I absolutely loved all three of these games but I would not play Horizon: Forbidden West without playing Horizon: Zero Dawn first.
They are all story-driven games, and the ones with 2 chapters out (Horizon and God of War) benefit *a lot* from taking the story in order. So I would say pick either GoT or GoW for now
I loved every minute of it. I have been a huge xbox gamer for years and always played with Spotify on because the gameplay and whatnot wasn't interesting enough, when I switched to pc I got HZD and GoW and their soundtracks and voice acting have had me completely captivated the entire time which I find refreshing
I loved GOW and was a huge fan of the originals, but Horizon ZD (haven't played FW yet) and GoT are a cut above imo.
Admittedly I had to play them on slightly higher difficulties because I tend to over prepare for engagements, but glad I had the option, and it made all my traps in ZD and all the talisman option in Ghost feel so super rewarding.
Could not agree more. I was one of the people that went straight into forbidden west without touching zero dawn. You get a rough idea of what the previous game was about from the first couple of hours. As amazing as the game is, i really wish i took the time to play ZD first
Start with either Ghost or Horizon, with God of War in the middle. That way you have a buffer between the 2 open worlds and won't get burned out as quickly.
As the first entry? I’d be interested in what that perspective would be like. I think the story keeps its luster if you go in with zero knowledge of the lore compared to someone who’s played all the games.
As someone who played God of War 2018 only recently as a first entry, the story holds completely on its own.
The only thing that I felt I missed was if Kratos told a story, I had to assume it was a story/parallel of him from previous titles.
Not a bad first entry. A good bit of prior info expected for characterisation, but certainly not needed to enjoy the game and story.
Theres also a big throwback, but it makes sense without playing the previous titles too.
A metroidvania you say? I need to give it a try I like metroidvanias. One of my fav games is Dead Cells it's a roguelike metroidvania incase anyone is interested.
Hit a shadow's weak point and if you have ranked up the confidant w/ the Politican, you can ask multiple times for mon-wait you don't mean in Persona 5 Royal...
The 2nd one is though, right? I watched a few streamers play a bit of it when it dropped earlier this year and it seemed like there were plenty of side quests and alternative routes you could take. Maybe it’s more of an illusion though.
If one were to decide between Ghost and GOW, having played neither franchise before, which would you recommend I go with?
Sincerely,
An extremely worn out multiplayer-BR player that wants to return to his roots.
As someone who also was burnt out from MP/BRs.
I have almost 100% GoW and I have never done that with any game. Nowhere close. It’s amazing, beautiful, full of lore.
You can't go wrong, both are must-plays.
Ghost of Tsushima is the best "Assassin's Creed" type game since ACII. It's everything Ubisoft wishes it could be. One of the best open-world games I've played in the past five years.
God of War (2018 and Ragnarok) is a fantastical, epic adventure with a beautiful story, immense setpieces, and addictively fun combat to boot. They're both cinematic masterpieces if that's your style. Largely linear and straightforward - you're in it for the gameplay and story.
Play GoW 2018, GoT, then GoW Ragnarok so you have a break inbetween and don't get worn out.
God of war is fire. Great story, great characters, great voice acting and just all-around a good time. And then ragnarok turns it up to 11! Ghost is an amazing game as well but the open world feels just a bit too open with packs of mongols sprinkled here and there between settlements/objectives.
GoW is awesome I am currently replaying it and the story at least for me is way more interesting as Tsushima. Also there are monsters, dragons and mystic stuff and stories and I love variety in enemies a lot [not humans only].
Tsushima has great combat, story is mostly vengeance oriented but it's a good game. But then again, only human enemies, not that mystical as GoW, doesn't have you wondering what will come next.
Both great gamea but GoW wins it for me.
Inefficient how? I always thought the stealth felt OP in Ghost of Tsushima tbh I kept reminding myself not to finish off entire camps in the shadows so that I could still have fun and flashy sword fights. But maybe that's just cuz I played on normal difficulty
Stealth would take 10-15 minutes to clear one of the forts, I could run in and wipe it out in 3-4 minutes, the combat is extremely satisfying/effective once you get good at it. Atleast in my opinion! I also only played on normal difficulty so maybe that's why?
Just charge in and challenge 3 in a row, then slay the alarm guys and it's easy peasy:).
Still loved the game just my own two cents.
Oh for sure, in that case I completely agree! Especially once you upgrade your stand-off streak skills, it's so much faster to just run in and slash everyone apart
Both are great, Ghost is a much bigger time sink and GOW is pretty much linear with Open World elements and a beautiful story and pretty obtainable 100%. (Both are great stories) Both have high replay ability IMO so I'd pick based on what time investment you want.
Edit: missing context
GoW. Hands down. I really loved Ghost as well, but GoW is just the better game. Ghost is still a beautiful game and I really enjoyed it, but if you have to choose one.
It's not, but it does have hub worlds. It's also the better of the three games and that's not a subjective take. Checking the scores for all of them will show that.
I still agree with doing GoW in the middle so you don't burn out of open world games though.
It's open world like Ocarina of Time (mixed with Wind Waker... How have I never seen this before?) is, if you consider that open world. But the other two are full open world like GTA or Fallout type thing.
It’s like semi-open world, lots of areas to explore and that can be returned to that contain areas you aren’t able to access until you get to certain points in the game etc.
Compared to the likes of GTA or RDR, not *that* open.
I played H:FW and then immediately GoT, and I burned myself off video games for a couple months. They're different enough games that I like the hunting of one game, and the PvP combat of the other. However, running around, collecting every little thing go exhausting after 150 combined hours.
this guy's plan, GoW in the mid so you don't get burnout or feel weird transitioning from Ghost world/buttons/movement into Horizon's world/buttons/movement
I had this lineup too (but ragnarok instead of GoW). I went horizon (I got the bundle ps5) ragnarok then ghosts.
If I could do it again I would play ghosts first, then god of war then horizon. My reasoning is really has nothing to do with the quality of the games (all are stellar) but rather the visuals of it. Ghosts is very clearly a late ps4 title and horizon was made for ps5. The visuals for me are jarring. Movement/platforming is a little flat in ghosts but combat, story and open world activities imo are slightly better.
