While Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 captured plenty of hearts this year, Ghost of Yotei was comfortably in the mix in terms of overall popularity. Naoki Yoshida, the director of Final Fantasy 14, loved Sucker Punch's sequel so much, it was his favorite game of 2025. This comes from 4Gamer's annual round-up where major game devs in Japan reflect on the year just gone and what their favorite releases are. "I've played many different games this year, but the one I still find myself playing whenever I find the time is Ghost of Yotei," Yoshida tells the outlet, as translated by Genki on X/Twitter. "It's a game I learned a lot from, in terms of the technical aspects and the production skills." High praise indeed, but not unsurprising. Ghost of Yotei, like its predecessor in Ghost of Tsushima, is an extremely impressive piece of work, boasting a stunning recreation of 1600s Japan that you can explore to your heart's content. What's more, the location struck a more personal chord with the Final Fantasy 14 stalwart. Ghost of Yotei earns praise from legendary developers behind Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry, with Team Ninja's Fumihko Yasuda saying he's always wanted to make a game based in Hokkaido After 70 hours with Ghost of Yotei before the game even launched, it's now my only platinum trophy of 2025 Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth director's GOTY pick, and not just because it features JRPG-inspired combat: "It gets all of the elements in it right" Yoshi-P says Ghost of Yotei was the game that impressed him most this year! He is also from Hokkaido and says the game recreated the beauty of Mount Yotei very well!“I've played many different games this year, but the one I still find myself playing whenever I find the time is… pic.twitter.com/8vQn3dYkSvDecember 27, 2025 Yoshi-P says Ghost of Yotei was the game that impressed him most this year! He is also from Hokkaido and says the game recreated the beauty of Mount Yotei very well!“I've played many different games this year, but the one I still find myself playing whenever I find the time is… pic.twitter.com/8vQn3dYkSvDecember 27, 2025 Yoshi-P says Ghost of Yotei was the game that impressed him most this year! He is also from Hokkaido and says the game recreated the beauty of Mount Yotei very well!“I've played many different games this year, but the one I still find myself playing whenever I find the time is… pic.twitter.com/8vQn3dYkSvDecember 27, 2025 "Being from Hokkaido myself, I was always captivated by the beauty of Mount Yotei whenever I visited Niseko as a snowboarder," he comments. "The recreation of that beauty was truly outstanding!" Between his understanding of game design and lived experience in the region, not many are as qualified as Yoshida to comment on what Sucker Punch has managed here. The open-world sequel may have lost out at The Game Awards, but this is definitely a review worth treasuring. Though, I wonder what Yoshida thought of the lofi mode? A question for 2026, I suppose. Everyone's "free time is dwindling," so Final Fantasy 14's Yoshi-P wants players to feel rewarded no matter how much time they invest in the MMO