THANKS KODAMA

Perhaps best known on these shores as the rattling white forest spirits from Studio Ghibli flick Princess Mononoke, kodama are restyled here as an essential collectible. A total of 150 dot the game world, hiding around dark corners, on rooftops, or inside breakable scenery. Find one and our hero stoops down, gesturing with his thumb towards the nearest shrine, and the kodama disappears. These are no mere trinkets, however: a sub-menu, accessible from any shrine, lets you choose a kodama blessing, which buffs the drop rates of weapons, armour, materials or, best of all, health elixirs, the size of buff increasing as you collect more spirits.