What are your personal favorite Top 10 games of all time?
I've been thinking of making a list just for myself but figured why not share it with this community and start a discussion. It could be beneficial for others who are looking for recommendations or just for you to get your thoughts out about a game. Below I ranked my personal 10 with a bit of description as to why I like them.
Half Life 2 - This game hasn't left my #1 spot since it came out. It was the first single player FPS game I played. I haven't played Half Life 1 before Half Life 2 so I didn't really know that standing Valve had in the FPS community. But man, the gravity gun changed my life. The physics engine blew my mind. I was so happy that Half Life 2 included puzzles based on physics as well. I think its incredible that a game whose protagonist is a physicist compared to a soldier did so well. I remember when the demo came out I played the Ravenholm level probably 20 times. Then when I was able to buy Half Life 2 I played it another 20 times. I love the setting of Half Life 2, and the oppressive nature of the Combine. The strider fights were a spectacle and meeting DOG was amazing. I personally believe this game is perfect, between gunplay, story, setting, music. I almost cried at the end of Half Life Alyx and am so happy that Valve is continuing the universe. I believe that Half Life 2 still stands the test of time nowadays. It goes on sale often so please try it out! My ranking of the Half Life games are 2 > Alyx > Episode 2 > Episode 1 > Black Mesa > Half Life.
Persona 4 Golden - Atlus shows a masterclass of JRPGs with the Persona series. I haven't played Persona 1 or 2 and my first intro to the series was Golden on the Vita. I remember I played it and finished it in one weekend during college. I didn't even leave my room and stayed up all night getting it done. The characters in Golden from Chie to Kanji are a joy to be around and building relationships with. The soundtrack of the Persona series ties so well with the atmosphere of each game. Persona 4 Golden was also the first JRPG I played and finished. Boy it was a joy. The combat got improved upon greatly in Persona 5 but having the introduction to the series through Golden puts it over the top for me. Soon after beating Persona 4 Golden, I played Persona 3 Portable which was a great game too! Persona 5 deserves all the accolades its getting but I believe that the groundwork for the Western audience was laid by Persona 4 Golden on the Vita.
Judgement - As with many others, my first taste into the Yakuza franchise was when Yakuza 0 came on Steam. Since then I have finished 0, Kiwami, Kiwami 2, Judgement, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 in that order. While the other entries in this series are amazing, it was nice to see Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios venture out from the Yakuza storyline and focus on a detective story. The combat was a lot more fluid, almost reminding me of Majima's moveset in Yakuza 0. There was also a slice of life feel to Judgement. I think my favorite thing about the game was the pay off for completing side stories and relationships with people in the city. The last substory was amazing to see. I put this on the list even though I love the other games in the series so here is my ranking for the series. Judgement > Kiwami 2 > Yakuza 6 > Yakuza 0 > Yakuza 4 > Yakuza 7 > Kiwami > Yakuza 5 > Yakuza 3.
Hotline Miami 2 - The Hotline Miami collection introduced me to Retrowave music, and I will forever be grateful for that. Hotline Miami plays as a top down shooter with a very David Lynch like story. The chapters jump from the Past to Future to Present in different ways focusing on different characters. It is all tied up nicely at the end of Hotline Miami 2 in my opinion. This game is as bloody as a pixel game can be. The sense of fear you get when you try to see if anyone heard your gunshot is insane. I put Hotline Miami 2 here instead of 1 because of the larger cast of characters and for the ending. While I did love Hotline Miami 1, 2 for me was just a bit better. This game is eye candy from the floor plans of each level, the retro Miami colors, and the gory way of killing enemies. Hotline Miami 1 started my appreciation for indie games as being powerhouses.
Inside - I once heard someone on the Gameinformer podcast refer to this game as being carved out of one single block of clay. This game runs so smoothly you forget that there is a bunch of code in the background. Playdead is on a roll after Limbo and Inside in the creepy side scrolling puzzle platformer game. Inside had one of the most interesting backdrops I have seen. You are a child breaking into a facility of seemingly unknown reasons. But the game doesn't tell you that, there is no narration or voicework in this game. But its a testament to how carefully crafted this game is that the story can be told by what is happening in the background as you are making your way from left to right. The ending of this game caught me by surprise but I absolutely adored this game from start to finish.
Wolfenstein: The New Colossus - Who doesn't love killing Nazis? Ever since Machinegames took over the franchise of Wolfenstein each entry has just gotten better and better. I've heard different qualms about TNC mainly about the story, but to be honest that was my favorite part of this game. It made BJ into a deeper character rather than a meathead and his Jewish ancestry being a background for fighting Nazi's was poetic. My favorite moment was, in the courtroom dream sequence, right after you get out and meet the memory of your mom. It honestly brought me to tears. The gunplay was as good as it gets as well as the characters on your ship. My one issue was the hacking minigame. I did love the sound effects used but felt overall it was a useless addition. Although I did complete all of it! If I had to rank all the Machinegames Wolfensteins it would go TNC > New Order > Old Blood > Youngblood.
Mass Effect 2 - This game has about 200 hours of play time on my Steam. Bioware were masters of incredible RPG experiences. Mass Effect 2's companions were some of the best party members in an RPG ever. The storylines for each of these characters were a joy to take part in and it was extremely daring for Bioware to say, Hey! Lets put a suicide mission for the ending and have some of your characters permanently die. While the main villain wasn't that good, the overarching villain with culminated into the grand finale of Mass Effect 3 was worth it. I can't say enough as to how fleshed out the crew on the Normandy was. I'm excited to see any quality of life changes in the legendary edition!
What Remains of Edith Finch - I was debating putting this on my top 10 but the more time passed, the more and more I was thinking about the experience playing this game. I didn't play Unfinished Swan so I didn't know much about the developer but I do love Annapurna Interactive's published games. Edith Finch was no different. A first person/adventure/walking simulator game with an engaging story about a very strange family, the game immediately dug its hooks in me and never let go. The house of the Finches felt like a maze but because of how well crafted this game is you never feel lost. The side story about the unfortunate ends of the family is engaging. Not enough can be said about the last family member's story you find and how incredible that experience was.
Pokemon White - I am a huge Pokemon fan having bought one of each of the main series. I am also one of those people who liked SwSh. But I believe that Pokemon was at its best during the Black and White era. Created a new 150 pokemon while not including any past ones was risky, but for me it paid off. It was fun not being shackled by past favorites and looking towards a new generation. While it did seem that they just replaced skins for Pokemon, i.e. Swoobat/Zubat, TimburMachoke, etc. I liked almost all the new designs. The story for this game was also great. N was a great antagonist and actually made me sympathize with what was supposed to be your foe in the game. Why would I fight against someone who views that Pokemon should be free from trainers?
Ori and the Will of the Wisps - I absolutely adored Blind Forest and when Will of the Wisps came out it was just more of Ori but with a bunch of quality of life improvements. The story was even more emotional than the first. Without spoilers I found the villain's story especially after the final fight to be incredibly touching. I love how Moon Studio works as well, being completely decentralized while producing beautiful games.
"The turn-based combat is a welcome change however combined with some weird decisions and a somewhat bland story its not all sunshine and rainbows for this new kid on the street."
The transition from a top notch brawler to a JRPG feels totally seamless. The gameplay have all the good parts we expect from a JRPG translated to the language of the Yakuza series but it also has some of the bad parts like the need for grinding and some unfair boss fights. The story and new characters are presented in a way that make this new journey for the franchise very well worth taking.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the perfect update for a flagging series. Its clever storytelling, bizarre substories, and engrossing gameplay makes this one of the strongest entries in the franchise. Mixing deep societal messages with references to popular culture, the game is both hilarious and thought-provoking. It is very clear to see that with Ichiban Kasuga, the series is in safe hands
Yakuza: Lika A Dragon goes a different way but follows what made the series so great. The new protagonist, the story (besides some weak points), the crazy mini games, battle animations, summons and Ichiban Kasuga offer so much fun and action. Some boring dungeons in the middle of the game and balancing issues are the only downsides you should expect. Even if you are not a fan of turn based combat or haven't touched the series yet, you should give this a shot.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon has definitely made some drastic changes to the series but without losing its original charm. The fast pace turn base system has so much added depth while still feeling like a Yakuza game. The graphics are the best the series has seen to date, players will fall for the ridiculous Ichiban who is a well-worked new hero to the series. Other than the lag between different sections of the games and slightly clunky animations it's really hard to fault this reimagining of the legendary series.
Like a Dragon isn't my favorite Yakuza, and its fresh turn-based combat eventually grows stale, but I have a lot of love for it. If it's your first game, it'll quickly initiate you into this wild, one-of-a-kind series.
Who knows if this wild experiment will bear fruit and become its own series. Yakuza: Like a Dragon has everything it needs; an excellent crop of new characters, and even a new playground to base a series in, as we hadn't been to Yokohama previously. The future of the series would depend on how turn-based combat sells in comparison to action brawler combat, I would assume. Either way, though, Like a Dragon is a delight. It's a parody-homage to every turn-based JRPG trope you've ever known, set against brilliant character writing and the traditional urban playgrounds that have built this series into something beloved. I hope the development team is rewarded for the inherent risk that they took with this undertaking.
