You know, it’s funny, everyone thinks of Sucker Punch as a PlayStation studio, but they actually started way back on the Nintendo 64! They made this one game called *Rocket: Robot on Wheels* – it was their only game released on its own. After that, they really found their footing with PlayStation and became famous for three awesome franchises: *Sly Cooper*, *inFAMOUS*, and, of course, the *Ghost of Tsushima* games. I’ve spent countless hours playing all of them!
As a huge fan of Sucker Punch, I’ve been thinking about what *really* makes their games special. They’ve made three pretty different franchises, but I always feel like there’s something that connects them. With their new game, *Ghost of Yotei*, coming out, I wanted to take a closer look and see if I could pinpoint what those common threads are – whether it’s how they play, the kinds of stories they tell, or just certain things they always seem to include.
Stealth
Skipping The Superhero Generation
Sucker Punch Productions has often included stealth as a central gameplay element, though some of their games, like *Rocket: Robot on Wheels* and the *inFAMOUS* series, don’t focus on it. The *Sly Cooper* games, however, are known for their emphasis on sneaking and avoiding fights. Players control Sly Cooper, a raccoon, and complete missions by carefully moving through levels and pulling off elaborate heists. While other characters in the series sometimes don’t rely on stealth, the core of *Sly Cooper* is about completing objectives with as little combat as possible.
In *Ghost of Tsushima*, Jin grappled with the question of whether to uphold the samurai code of honor or embrace the stealthy tactics of a ninja to defeat his foes. *Ghost of Yotei* presents a different scenario with Atsu, who readily uses shadows to achieve her goals without the same internal conflict.
Open Traversal
Always Feels Good To Travel
Sucker Punch understood that simply walking or running around in a game can become tedious. They addressed this in their first title, *Rocket: Robot on Wheels*, by giving the main character a unicycle, making getting around feel fresh for a Nintendo 64 platformer. They continued this trend with *Sly Cooper*, who moved with a distinctive style that fit the game’s focus on stealth.
The *inFAMOUS* games really showcased Sucker Punch’s creativity, letting players use electric powers for hovering and dashing, or manipulate smoke to access hidden areas. *Ghost of Tsushima* and *Ghost of Yotei* stand out for their fantastic horse riding and stunningly beautiful open worlds.
Walking On Tightropes
Only One Has Sound Effects
Tightropes are a recurring feature in Sucker Punch games and are worth discussing separately from general movement. The *Sly Cooper* series utilizes them particularly well, offering players a quick and stealthy way to navigate levels. Adding to the fun, Sly Cooper makes distinctive sounds while moving, enhancing the game’s cartoonish charm.
The *inFAMOUS* games feature ways to quickly travel around, like using power lines and train tracks. Now, in *Ghost of Yotei*, the character Atsu can use tightropes to move between camps and castles, allowing for even more stealthy attacks than Jin could perform in *Ghost of Tsushima*. There’s a real satisfaction in landing a perfectly timed stealth kill using the diverse weapons available in *Ghost of Yotei*.
Unskippable Cutscenes
You Will Watch
Look, I love Sucker Punch, but honestly, their cutscenes can be a bit frustrating. It feels like most of the time, you’re *forced* to watch them, even if you’ve played the game a million times! They *do* sometimes let you skip them in their big games like *Ghost of Tsushima*, but it’s not super common. And even their newest game, *Ghost of Yotei*, which looks incredible on the PS5, still makes you sit through those long scenes – I really wish they’d let me skip them!
This isn’t necessarily a negative. It shows Sucker Punch puts a lot of importance on storytelling. Whether it’s a crew of animal thieves or samurai on a quest for revenge, they clearly want players to experience the narratives they’ve built.
Ahead Of The Curve
Unique Twists Before Their Time
Honestly, Sucker Punch just does its own thing, which is awesome. I mean, where else are you gonna find a robot zooming around on a unicycle for an entire game? And then with the *Sly Cooper* trilogy, they took everything they figured out making 3D platformers and threw in stealth gameplay. That was a really cool idea – you don’t see a lot of platformers that focus on sneaking around, so it really set that series apart.
Before *inFAMOUS*, superhero games existed, but few were truly original on such a large scale – *Prototype*, released around the same time in 2009, was a notable exception. Similarly, open-ended samurai games existed before *Ghost of Tsushima*, but fully open-world examples were rare. Now, we’re seeing more games follow that open-world approach, like *Rise of the Ronin* and *Assassin’s Creed Shadows*. Ultimately, Sucker Punch Productions has often set new trends or been at the forefront of game design.
Sticking To Trilogies
Thus Far, At Least
I’ve been following Sucker Punch for a while now, and after they made *Rocket: Robot on Wheels*, they seemed to really like making three games in a series before moving on to a new idea. We got three awesome *Sly Cooper* games from them – though the fourth one wasn’t actually made by the team. Then came *inFAMOUS*, and they gave us two main games with Cole MacGrath as the hero, plus a third one that starred a different character, Delsin Rowe.
Two separate downloadable content packs for *inFAMOUS* don’t really factor into whether or not Sucker Punch is planning a trilogy. The big question now is what they’ll do next: will they make another *Ghost of* game after *Ghost of Yotei*, revisit one of their classic franchises, or start something completely new?
The Quality Of Their Games
They Rarely Miss
It’s remarkable that this game company consistently receives scores in the 80s on review sites like Metacritic for most of their titles. Finding reviews for *Rocket: Robot on Wheels* is trickier, as you have to search through older sources. However, most reviews gave it scores in the 70s and 80s – a solid, if not spectacular, rating.
Okay, so I’ve been looking at the review scores for some of Sucker Punch’s games, and they’re consistently good! The *Sly Cooper* games usually scored between 83 and 88. The *inFAMOUS* series, not including any extra content, averaged around 80 to 85. And then there’s *Ghost of Tsushima* at 83, with *Ghost of Yotei* hitting an 86. They haven’t broken into the 90s consistently, but honestly, that’s still a really solid record for a game developer. I’m always excited to see what they come up with next!
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2025-10-10 17:46