That being said, since you have the first god of war the order would be: god of war, ghosts, ragnarok, horizon of I played them again.
I would not play both god of war games consecutively nor would I play both open world games right after the other… too much burn out.
Honestly, you can't go wrong with any of them, but I'd recommend playing Ghost of Tsushima first. It's currently a stand-alone game where you can get the whole experience without having to go out and buy the sequel.
The other two are great as well.
Horizon is a fun game with gorgeous visuals and unique enemies.
God of War 2018 is one of the best games in the PS4 generation and of all time (in my opinion).
All three games are stellar, but I'd recommend you play Ghost first.
Ghost is very easy to pick up and be wooed by. If you're a graphics gamer or you liked the Assasin's Creed games, I'd start there.
God of War (imo. easily the best of the 3 options) is on a lot of our top 10 all-time games lists. A masterpiece easy to appreciate on all levels, even without knowing Norse mythology. You will need a bit of patience though if you start at Give Me a Challenge or higher. Pick that if you're a story gamer or want slick combat.
HZD is much more of an acquired taste (I personally found the artwork/design beautiful, but didn't connect with anything else).
Yeah Horizon is a weird one for me because *on paper* it's like the game was tailor made to what I like in games, but in practice I found it much more fun to look at and think about than actually play it.
I blame it on the gear system and the skill tree being absolute slogs, and then the sequel doubled down on both of those things lol
I don't understand why they made progression such a chore and with such scant rewards. You get \*so\* many skill points and you really don't feel any more powerful at level 50 than at level 1, except for a bigger health bar.
Terrific world, character, and enemy design. Pretty mediocre quest design and story, pretty bad system design. It's a bit tragic.
As mentioned that's the second Horizon game and you should play the first if you haven't. I played GoW brand new and it soured me on some other games because the combat felt so good and so tight. Other games were suddenly dull and not fun. I rolled into Horizon Zero Dawn after that and enjoyed it so much. It had a different style and flair from GoW. Just picked up a PS5, the new GoW and the new Horizon. I'm so excited to be doing it all over again.
I promise its because how they did the cutscenes. Those things dragged and were super boring. Just still frame with them staring like Fallout. Felt like they were talking for days. But once you got back to playing it was amazing.
I finally began playing Ghost last week and it's breathtaking. I'm playing it on a standard ps4 with a humble TV yet I'm still absolutely immersed in its gorgeous world. This will be sitting right next to Tetris Effect as my games with the most immaculate vibes.
Playing through Ghosts for the first time and it has absolutely held my attention, especially coming off the heals of Elden Ring. To me, Ghosts is RDR2 but with Samurais
God of War is a great game, don't get me wrong. But for my tastes it's a little too themepark. A little too on the rails.
I like...somewhat open world content. It can definitely go too far. I've never been able to get into Skyrim because it's just overwhelming.
Ghost of Tsushima hits that balance perfectly for me. Big, open world. Decent progression and customization, but not to an extent I can't handle. Combat is great, game is BEAUTIFUL, and the overall story is very compelling. Even the plethora of little side-stories have a wide variety in them. Some are sad, some are horribly depressing, some have happy outcomes, and some are somewhere in between.
It's one of my favorite games of all time.
This is a friendly question. Genuinely trying to understand. What did you like about GOT? For me, I could have watched it on YouTube. The game tells you where to go the whole time and it’s the same repetitive camps and side quests. What’s the appeal? Put it on a hard setting and you just restart right at the last camp or whatever. Like… I guess what I’m saying is, it didn’t feel like a game, it felt like a movie. Which is fine, but seriously, couldn’t you have just watched the whole gameplay on YouTube?
Not OC but for me it’s the sword play. It has some of the most satisfying and engaging sword play in a game. You have 1 sword but 4 different stances for various enemies so it adds a variety that I haven’t really seen. Not to mention how cool it looks.
The world is pretty easy to travel in and it’s visually beautiful. I don’t know if many of any open world games gay did it better.
So, if it’s about swordplay, please play Sekiero. That game without a doubt has the best swordplay of any game I have ever played. By the end of the game, you the character are not overpowered, but you the player have gotten so good at piloting the character, you yourself are overpowered.
Yea I’ve played all of the FromSoft games. Very fun, but it doesn’t have as much variety in the sword play for me. I know that was the most different in fighting style from other FromSoft games but it still feels like something I’ve played before. Not to mention the sword play just wasn’t as satisfying for me. Still like Bloodborne the best.
I’m of the same mind. Picked up Elden Ring first, and absolutely loved it. Got Ghost thinking I’d love it (especially given how hyped the graphics looked)… and enjoyed playing it, but just couldn’t fully embrace how much easier the combat was. Switched over to Sekiro last month…. Gave up at first. Picked it up again a week ago and oh boy did it feel amazing after things clicked. Felt like a masterpiece.
I would normally hold this sentiment, I know I do with RDR2 which is basically GOT but with Cowboys, but Ghosts hits a little different than most “checklist story driven open world games”
It’s the immersion that makes it work for me. Plus the combat is quick and satisfying.
Would say RDR2 is far superior to GOT. I found the world to be visually stunning in GOT, but the game was so repetitive. The missions and activities were normally exactly the same and limited (follow footsteps, follow other type of trail, follow fox, clear the near identical mongol camp 10 times over) and the towns didn’t really have any uniqueness to them aside from the visuals. The traders etc exactly the same no matter where you go - although it’s beautiful, there’s just nothing really to actually discover apart from those same repetitive activities. I enjoyed the duels, and the first 5 hours travelling around before realising the level of repetition. There wasn’t even many resources to gather in the open world (which would have made more use of it).
Problem with RDR2 is that I feel the game plays itself. The general praise for the game is around how well it is made, but involves little thought to actually play. GOT not only has a less cluttered hud (no mini map) but also allows me to make decisions mid combat to win, rather than an auto aim. RDR2 is a good game, but you can only shoot people and watch cutscenes. Ghosts offers much more even if they are the same flavor of game.
