Ghostwire: Tokyo Tips: Things You Should Know Before Getting Started

Ghostwire: Tokyo offers a bleak and spooky version of Japan's most well-known city, but it's still a hell of a lot of fun to explore. As a matter of fact, this version of the famous location is littered with secrets to uncover and unconventional mechanics to engage with, resulting in a unique gaming experience worth investing in fully. While the game is approachable, it nevertheless presents a lot to take in during the opening hours, so we've compiled a few tips to help you get started on your journey through this mysterious world.

Buy the Fudo and Kukurihime skills as soon as possible

When you do enough damage to an enemy, you'll have an opportunity to remove its core (essentially its heart) in a cool and flashy manner. You'll be using this action constantly throughout the game, so you'll want to invest in skills that make it more efficient. Most importantly, since your core extraction will be interrupted if you take damage, anything you can do to speed up the process or keep enemies stunned longer is a huge boon.

Luckily, the skills Fudo and Kukurihime do exactly that and can be purchased very early in the game. The former increases how long enemy cores are exposed, giving you more time to get in a position that will let you extract them safely. Meanwhile, the latter increases how quickly you can extract the cores, which is a lifesaver during the game's more densely-packed combat encounters.

Purchase Katashiro frequently and in bulk

Absorbing spirits and turning them in at phone booths is one of your main methods of gaining experience and Meika (the game's currency). But being able to store the spirits requires Katashiro, and you don't begin the game with very many, meaning that you'll have to make the trek back to those booths constantly if you want to be able to absorb new spirits.

This is easily remedied, however, as many of the merchant yokai cats scattered around the city sell Katashiro. Each one you get will grant you one extra slot for absorbed spirits, so make sure you purchase these as often as you can reasonably afford to do so without leaving yourself completely broke. The last thing you want is to be in an area filled with spirits and have no space to grab them.

Take on errands from feline yokai pals for extra cash

While most yokai cats around the city just sell specific items, sometimes you'll come across one that will have a list of items for you to track down in exchange for a solid payout of Meika. In addition to the cash you earn from individual turn-ins, hitting certain milestones also results in extra rewards that range from more Katashiro to pieces of cosmetic gear, so finding every item will be vital for completionists.

You can track the items the yokai cat needs by setting each one as "active" in the vendor menu. This will place yellow circles on your map which dictate the area in which you'll find each item, which obviously makes finding it far less frustrating. Even so, some items are better hidden than you may expect, so be thorough in your search.

Consistently explore the rooftops

A significant amount of Ghostwire: Tokyo's secrets, collectibles, and spirits are found by navigating the city's rooftops. You can explore these heights by finding Tengu--an aerial yokai who makes loud sounds to alert you of their presence--flying around the city that you can grapple to in order to quickly land on a nearby roof.

A bit later in the game, you should look into purchasing the Amenotori X skill, which lets you summon a Tengu out of thin air that you can immediately grapple to. It goes without saying that this is a much easier method of getting to rooftops than wandering around seeking out an existing Tengu in a predetermined location.

Upgrade your glide early

You'll acquire a gliding ability very early in the game, and it's an invaluable tool for getting around the city, especially when moving across the rooftops mentioned in the point above. When you first get the ability, you'll only be able to glide very briefly, though, so you're going to want to invest in upgrades to extend your air time.

You can purchase your first gliding upgrade early in the game, which will extend your time in the sky to 3 seconds. After a few hours and some side quests, though, you should look into upgrading to the final tier, which increases that time to 5 seconds. With that out of the way, you'll be able to reach more secrets and spirits than ever before.

Use donation boxes to find Jizo Statues easily

Praying at Jizo Statues scattered around the city grants you an extra use of a corresponding elemental attack. Because those elemental attacks are your primary damage source and have limited reserves, finding these statues should be one of your main priorities. Luckily, there's a fairly easy way to get them to show up on your map.

Some Torii gates will spawn donation boxes after you cleanse them. By making the maximum donation, you'll be granted a wish that can assist you on your journey. Especially during the opening hours of the game when your reserves are at their lowest, you'll benefit greatly from choosing "find more Jizo Statues", which will then place a new statue icon on your map for you to go check out.

Target crystallized items for ether

As you make your way around the city, you'll notice copious amounts of crystallized items floating around, such as computer monitors, refrigerators, or even massive cars. These are ether deposits, and you're definitely going to want to destroy them every time they cross your line of sight.

Each crystallized item that you destroy will release ether, which you can then absorb to replenish your elemental attack resources. Green ether replenishes wind resources, red ether replenishes fire resources, and blue ether replenishes water resources. Considering how easy it is to run out of this elemental ammo for your attacks, this is an almost mandatory way of keeping yourself stocked up.

Feed dogs to earn useful rewards

You'll notice dogs hanging around all over Tokyo, and you'll no doubt want to pet them. However, giving them a scratch on the head is only one way to interact with the adorable pups. You can also feed them dog food, which can be purchased from shops and occasionally found in the open world, to earn some cool rewards.

Feeding dogs will make them happy and give them a reason to like you. Shortly after finishing their meal, they'll usually wander off and dig up some Meika for you. And from time to time, you may find that they lead you to something even more substantial. But let's be real--you're just going to pet the dog over and over, aren't you?