Like a Dragon is the story of a carp that turns into a dragon, of a gang of scapegoats who decide to defy the established order and come to the head of a desperate situation. Ichiban Kasuga is an individual far from dojima's stoic and serious Dragon but has an equally kind soul and crackling personality, which makes him - along with his strange clique - the symbol of Yakuza's rebirth. A rebirth that passes through a fun and enjoyable but also improveable role-making formula. With this seventh chapter, in other words, the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has shown us the potential of what would seem to be his idea for the future of the series, which with the advent of next-gen consoles could give us great surprises.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon has made the leap into the RPG genre with flying colors. The story is kept exciting and you can't stop following Ichiban's vendetta. The abundance of side tasks can be a bit overwhelming for the player at the beginning. But once you have played the game for a few hours, you know the most important points in the city. Time passes very quickly when playing darts or karting. By no means you need to believe that these actions are a waste of time. You get personality points which finally strengthen the fighting actions. The fights bring a breath of fresh air to the row and put a smile on the players' faces. Through the different creative classes you attack the opponents with pigeons or wrestling moves instead of casting disdainful fireballs. Unfortunately, the invisible AoE range of abilities spoils the fun of the game. Also the unusually long races until a comrade reaches the enemy seem strange. A timeline showing the next actors would have been helpful too. If you like the Yakuza series and are open for new things, you definitely have to go for Yakuza: Like a Dragon.
Yakuza fans were anxious about whether the series would survive without the glue of Kiryu Kazama to hold it together. However, Ichiban Kasuga is a worthy successor to the Dragon of Dojima, and Like a Dragon is a great new start for this fantastic series that will please long-time Yakuza fans and newcomers alike.
You should look at Yakuza: Like a Dragon through the lens of it's protaginist. This game is unapologetically brash, unmistakable bold, life-affirming and insanely charismatic. The legend of Ichiban Kasuga journey, like a bright flame, tells us one familliar, but sweet and romantic idea - each and every one of us can become a true Hero, even if you have to fight the fate itself, while making your way through hundrends upon hundreds of random encounters.
Ultimately, despite all the changes that have been made, Yakuza: Like a Dragon feels very much like a Yakuza game. The combat may now be turn-based, and the scenery might be different, but this is still a game full of drama, thrilling battles, and a huge amount of side content, all smothered with an ample amount of humour. And I never thought I’d say this, but I didn’t miss Kazuma Kiryu one jot while playing it; Ichiban Kasuga is simply a more likeable fellow with more depth. So, if you like the Yakuza series, consider Yakuza: Like a Dragon a must-have.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon reminded me why I loved video games to begin with. I cannot think of a game this year that has gripped me this tightly and didn't let go. Here comes a game brimming with joy and excitement that is earnest with its drama and comedy. It's the sort of game you can gush about for hours, and I will long after this review is published. Anyone who loves RPGs, open world games, comedies, crime dramas, and games PERIOD should have a lot of fun with the newest Yakuza.
As the Yakuza franchise is still trying to become a household franchise in the West, the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio decided to flip the switch and create a turn-based RPG. The result of that experiment, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, is a resounding success. The "dynamic RPG" gameplay fits the Yakuza universe and tropes like a glove and its mechanics are surprisingly deep. And the fact that the game's new characters are lovable doesn't hurt. The turn-based gameplay will probably put off some gamers but Yakuza: Like a Dragon truly deserves a shot. The Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio made the JRPG genre proud.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon impressively pulls off the switch to an RPG in style, providing an excellent combat system supported by loveable characters, and a tantalising main storyline with meaningful side quests.
Yakuza is reborn in this brilliant and compelling new addition to series canon that recontextualizes series tropes and mechanics for an entirely new genre, delivering one of the best outings the series has ever seen.
Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has topped themselves once again with Yakuza: Like a Dragon! This new take on Yakuza brings a lot of fun, new ideas to the table while remaining its heartfelt self. Turn based combat is somehow a perfect fit for this new direction, the characters are all instantly loveable, and the story is endearingly melodramatic.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a phenomenal entry into the Yakuza franchise, with an interesting new protagonist, a compelling story, and a combat system that constantly mixes things up.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon largely succeeds at moving the series forward in a bold new direction. Kasuga and his band of unlikely heroes are incredibly interesting and make it so easy to care about their crazy antics. The new main locale is massive and plays host to so many compelling things to do. Getting wrapped up in everything Like a Dragon has to offer is worth it and you’ll easily pour 30+ hours into its captivating tale. The turn-based battle system works in parts, but its annoying character placement issues and faulty summons system keep it from being a total victory. Like a Dragon is still worth hopping into if you’re looking for an amazing parody of RPG tropes, however. It’s a Yakuza sequel that signals a bright future ahead for the beloved franchise.
No doubt about it, SEGA took some considerable risks when they decided to change their established formula so radically for Yakuza: Like A Dragon. But in the end, I think the gamble paid off. Ryū ga Gotoku Studio's latest offering may not pack the punchy, moment to moment gameplay of its predecessors. Still, it makes up for that with its more in-depth brawls, an engaging job system, and a story that focuses not just on a single protagonist, but on several compelling heroes with their own complex motivations. While beat-'em-up fanatics may find this change in direction blasphemous, I couldn't be happier. If you're a Yakuza fan who loves JRPGs, adding this underworld epic to your PS4 library is a no-brainer.
It keeps the great narrative and setting from the Yakuza series, using a new protagonist, a city that has more life than even Kamurocho and turn-based combats. It suffers from some of the classical troubles of the J-RPG, but it is a breath of fresh air and a great example of how to reinvent a franchise.
Yakuza Like a Dragon is a real and huge JRPG who knows how to maintain the essence of the saga. Fun fighting system and deep script with too many ups and downs to justify the new playable elements. I hope this new formula that works and gives new wings to the franchise will be repeated.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon makes for an excellent new entry in this long-running series. The developers took a chance on a new protagonist and battle system, which forces fans out of their comfort zone for a very different yet, familiar Yakuza experience. Although the opening exposition can be a bit overwhelming, this is a standout video game on its own with plenty of emotional story beats, insane sub-stories, and plenty of ways to spend your time around Ijincho.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a very good sequel to the popular Yakuza series which shows that Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios still manages to create a great story and narrative. The game's turn-based battles are good in themselves, but due to the extreme use of enemies in the environment, they soon became repetition.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon is an impressive and quality JRPG that successfully acts as a jumping in-point for new fans and also ties itself to the series' past in exciting and engaging ways. The turn-based combat has been infused with some mechanics that help retain the action and over-the-top hilarity the series is known for. Mini-games once again shine and there is a lot packed into Ijincho. Like A Dragon paves the way for a bright future for the franchise.
It was a gamble on Sega’s part to make such major changes to a tried and true formula, even more bewildering given its recent meteoric rise in Western markets. If Yakuza: Like A Dragon proves anything, it’s that fortune does indeed favour the bold.
Like a Dragon's story attempts to touch on certain social issues that are relevant in present-day Japan, such as classism, social status, sex work, and government corruption on a prefectural level. However, the writing often lacks the nuance or range to address the topics at hand, and doesn't give any of them adequate room to breathe. The second half of the game gains some measure of focus as plot threads tie together and result in genuinely surprising twists, but when Like a Dragon drops the ball, it drops it hard. Despite this, the Japanese cast's performances sell the story with evocative deliveries that breathe life into the characters. The finale is an emotional one that brought me to tears and moved me, just as most previous Yakuza games have.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon, when all of its pieces are taken together, is not only a fantastic new direction for the series, it's also one of its best titles.
Yakuza Like a Dragon is both a fresh start and a shot in the arm that caters to series veterans and newcomers like. It bears all the hallmarks of a great Yakuza game, while making a damned good case for its revamped battle system. After Yakuza 6 topped the rest of the franchise with a matured and succinct focus it feels even more exciting to see the whole thing blown wide open again and have Ryu ga Gotoku just run wild. Kudos is deserved at Sega of America for their commitment to the game's localization as well, which is incredibly considered and comprehensive. I think I've found a new favourite Yakuza game.
With a new battle system and new main character, Yakuza: Like A Dragon aims to be a new entry point to Yakuza newcomers even though it is anything but that.
So, the takeaway is this – Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a successful experiment. So successful that I think it should be the template for much of the series going forward.
A brilliant reinvention of the series that still manages to faithfully capture its essence, with an eclectic cast of characters, the star being Ichiban himself. A great entry that goes toe-to-toe with Yakuza 0.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a successful pivot from traditional Yakuza mainstays. The game goes heavy on style, while still packing in enough substance to keep players satisfied. The party system and new RPG elements give players more ways to play than ever before. The turn-based combat is solid, and never feels too foreign. Longtime fans of the franchise will appreciate what Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and SEGA have to offer in Yakuza: Like a Dragon.
Much like Kasuga’s dragonfish tattoo feels like a quirky but faithful successor to Kiryu’s dragon, Yakuza: Like a Dragon rebuilds the franchise by leaving a lot of it in place. The new protagonist doesn’t feel like he has seven games of story in him, but his eagerness to join the fray could carry the next few entries.
After the culture shock of such a total change to the Yakuza recipe, I’m extremely glad the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio team took such a big leap when Kiryu’s tale came to an end. Like A Dragon is a revitalised game full of fresh ideas and proves that the series won’t be re-treading the same ground with Ichiban in the driver’s seat. If this is the first step into the new age of Yakuza, I can’t wait to see how bonkers the next game will be.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon refreshes the action with a turn-based JRPG that retains its charming identity, but it falls into some pitfalls that are emblematic of the genre.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is an interesting new entry into the criminal universe created by SEGA, and undoubtedly represents the most courageous and anarchic chapter so far. It's not entirely convincing, but what works bodes well for the future of the series.
