In Ghost of Yōtei we took tropes common to classic samurai movies and made them interactive, giving players a chance to feel like a peerless warrior. Our hero hunts through the land of Ezo (now modern-day Hokkaido), which back in 1603 was the lawless edge of Japan. To bring this dangerous wilderness to life we mixed in a handful of Wild West film tropes as well, creating an experience that celebrates the collision of these two genres. In this presentation I will describe how we went about honoring the films that inspired us and how we overcame the obstacles that stood in the way of realizing our vision.