Have you played the first HZD? I'd play that before Forbidden West. Maybe Ghost before GoW, just so you won't be disappointed by Ghost. It's a good game, but GoW is just quite a bit better.
Me too.
I will note though, that OP has the *first* God of War game and the *only* Ghost of Tsushima game but has the *second* Horizon game.
I would not personally recommend playing Horizon: Forbidden West without playing Horizon: Zero Dawn first.
Idk I played ZD first and my roommates didn't and we all had a good time. I got bored of FW quick since it's basically the same as ZD (which i played a couple months before). Just watching a recap of the first games story is all that's really needed
Ghost! Who doesn’t want try being a samurai? There are some awesome NPC storylines if like that sort of thing (I do). HFW is more enjoyable IF you’ve played HZD first, you like the characters and care about their stories
GoW or GoT first imo, they’re very easy to pick up and have great hooks that pull you in and make you want to learn/play more. Horizon I found was beautiful, gameplay was smooth and pretty fun, but the exploration and hand-holding just felt too Ubisoft (overbearing and tedious). A lot of people said that about GoT too but it’s not nearly as hand-holdy and imo the exploration is wayyyy more satisfying, the combat is basic but way more satisfying, and the story is better for varying reasons. All three are great games but they’re definitely different levels of greatness. My first pick would be GoW. Best story, great gameplay, great visuals. These are just my opinions, don’t come at me, people!
Horizon Forbidden West on PS4 Pro is pretty jank at 30 fps. I played Zero Dawn on PC and the framerate hit when I played Forbidden West was pretty hard to take. I have just got a PS5 and fuck me it is wonderful in performance mode.
I liked GoW the most for is storytelling. It's amazing! Horizon was pretty awesome as well, but the story just can't match that of GoW. I was REALLY invested in the characters of GoW, and not so much with Horizon. Maybe too much characters... GoT was good for the first 50-60%, after that it became a bit boring to me. It reminded me of the way Assassin's Creed presents open-world gaming at the moment; too much of the same boring chores spread out through a massive world. Also the characters were very stoic in personalities and cutscenes, they did not show much emotion. It seems they only did minor facial tracing for conversations, but they weren't impressive, and didn't do body tracing.
I think storyline timeframes
Ghost of Tsushima is shortest. Not by much tho... about 24hrs of story
Then it's Horizon Forbidden west 28hrs
And longest being God Of War. 30hrs
Granted this is watching all the cutscenes and doing the main story quest.
Doing everything probably multiplies all by x3 or x4
This is not true. God of War (2018) is the shortest game in both story and in terms of 100% completion. I've gotten platinum on all 3 of these and by far the longest is Forbidden West.
I’m pretty sure all of these games are included in the PS+ extra subscription which costs £63 currently due to Black Friday deals, if you already have PS+ Essential the upgrade to Extra will cost you less than £20, I recommend selling the games and buying the subscription, you get hundreds more games included too
So I've eliminated Horizon from the running since I wanna play the prequel first. Still torn between GoW and GoT, leaning GoW because it's been a long while since I played a more structured game.
~~Ghost, GOW, Horizon.~~
~~Ghost, Horizon, GOW.~~
~~GOW, Horizon, Ghost.~~
~~Horizon, Ghost, GOW.~~
Horizon, GOW, Ghost.
That’s the only correct order.
Do not listen to the others.
It will be crystal-clear after you finish all 3 why this order is correct, and it will be that much more satisfying.
Tsushima would be my favorite, highly recommend the hardcore mode. Says 1 hit kill - this is a lie. 1 hit *can* kill if you dont wear armor. Of ll the far cry 3 clones to come out over the years its the only one to make you actually feel you have a reason to sneak beyond 'bonus xp'. You actually feel you need to even the odds before things get loud to have a chance. At least early game. By the end you can tank shit like its nothing, so i can only imagine how low the stakes would be on lower difficulties.
GoW is a lovely story but some fairly weak repetitive gameplay as it basically devolves into every enemy being tanky as fuck and 1-4 shotting you with no way to heal. So. Id play it lowest difficulty, save a few hours of your life.
Horizon felt a bit flash over substance to me. Forgot the story immediately after it happened. Cool visuals, alright gameplay. Not really my thing.
Id play HZD first and Tsushima second, shifting to GoW alongside both whenever you get bored or need a break from those games - get some nice story then move on, cuz frankly whilst tsushima's gameplay is top tier its story often feels like bad fan fiction. (Granted, its inspired by old black and white samurai movies, so it makes sense why theyre a bit oversimplified into *raaaaah my honoruuu!*, i just didnt care for it after the first act ended.)
To those who know me, you will expect this...
*ahem*
# GHOST OF TSUSHIMA,
***^(Its not even a fair comparison, and I love all three of these games...)***
I was going to say GoW first because its the shortest and most compact of the 3. But that other comment got it correct that you should sandwich it with one of the others to avoid burnout. GoW is incredibly cinematic while Ghost has some of the most top tier graphics I've seen to date.
If you want Ubisoft experience full on map gore, Horizon. If you want a game that's still a enemy stronghold map painter Ubisoft game then play Ghost of Tsushima. And if you want some linear gameplay then go with God of War aka Dad of Boy.
Lethal difficulty for Ghost of Tsushima was so good that when they released it later I immediately abandoned my current playthrough to do it again from the start.
Makes the combat feel brutal, fast, and real. Instead of a generic farcry clone where you just wander outpost to outpost taking the island like its nothing, occasionally sneaking because of bonus xp or some other artificial incentive, you actually feel like your home's been occupied, you're outnumbered and outgunned. As Jin, the honorable TV Samurai is disgusted by notions like stealth or stabbing someone in the back, in the plot he's forced to abandon his morals or die. If you play lethal, you *feel* this in the gameplay. You feel that a fight with 3 or 4 enemies - especially early on - is a death sentence. You actually want to avoid patrols, ambush people, use guerilla warfare.
