The protagonist of the new work in the "Ghost Warrior" series is the late Japanese national treasure actor Toshiro Mifune. This film legend, known for Kurosawa's classic samurai movies, will transform into the swordsman Miyamoto Musashi in the game.

"Ghost Warrior: The Way of Sword" released at the 2024 TGA Awards Ceremony has sparked heated discussion as a series of orthodox sequels.Although the game will not be released until 2026, director Nibu Yu and producer Mon Fukuo revealed that the project has been launched since 2020 (even earlier), and it took a full two years to obtain the image authorization of Toshiro Mifune.

In an exclusive interview with Game Watch, Monwei Sato said that the team hoped to use Toshiro Miyamoto as the prototype since the beginning of the project, but the negotiation process with Miyamoto Production Company was extremely difficult.After two years of negotiation, the two parties finally officially signed an authorization agreement around 2022.

Director Nibuyu revealed that the original intention of the creation originated from his thinking on the "essence of samurai charm".He believes that the most moving trait of a samurai is the tenacity of bloody battles, and the one that fits this image in history is the Swordsman Miyamoto Musashi.When looking for inspiration for character creation, the team went back to the classic Japanese sword halberd films and finally locked in Toshiro Mifune, a young Musashi who portrayed the young Musashi in the 1954 movie "Miyamoto Musashi". He also became an internationally renowned acting superstar with works such as "Seven Samurai" and "Rashomon". His screen image of "blood-stained and still fighting to the death" perfectly matches the game settings.

Unlike the previous work of the series, the production team emphasized that this time is not a simple "star endorsement".Monwetsu Satoshi pointed out: "We are not trying to make Mr. Mifune a game gimmick, but the qualities and characters he exudes from the inside out are natural." The game replicates the actor's charm through micro-expressions and behavior details, but the combat action design does not deliberately pursue "handsomeness", but focuses on showing the humanistic reality of the characters.

"There are too many versions of Miyamoto Musashi on the market," Monkishimoto said, "For this reason, we must create a new image of Musashi. And Mr. Mifune's face is the ultimate answer to our goal. This paranoia for details has created the most charming protagonist in the Ghost Warrior series."

"Ghost Warrior: The Way of Sword" is expected to be available on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC (Steam) platforms in 2026.