Yakuza Like a Dragon is an enjoyable new twist on the series, although it's not hard to imagine that many long-time fans of the series will be put off by its slow pace. In a day and age where video game companies rarely take risks, Like a Dragon is a refreshing change of pace for a series that risked starting to feel stale.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a triumph, and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio should be commended for redefining such a seasoned franchise, despite the backlash it might have received. Leaving Kazuma Kiryu behind hasn't been easy, but Ichiban Kasuga and company have crafted a compelling path into the future that I cannot wait to see continue.
The mean streets of Yokohama offer the opportunity for a new cast, a new suit, and a new hero. Ichiban Kasuga might not be the role model in the same way that Kiryu-chan was, but this dragon's quest might be the most fun Yakuza title to date!
Yakuza: Like a Dragon feels like everything I ever wanted in a game. Once the game stomps on the gas, it very rarely slows down. Its unique cast of characters and gameplay had me hooked and wanting more, and it almost feels like it never stops giving. Even after the story ends at the 45+ hour mark, I was ready to fight more, complete more side missions, and squeeze out every drop of gameplay that this game has to offer.
The Yakuza series continues to grow and expand in the gaming world. I love its quirky humor and deep narratives. This new entry begins a new saga and I cannot wait to see how the story of Ichi evolves over time. If it is even half as good as Kiryu’s the studio will have another series of great games on its hands. Everything about this title feels good and for those worried about having previous knowledge, don’t be concerned. Like a Dragon is a wonderful jumping in point for the series and also one of the best titles in it to date. Don’t sleep on this game, it is worth digging into.
There will also be FULL spoilers for Yakuza Kiwami in this character analysis, so beware if you haven't played that/1. During your playthrough with Majima in chapter 3, you'll be tasked with scouting out Odyssey, a rival cabaret club. Majima goes into it not expecting any surprises. You look around, and Majima comments on many things in the club. Surely this information will be integral in beating Odyssey in the Cabaret competition. Then, Majima looks to the left of the club, and sees the sight of his life. A man in nothing but his underwear, in the back of the club, for all to see. Not to mention preforming a dance, which is integral to Majima's character, we'll see how later. Majima is reasonably thrown off guard, but there's nothing else to the first encounter of this beautiful man. Most players will assume this is just Yakuza doing it's thing; Surely this character won't come back. But then, Yakuza 0 throws you for a loop. In chapter 4, Majima goes to a telephone club find more info about one Makoto Makimura. He's found someone who might share him info. Ready to go on the date, Majima is instead interrupted by, you guessed it, Mr. Libido. This "walking erection" has no shame, and assumes Majima to have come to the telephone club to slay his dragon. Majima naturally says that there's more to it then that. Mr. Libido (actual name Habu, who I'll be calling as such for the rest of the analysis.) doesn't really care, but thinks that he and Majima are in the same boat. He claims his libido is legendary, and he needs to take care of it multiple times per day. He asks if Majima has any recommendations for girls, and that they can trade info. Majima refuses, but Habu let's him know he'll be around if he changes his mind. For some, this was the last time they ever encountered Habu, and just chalked him up as a weird character. Maybe he's an easter egg or something. But rest assured, this is far from his last appearance. If you go out of your way to view good ol softcore porn, you'll not only gain a wholesome friendship with the worker there, but also run into Habu once more. He's glad he was right about Majima; Just as much of a horny man as he is. Majima again denies his accusations, but it's clear he had ulterior motives. Habu is certain Majima's five knuckle shuffle is still to come. And gets so excited, that he... Presumably nuts right then and there. But the man is already raring to go not 10 seconds later. He goes to pursue other girls, and leaves Majima to himself. It's important to state that you have to go out of your way to meet Habu. He ONLY shows up if you watch a variety of erotic videos. Ultimately 15 are required to view to finish the friendship arc. This is important because the more videos you watch, the more Majima let's loose, the more he let's go of the shackles holding him back. We'll continue through more of the questline before we talk more about the many hidden layers of this arc of Majima's. We see this during the many info exchanges between the two lustful lads. The more that gets shared, the more we see a bond forming between Habu and Majima. He even openly admits that after all that he's going through, this place is relaxing. No doubt part of it is because of Habu, who proves to be one of the greatest friends Majima ever had. It also contributes to Majima's transformation. If Nishitani represents the crazy side of Majima, then Habu represents the side that let's loose, that ultimately doesn't care about what others think of him. We even see this with Habu's dance. This is the first thing you see him doing in Odyssey, and Majima inherited it for himself, as players can see during the Disiple of the New Order sidequest, as well as during points of the Majima Everywhere encounters. For all intents and purposes, Habu is as much of Majima in the future as Nishitani is. But of course, not all substories can be sunshine and rainbows, as we see this friendship event take a dark turn. Majima encounters Habu, who reveals that he's been cutting back on clubs, and now he can't get "it" up. He insists that an energy drink he frequently has will solve everything. Though Majima worries that a drink of that magnitude could make things worse, and even kill him. But Habu has nothing left to lose. Majima gets him the drink, and of course, Habu is perfectly fine after that. He laments how he's seen just about every girl in Sotenbori , but Majima reminds him to just see his favourites. The quest ends on a lighter note, with Habu and Majima closer then ever. And that's it. All in all, Habu is a wonderful character of deep intricacies, who is a perfect representation of what Majima will beco- Oh, yeah. Kamurocho has a Mr. Libido too. So Kiryu's just walking around one day, no doubt contemplating if it was a good idea to buy a sophisticated lad porn magazines, when he comes across a strange bald man, asking for telephone cards. The man has a unique power where if he sees a mere photo of a woman, he gets to see absolutely everything. He reveals his name to be Akimoto (not to be confused with domestic accident waiting to happen Akimoto from various substories throughout the series), and tells Kiryu to see him if he has anything to show. Until then, he'll be "wrecking the weasel". It's never clear whether Akimoto and Habu are related, though it's assumed that they are, sharing the balding hair, and the near endless stamina and love for all things women. Perhaps it's genetic. Wonder what their fathers like. Anyway, we see how much more subdued Akimoto is compared to Habu. Not to say that he's polite and respectful, but he certainly goes to much less extents then his brother from possibly the same mother (I mean, at least Akimoto wears clothes) Much like Kiryu is a naturally subdued person. Again, the libidos symbolize what are protagonists are, or will become. In that regard, they're wonderful. Admittedly this substory is much more out of character for Kiryu. I don't really see our never killing friend picking up cards and showing them to Akimoto. Nevertheless, throughout the quest we see more of Akimoto's powers in action, which impresses Kiryu, and no doubt makes the player jealous. The next time we see him he reveals he even sees through the pixels that censor it. During his next encounter, he reveals he wants to stop looking at cards altogether, and let his mind do all the work. This however, does not have a happy ending. Like Habu, Akimoto lost the ability to finish the job. He can get it up just fine, but he theorizes that his imagined girls are so much better then reality, that he can't have that sweet release. And whenever he so much as blinks, he sees them. I'd wager it's a sadder tale then Habu's, and I'm not scared to admit this scene had me in tears. Kiryu takes the time out of his life to find the girl of Akimoto's dreams. He goes to the Okama bar (the one place Akimoto probably hasn't gone to), and gets Akimoto to visit the Mama there. Akimoto does so, and all is well in the world. Akimoto can finally be content with girls that aren't in his head. Like Habu, Akimoto develops a bond with the protagonist not unlike a bond of Kyodais. Akimoto is more then glad to have met Kiryu, and the two go their separate ways, though no doubt we'll see these two beautiful bastards in a sequel. All in all, the Mr Libido's are a masterclass of storytelling, and symbolize perfectly what these two characters become/already are. And that's everything. Sorry for the long post, and I hope you enjoyed me talking absolute nonsense for a long time.
With the Yakuza 3-5 remasters coming to Game Pass on January 28th, I thought I'd share some tips/advice to help people new to the series to get the most out of their experience should they choose to play through Yakuza 0 through 6 (maybe even 7). To start, I'll go through the three different options for starting the series.
Yakuza 7 (Like a Dragon). You can just skip 0-6 and go straight to 7 if you prefer turn-based combat and want to get current immediately. Enough happens in the setting between Yakuza 6 and 7 that the world is equally new for returning players as it is for new players. You will get some spoilers for Yakuza 6 and might not have as much attachment to or background on some of the clans, but those are really the only drawbacks.
Yakuza 0, then Kiwami. Starting with Yakuza 0 would be starting on a high note with one of, if not the best, Yakuza games depending on who you talk to. Kiwami may be a step down in terms of the amount of content compared to 0 because it's still heavily based on the original PS2 game and is closer to a remaster than a remake. There will be a disconnect with Kiwami's characterization of Goro Majima vs. his characterization in Yakuza 0. Majima is most often the character we see in Kiwami throughout the other games. In other words, the transition from Yakuza 0 Majima to Kiwami Majima is jarring. Starting with Yakuza 0 is starting at the earliest point in the series' timeline.
Yakuza Kiwami, then Yakuza 0. The advantage to this order is that you become attached to the Kiryu we know for the rest of the games and then get to find out how he became the character we know by playing 0. It's like watching the Star Wars Original Trilogy and then the Prequels. The main drawback is that there are major spoilers for parts of Yakuza 0 in Yakuza Kiwami. The Majima character change going from Kiwami to Yakuza 0 is similarly as jarring as the reverse.
