Sucker Punch pulls back the curtain on Ghost of Yotei's 'Darker, More Emotional' journey
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9 News
5 days ago
- 9 News
Ghost of Yotei developers detail new features of the game
Your web browser is no longer supported. To improve your experience update it here BREAKING Wrestling icon Hulk Hogan dead at 71 I feel it's been the right amount of time between games, with the passionate fans of Ghost of Tsushima more than ready to dive back into this immersive world. But how do you carry it forward? How do you create something new? Ghost of Tsushima was such an epic stand-alone title. So Ghost of Yotei has a big task ahead. Ghost of Yotei is releasing on October 2. (PlayStation) As I sat down with Sucker Punch Productions Jason Connell and Nate Fox, it was the first question I asked. How do we carry this game forward for a true, epic sequel? "We asked almost the exact same questions of ourselves," Connell told "That's the magic judo of making video games. And, for us, it was making sure we carry forward that like lethal precision in the combat, that samurai cinema film inspired sort of vibe, you know. "Respecting the quiet moments, but making sure there's sort of a visceral feeling to all with an awesome story pulling it together," he said. Players will wield deadly weapons as Atsu. (PlayStation) Ghost of Yotei follows the journey of Atsu, a wandering samurai hellbent on vengeance. Set 329 years after the first game, the team at Sucker Punch Productions is pushing open-world exploration to the next level, granting players "unparalleled freedom to discover Ezo". The game heavily leans into its cinematic inspirations, introducing new "director modes" for players. Beyond the returning Akira Kurosawa mode, which celebrates earlier samurai films, two new modes expand the experience, including one that gets players up close and personal with enemies. The setting incorporates "Wild West film tropes" with classic samurai movie influences, creating a unique blend that evokes a sense of being on the "edge of, the sort of the civilised world where anything could happen", Connell said. The game features a large and expansive open world set in Ezo, Japan. (PlayStation) Sucker Punch emphasised their collaborative approach with advisors, building upon the "epic training wheels called Tsushima". These advisors help ensure authenticity and accuracy. "Advisors really help us understand everything from our writing style to our historical, and like, geographical locations that we want to depict… Each of them understand we're making a piece of entertainment," Connell said. Connell and Fox stressed that their goal is not a "stone for stone sort of recreation", but rather to "capture the feeling of a place with enough authenticity and accuracy that really transports people". Ghost of Yotei is coming to PlayStation 5 on October 2. More from our interview with Jason Connell and Nate Fox in the player above. Tech Technology PlayStation Playstation 5 Video Games CONTACT US
9 News
22-07-2025
- 9 News
The Aussie drone technology helping make some of Hollywood's biggest blockbusters
Your web browser is no longer supported. To improve your experience update it here Watching Tom Cruise drive off a cliff is a stunt etched in Hollywood history. It was real, it took months of training, and it was filmed by Melbourne's XM2. "We make the impossible possible," quipped chief executive Stephen Oh from the company's headquarters, hidden in Melbourne's eastern suburbs. XM2 co-founders Stephen Oh, Aidan Kelly and Luke Annells met flying hobby helicopters. (Nine) He was controlling the camera that tracked Cruise off the cliff. "The environment was very difficult - the pressure was immense," Oh said. "It was millions and millions of dollars for a 20-something-second clip and there was a chance that we could only do that once." They ended up filming it six times. XM2 o-founder Aidan Kelly was piloting the drone itself. "We took quite a while to build up to that shot," admits Kelly, who trained with Cruise at a quarry in the UK before attempting the stunt in Norway. "As Tom got more comfortable with the drone and as I got more comfortable with what Tom was doing, there was this iteration as we rehearsed and figured out the exact angels and speed we wanted to do it at. "It just came together slowly into this one shot which is one of the biggest stunts in film history. "It was awesome to be a part of it." When visited XM2, Kelly was gearing up to film the next Spider-Man film. It adds to the company's growing resume of blockbusters, including Jurassic World , John Wick and The Fall Guys , which shut down Sydney Harbour Bridge for a full day. "I was in the back of a ute controlling the drone, flying at 60-70km/h, weaving through traffic," Kelly said. "We were weaving through traffic, weaving left and right … we flew up inside the bridge and then back down the other side. It was super intense." "It's one of the highlights of my career." Oh and Kelly and their co-founder Luke Annells met flying hobby helicopters. They started XM2 in 2011 to build a drone that could carry a 25 kilogram camera. They quickly found work with David Attenborough and on Kate Winslet's The Dress Maker , but it wasn't enough when the director of Pirates of the Caribbean 5 came knocking. "He said we want something bigger and better and I said that's not possible," Oh said. "[For the camera he wanted], that drone will need to carry about 40 kilos and he said, well, if you can't fly it, don't worry about it. "We put our heads together and developed exactly what he wanted very quickly, the world's first 40-kilo drone. "It was supposed to be for three weeks, but they loved it so much that we ended up staying for six months." XM2 quickly found work with David Attenborough and on Kate Winslet's The Dress Maker, but it wasn't enough when the director of Pirates of the Caribbean 5 came knocking. (Nine) Since then, the company has expanded to Los Angeles and London, and designed stability rigs for everything from cars to motorbikes and even horses for the Michelle Payne movie, Ride Like a Girl . That technology caught the eye of Ridley Scott and drew support from the Victorian government's creative industries minister, Colin Brooks. "Full credit to this company, they are so innovative and so agile," Brooks said. "It doesn't seem like there's a challenge that they won't take on." Soon that challenge will extend well beyond Hollywood. The company is developing tethered drones that can fly for weeks to restore network signals in areas devastated by natural disasters. XM2 is also working on a prototype that can feed native animals, stranded without food, for Parks Victoria. Oh believes "this is Melbourne technology, that's going to save lives around the world". Melbourne Australia national Victoria Hollywood Movies drones CONTACT US Auto news: Why Australians are still driving around without insurance.
The Age
22-07-2025
- The Age
Sucker Punch pulls back the curtain on Ghost of Yotei's 'Darker, More Emotional' journey
Sucker Punch Productions' Jason Connell and Nate Fox sit down with to speak all about Ghost of Yotei ahead of it's release on October 2.
