Side quests are as integral to video games as any other element. But in Ghostwire Tokyo, is it worth it to do side quests?
Ghostwire Tokyo is chock-full of collectibles. If you’re the Completionist kind, you will have a blast here. Exploring the beautiful render of Shibuya (without the rowdy crowd!) while also looking at every nook and cranny for collectibles can be a fun pastime. It also really extends the game’s replayability and lets you enjoy taking in the sceneries.
But not all of the game’s collectibles can be found just by dilly-dallying around Shibuya. Some of them, you’ll have to earn. Many of the collectibles can be found by doing side-quests, and sure, completing all of them is part of the Completionist experience, which you’ll also have to do if you’re aiming for Platinum.
What about casual players, though? While completing side-quests will give you nice bonuses that make Akito’s and KK’s supernatural powers stronger and more potent. But if you’re just playing in Easy difficulty anyway, you won’t need them. So, is it worth it to stop and smell the roses – to take a detour and experience all of the side-quests? Or would you be better off just bee-lining the main storyline?
In terms of stories, the side-quests aren’t offering much. There aren’t a lot of well-planned or well-written questlines or are there related quest stories that you can piece together that will make your experience richer if you are able to connect the dots or see the connections between different quests. Some can give you a good laugh (like the one where you help a spirit take a dump by giving the disembodied voice some corporeal tissue paper), but not every side-quest is worth the detour. Most of them are just simple fetch quests, even. So, in that regard, they’re not really worth doing much.
TL;DR, if you’re a Completionist, side-quests pad the game enough to make the game last longer and give you some of the collectibles you can find in the game on your way to Platinum. But for the casual player who could do without the bonus stats and better skills, you could get from the experience points you get from these side-quests, you could safely skip them.
Ghostwire Tokyo is out now on PC and PS5 as a timed console exclusive.