With that out of the way, I have a few pieces of advice.
Put some space in between playing Yakuza Kiwami 2 (the remake of Yakuza 2 from the PS2) and Yakuza 3 Remastered. Yakuza Kiwami 2 was the most recent Yakuza game before the release of 7 and Yakuza 3 Remastered is now the oldest Yakuza game as a result of Yakuza 1 and 2 being remade. Yakuza 3's age really shows and I personally found the transition from Kiwami 2 to Yakuza 3 Remastered really jarring. As a side note, the only Yakuza games that are not essentially PS3 remasters are Yakuza Kiwami 2, Yakuza 6, and Yakuza 7. If Yakuza 3 isn't your cup of tea, I'd recommend watching a playthrough, skipping it and going straight to 4, or mainlining the game's story. I made it through the game in about 20 hours doing a few of the substories.
A lot of the appeal of the series is in the substories and side-activities. I'd say that all of the games have at least a few worth doing with Yakuza 0, Yakuza 5, Yakuza 6, and Yakuza 7 being standouts in that regard, at least in my opinion. Feel free to do as many substories and side-activities as you feel interested in doing. Most of the games have a lot of them. As another side note, you can also make a lot of money in-game by doing whatever management minigames there are in each game. You'll know them when you see them.
The main stories are not masterpieces. Don't set your expectations too high for the stories making sense 100% of the time. There are definitely moments where you will need to suspend your disbelief and moments where the games jump the shark, even within the universe that they've set up.
Don't forget to sell your plates and go for EXP gain-related upgrades early depending on how hard or easy you want the game to be.
If anyone has anything to add or correct, feel free to do so. It's more than likely that I missed some things. I didn't mention Judgment because it's a stand-alone.
There anyone else that doesn't care for Yakuza 2/Kiwami 2's story as much as everyone else?
(There's also gonna be Yakuza 1/Kiwami spoilers in this post, so be warned if for some reason you played 2 but skipped 1) Mainly making this post to see if my opinion's valid. I didn't care for Yakuza 1's story at first, but after giving it some time to settle in, the reason's I disliked it (how much characters died) is exactly what makes it a good story. Kiryu managed to come back from all this death and pain. He essentially had everyone he knew and loved die on the same night, but he came back from it, because he knew he had to. That's some powerful stuff right there. Not saying 1's a masterpiece, it's villains leave something to be desired (except for Nishiki, who's still probably my favourite in the series). Some portions of the story seemed like filler, and more suited for substories. But the pros outweigh the cons, and now I look at 1 extremely fondly, especially it's first and last act. And it's not like Kiwami 2 doesn't start well. Kiryu mourning the deaths of his loved ones and essentially being forced to help the Tojo are pretty good. Terada's "death" was shocking, considering I was confident that even if he died, it wouldn't be at the start of the game. But that of course leads to my first point for why I felt Kiwami 2 was underwhelming compared to others. Terada is Jingu 2. Show's up and reveals his true colours in the last chapter. Is the fake final boss. Then dies not long after he shows himself. However, Jingu's main problem was his sudden inclusion, but I thought he was genuinely entertaining. He's slimy, he's no Yakuza, and he gets others to do his dirty work. Not to mention the presence of a third party besides the Yakuza has been hinted at quite a bit. But Terada? Dude showed up, and died in chapter 1. The ONLY foreshadowing that there might be more to it is Majima mentioning that it's weird how the Omi killed Terada. Then he shows himself in the last chapter, and (while he has his own unique motivations) is more or less generic bad guy pulling the strings number 200. It's not just Terada either. Sengoku is generic bad guy that wants chaos and wealth number 400. Though to be fair, the game seems to realise this, as he's sorta treated like a joke in his last few scenes. Takashima is so forgettable I didn't realise who he was when he was on screen for quite a bit. He's Terada's Jingu, and there's even less to talk about there. Shindo was admittedly pretty cool, and he's got a bit to him, but he's really only in the story for 2 chapters. And yeah, Ryuji's awesome, but he's the good in the bad lot. This was a issue in Kiwami and to a lesser extent 0 as well. With some exceptions, the villains are just kinda underwhelming. The ending was kinda bad as well for me. We'll talk about the fakeout ending first. Kiryu and Kaoru getting blown up. I don't like it. I think it's out of character for Kiryu to just kiss Kaoru and abandon Haruka and everyone else, without even really trying to get out of there. You could make the argument that he knew that by Terada telling him to have faith, that the bomb wasn't gonna go off. But Kiryu said himself he didn't really know. And no disrespect to the band, SiM, but the song that plays in the background, "Sound of Breath", just makes the scene so much worse for me. IN fact, the song may be the actual problem. It was like this for the scene where Kiryu gets stabbed, too. The song itself is fine, but I just don't think it should be playing in scenes like these. And then it's revealed that the bomb was fake. It's going for the feeling of Yakuza 1's ending, and maybe it would've worked if not for the fakeout earlier, but I just don't think it does. I also both like and dislike how everyone was involved with the Jingweon incident. Like because we get to see more character's in action. Like, it's cool as fuck to see Shimano and Kazama in their element. But it almost gets comical at certain points. "Kawara? Kurahashi? Kaoru? Kiryu? Terada? Everyone's related to the incident, fellas!" With that being said, some characters went severely underused. Daigo is meant to be this saving grace the Tojo needs, but he doesn't really DO anything of note. Kashiwagi get's shafted from the main story for the 2nd (3rd if you play in chronological order) time. I'm glad the dudes alive after the bloodbath that was 1, but give him something to do. Yoyoi and Majima are introduced well, and have good scenes, but I wish they had a bit more to do. Those last 2 are probably just me, though. The game has good moments, even great moments. Watching how far the Tojo has fallen is interesting. The game isn't afraid to put humour in the main story, which is appreciated. Majima's bomb disposal is still a top tier scene in the series. I like the growing relationship Kiryu and Kaoru have. Act 1 is fantastic, honestly. The game is just hurt by it's frankly underwhelming last couple chapters. But hey, that's my opinion. If you like this story, great! I do too, it's not like it's bad. But after being told this story rivals 0's, I'm left thinking it's the worst one in the series so far (keep in mind I've only played 0, 1/Kiwami, and 2/Kiwami 2). Maybe it'll grow on me in time, I don't know. Anyway, that's all I wanted to say. Thanks for listening to some guy ramble about funny Yakuza game.
So far in the series, I had played through the following in this order from last April: Yakuza 0 Yakuza Kiwami Yakuza Kiwami 2 Yakuza 3 Remastered Yakuza Like a Dragon Yakuza 4 Remastered Spoilers below: I have to say -- this one was my least favorite, and it's not even close. I still had fun (I mean I put 55 hours into and pretty much beat every substory except 2 I think), but there was a lot in this one that wasn't executed well IMO. Yes, I even liked 3 much better. Things I didn't Like: The story was ok I guess but it was a bit convoluted honestly -- I think they bit of a bit too much to chew. Didn't enjoy navigating the rooftops or the underground, and specifically being forced into the stealth sections with Saejima. I mean you could hardly do anything in the city through multiple chapters. Saejima as a character -- while I like him as a character, I didn't like his fighting style it just never clicked with me....he's too slow. Lets talk the final boss fight. That final fight with about 10,000 super body guards and the chief, can go **** itself. It was the most frustrating part of any of the games so far -- and to make matters worse you have to do it with the most useless character from a fighting perspective. That was seriously negative fun. Also, from a story telling perspective...can we stop this entire "I just beat the hell out of this guy, I'm going to leave him there conscious with a weapon/gun and turn my back on him"? This literally happens every game, you'd think someone would learn. Are they all stupid? I could deal with fewer chase scenes, not that they were hard but after you've done two I think I was good. It really only let me play one game in the arcades...and it's not a good one. Hostess Maker sucks Things I did like: Having different characters was nice, but maybe we don't need 4. Lots of side missions...tons. Gambling was fun Akiyama was a great character and I hope we get to see him more. There was great humor with Hana is this. I had the most fun fighting as him, with Kiryu coming in just behind. So still good, but far from great.