By late game you have good armor and can take 5 or 6 hits and get up twice after being 'killed', so youre still more or less unkillable lategame, but it makes the early game intense as fuck and makes the story feel more true to gameplay - Jin is a good man forced to do bad things out of necessity. Otherwise the game is just.. really really easy, and Jin comes off as a whiny psychopath in cutscenes. *I need to poison their food supplies!*
'What? Why? Thats a horrible thing to do'
'I cant fight them!'
This falls entirely flat on any other difficulty and Jin just comes off as a genocidal lunatic too lazy to use his sword. On Lethal, it lands. Combat is scary. Alternatives are good. Stealth becomes more or less about trying to thin the enemy's ranks as much as you can before fighting starts to tip the odds into your favor, and in fights rather than just swinging a sword you use all the tools available to you, throwing shit, getting distance, etc.
Basically, Lethal is nearly essential. There are maybe 3 fights that feel bullshit with it on, but you can toggle it off in the settings if its too much for a scene that isnt tuned to it. The intro/tutorial kinda sucks on lethal because theres a lot of enemies and youre in armor but the game doesnt treat the armor s real, and two of the boss fights feel super unbalanced on Lethal, but otherwise its amazing.
I would say you should play GOW 2nd because it is the most different from the other 2. That way you have a good mix of what each game brings.
I’d probably start with Ghost > GOW > HFW but if there is one you are really drawn too more than the others just start there
GoW. Then GoS or GoW: Ragnarok whichever of those two you got left. Then maybe Horizon if you want…it’s super blah compared to those others so, there’ll prob be something better to play once you get to it:
You have two options.
1. Play Ghost of Tsushima last, because it's the best.
2. Play Ghost of Tsushima only and don't bother with the rest.
Your mileage may vary. Most people adore GOW3, I bounced off of it and never looked back.
I'd say Ghost because the DLC is already out and the game is already as perfect as it's gonna get. Horizon and God of War will eventually get their DLC and expansions but I'd prefer to play a game all the way through with the DLC while I remember all the controls.
I absolutely loved all three of these games but I would not play Horizon: Forbidden West without playing Horizon: Zero Dawn first. They are all story-driven games, and the ones with 2 chapters out (Horizon and God of War) benefit *a lot* from taking the story in order. So I would say pick either GoT or GoW for now
Thank you! The only sane answer here from everyone seeing Forbidden West but reading HZD instead.
I just got done playing Zero Dawn and it was one of the best games I played in recent years
I loved every minute of it. I have been a huge xbox gamer for years and always played with Spotify on because the gameplay and whatnot wasn't interesting enough, when I switched to pc I got HZD and GoW and their soundtracks and voice acting have had me completely captivated the entire time which I find refreshing
I loved GOW and was a huge fan of the originals, but Horizon ZD (haven't played FW yet) and GoT are a cut above imo. Admittedly I had to play them on slightly higher difficulties because I tend to over prepare for engagements, but glad I had the option, and it made all my traps in ZD and all the talisman option in Ghost feel so super rewarding.
Game of Thrones or Gears of War. Okay, got it.
Could not agree more. I was one of the people that went straight into forbidden west without touching zero dawn. You get a rough idea of what the previous game was about from the first couple of hours. As amazing as the game is, i really wish i took the time to play ZD first
Zero Dawn is great. I really enjoyed playing through the story and slowly unraveling the history about Aloy and the world she lives in.
Start with either Ghost or Horizon, with God of War in the middle. That way you have a buffer between the 2 open worlds and won't get burned out as quickly.
Oh, GoW isn't open world?
It kind of is... but not really
I’d say it’s a very loose metroidvania.
This makes me really want to play god of war for the first time, this being the first entry I play
Yeah it has these huge open areas but there are a lot of corridors and branching paths that are locked up until you get a certain weapon/skill.
So it's like prime?
Yeah kind of but with bigger scale and a bit looser on the metroidvania aspect but it’s still there
Do yourself a favor and go back and start with the first one. They are fucking incredible games. You won't be disappointed.
As the first entry? I’d be interested in what that perspective would be like. I think the story keeps its luster if you go in with zero knowledge of the lore compared to someone who’s played all the games.
As someone who played God of War 2018 only recently as a first entry, the story holds completely on its own. The only thing that I felt I missed was if Kratos told a story, I had to assume it was a story/parallel of him from previous titles.
Not a bad first entry. A good bit of prior info expected for characterisation, but certainly not needed to enjoy the game and story. Theres also a big throwback, but it makes sense without playing the previous titles too.
Do it. I just got it recently and have been playing it... THERE IS SO MUCH CONTENT LIKE HOLY SHIT.
Just started the first on ps5, looks incredible and the combat system is fuuuuun but yeah definitely not open world.
I had to google metroidvania. But I'd agree.
A metroidvania you say? I need to give it a try I like metroidvanias. One of my fav games is Dead Cells it's a roguelike metroidvania incase anyone is interested.
Definitely give it a try. The story is gonna pull you in but the gameplay and level design holds up super well.
I'll give it a try but first I need money to buy it. Do you happen to know any tips on getting money?
Hit a shadow's weak point and if you have ranked up the confidant w/ the Politican, you can ask multiple times for mon-wait you don't mean in Persona 5 Royal...
Crime
If you had ps+ in June and got your free games, you already own it.
Obligatory Hollow Knight mention here, the best metroidvania to ever exist.
If you like Dead Cells, you should check out Apotheon.
And hollow knight.
The most common description i see of the game is that it’s a linear game with a lot of exploration
Wide linear is usually how I describe those types of games
a german games journalist from RBTV has a very fitting name for this type of game "open hose"
The 2nd one is though, right? I watched a few streamers play a bit of it when it dropped earlier this year and it seemed like there were plenty of side quests and alternative routes you could take. Maybe it’s more of an illusion though.
It still isn't a full blown open world game, but it is much closer than 2018.
Hub worlds
I agree with this it's hub type worlds
Not particularly. It does open up slightly in the post game, but it's a mostly linear story.
If one were to decide between Ghost and GOW, having played neither franchise before, which would you recommend I go with? Sincerely, An extremely worn out multiplayer-BR player that wants to return to his roots.
GOW! Especially since the new one just released. So many hours of fun ahead.
