Thankfully, the internet is being (mostly) normal about Ghost of Yōtei's new female character design

Ghost of Yōtei is Sony's follow-up to the hit PS4 game Ghost of Tsushima, revealed at the most recent State of Play this PS5 game features a new female samurai. In recent months new female character designs in video games have been torn apart by a section of online critics, such as Kay Vess' chin in Star Wars Outlaws. For the record, Kay Vess is a great design.

To date, many of those who usually line-up to criticise a new female character design are keeping their powder dry. The situation came to a head recently with deep criticism of the character design in Sony's Concord, a game that was pulled from release. Could we have turned a corner?

Ghost of Yōtei is not a sequel to Ghost of Tsushima but a spiritual successor that riffs on the same game design and gameplay traits that made the original such a hit. The same adherence to exploring a fantastical Feudal Japan amidst beautiful visuals, but with a new hero, Atsu, and untouched region of Japan to roam.

Surprisingly, this is also Sucker Punch’s first game designed and made for PlayStation 5. "We’re excited to build on the visual foundation we established in Ghost of Tsushima by making the world feel even more real," said Andrew Goldfar, senior communications manager at Sucker Punch Production on the PlayStation Blog.

He added: "We have massive sightlines that let you look far across the environment, whole new skies featuring twinkling stars and auroras, even more believable movement from wind on grass and vegetation, and more improvements we’ll share in the future. Our new setting also gives us the opportunity to introduce new mechanics, gameplay improvements, and even new weapons."

The new Atsu character design is only glimpsed in the new key art and reveal footage, but she looks very similar to the actress playing her, Erika Ishii. The same period detail and accurate costume designs are in place from Ghost of Tsushima, and the trailer teases customisation options, including new masks.

Erika took to social media to joyously share the news, writing on Instagram: "I’ve dreamed of this my entire life. But I still can’t believe I’m part of art like this. I am the Ghost of Yōtei."

There were some usual suspects trying to ruin the moment, including @skullface_cmx who wrote on Twitter: "Genderfluid samurai, how very current day". But Ghost of Yōtei's fans are already circling the wagons, with many loving the casting, new character design and world Sucker Punch is building. (Scroll below to read something positive.)

It's yet to be revealed if Ghost of Yōtei will get a boost on Sony's new PlayStation 5 Pro console, but I expect something is planned. The game will be released in 2025, so there's plenty of time. If you've yet to upgrade to a PS5, then read our guide to the best games consoles for the latest information and deals.

If you want to learn more about designing for video games, I'd recommend our Procreate character design tutorial, or read how xx has approached the design for characters in Hyper Light Breaker.