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Ghost of Tsushimaisone of the most excellent PS4 exclusivesto have graced the console generation. From the environment art to its combat system, characters, and rich historical Japanese setting, it also became one of the ultimate samurai games, especially with the addition of the cinematic black-and-white Kurosawa Mode.
As you dive into the world and let the wind guide you to your destination, you might be curious just how much of the game is based on facts and how much of it is fiction. Is Jin Sakai a real person? Does Khotun Khan actually share a lineage with Genghis Khan? Was there a Mongol invasion of Tsushima? Find out in this brief history lesson.
Is Ghost Of Tsushima Based On Real Events?
Yes. Ghost of Tsushimais rooted in a historical contextandcaptures a real event in Japan’s history.
The game takes place in the year 1274on Japan’s Tsushima Island and also Iki Island in the Director’s Cut expansion. During this period in history, these two islands were indeed part of the Mongol Empire’s conquest of Japan.
The events that led to the end of the Mongol invasions between 1274 and 1281, however,played out much differently(and almost unbelievably) than how Ghost of Tsushima depicts it in its narrative.
Is Ghost Of Tsushima’s Story An Accurate Retelling?
No.Ghost of Tsushima is entirely a work of historical fiction. While the game establishes itself within the backdrop of a true event from world history, it weaves a fictional narrative around it similar to that of Assassin’s Creedor the TV series Shogun.
The protagonist, Jin Sakai,is a fictional character created by Sucker Punchand is not a real historical figure, nor is the main antagonist and Mongol invader, Khotun Khan.
The leader of the Mongol Empire in Ghost of Tsushima, Khotun Khan, isa fictional family member of the historical ruling Mongol line of khans.
He’s the made-up cousin of Kublai Khan and, thereby, the fictional grandson ofGenghis Khan, the warlord unifier of the Mongol Empire.
In fact,there are zero real historical NPCs you can meet in the game, which was also confirmed in anE3 2018 interview between game director Nate Fox and Game Informer. Fox states that it was considered during development but was ultimately avoided because it would’ve been insensitive.
Therefore, the gameplay and quests are crafted solely for entertainment purposes and arenot trying to be historically accurate accounts. Even the samurai armor and sword of Jin Sakai would come much later than the 13th century, closer to the Sengoku period and beyond.
What Is The True Story Behind The Mongol Invasion Of Japan?
The game is set during the first Mongol invasion of Japan in the year 1274 and makes it seem like that’s when it starts and ends, given thatJin Sakai defeats Mongol ruler Khotun Khan in combatby the game’s conclusion.
That’s only because video games need final bossesand, in history, the true grandson of Genghis Khan and leader of the Mongol Empire during the invasions,Kublai Khan, wouldn’t die until two decades later in 1294 from his own health problems, living until age 78.
In 1274, Tsushima and Iki both fell to the Mongol Empire’s forces, even though they were met with the sharp resistance of a small army of samurai led byGovernor So Sukekuni on TsushimaandGovernor Taira no Kagetaka on Iki Island.
The attackers arrived at Japan’s shores in a massive Mongol fleet made up ofapproximately 500 to 900 ships sent from Korea(a nation that would already fall under Mongol rule), which greatly outmatched the number of Japanese defenders.
It was the Mongol army’s pivotal arrival in Hakata Bay in both the invasion of 1274 and the second attempt in 1281that wouldn’t see them succeed in keeping their territories in Japan and would force them to flee the region.
The main reason was the luck of the natural elements, believed to be a literal godsend.A devastating typhoon hit the shores of Hakata Bayin the 1274 and 1281 invasions, which decimated the Mongol fleet and saw their numbers perish significantly.
These storm winds sent by the typhoon were coined’kamikaze,' which translates to “divine wind.“These are represented in Ghost of Tsushima’s story through Jin Sakai’s Wind Stance, the guiding wind directional system for traversal,and his starter Sword Kit, which is ‘The Storm of Clan Sakai’ (the sheath, or ‘saya,’ is inscribed with wind gust markings).
So, in Ghost of Tsushima,you, as Jin Sakai, are the “divine wind” that helps free Tsushima and Iki Island, a stroke of genius that’s as meaningfully poetic and beautiful as a haiku.
It’s also worth noting that the Iki Island expansion focuses on the Eagle Tribe of Mongolian invaders, which is the game’s fictional faction of the Empire, butthe name and inspiration undoubtedly come from Mongolia’s Kazakh eagle hunters.
