokyo’s open world- they’re locks and keys that determine how much of the map is accessible to you. All of Tokyo is covered in a fog that damages you if you try to move through it, and the way to get rid of it is cleanse torii gates scattered throughout the open world and clear the fog off the map bit-by-bit. Even as part of the main story, you’ll be clearing away plenty of torii gates, but there will be many that are optional. Our advice is to clear any and all torii gates you can- on top of the obvious rewards, clearing these up also unlocks new side quests, which is another huge reason to do so.
SPIRITS
Scattered throughout the world of Ghostwire: Tokyo, you’ll find spirits hovering in the air that you can absorb using katashiro, and then transport outside Tokyo and back to their bodies via pay phones. Don’t just absorb all the ones you see- go looking out for them. This is often the main driver for exploration in this game, because the rewards are worth it. You get rewarded with meika, the in-game currency, and XP, which rewards you with skill points to unlock new upgrades and abilities. Take your time to explore the open world, its nooks and crannies, and collect all the spirits you can find.
KATASHIRO
As mentioned earlier, you use katashiro to absorb spirits, and there’s only so many you can absorb before running out of them. Obviously then, having a larger pool of katashiro to use should be a priority for you. You can buy more katashiro at various shops and vendors, while many are also rewarded to you upon clearing torii gates. At vendors, katashiro are pretty cheap, so keep adding more to your collection whenever you have enough money. Speaking of which…
MEIKA
Meika, the main currency in Ghostwire: Tokyo, is used to purchase consumables and various other items from vendors, which is all obviously crucial to how you do in combat. Thankfully, the game isn’t at all stingy with rewarding you with meika. You’re going to have a healthy pool of money at most times simply if you keep absorbing spirits and completing side quests, but there are other ways to help with that as well. While most corrupted objects in the world can be broken to restore your Weaving ammo, quite a few give you decent amounts of meika upon being broken. Meanwhile, if you feed dog food to one of the many stray dogs in the world, they’ll reward you with money as well- so make sure to keep buying dog food from vendors as well.
REMAIN STOCKED UP
This is pretty basic advice, but still easy to forget, so it should be mentioned. While it’s often easy to fall into the trap of ignoring vendors in open world games for long periods of time, thinking you don’t need to purchase anything, make sure you do the opposite in Ghostwire: Tokyo. To be clear, it’s not like doing so is necessary by any means- but it definitely helps. It’s always a good idea to have a healthy stock of consumables in your inventory, because that’s how you restore health, so you’ll be going through plenty even in a handful of combat encounters. Arrows can also be found in the open world, but they’re not too common- and purchasing them at vendors is always an option. Meanwhile, anytime you go to a vendor that’s selling katashiro, you can buy more of those as well.
THE BOW
The bow is an important tool in Ghostwire: Tokyo. Ethereal Weaving is obviously your primary weapon, and that’s what you’ll be using against enemies for the vast, vast majority of the game. Often, however, a stealthy approach can be taken using the bow. Before heading into a fight, try and figure out from a distance if there are enemies that you can take out from a distance to thin the herd, perhaps. You have a limited number of arrows though (but that pool can be expanded), so make sure to be smart and precise with your shots.
MAGATAMA
Most upgrades and abilities in Ghostwire: Tokyo are unlocked using skill points, but several special ones need you to spend a rare resource called Magatama as well. It goes without saying, then, that seeking out activities in the game that reward you with Magatama is a good idea. For starters, you can check on the map exactly which of the currently available side quests will do that (and there’s usually a decent number of those). Meanwhile, you can also find yokai scattered throughout the world for Magatama as well.
AMENOTORI X
Ghostwire: Tokyo’s open world is multilayered and very vertical, and exploring its towering structures and clambering across its rooftops is just as crucial to the experience as walking through Tokyo’s empty streets and backalleys. One of the primary ways of quickly getting up to higher points is by zipping to one of the many tengu flying all over the world. While you usually don’t have to go too far before you find a tengu to zip to, it’s much more convenient to have a tengu exactly where you want it- thankfully, there’s an ability that lets you do just that. The Amenotori X ability, which needs Magatama to be unlocked, allows you to instantly summon a tengu above a building and then zip right to it. Make sure you unlock that ability as soon as you can.
COLLECTIBLES
As an open world game, Ghostwire: Tokyo has plenty of collectibles to find and, well, collect. They’ve got more of a purpose than just that though. Certain vendors in the world will ask you to track down specific collectibles, and if you bring those back to them, you’ll be rewarded with pretty decent amounts of meika. So keep a look out for collectibles, and anytime you’re at one of these specific vendors, make sure to check your collection and see if any of what you’ve found can be sold.
BLOCKING
Let’s speak about combat a little bit now. Ethereal Weaving, as we’ve mentioned, is your primary weapon in this game, but while most of combat sees you dishing out flashy elemental attacks and ripping out enemies’ cores, you’re sometimes also going to have to take the defensive approach, especially if you get mobbed by large groups of enemies. As such, blocking is often necessary, so it’s important that you get the timing for that down as quickly as possible. Perfect blocks also parry attacks and momentarily leave enemies open to attacks, which is another reason to make sure you learn the timing for that.
JIZO STATUES
You’ll often find yourself running out of ammo for your Ethereal Weaving in combat, and while you can always rip out enemy cores and break corrupted objects to restore that, it’s also just much easier if you’re working with a larger pool to begin with. Tracking down Jizo statues is the way to do that. Each one of these rewards you with a small expansion of your ammo count, and collectively, they do begin adding up and making a difference.
SPECTRAL VISION
Spectral Vision is Ghostwire: Tokyo’s take on the tried-and-true “Detective Vision” mechanic, and as is often the case, it’s crucial in this game. From objects that you can pick up to spirits that might be hidden around corners, from corrupted things you can destroy for ammo that enemies that could be lurking around the corner, everything within a short radius around you is highlighted and revealed every time you use Spectral Vision (which is done by pressing Square). Our advice? Spam it. Or at least use it regularly.
NEKOTAMA MEOWS
Nekotama are mostly found as vendors and shopkeepers in the world of Ghostwire: Tokyo, but they serve other purposes as well. Often while exploring the open world, you’ll hear the meowing of nekotama. That’s your cue that you’re in close proximity of a secret- so keep an ear out. Once you do hear one of these meows, use Spectral Vision to reveal whatever the secret is, and where it is.
HIDE COMPLETED ICONS
Opening up the open world map of Ghostwire: Tokyo can be a bit overwhelming, at least momentarily, the way it often can in open world games- there’s just so many icons, so much information being thrown at you. Thankfully, the game lets you streamline that a little. On the world map, if you press L3 and select the “Hide Completed Icons” filter, the map will remove icons for all activities and quests that you’ve completed.
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