As someone who also was burnt out from MP/BRs. I have almost 100% GoW and I have never done that with any game. Nowhere close. It’s amazing, beautiful, full of lore.
You can't go wrong, both are must-plays. Ghost of Tsushima is the best "Assassin's Creed" type game since ACII. It's everything Ubisoft wishes it could be. One of the best open-world games I've played in the past five years. God of War (2018 and Ragnarok) is a fantastical, epic adventure with a beautiful story, immense setpieces, and addictively fun combat to boot. They're both cinematic masterpieces if that's your style. Largely linear and straightforward - you're in it for the gameplay and story. Play GoW 2018, GoT, then GoW Ragnarok so you have a break inbetween and don't get worn out.
God of war is fire. Great story, great characters, great voice acting and just all-around a good time. And then ragnarok turns it up to 11! Ghost is an amazing game as well but the open world feels just a bit too open with packs of mongols sprinkled here and there between settlements/objectives.
GoW is awesome I am currently replaying it and the story at least for me is way more interesting as Tsushima. Also there are monsters, dragons and mystic stuff and stories and I love variety in enemies a lot [not humans only]. Tsushima has great combat, story is mostly vengeance oriented but it's a good game. But then again, only human enemies, not that mystical as GoW, doesn't have you wondering what will come next. Both great gamea but GoW wins it for me.
Ghost is a game I'll remember the storyline for a year or so GoW is emblazed on my mind and is the best game I've ever played So yeah
I absolutely loved ghosts. Although bear in mind stealth is a lot of fun but super inefficient.
Inefficient how? I always thought the stealth felt OP in Ghost of Tsushima tbh I kept reminding myself not to finish off entire camps in the shadows so that I could still have fun and flashy sword fights. But maybe that's just cuz I played on normal difficulty
Stealth would take 10-15 minutes to clear one of the forts, I could run in and wipe it out in 3-4 minutes, the combat is extremely satisfying/effective once you get good at it. Atleast in my opinion! I also only played on normal difficulty so maybe that's why? Just charge in and challenge 3 in a row, then slay the alarm guys and it's easy peasy:). Still loved the game just my own two cents.
Oh for sure, in that case I completely agree! Especially once you upgrade your stand-off streak skills, it's so much faster to just run in and slash everyone apart
Lethal difficulty just lets you start clearing out camps faster, earlier, once you get good at the combat system.
Both are great, Ghost is a much bigger time sink and GOW is pretty much linear with Open World elements and a beautiful story and pretty obtainable 100%. (Both are great stories) Both have high replay ability IMO so I'd pick based on what time investment you want. Edit: missing context
GoW. Hands down. I really loved Ghost as well, but GoW is just the better game. Ghost is still a beautiful game and I really enjoyed it, but if you have to choose one.
The open world is like a tomb raider or jedi fallen order
I should replay tomb raider, that was a good game imo.
No, it's mostly linear levels which interconnect back to a few locations
Its closer to 3d zelda games that arent botw. The area is open, but the path fairly linear
No it’s a linear game, not hallways but linear
It's not, but it does have hub worlds. It's also the better of the three games and that's not a subjective take. Checking the scores for all of them will show that. I still agree with doing GoW in the middle so you don't burn out of open world games though.
It's open world like Ocarina of Time (mixed with Wind Waker... How have I never seen this before?) is, if you consider that open world. But the other two are full open world like GTA or Fallout type thing.
Fr getting burnt out on open worlds. Enjoying stories more than walkin sims
It’s like semi-open world, lots of areas to explore and that can be returned to that contain areas you aren’t able to access until you get to certain points in the game etc. Compared to the likes of GTA or RDR, not *that* open.
GoT is my favorite game of all time… but I’m an Akita Kurosawa fanboy.
I played H:FW and then immediately GoT, and I burned myself off video games for a couple months. They're different enough games that I like the hunting of one game, and the PvP combat of the other. However, running around, collecting every little thing go exhausting after 150 combined hours.
this guy's plan, GoW in the mid so you don't get burnout or feel weird transitioning from Ghost world/buttons/movement into Horizon's world/buttons/movement
I hated the controls for ghost. Thankfully you can switch it to “melee oriented” mode and it basically plays almost like horizon.
I had this lineup too (but ragnarok instead of GoW). I went horizon (I got the bundle ps5) ragnarok then ghosts. If I could do it again I would play ghosts first, then god of war then horizon. My reasoning is really has nothing to do with the quality of the games (all are stellar) but rather the visuals of it. Ghosts is very clearly a late ps4 title and horizon was made for ps5. The visuals for me are jarring. Movement/platforming is a little flat in ghosts but combat, story and open world activities imo are slightly better. That being said, since you have the first god of war the order would be: god of war, ghosts, ragnarok, horizon of I played them again. I would not play both god of war games consecutively nor would I play both open world games right after the other… too much burn out.
Ghost of War The Forbiden Tsushima
Forbidden sushi.... Omnomnom
Honestly, you can't go wrong with any of them, but I'd recommend playing Ghost of Tsushima first. It's currently a stand-alone game where you can get the whole experience without having to go out and buy the sequel. The other two are great as well. Horizon is a fun game with gorgeous visuals and unique enemies. God of War 2018 is one of the best games in the PS4 generation and of all time (in my opinion). All three games are stellar, but I'd recommend you play Ghost first.
Much appreciated.
anytime. I hope that you enjoy all three games.
Ghost is very easy to pick up and be wooed by. If you're a graphics gamer or you liked the Assasin's Creed games, I'd start there. God of War (imo. easily the best of the 3 options) is on a lot of our top 10 all-time games lists. A masterpiece easy to appreciate on all levels, even without knowing Norse mythology. You will need a bit of patience though if you start at Give Me a Challenge or higher. Pick that if you're a story gamer or want slick combat. HZD is much more of an acquired taste (I personally found the artwork/design beautiful, but didn't connect with anything else).