I really liked it a lot. Combat was very satisfying throughout, though the enemies have a lot of bullshit going on: Super Armor at all times, complete unstaggerability, instant 1-frame startup attacks, infinite dodging and i-frames, resistance to heat actions, perfect locking on and instant swiveling, perfect reaction speed, movement that resembles levitation/frictionless sliding so they can snap to wherever they want to be, inescapable stunlocks, free combo breakers, and of course the very hard to penetrate blocks that any enemy can put up for free mid-combo. That being said, it's still fun to learn the combat and triumph over it all, so fun that I'm worried that all the Yakuza's from here on out might be boring in comparison. Weapons are very fun to use, and guns actually have enough ammo and power to be useful. Honestly I feel I didn't use them enough, I had a ton of weapons on me, but I just always felt I could handle the situation with my fists, only ever taking one out to heat move a strong enemy every now and then. Random encounters were honestly a pain near the end of the game, seeing as how they camp street entrances and alleyways, forcing you to fight them as you walk around the city. Most encounters would be trivial to mop up, but sometimes you'd get a really unlucky encounter with several punks with stun guns plus fat dudes with sledgehammers, and I would get very irritated as I got stunlocked and ass-whipped. Protip: invest in an Insulated Shirt to totally nullify stungun dudes. My largest complaint would be when fighting groups of enemies, they have no compunction with attacking you simultaneous at all times. It's very easy to get gangstomped if you don't have a counter to aggressive groups of enemies. This is made even worse by Kiryu's awful lock-on system, where he'd CONSTANTLY get confused as to what enemy he should be focusing on, and my most frustrating moments were from trying to stay focused on one enemy, only to have Kiryu trying to hit an opponent that was nowhere near him at the time. There seems to be a glitch where weaker gun-toting enemies won't shoot you, which was fine by me if it means I'm not forced to watch Kiryu get thrown to the ground by every stray gunshot. I thought the inventory system was fine. Having finite space in your inventory, and having to devote that space to having items or weapons or armor really makes you think about the importance of your items and take their utility seriously. Though I wish there was an option to send items to storage from anywhere at anytime, without needing a telephone booth, cause your inventory can get clogged with useless crap that enemies give you very easily. I appreciate that pawn shops and Kamiyama could see into your item box to do business. Talking about telephone booths, there weren't enough of them; I would think that if you make manual saving mandatory, you'd put more than 4 save points in Kamurocho, and in awkward places that I'd always have to make detours to go to. Ryukyu had an alright number of save points, and when you unlock the Safe House, I'd say that that was the perfect number and placement of save points. The story was very engaging throughout, though I was honestly surprised the story ended where it did, I thought there was more story to be had and more asses to kick. I really liked Ryukyu and Morning Glory; raising these 9 new kids was very adorable and wholesome, and I hope they appear in the sequels. Rikiya had potential to be a staple character, and I thought he would have plot armor for this game because he has substories dedicated to him personally, so I was mighty surprised and saddened when he fell prey to RGG's character-killing fetish. Mine too, I wish that final bosses in these Yakuza games would survive, because they're always interesting characters and if they survived they would substantially add to the roster of Kiryu's friends and Yakuza's overall lore. I guess they just have to kill these important characters in order to keep the slate relatively clean to build the next yakuza game on. Sidenote: I wish that Kiryu's model was slightly better, I was always being distracted by his weird lips and weird skin that made his appearance feel just a little bit off; though I'm probably just spoiled by the graphics from the newer games. Depending how the sakuga-level of the cutscene, Kiryu would look just fine, but a lot of the cutscenes near the beginning of the game has him looking weird IMO. I was very pleased by the substories in the game, in both the quantity and quality. A lot of them are just generic "Clueless Thug Ass-kicking Missions", but there's a few very memorable ones that you can stumble over. My favorite was the Murder at Cafe Alps mission, it was a lot more involved and detailed than pretty much any other substory I've encountered in the series thus far, and it was fun playing detective in a Whodunnit. Haruka's Requests were the worst ones though, they were very boring chores, so I only wound up getting her Trust up to rank A before realizing that S-rank would require playing minigames like Koi Koi or Shogi that I didn't want to play. I'm surprised that my final evaluation screen showed that I had only gotten 65% completion, when I was going out of my way to do every substory and hitman mission I could. I think a lot of that may be some hidden substories from completing minigames, and content involving the Hostess Clubs that I barely touched at all. I really loved the game overall, and it always pains me to know that I'm progressing through such a great series, because while I'm enjoying it in the moment, I know there's only so much left to experience.
Jumping off of Pat's discussion about the ending of Yakuza 6, let's talk about the ending of Yakuza 6
I love how he said he was tricked about crying to Kiryu's letter to Daigo. Personally I was already crying because I genuinely thought Kiryu died, and even then I still cry about it now because in all ways but literally, Kiryu is dead. (Least Ichiban is making me cry a lot too). But i totally agree that "Kiryu considers Daigo like a Son" came RIGHT the hell out of nowhere, with the only... real foreshadowing to that being exactly ONE Substory in 0. I can see why Pat really hates Daigo, but it seems a bit overblown, as Daigo isn't really a scumbag, he's just kind of a dumbass and has some REALLY bad luck. The moment Daigo has a gun in his hand he's suddenly one of the best dudes in the room though, like at the end of Yakuza 3. (Y7 spoiler) Or his summon in Yakuza 7 where he SUMMONS FUCKIN' GHOSTS. But overall, the hate is understandable, and that revelation could've used some... better buildup, in a game where Daigo is actually fuckin' present for most of it. Like, you know, Yakuza 5. Yakuza 6 really needed a bit of time in the oven, all things considered. Like the remakes and 6 kind of came out in the wrong order. It should've been 0, Kiwami 1 (no idea why Pat hates that, I liked Kiwami 1), Kiwami 2 with the new engine (as practice, much like Kenzan and Ishin for 3 and 0, respectively), and THEN 6 with the new engine, now fully refined. Because let's all be honest here. The fact there's no Majima fight in 6 is an absolute crime. He should've been there on that invasion of the Millenium tower with the Hiroshima Boys & Akiyama. Also playable Haruka but that's probably too much to ask for these devs.
Serious Question: Was Yakuza supposed to be a one-off?
I beat Kiwami over the weekend, started Kiwami 2, then I randomly asked myself "when this game was made, was it supposed to be a franchise? Or was Yakuza 1 supposed to be a singular story? " And the more I thought about it, the more it made sense -The first thing to make me think about it is how many major deaths were in this one. Shimano, Reina, Yumi, Shintaro, Sera, Nishiki, Shinji. I haven't gotten into Kiwami 2 yet but I've played 3, 4, 5, and 0 (if you want to know the logic of my play order I can explain in the comments, people always ask) and I don't think any game had this level of significant character deaths, almost like they weren't planning on needing that many characters to walk out of this alive. -The idea of Kiryu to just be named Chairman of the Tojo as the big climax of the game kind of felt like a massive payoff like one of those games "and he became king at the end." To compare it, it feels like if Naruto became Hokage right away in the show. Obviously how they went about tying that up and everything that happened to the Clan after this makes sense in the franchise, but if you look at it like this was supposed to be one story, it kinda fits. -Speaking of Chairman, Yayoi Dojima, a character that was just present in the last game as a substory, suddenly and out of nowhere being named the acting Chairman screams "Fuck, we need a character to fill this role but we don't have anyone left that'd make sense!" -Kiryu leaving the Tojo Clan behind to live with Haruka is as clean a sendoff as they get. Let me make this clear: I'm not saying the franchise should have ended at 1, I'm just wondering if they had any sequels in mind when making it. TV shows do it all the time with their Season 1's (and sometimes later). Like Breaking Bad, they didn't know Season 5 was coming so they made sure Season 4 could act as a finale if needed.
Does everyone think Yakuza 3 is the worst in the series?
I've been playing through the yakuza series recently, which after playing zero, I fell in love with the series, I think it perfectly led into Kiwami so well with the main antagonist. Even substories I found amazing after getting to that point in the story with nods to major plot characters added in. Today I finally beat 3, which I love personally and is probably one of my favorites so far. I'm trying to beat them all in order, one after another. But I thought the orphanage section was really soothing at the start and showed a side of Kiryu being a parental figure, especially after the over the top ending of Kiwami 2 I felt is was much needed. Of course I have the benefit of playing this one after another to experience the whole story and not wait years in advance for release like other people do. So I can see way people may not like 3 as much as the other entries but I wanted to see other people’s opinions regarding what they thought of the game as a whole.
So I'm thinking of trying to get into Dragon Quest (by that I mean start from 1 and go through the main series and whatever side games strike my fancy). My question however is in regards to a couple things that have been holding me back.
The grind. I've always heard people mention that Dragon Quest has a lot of grinding. But how much are we talking? Is it an optional grind where if you want to 100% the game you have to do a lot of grinding or is this a mandatory grind where you will need to stop and grind just to be able to progress?
Missables/guide necessity? How is the series on this front. I'm not necessarily the type to try to 100% games but I do at least generally try to get all the story content. Like in the Yakuza games for example I'm the type who will do the main story and substories (plus Amon) but I'm not going to spend a bunch of time trying to max out on every mini game and checklist in the game. Is this kind of approach possible in Dragon Quest without a guide or is a guide usually necessary in order to not miss/get locked out of things and or complete the games without pulling out 60% of your hair and wanting to throw the game out a third story window.
Difficulty. This also pertains to the aforementioned ripping of hair and flinging objects out of windows. How hard is this series generally? I'm not necessarily bad at games but I'm not amazing either. I'd say I tend to lean more middle of the road on difficulty where some challenge is nice but then some games go overboard and it just sucks all the joy out of the experience. So where on that kind of spectrum does the Dragon Quest series generally fall?
