Explore a Tokyo filled with ghosts, expand your GTA to next-gen, Sony snaps up Haven, and Halo comes to TV.

Eerie Ghostwire: Tokyo thrills with supernatural flair

Steeped in Japanese culture, Ghostwire: Tokyo is an action adventure blended with a ghost story. Exclusive to PS5 and Windows, you’ll explore a strange Tokyo that is suddenly empty of people, battling ghastly demons who have taken up residence in the city.

Shibuya, with its intersection that stops traffic in all directions so people can flood across the multi-directional crosswalks, is one of the most recognizable districts of Tokyo, so it’s a smart starting point for Ghostwire. Even though I’ve not visited Japan, and my knowledge of the country and culture are limited, I still knew where I was as the game began.

I did not, however, know what was going on. Solving that mystery is at the heart of the game’s story. A mysterious fog has descended over the city, causing people’s bodies to disappear, stranding their souls which float in the air as clouds of spirit.

You are Akito, a young man whose body has been possessed by a spirit with unknown motivations.

That spirit does help you protect yourself from nightmarish creatures who roam the streets collecting the disembodied souls. Those creatures are in the service of a master who wears a hannya mask like those worn by Noh actors. In the Japanese theatre tradition, these masks represent demons.

Hannya masks are also part of Shinto tradition, and Tango Gameworks draws deep from that rich culture in Ghostwire. To clear the map you need to remove corruption from Torii gates that are found throughout the city and you’ll also find and interact with yokai and kami, the cat-like nekomata and the amphibious kappa among them.

Because Ghostwire is so entrenched in these Japanese traditions, I suggest you try to play the game with the Japanese actors for a more authentic experience. It’s tricky in the early part of the game when the story is being set up and you’re learning how to play to pay attention to the subtitles, but later on when you’re more familiar with the controls this is easier to do.

As you explore Tokyo, navigating the haunted spaces and collecting spirits and the game’s currency, Magatama, you’ll be able to upgrade your powers that make it easier for you to battle with wind, fire, and water.

All of this is made better by incredible visuals and a vibrant colour palette, and a fantastic score by Masatoshi Yanagi (which is available on YouTube).

Ghostwire: Tokyo is developed by Tango Gameworks and published by Bethesda Softworks. It’s available on March 25 for PS5 and Windows. Rated teen.

GTA V looks great on next gen consoles

The latest game in the Grand Theft Auto franchise has just been released in a version for PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, and GTA V looks amazing.

I picked it up for PS5 where I can play with a refresh rate of 60 frames per second or with stunning visuals at 4K and 30 fps. The load times are noticeably faster, especially when starting up an autosaved game, which is about 20 seconds on the PS5 but more than two minutes on a PS4.

Rockstar also did some work to make use of the PS5 DualSense controller, so there’s some feedback on the triggers when you’re driving or firing a weapon, and when you’re getting a call on your mobile, the audio comes through the controller.

And to encourage people to upgrade, there is a method to migrate your save files to your new console.

But if you’ve already got or played GTA V, I don’t know that you need to upgrade. If you want to replay it and you want it to look better, and you’ve got $40 to spare, you’ll be satisfied. If you’re playing a lot of GTA Online, you might appreciate the better graphics.

But this is a game that was originally released in 2013 for PS3 and Xbox 360 and a year later was updated for PS4 and Xbox One. GTA V still plays like a game from 2013.

If you do want to upgrade, the next-gen versions of GTA V are steeply discounted at the moment: $12.50 on PS5 and $25 on Xbox Series X/S. And GTA Online is free for Playstation Plus subscribers until June.

Jade Raymond’s Haven Studios picked up by Playstation

Video game industry veteran Jade Raymond, who has worked for Ubisoft, Electronic Arts, and Google’s Stadia division, is adding Sony to her resume.

Raymond founded Haven Studios with an investment from Sony Interactive Entertainment. The announcement this week that Sony has agreed to purchase the developer is an indication that what Haven is working on shows promise.

In a statement, Raymond said, “Our first new IP for Playstation is on track to deliver a AAA multiplayer experience with a vision to build a systemic and evolving world focused on freedom, thrill, and playfulness that will keep players entertained and engaged for years.”

Haven Studios becomes Sony’s first video game developer based in Canada.

Halo, the live-action series, premieres March 24

The Halo television series premieres tomorrow on Paramount+, which is a streaming network that Canadians can get a subscription to for $6 a month.

But if you’ve got a subscription to the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate service, you can grab a month of Paramount+ right now thanks to a Perk from Microsoft and Xbox. This offer is available until May 23.

The first season of the series, which stars B.C. actor Pablo Schreiber as the Master Chief, has nine episodes that will be released weekly. It’s already been renewed for a second season.