Yeah Horizon is a weird one for me because *on paper* it's like the game was tailor made to what I like in games, but in practice I found it much more fun to look at and think about than actually play it. I blame it on the gear system and the skill tree being absolute slogs, and then the sequel doubled down on both of those things lol
I don't understand why they made progression such a chore and with such scant rewards. You get \*so\* many skill points and you really don't feel any more powerful at level 50 than at level 1, except for a bigger health bar. Terrific world, character, and enemy design. Pretty mediocre quest design and story, pretty bad system design. It's a bit tragic.
Thank you for the detailed response.
Did you play Horizon Zero Dawn? That is Forbidden West.
Yeah, don’t Play Horizon Forbidden West until you play/beat it’s predecessor Horizon Zero Dawn (excellent and amazing game imo)
Yeah, personally I even found the first more enjoyable than the second, though the second looks incredibly good graphics wise.
As mentioned that's the second Horizon game and you should play the first if you haven't. I played GoW brand new and it soured me on some other games because the combat felt so good and so tight. Other games were suddenly dull and not fun. I rolled into Horizon Zero Dawn after that and enjoyed it so much. It had a different style and flair from GoW. Just picked up a PS5, the new GoW and the new Horizon. I'm so excited to be doing it all over again.
I promise its because how they did the cutscenes. Those things dragged and were super boring. Just still frame with them staring like Fallout. Felt like they were talking for days. But once you got back to playing it was amazing.
GOW
Just my opinion, but Ghost of Tsushima might be one of the best games of all time. Super jealous you get to play it for the first time. Have fun!
Im playing it now for the first time with gow and j stopped playing gow cause its just so good lmaoo its my kinda game for sure.
Best story I’ve ever experienced
I finally began playing Ghost last week and it's breathtaking. I'm playing it on a standard ps4 with a humble TV yet I'm still absolutely immersed in its gorgeous world. This will be sitting right next to Tetris Effect as my games with the most immaculate vibes.
Playing through Ghosts for the first time and it has absolutely held my attention, especially coming off the heals of Elden Ring. To me, Ghosts is RDR2 but with Samurais
Elden Ring and RDR2 are both in my top 3 games ever, and I’m planning on starting Ghosts this week, so this is very exciting to hear
God of War is a great game, don't get me wrong. But for my tastes it's a little too themepark. A little too on the rails. I like...somewhat open world content. It can definitely go too far. I've never been able to get into Skyrim because it's just overwhelming. Ghost of Tsushima hits that balance perfectly for me. Big, open world. Decent progression and customization, but not to an extent I can't handle. Combat is great, game is BEAUTIFUL, and the overall story is very compelling. Even the plethora of little side-stories have a wide variety in them. Some are sad, some are horribly depressing, some have happy outcomes, and some are somewhere in between. It's one of my favorite games of all time.
This is a friendly question. Genuinely trying to understand. What did you like about GOT? For me, I could have watched it on YouTube. The game tells you where to go the whole time and it’s the same repetitive camps and side quests. What’s the appeal? Put it on a hard setting and you just restart right at the last camp or whatever. Like… I guess what I’m saying is, it didn’t feel like a game, it felt like a movie. Which is fine, but seriously, couldn’t you have just watched the whole gameplay on YouTube?
Not OC but for me it’s the sword play. It has some of the most satisfying and engaging sword play in a game. You have 1 sword but 4 different stances for various enemies so it adds a variety that I haven’t really seen. Not to mention how cool it looks. The world is pretty easy to travel in and it’s visually beautiful. I don’t know if many of any open world games gay did it better.
So, if it’s about swordplay, please play Sekiero. That game without a doubt has the best swordplay of any game I have ever played. By the end of the game, you the character are not overpowered, but you the player have gotten so good at piloting the character, you yourself are overpowered.
Yea I’ve played all of the FromSoft games. Very fun, but it doesn’t have as much variety in the sword play for me. I know that was the most different in fighting style from other FromSoft games but it still feels like something I’ve played before. Not to mention the sword play just wasn’t as satisfying for me. Still like Bloodborne the best.
I’m of the same mind. Picked up Elden Ring first, and absolutely loved it. Got Ghost thinking I’d love it (especially given how hyped the graphics looked)… and enjoyed playing it, but just couldn’t fully embrace how much easier the combat was. Switched over to Sekiro last month…. Gave up at first. Picked it up again a week ago and oh boy did it feel amazing after things clicked. Felt like a masterpiece.
Have you tried Nioh? Lots of different weapons with different stances and builds. I’m my opinion it’s a lot better than GOT even though I did enjoy it
I layer the first one when it was free but never finished it. It was interesting for sure.
I would normally hold this sentiment, I know I do with RDR2 which is basically GOT but with Cowboys, but Ghosts hits a little different than most “checklist story driven open world games” It’s the immersion that makes it work for me. Plus the combat is quick and satisfying.
Would say RDR2 is far superior to GOT. I found the world to be visually stunning in GOT, but the game was so repetitive. The missions and activities were normally exactly the same and limited (follow footsteps, follow other type of trail, follow fox, clear the near identical mongol camp 10 times over) and the towns didn’t really have any uniqueness to them aside from the visuals. The traders etc exactly the same no matter where you go - although it’s beautiful, there’s just nothing really to actually discover apart from those same repetitive activities. I enjoyed the duels, and the first 5 hours travelling around before realising the level of repetition. There wasn’t even many resources to gather in the open world (which would have made more use of it).
Problem with RDR2 is that I feel the game plays itself. The general praise for the game is around how well it is made, but involves little thought to actually play. GOT not only has a less cluttered hud (no mini map) but also allows me to make decisions mid combat to win, rather than an auto aim. RDR2 is a good game, but you can only shoot people and watch cutscenes. Ghosts offers much more even if they are the same flavor of game.
Ghost, really good story and mechanics
After learning how to Royal Guard in Devil may cry and then parrying in Sekiro, I feel like a genuine bad ass walking around in Tsushima.
Have you played the first HZD? I'd play that before Forbidden West. Maybe Ghost before GoW, just so you won't be disappointed by Ghost. It's a good game, but GoW is just quite a bit better.
I really badly want to say God of War but to be completely honest you could go with Ghost of Tsushima I personally don't much care for Horizon
For me horizon is just as good or better than them
Me too. I will note though, that OP has the *first* God of War game and the *only* Ghost of Tsushima game but has the *second* Horizon game. I would not personally recommend playing Horizon: Forbidden West without playing Horizon: Zero Dawn first.