Yakuza Series - A review halfway through the series
So let me preface this by saying that I went into the Yakuza series in Mid-2018, not knowing too much about it. I bought Yakuza Zero on PS4 when it got a few glowing reviews and was at a good price, so I just said "Why not?" The story seems serious at first and the first scene in the game seems to reflect that. It's almost cheesy how stoic and guarded our protagonist, Kazuma Kiryu, seems when interacting with his world. Then again, this is what being in the Yakuza does to someone, it seems. However, a little bit into the game, you realize that this serious tone is cut through like a knife by the game's humor. Oh boy, what a contrast it is to the incredibly engrossing and dramatic main story! When the game gets to its most serious, suddenly a really wacky situation will appear that will just make you bust out laughing. Kiryu plays the perfect straight man (in comedy) and finds himself in a really weird and downright funny situation most of the time. Now, Yakuza Zero is so full of activities that I almost paused the story at certain points just to play mini-games, including the Karaoke which is just so over the top. By the time I finished the main story, including most if not all the substories, I just had to play Kiwami 1, which was overall more of the same great game in Zero, albeit shorter (about half the length of Zero). Same great story and humor from the previous entry. Kiwami 2 again followed and was great. Now, this was the point where I realized that 3, 4 and 5 were not yet available for PS4 (I don't have a PS3 or PS Now), so I just decided to wait (for over a year -_-). Crazy part is I had bought Yakuza 6 right after Zero, but once I realized I wanted to follow the story in order, I had to shelf it. In late 2019, Yakuza Remastered Collection came out and I was super excited to play it. Now, having played Zero (new game in series) and Kiwami 1 and 2 (remakes of PS2 games), Yakuza 3 as "only a remaster" of a PS3 game felt a little different. The combat in Zero through Kiwami 2 was absolutely fine, but nothing to write home about. However, this aspect in Yakuza 3 felt a lot clunkier than I was used to. Couple that with the fact that Yakuza 3's story takes a while to pick up and I had to almost force myself to get through one part. I also had to skip a lot of the sub-stories in Yakuza 3 because they meant more fighting and time that I wasn't as crazy to put in as before and also I may have gotten spoiled by the ones in the other 3 previous titles. I finally plowed through Yakuza 3's story yesterday and it reminded me why I fell in love with the series in the first place. The story really makes you feel, and even the cheesiness of some parts is part of the charm. Overall, I highly recommend the series to anyone. I was really skeptical at first, but I found that Yakuza and it's developers really know who they are and what they're trying to achieve, which helps a lot in making you feel invested in the story and lost in the world of Kamurocho (and a couple other places).
Something Bugging Me About Yakuza 3 (& 4?) Substories
I guess this is sort of a follow up to my previous post on this sub. Finished Yakuza 3 like yesterday, and while I enjoyed it, it was definitely the worst of the Yakuza games I’ve played (being 0 and the Kiwamis). As I’m going in numerical order I just started up 4 (only on chapter 2 and love Akiyama already), but one thing that bugged me a lot about 3 (and may be a problem in 4 from the little I’ve played) is how the substories don’t have markers for where you need to go to continue the mission once you start it. Not a game-ruining problem by any means, but definitely an aspect I miss from the other post-0 games. Having to remember where each substory continues, look up a guide, or constantly check the substory menu for reminders takes a bit of fun out of doing these otherwise great side objectives. Is this an issue that continues throughout 4 and 5 as well?
Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Day Ichi Edition (PS4) £31.99 delivered using Nectar cardholder code @ Boss_deals ebay
The following description is not provided by this sub or any of it's contributors. £31.99 - eBay Day Ichi Edition Pre-Order now to get the Legends Costume Set and Steelbook! RISE FROM ROCK BOTTOM Ichiban Kasuga, a low-ranking grunt of a low-ranking yakuza family in Tokyo, faces an 18-year prison sentence after taking the fall for a crime he didn't commit. Never losing faith, he loyally serves his time and returns to society to discover that no one was waiting for him on the outside, and his clan has been destroyed by the man he respected most. Confused and alone, he embarks on a mission to discover the truth behind his family's betrayal and take his life back, becoming an unlikely hero for the city’s outcasts on his journey. LEVEL UP FROM UNDERDOG TO DRAGON IN DYNAMIC RPG COMBAT Experience dynamic RPG combat like none other. Switch between 19 unique Jobs ranging from Bodyguard to Musician, and use the battlefield your weapon. Take up bats, umbrellas, bikes, street signs, and everything else at your disposal to crack some skulls! ENTER THE UNDERWORLD PLAYGROUND When you're not busy bashing heads, relax by hitting up the local arcade for some classic SEGA games, compete with locals in a no holds barred go-kart race around Yokohama, complete 50 unique substories, or just take in the scenery of a modern-day Japanese city. There’s always something new around the corner. • Become Ichiban Kasuga, a yakuza grunt betrayed by the man he trusted most • Crack skulls in dynamic RPG combat • The battlefield is your weapon – use bats, umbrellas, bikes, street signs, and everything else at your disposal to take down your enemies • Recruit up to 7 party members from the outskirts of society • Spend time with party members to develop their abilities and unlock powerful combo skills • Find, forge, and upgrade equipment to take on the strongest foes • 19 Unique Jobs (+2 DLC Jobs) • 100+ Combat Skills • Over 15 Hilarious Mini-Games • 50 optional Substories breathe life into the city of Yokohama, Japan This deal can be found on hotukdeals via this link: https://ift.tt/3mCik1p
The biggest flaw in RGG studio is their refusal to properly accept continuity
Warning: long and detailed post. Please read it all if possible before commenting! Introduction: Originally, this was going to be a much bigger post, detailing how RGG studio is really good at making games when they don't need to worry about continuity, but they simply refuse to take into consideration past events and characters, for the sake of telling the story they want to tell. However, for the sake of getting across the message I want, I rather just focus on my biggest frustration with the studio and Yakuza 6 as a whole. I love this series, Yakuza 6 will not change that. But the more I think about the story of the latter, the more frustrated I get.. The more these glaring flaws I could ignore before, become too big to set aside. What I'm trying to say is that Yakuza has nearly always been used as a vehicle to tell a singular story. It's like a toy box, where the people in charge can use all the toys that are already there or bring their own. Most of the time, the most "important" toys are used again when creating a story, while some others are taken away. This WORKED in most games, they could mostly stand on their own without having to worry about the disappearance of certain characters or ignoring other events. Most of the time, we could just roll our eyes collectively: - Where did Yayoi Dojima go? Why is she nowhere to be found when she kept things together in the events of Yakuza 2? She already proved herself to be capable, why was she never called again when shit hit the fan in future entries? We never even got a reference regarding what could've happened to her. - Why would Kaoru from Yakuza 2, literally feel like dying for and with Kiryu, but as soon as she gets a job, she goes away the next game? - Why on earth does the FBI twin brother plot line exist and why on earth is he never even mentioned once more? -Why in the absolute universe, is nearly every single villain and their lackeys, never mentioned or seen in past games, when they are part of the Tojo clan? There is absolutely no justification for this. - Why does Hana from Yakuza 4 disappear? Why is Tanimura never given a proper send off? Even just having the characters say where he went? The list could go on, but the answer is always the same: Were they to accept this continuity and these characters, the story they want to tell would need to be INCREDIBLY adapted or wouldn't work. But THAT is the issue. If you play the games separately, they are all great. They all have incredible stand-alone stories, even Yakuza 6. But if you play them ALL in order (like I did) it's clear they rather defy canonical logic than accept the world they've created, in full. Yakuza 6 or How to completely solidify the lack of care for continuity in this franchise I've beaten Yakuza 6 a few days ago. I had time to sit down, think about it and reach a proper conclusion. And boy.. Is there SO MUCH WRONG with the story of this game. I will focus on the story and characters in its entirety. I'm not here to write a critique about the gameplay and whatnot. That said, I will be a bit nitpicky, so keep it in mind when reading. Let's begin: From the get go, Yakuza 6 is flawed and disappointing. As a fan who's been following the games for around 3-4 years and played them in time-line order (started with 0 then went forward with the Kiwami games) I think it's needless to say that the expectations about the last game in Kiryu's story were high. Yakuza 0 proved how good the studio was when they wanted to give protagonism to someone who wasn't Kiryu.. And Yakuza's 4 and 5 proved it further. To me, 5 is one of my top 3 in the franchise, easily.. But at the core of it all, Kiryu's there. I say this because Yakuza has always been a game about characters and their stories. We meet an incredible cast throughout the games, even those silly substories that seem to keep a continuity of sorts (I'll touch on them later) Kiryu is a good man, and it's this goodness in his heart that earns him so many allies. But.. Where are these allies when the story most needs them? Ignored for the sake of the story they want to tell. Yakuza 6 begins with Kiryu going to jail so he can finally get the Yakuza stain off his back. This technically works because we know that spending 3 years there, things will happen in the clan and he won't be bothered, until he's forgotten. Haruka is left at the orphanage to take care of the other kids in his absence. Now: I understand Haruka feeling guilt about what's happened and the paparazzis coming around.. What I don't understand is where Mikio and Nakahara are. Remember them? The little family that took care of Okinawa? Rikiya's death? The fact that Nakahara's left with a huge debt to Kiryu for saving his adoptive daughter, Saki? How Mikio (Rikiya's friend) ends up hanging out with the rest of the kids and Haruka, when the game is over? HOW THEY LITERALLY PROTECT EVERYONE IN THAT GAME AND RISK THEIR LIVES? Are you actually going to tell me that these important characters from Yakuza 3 aren't just gone, but if they were there, they could've stopped the paparazzi from annoying Haruka and would've kept an eye on her? Okay, fine. Let's accept