Ghost of Yotei's Echoes of Sekigahara DLC has a boss fight where bears do all the work

Ghost of Yotei's paid expansion Echoes of Sekigahara has a standout boss fight — and the secret weapon is a pair of freed bears that basically handle the whole thing for you.

The fight is against Umakichi the Bear Slayer, a bounty target and contender for a vacant spot in the Yotei Six. Umakichi keeps bears caged and sics them on his own soldiers as training. When Atsu arrives to clear out his camp, two bears break free and immediately switch sides. They tear through enemies, at one point launching a soldier directly at Atsu for an easy kill. By the time the grunts are down, the bears have already shredded most of Umakichi's health bar — leaving Atsu to just walk up and land the finishing blow at her own pace. Polygon's Austin Manchester notes he barely had to unsheath his katana.

The moment lands because it ties into a broader theme running through Echoes of Sekigahara. The expansion is set in the Ashoro Foothills region and focuses on the Vipers, a gang formerly loyal to the Yotei Six's Snake member, now fighting over his vacant seat. Their presence has been destructive not just for local people but for wildlife — traps are scattered across the map, a fox den activity involves rescuing an ensnared fox, and a deer sanctuary shows a few animals that have managed to find safety away from the gang's reach. The bear fight is the most dramatic expression of that theme, letting the wildlife hit back.

Atsu's bond with the natural world was already a defining quality of the base game, and Echoes of Sekigahara leans into it. The expansion is out now as DLC for Ghost of Yotei.