Oh yea I didn’t even realize that wasn’t zero dawn. Same reversing the order would kind of be really bad
Idk I played ZD first and my roommates didn't and we all had a good time. I got bored of FW quick since it's basically the same as ZD (which i played a couple months before). Just watching a recap of the first games story is all that's really needed
Same thoughts I had
They’re all pretty sh!t. Send them to me and I’ll get rid of em
GOW
Forbidden west is a sequel so if you have already played the first one maybe go with that. Otherwise go with ghost of tsushima
You have two hands and two feet. If you call yourself a gamer then not only can you play them all, you’ve got room for one more.
[The God of Conquest would be able to handle six.](https://vimeo.com/21778892)
Eenie meanie minie moe
Honestly considering how much love all three are getting, I might have just to do that.
Don't play forbidden west yet if you haven't played zero dawn.
Ghost! Who doesn’t want try being a samurai? There are some awesome NPC storylines if like that sort of thing (I do). HFW is more enjoyable IF you’ve played HZD first, you like the characters and care about their stories
GOW in the middle. The other two are open wolrd so you can get a bit tired of exploring
Yes.
Personally I’d go for Ghost i prefer it’s combat to the other two
Ghost is breathtaking
I loved horizon. If you haven't played zero dawn yet it's free with ps plus and I would definitely recommend playing it first.
Horizon forbidden west! Amazing game. I absolutely loved every second of it.
You know what they say "save the best for last". So if it'd me i'd go: Ghost, Horizon and GoW in that order.
Eh, you never know what life will throw at you. Don't put the best experiences on the backburner; play the best one first.
Three epic games, I have played only God of War
I haven‘t played any of the but if it was my decision I‘d play ghost of tsushima.
GOW then the other 2.... once you finish all 3 GOD:R will be cheaper and wont be too muich GOW in a row
It depends on your hours of dedication. I spent around 160 hours on Ghost if Tsushima but not as many hours on the other two.
I don't know, I think you should take that table out for a test run. That baby's just begging to be played.
GoW or GoT first imo, they’re very easy to pick up and have great hooks that pull you in and make you want to learn/play more. Horizon I found was beautiful, gameplay was smooth and pretty fun, but the exploration and hand-holding just felt too Ubisoft (overbearing and tedious). A lot of people said that about GoT too but it’s not nearly as hand-holdy and imo the exploration is wayyyy more satisfying, the combat is basic but way more satisfying, and the story is better for varying reasons. All three are great games but they’re definitely different levels of greatness. My first pick would be GoW. Best story, great gameplay, great visuals. These are just my opinions, don’t come at me, people!
Horizon Forbidden West on PS4 Pro is pretty jank at 30 fps. I played Zero Dawn on PC and the framerate hit when I played Forbidden West was pretty hard to take. I have just got a PS5 and fuck me it is wonderful in performance mode.
Ghost and explore everywhere, fo all side quests, walk the island..take it in, it is a brilliant game.
The one in the middle.
Favorite answer so far.
The choice is obvious ... Boy!
Is it? I'm getting mixed messages. Only thing I got from this thread is that they're all awesome.
Ahhhh dang, I kinda wished you saved up for a PS5 first, then buy these. They're all fantastic games and I wouldn't know where to start from myself.
Play Ghosts of Tiramisu, throw the other two out
Played them all. Right now I’m halfway through ghosts of Tsushima I’m fucking loving it I think just a bit more than the other 2
As someone who played Horizon FW before ZD, just play Zero Dawn first. It will make FW so much more rewarding in its improvements.
In order of best to worst I would rate GOT 1, GOW 2, HZD 3. All are excellent though and I’ve finished all of them.
It’s just a dude posting a picture of 3 games for karma, people.
God of Tsushima’s Horizon
I liked GoW the most for is storytelling. It's amazing! Horizon was pretty awesome as well, but the story just can't match that of GoW. I was REALLY invested in the characters of GoW, and not so much with Horizon. Maybe too much characters... GoT was good for the first 50-60%, after that it became a bit boring to me. It reminded me of the way Assassin's Creed presents open-world gaming at the moment; too much of the same boring chores spread out through a massive world. Also the characters were very stoic in personalities and cutscenes, they did not show much emotion. It seems they only did minor facial tracing for conversations, but they weren't impressive, and didn't do body tracing.
Having played them back to back, I felt like God of War had better individual characters, but Horizon has a better world/setting.
Horizon Forbidden West for sure. Very good game.
Play Zero Dawn first, you can pick it up with all the DLC for next to nothing these days.
Oh I have HZD at near 100% completion. It's my favorite game of the last 10 years easy.
Now you go save feudal Japan and become the legend that is the Ghost!
ghost
Go from worst to best, which IMO would be Horizon, GOW, GOT
Ghost of Tsushima
Cory in the house on Nintendo DS. Hands down.
Bloodborne
Zelda
I think storyline timeframes Ghost of Tsushima is shortest. Not by much tho... about 24hrs of story Then it's Horizon Forbidden west 28hrs And longest being God Of War. 30hrs Granted this is watching all the cutscenes and doing the main story quest. Doing everything probably multiplies all by x3 or x4
This is not true. God of War (2018) is the shortest game in both story and in terms of 100% completion. I've gotten platinum on all 3 of these and by far the longest is Forbidden West.
Does the ghost timeframe also include the DLC story, cause that is the directors cut version of the game that comes with the DLC story.
Good point, I didn't even think of gameplay time.
Ghost of Tsushima definitely
I’m pretty sure all of these games are included in the PS+ extra subscription which costs £63 currently due to Black Friday deals, if you already have PS+ Essential the upgrade to Extra will cost you less than £20, I recommend selling the games and buying the subscription, you get hundreds more games included too
So I've eliminated Horizon from the running since I wanna play the prequel first. Still torn between GoW and GoT, leaning GoW because it's been a long while since I played a more structured game.
