When it comes to historical action games, few titles are as iconic as Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed series and Sucker Punch’s Ghost of Tsushima. Both offer richly realised settings, stealth mechanics, and cinematic combat, but they take fundamentally different approaches to storytelling, gameplay, and historical authenticity. This comparison explores how the two stand apart, and which might suit your playstyle better.
Setting and Historical Worldbuilding
Assassin’s Creed spans numerous historical periods and locations, from Renaissance Italy and Ptolemaic Egypt to Revolutionary France and Viking-era England. Each instalment offers a reconstructed world based on real places and events, often with historical figures woven into the narrative. However, it layers this with speculative sci-fi via the Animus and the ongoing conflict between Assassins and Templars.
By contrast, Ghost of Tsushima focuses on a single, deeply researched setting: 13th-century Tsushima during the Mongol invasion of Japan in 1274. There’s no overarching conspiracy, just a story rooted in personal honour, cultural identity, and the cost of war. While some elements are stylised or romanticised, the game captures the essence of feudal Japan with striking detail.
Story and Protagonists
Assassin’s Creed features a rotating cast of protagonists, Ezio Auditore, Bayek of Siwa, Eivor, Kassandra, each tied to their own place and time. This variety adds scope, but the Animus framing device can distance players from fully inhabiting their characters. Narratives often intertwine political drama with philosophical debates on freedom, control, and memory.
Ghost of Tsushima is more intimate. You play Jin Sakai, a samurai noble turned guerrilla warrior, whose journey from honour-bound soldier to pragmatic assassin forms the emotional spine of the game. The story remains grounded in personal loss and shifting identity, exploring the tension between tradition and survival.
Combat and Stealth
Assassin’s Creed has evolved from stealth-heavy beginnings to broader open-world action. Recent entries (Origins, Odyssey, Valhalla) lean into RPG systems, with levelling, loot, and branching quests. Stealth remains, but isn’t always necessary, direct combat, especially in later games, is often the path of least resistance.
Ghost of Tsushima takes the opposite approach. While you can confront enemies head-on in tense, cinematic duels, stealth is often the smarter path. Jin’s development as the “Ghost” unlocks tools like smoke bombs, poison darts, and silent takedowns. The combat balances precision with fluidity, favouring timing and positioning over raw stats.
Visual and Audio Design
Ubisoft’s historical worlds are vast, but sometimes feel procedural. Cities are beautifully modelled, yet the environments can become repetitive or overly reliant on icons and collectibles. The musical scores tend to blend into the background, functional rather than evocative.
In contrast, Ghost of Tsushima is stunning in a painterly sense. Its landscapes, windblown fields, temple gardens, storm-lashed cliffs. are filled with colour and atmosphere. The soundtrack mixes traditional Japanese instruments with cinematic swells, and players can choose between English and Japanese audio, adding to its immersive tone.
Legacy and Critical Reception
Assassin’s Creed is one of the most enduring franchises in gaming, with over a dozen main entries and countless spin-offs. It’s praised for its ambition and scope, though criticised at times for repetition and bloat. Still, titles like Assassin’s Creed II, Black Flag, and Origins are often considered genre-defining.
Ghost of Tsushima, despite being a standalone title (for now), received widespread acclaim for its artistry, tone, and innovation. It became one of the PS4’s best-selling exclusives, and a Director’s Cut released later refined the experience further. A sequel is widely anticipated.
Seven Swords Verdict
If you want expansive variety, globetrotting across different historical periods with deep lore and evolving mechanics, Assassin’s Creed remains unmatched. For a more focused, emotionally resonant story with tight gameplay and sublime aesthetics, Ghost of Tsushima offers something truly special.
Ultimately, it depends on what you value, breadth or depth, philosophy or poetry, the Creed or the Ghost.
