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Sucker Punch Explains Scaling Back Ghost of Yotei’s Time-Travel Feature

The studio says the cut preserved narrative focus.

Overview

  • Creative director Jason Connell says an early plan to let players time-travel anywhere was dropped after a year when the team realized it would effectively double the game’s art and scope.
  • Test feedback and internal debate drove the choice to avoid the feature becoming a gimmick, leaving it active at select locations where players can toggle memories for story impact, such as at Atsu’s home.
  • Connell detailed the decision in Sony’s Creator to Creator conversation with Vince Gilligan, calling the change difficult but ultimately the right call for the finished game.
  • Sucker Punch resisted pressure for gratuitous gore, opting to reserve the most violent moments for rare, meaningful beats rather than constant shock.
  • Post-launch coverage notes strong sales of roughly 3 million to date, with separate reporting of a free co-op Legends add-on planned for 2026 featuring two-player story missions and four-player survival.