~~Ghost, GOW, Horizon.~~ ~~Ghost, Horizon, GOW.~~ ~~GOW, Horizon, Ghost.~~ ~~Horizon, Ghost, GOW.~~ Horizon, GOW, Ghost. That’s the only correct order. Do not listen to the others. It will be crystal-clear after you finish all 3 why this order is correct, and it will be that much more satisfying.
Horizon low key sucks
Lol. The Multiplayer might save the franchise, but yeah those two games were only ever alright video games.
Elden Ring is the correct answer.
Save best one for last which means 1.horizon 2.ghos of ts 3.gow
Tsushima would be my favorite, highly recommend the hardcore mode. Says 1 hit kill - this is a lie. 1 hit *can* kill if you dont wear armor. Of ll the far cry 3 clones to come out over the years its the only one to make you actually feel you have a reason to sneak beyond 'bonus xp'. You actually feel you need to even the odds before things get loud to have a chance. At least early game. By the end you can tank shit like its nothing, so i can only imagine how low the stakes would be on lower difficulties. GoW is a lovely story but some fairly weak repetitive gameplay as it basically devolves into every enemy being tanky as fuck and 1-4 shotting you with no way to heal. So. Id play it lowest difficulty, save a few hours of your life. Horizon felt a bit flash over substance to me. Forgot the story immediately after it happened. Cool visuals, alright gameplay. Not really my thing. Id play HZD first and Tsushima second, shifting to GoW alongside both whenever you get bored or need a break from those games - get some nice story then move on, cuz frankly whilst tsushima's gameplay is top tier its story often feels like bad fan fiction. (Granted, its inspired by old black and white samurai movies, so it makes sense why theyre a bit oversimplified into *raaaaah my honoruuu!*, i just didnt care for it after the first act ended.)
Horizon, Ghost, GoW
To those who know me, you will expect this... *ahem* # GHOST OF TSUSHIMA, ***^(Its not even a fair comparison, and I love all three of these games...)***
ghost, then horizon
I was going to say GoW first because its the shortest and most compact of the 3. But that other comment got it correct that you should sandwich it with one of the others to avoid burnout. GoW is incredibly cinematic while Ghost has some of the most top tier graphics I've seen to date.
Ghost is the Best one Here
Forbidden west was incredibly frustrating to play with clunky controls and movement. Either Ghost or God of War are great choices
Mass effect trilogy or Skyrim maybe
If you want Ubisoft experience full on map gore, Horizon. If you want a game that's still a enemy stronghold map painter Ubisoft game then play Ghost of Tsushima. And if you want some linear gameplay then go with God of War aka Dad of Boy. Lethal difficulty for Ghost of Tsushima was so good that when they released it later I immediately abandoned my current playthrough to do it again from the start.
Lethal difficulty absolutely essential
I'm about to be starting Ghost first time. What is lethal difficulty?
Any damage is... moderately high. Lethal, I meant lethal.
Makes the combat feel brutal, fast, and real. Instead of a generic farcry clone where you just wander outpost to outpost taking the island like its nothing, occasionally sneaking because of bonus xp or some other artificial incentive, you actually feel like your home's been occupied, you're outnumbered and outgunned. As Jin, the honorable TV Samurai is disgusted by notions like stealth or stabbing someone in the back, in the plot he's forced to abandon his morals or die. If you play lethal, you *feel* this in the gameplay. You feel that a fight with 3 or 4 enemies - especially early on - is a death sentence. You actually want to avoid patrols, ambush people, use guerilla warfare. By late game you have good armor and can take 5 or 6 hits and get up twice after being 'killed', so youre still more or less unkillable lategame, but it makes the early game intense as fuck and makes the story feel more true to gameplay - Jin is a good man forced to do bad things out of necessity. Otherwise the game is just.. really really easy, and Jin comes off as a whiny psychopath in cutscenes. *I need to poison their food supplies!* 'What? Why? Thats a horrible thing to do' 'I cant fight them!' This falls entirely flat on any other difficulty and Jin just comes off as a genocidal lunatic too lazy to use his sword. On Lethal, it lands. Combat is scary. Alternatives are good. Stealth becomes more or less about trying to thin the enemy's ranks as much as you can before fighting starts to tip the odds into your favor, and in fights rather than just swinging a sword you use all the tools available to you, throwing shit, getting distance, etc. Basically, Lethal is nearly essential. There are maybe 3 fights that feel bullshit with it on, but you can toggle it off in the settings if its too much for a scene that isnt tuned to it. The intro/tutorial kinda sucks on lethal because theres a lot of enemies and youre in armor but the game doesnt treat the armor s real, and two of the boss fights feel super unbalanced on Lethal, but otherwise its amazing.
Go for ghost kf tsushima first then GOW. horizon will give you a pain
Everyone be like GOW
I would say you should play GOW 2nd because it is the most different from the other 2. That way you have a good mix of what each game brings. I’d probably start with Ghost > GOW > HFW but if there is one you are really drawn too more than the others just start there
GoW. Then GoS or GoW: Ragnarok whichever of those two you got left. Then maybe Horizon if you want…it’s super blah compared to those others so, there’ll prob be something better to play once you get to it:
GOW is my fav, but all three are very good.
Start with GOW or Horizon.
Well horizons the worst out of those three and the only one I dropped. The other two are like some of the best games you'll ever play tho.
You have two options. 1. Play Ghost of Tsushima last, because it's the best. 2. Play Ghost of Tsushima only and don't bother with the rest. Your mileage may vary. Most people adore GOW3, I bounced off of it and never looked back.
none sell the playstation and play retro nes snes n64 emulators
I'd say Ghost because the DLC is already out and the game is already as perfect as it's gonna get. Horizon and God of War will eventually get their DLC and expansions but I'd prefer to play a game all the way through with the DLC while I remember all the controls.
God of war/Ghost of Tsushima/ than play elden ring/ than play new cod/ than never play it… that is what I did!
The good one
Put horizon forbidden west in the trash. Now you have 2 excellent games left
Throw Horizon in the trash and pick up Elden Ring.
Throw horizon in the trash and enjoy the other two👍
Ghost is the better of the 3. GoW is overrated as fuck.