they are gone for whatever reason and Haruka uncharacteristically leaves and goes to Kamurocho, despite knowing better. It is never explained why or how she ends up in Onomichi of all places, but again: Let's just accept it and move on. She hangs out there and, despite knowing the issues that hanging out with Yakuzas brings, she befriends this little Yakuza family. Now we are to assume that she falls in love (?) with Yuta? And just fucks him without protection? THIS MATURE GIRL WE'VE KNOWN FOR YEARS, JUST DOES THAT, DESPITE KNOWING BETTER. And what's the only flashback we get? A scene where Haruka finds Yuta punching in a paparazzi's face for taking pictures: A civilian. This should be further reason for her to not hang out with this crowd, yet she just fucks him unprotected and gets pregnant, right after witnessing this. Okay, let's accept this happened and move on. Kiryu is out of jail while all of the characters that should've been around this game, are sent to jail for the sake of the story they want to tell. No longer will this game be the epic conclusion we've been craving, where all the bonds Kiryu made, come back to support him in this amazing, deep and personal story we wished it would've been. But fine, let's accept these characters are gone and Kiryu's on his own. Haruka's gone, not where she should be and he sets off to Kamurocho to find her. We find out that Chinatown was burnt to the ground and has since been rebuilt. Hmm.. I wonder which character had a deep connection to that place and would've been around to help Kiryu solve this issue? \cough* Tanimura *cough** Okay, whatever, he's not around.. Let's accept it yet again. We find out that Haruka WAS around! She got hit by a car and is in a coma!! Where did the hit and run happen? It happened in Kamurocho! Okay, okay. Do we know who did it? doesn't seem like it. Okay! Kiryu and Akiyama have teamed up to find out who did this to Haruka. Time to go talk to The Florist, a character who's been used in every game except for Yakuza 0, a character who has hidden cameras all over Kamurocho, with a secret web of homeless men who are the second set of eyes for the city. Similar things have happened in the past and the answers were always there! They can just ask him, he'll probably just ask Kiryu to fight at the coliseum and the info will be theirs! ... What? Sorry.. I've just received word that the florist is not only missing from the game's story.. But he's never even mentioned or brought up as an option. ... Oh? We are going to spend 40% of the game's story looking for clues as to who was driving the car? O..Kay. let's.. Let's just accept it and move on.. Yet again. It turns out, there's been a guy all along. A guy who's been an advisor for the chairmen in the Tojo clan since the second one. That's right, folks: this important character in Yakuza 6 has supposedly been around since at least Yakuza 0 but he's never even mentioned ONCE. NOT ONCE. THE ADVISOR OF THE CHAIRMEN. What follows is a chore of a story where you go back and forth between Kamurocho and Onomichi, with Kiryu making new pals along the way as usual and making the five thousand' sworn brother, finishing up with calling these folks his "family". Uh.. Did you forget your other "family" from Yakuza 3..? You know.. That family where Rikiya sacrificed himself to save you? Alright then. In the end, every little story beat is either gone or dumbed down. Even the substory stuff. The only substories that get a proper ending are the ones from Yakuza 0, since 6 was made afterward. Jo amon's last fight is the easiest in the series and the ending ends up being an excuse for him to join the Kiryu Clan for the fighting minigame. The crazy scientist who was connected to the Amon clan and made that virtual fighting game doesn't ever show up. Also.. Correct me if I'm wrong: but wasn't Kiryu the one who defeated the color gangs? Or they were gone after defending purgatory? Because the guys from JUSTIS say THEY were the ones who got rid of the color gangs. ??? Anyway. The game ends with Kiryu "dying" and Date being the only one to know the truth. (PS: Date is the only character that was treated the best in this series). Kiryu writes a letter to Daigo saying that he was like a son to him..? Uh.. Am I the only one who felt this was super out of place? As far as I know, Daigo was old enough to have considered Dojima as his father. And he even had a mother who disappears. Kiryu forces him to be the chairman and that's that. The relationship between them is just Kiryu constantly keeping him in his place, but they never even share a personal moment aside from that fist fight at the end of Yakuza 4. Most underused characters Saejima and.. Majima, are just hanging out with him. We see Haruka now in Okinawa with Yuta. (Remind me where their chemistry is?) and little Haruto just hanging out there with them. All in all: Yakuza 6 decides to throw away continuity for the sake of telling the story they want to tell. Characters behave non-sensically and make stupid choices just for the sake of the plot, while other characters or entire groups of characters.. Heck, even entire plot points from last games, are ignored just for the sake of the story. And for what? A game that can stand on its own but serves as a pethetic waste of potential? A lackluster ending to Kiryu's protagonism? The destruction of any respect I had for Haruka? I'll play Judgement next. I heard very good things about that game! And I'm not surprised: They excell when they don't have to care for continuity. But Yakuza 6? It's just proof of badly placed their priorities are.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Day Ichi Edition (PS4) £31.99 delivered using Nectar cardholder code @ Boss_deals ebay
The description of this deal was not provided by this subreddit and it's contributors. £31.99 - eBay Day Ichi Edition Pre-Order now to get the Legends Costume Set and Steelbook! RISE FROM ROCK BOTTOM Ichiban Kasuga, a low-ranking grunt of a low-ranking yakuza family in Tokyo, faces an 18-year prison sentence after taking the fall for a crime he didn't commit. Never losing faith, he loyally serves his time and returns to society to discover that no one was waiting for him on the outside, and his clan has been destroyed by the man he respected most. Confused and alone, he embarks on a mission to discover the truth behind his family's betrayal and take his life back, becoming an unlikely hero for the city’s outcasts on his journey. LEVEL UP FROM UNDERDOG TO DRAGON IN DYNAMIC RPG COMBAT Experience dynamic RPG combat like none other. Switch between 19 unique Jobs ranging from Bodyguard to Musician, and use the battlefield your weapon. Take up bats, umbrellas, bikes, street signs, and everything else at your disposal to crack some skulls! ENTER THE UNDERWORLD PLAYGROUND When you're not busy bashing heads, relax by hitting up the local arcade for some classic SEGA games, compete with locals in a no holds barred go-kart race around Yokohama, complete 50 unique substories, or just take in the scenery of a modern-day Japanese city. There’s always something new around the corner. • Become Ichiban Kasuga, a yakuza grunt betrayed by the man he trusted most • Crack skulls in dynamic RPG combat • The battlefield is your weapon – use bats, umbrellas, bikes, street signs, and everything else at your disposal to take down your enemies • Recruit up to 7 party members from the outskirts of society • Spend time with party members to develop their abilities and unlock powerful combo skills • Find, forge, and upgrade equipment to take on the strongest foes • 19 Unique Jobs (+2 DLC Jobs) • 100+ Combat Skills • Over 15 Hilarious Mini-Games • 50 optional Substories breathe life into the city of Yokohama, Japan This deal can be found at hotukdeals via this link: https://ift.tt/3mCik1p
Finished Yakuza Kiwami today. Here's my overall review/critique, for those who consider playing it. Mild gameplay spoilers ahead, so avoid if you don't want to see them.
Just wanna state a few things upfront. There will be mild gameplay spoilers for Yakuza Kiwami, as well as Yakuza 0. Nothing beyond Chapter 6. No story spoilers here, so don't worry about that. And that I'll be prioritizing gameplay for this. I might do this for the story too, if I feel like doing it. And that I'm going to talk about Yakuza 0 a lot in this, considering I was going into Kiwami with 0 as a comparison of sorts. This is gonna be a long post. If you don't want a detailed summery, here's the short of it. TL;DR: The game more then succeeds as a remake of Yakuza 1, but I personally think it fails as a sequel to Yakuza 0. With that being said, the core gameplay improves on 0's, though with some issues and annoyances that seems to only serve to give the player busywork. I highly recommend it if you enjoyed 0, but don't expect a game of higher quality then it. With that being said, let's begin. There's 3 ways to review this game. Number 1: A standalone experience. Number 2: A remake of Yakuza 1. Number 3: A sequel to Yakuza 0 (how I think most people experienced this game). We'll get to the negatives of the game first. I'll say right now that if you're expecting number 3, you'll most likely be disappointed. I know I was, anyway. Kamurocho in general has less stuff to do in Kiwami then in 0. Not by much, but enough to be noticeable. there's 78 substories, compared to 0's 100. Not to say that 78 is a small number, it's really not. But, you need to remember that this is a remake of Yakuza 1. Side quests included. These substories get extremely similar. There are some genuine greats here, don't get me wrong. But facts are facts. Nearly a quarter of these are some variation of Kiryu walking into some sort of scam. possibly the biggest complaint I have with Kiwami is that there's ultimately NO new content. Majima Everywhere is a fantastic mechanic, and a wonderful alternative to Mr. Shakedown... But it's still an alternative to Mr. Shakedown. While the baseball and cabaret dating game have been tweaked, it's still just that, a tweak. Mesuking is just a reskin of catfighting. You get the point. There is the photo booth in the arcade, but that's genuinely it. The content itself is great, but the fact that there's essentially nothing new about Kiwami may cause some problems for players. Not to mention that certain minigames (like disco and arcade games) have been removed. It makes sense thematically, sure. But at least add an alternative, add a new game. Combat also has some issues. Most of these being carryovers from 0, but they're still valid. The main issue for me is that hitboxes are still off for some attacks. We've all had these moments playing these games. You plainly hit a guy, but the game doesn't register it. Or an enemy clearly misses you, but he still hits you for what's seemingly meters away. This doesn't happen often in the main story, but the coliseum is especially sinful of these moments. Speaking of the coliseum, I found it to be poorly designed. This is mostly due to the tournaments that require weapons, which legitimately are miles worse then your base moveset. Even without considering those tournaments, it always felt like I had to rely on luck to not get certain fighters (looking at you, Charon M). The most boring addition to combat is probably the Kiwami heat action. Fantastic concept on paper. Stop the boss from healing by doing a super heat move. But there's a couple