Hit PlayStation game Ghost of Yotei starring gender fluid actor faces ‘woke’ online hate
Queer and gender-fluid actor Erika Ishii is the English voice of the game's lead protagonist, Atsu
By Aaron Sugg
New blockbuster PlayStation 5 game Ghost of Yōtei starring queer and gender-fluid actor Erika Ishii as the English voice of its lead protagonist has faced backlash from fans.
Ghost of Yōtei is an action-adventure game and a sequel to Ghost of Tsushima (2020), set in 1603 in the region of Ezo, Japan.
The story follows Atsu, voiced by Ishii, who uses he/she/they pronouns, as the character returns home to seek vengeance against a group responsible for destroying her family.
“She’s very much of that legacy” – Erika Ishii on their Playstation character
Erika Ishii is an established voice actor known for a range of video game and animation roles, such as Valkyrie in Apex Legends and Ana Bray in Destiny 2.
On their most recent character, Ishii said on the PlayStation Podcast last week (3 October): “From our first conversations, discussing the character and our love and the homage we wanted to pay to classic samurai films and to classic revenge films. She’s very much of that legacy.”
The voice actor added that they relate to the character on a vulnerable level: “I think Atsu is still sort of young in a lot of ways, definitely emotionally. They did not have therapy back then, and I think that Atsu is what happens if I, or really any of us, give in to those really angry and fearful urges.”
“That raw, emotional core of hers” – Ishii relating to their character Atsu
They continued: “Atsu is scared and vulnerable… But I think also what really resonated for me about Atsu was just that raw, emotional core of hers.”
The decision to replace the male protagonist Jin from Ghost of Tsushima with a new female character, Atsu, has caused controversy for some fans.
One user commented: “Such a shame they ruined the franchise.” Whilst another added, “
Let’s play Ghost of Tsushima instead.”
“Woke Slop” – some users claim that PlayStation has become too woke with their casting choice
“Woke slop,” was another phrase used in the comment section of a recent Instagram video featuring Ishii, as well as “Go woke go,” making fun of the casting choice.
Released 2 October, 2025, Ghost of Yōtei has also received generally favourable reviews. Gamers have praised both the voice actor and the game online: “Giving one of my fave voice actors and people the credit they deserve,” one user commented.
Another user wrote: “Erika is an AMAZING actor, role player, VO actor, and person, and I’m so excited to see this game do well!”
In 2023, Bethesda game Starfield received a massive online backlash for allowing players to choose pronouns for their characters. Despite that, the game went on to be top sales charts following its release.