Shuhei Yoshida, who recently left PlayStation after three decades with the company, has shared some interesting news about Ghost of Tsushima’s impressive performance in Japan. In an interview with AV Watch, Yoshida mentioned that this samurai adventure is only the second Western-made PlayStation first-party game to sell over 1 million copies in Japan.
The last time this happened? Way back in 1998 with Crash Bandicoot 3: Warped. That’s right – it took more than 25 years for another Western-developed PlayStation game to hit this milestone in Japan. This long gap underscores how challenging it is for non-Japanese games to break into the country’s gaming market, which remains heavily dominated by Nintendo’s Switch and homegrown hits.
Yoshida also reflected on the struggles of past Western-developed PlayStation exclusives in Japan, particularly during the PS3 and PS4 eras. Games like God of War and Uncharted won awards and sold well globally but typically only achieved 3-5% of their global sales figures in Japan. Horizon Zero Dawn came close with around 700,000 copies sold in Japan, but Ghost of Tsushima finally broke the million-copy barrier.
Ghost of Tsushima has done more than just sell well – it’s had a real cultural impact in Japan. The game has even boosted tourism to the actual Tsushima island. Fans of the game helped fund repairs for a torii gate on the island, though sadly, Yoshida noted this feel-good story took a turn when the gate was later vandalized.
As of September 2024, Ghost of Tsushima has sold over 13 million copies worldwide across PS4, PS5, and PC, according to reports from Sucker Punch and Sony via The New York Times. The game has been such a hit that a sequel called Ghost of Yotei is on the way, still on track for release in 2025. Anime is also in work with a partnership with Crunchyroll.
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