problems. There's only one animation for each Kiwami heat move style. Nitpicky? Probably, but it get's boring looking at the same one. More importantly, is how much you'll be using it. Most bosses heal twice, maybe even 3 times per fight. So the amount of times you'll be using these heat moves is actually kinda hilarious. Majima Everywhere? nah, mate. Kiwami Everywhere. Certainly feels like it, anyway. Another issue I have with combat is unlocking the Dragon Style moves takes such a long time, that by the time it's genuinely viable to use, you'll only have about a quarter of the game left. Once you get the right moves, it's a blast to use, but it's little more then a waste of a style until then. I won't go into the story much in this, but I feel like I should state some things about it while we're still in the "bad" section. Don't go into this thinking it's a sequel to 0. It's more a standalone story, with characters from 0 taking the center stage. Does that make sense? Probably not, but that's how I saw it. The general opinion is that 0 has the superior story between the two games, and I'll agree here. Even the developers probably think so, as they added new scenes, which significantly fleshes out the main antagonist more. And hey, props to them. This isn't inherently a jab against Kiwami, more a testament to how good 0's story was. I've also heard that some small things about backgrounds and scenery in the story and world was cut from Kiwami. I don't know why the developers decided to cut it, but I'm quick to forgive that. The scenes they added to the main story make losing the small details worth it. Speaking of, we're about done with the bad section of this review. Now for the portion I'm more excited about, the good of Yakuza Kiwami. We'll be here awhile. As a remake of Yakuza 1, Kiwami is genuinely fantastic. Looks amazing, and recaptures every cutscene from the original perfectly as far as I'm concerned. Combat is naturally improved, aside from complaints I've already listed. And new side quests are added, which were all treats. With very few exceptions, I'd go so far as to consider this one of the best remakes of the last decade. While I did critique the substories of Kiwami, and I still stand by the fact that many of them kinda suck, something happened that genuinely caught me off guard with them. Some are genuinely fantastic. I won't go too in depth with them so that you can be surprised seeing them for yourself, but I'll just say this. For all the rightful credit people give 0's substories, they're pretty low budget. Reusing animations, little to no voice lines, etc. Kiwami genuinely surprised me by having fully voiced substories, substories with pre-rendered cutscenes, and all of these substories are genuinely improved because of this added touch. On one hand, I find it strange that only a select few substories have this treatment. But on the other, what's here is great, and in some cases surpasses the substories of 0. And this goes for Kamurocho, too. Nothings inherently changed about the city, but lighting and new areas make it a genuine joy to explore again. And though there's practically no new content, the content here is still great. And now, combat. Not much to talk about here, it's an enhanced version of 0's combat, and they did a good job with that. Rush in general has been buffed, and is actually really fun to use now. I almost never used this in 0, as I found that it wasn't fast enough to compensate for it's low damage. Not to mention that I prefer playing the "tank" role in games anyway. Kiwami fixes my main complaint of Rush. It's easily twice as fast as Brawler, and evading is so fun using this style. Conversely, I feel like Beast got nerfed. It's still fantastic, but I found it to be less valuable then it was in 0. Might be just me, though. The experience points system is LEAGUES better then the money system. You don't need to grind in order to get half of the upgrades, which is always welcome in any game. For as much as I love 0, getting those last upgrades is essentially just farming the business side mode for a long period, which isn't all that fun. The last thing I'll say about the combat; Majima Everywhere is a top contender when considering the best features in a videogame from a entertainment perspective. That's all I'll say about it, for the same reason as the substories. Experience it yourself. And again, while I won't go in depth on the story, I will restate that Kiwami's added scenes are so effective at making the main villain more human, and turns what was otherwise a forgettable arc in the original game, into a wonderful tragedy regarding how the villain came to be, especially with context in mind. And the story itself is fantastic. Worse then 0? probably, yes. But still fantastic. That's a great way to describe this game in general, honestly. If you (for some reason) did not like Yakuza 0, the chances of you enjoying Kiwami are astronomically low. If you loved 0 (like me), you'll have a fantastic time with most of Kiwami. I highly recommend Kiwami. It's funny, is more then competent as a beat-em-up, and has a story that'll most likely grab you by the first hour. I know it did for me. While it certainly has it's flaws, I think the pros all in all outweigh them. the asking price for the game is also incredibly cheap for what you get in return. Hope you enjoyed reading, and hey, if this helped someone with their decision with the game, that's all the better.
Y0 > Kiwami > Kiwami 2 > 4 > 6 > 5 >>>>>> 3 (I played in story order btw: Y0, K1, K2, Remastered Collection, 6) Y0 was my first game and it really is the best Yakuza game. Best combat, mini games, substories, characters, story. Kiwami kept the combat and felt like a good "sequel" to 0. Final fight vs Nishikiyama was amazing. Kiwami 2 blew me away with the graphics. Was disappointed on the downgrade of the combat. Brought back Cabaret Club Management and introduced Majima's Construction which was so fun. Impressed with Ryuji Goda and the final fight (salty I died once and it was in the final battle to a "Press X Not to Die" moment) 4, I loved the introduction to Akiyama. His fighting style was crazy fun. Surprised to hear the voice actor for Ryoji Kaji from Evangelion (did you know he voices Joel from The Last of Us in Japan?). The story of what happened to Majima's sworn brother since Y0 hit me like a truck and I was invested in knowing what happened to him and what really happened that day. 6, I actually enjoyed the ending. A lot of people wish for something else, but I agreed that as long as Kiryu is around, there will be cynical people who target those he love to get close to him. His letter to Daigo Dojima was heart-breaking. The game overall felt like a downgrade though compared to Kiwami 2. 5, Peaked during Tatsuo Shinada's part. Enjoyed the baseball story and baseball/batting cage minigames. But the story was getting more convoluted by the minute. You can really play a drinking game for every time someone says "Yume (dream)". 3, sucked. The Okinawa segment dragged on and on. The combat felt so dated. The "remastered" graphics didn't feel so remastered, feeling more like a PS3 launch-day game. They built up Kashiwagi only for him to be shot down like that. Kazama's retconned twin brother from the United States who he never spoke about before. Kaoru Sayama just saying "I'm off to America, bye!" was so stupid after her character development in 2. Was so disappointed after playing 3, I thought 4 and 5 would be just as bad and I'm glad it wasn't. What are you thoughts? Share you rankings and opinions.
Is there a game in the series not worth my time if I'm binging to get to 7?
So I have already played 0 and 6, and absolutely adored them both. I pre ordered Like a Dragon in the states because I'm intrigued by the idea of turn-based combat in a Yakuza game. I figured I should go ahead and play them all since they're all on PS4 now, but these games are pretty long (especially when you factor in side content) and I'm definitely not going to meet the deadline of November 12 to finish them all. I'll just end up holding off my playthrough of 7 until I can get the rest finished. But are there any that aren't so good (lackluster main story, or bad substories) that I could just skip and maybe read a plot summary of? Or are they all worth playing? I'm halfway through Kiwami right now.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Day Ichi Edition [PS4 / Xbox One / Series X] £35.99 Delivered using code @ Boss Deals eBay
The description of this deal was not provided by this subreddit and it's contributors. £35.99 - eBay Link to Xbox version: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Yakuza-Like-a-Dragon-Day-Ichi-Edition-Xbox-One-Brand-New-Sealed-UK-PAL/254746419247 **Day Ichi Edition Pre-Order now to get the Legends Costume Set and Steelbook!** RISE FROM ROCK BOTTOM Ichiban Kasuga, a low-ranking grunt of a low-ranking yakuza family in Tokyo, faces an 18-year prison sentence after taking the fall for a crime he didn't commit. Never losing faith, he loyally serves his time and returns to society to discover that no one was waiting for him on the outside, and his clan has been destroyed by the man he respected most. Confused and alone, he embarks on a mission to discover the truth behind his family's betrayal and take his life back, becoming an unlikely hero for the city’s outcasts on his journey. LEVEL UP FROM UNDERDOG TO DRAGON IN DYNAMIC RPG COMBAT Experience dynamic RPG combat like none other. Switch between 19 unique Jobs ranging from Bodyguard to Musician, and use the battlefield your weapon. Take up bats, umbrellas, bikes, street signs, and everything else at your disposal to crack some skulls! ENTER THE UNDERWORLD PLAYGROUND When you're not busy bashing heads, relax by hitting up the local arcade for some classic SEGA games, compete with locals in a no holds barred go-kart race around Yokohama, complete 50 unique substories, or just take in the scenery of a modern-day Japanese city. There’s always something new around the corner. • Become Ichiban Kasuga, a yakuza grunt betrayed by the man he trusted most • Crack skulls in dynamic RPG combat • The battlefield is your weapon – use bats, umbrellas, bikes, street signs, and everything else at your disposal to take down your enemies • Recruit up to 7 party members from the outskirts of society • Spend time with party members to develop their abilities and unlock powerful combo skills • Find, forge, and upgrade equipment to take on the strongest foes • 19 Unique Jobs (+2 DLC Jobs) • 100+ Combat Skills • Over 15 Hilarious Mini-Games • 50 optional Substories breathe life into the city of Yokohama, Japan This deal can be found at hotukdeals via this link: https://ift.tt/3eWbZut
Alright, so last year I decided to give this series a shot because of a sale on Yakuza 0, and I fell in love with it. Since then, I have played them in order, even buying a ps4 just to get the remastered collection. Now, I still have 6 to play, but so far, I think Yakuza 5 would rank as one of my favorites with 0 and kiwami. It has a tremendous amount of content, many characters and minigames and the finale was really cool. However, it's not without its share of issues. The game starts off with Kiryu and immediately I think the game is great. The city is nice, the taxi driving is honestly one of my favorites across all games and the story is interesting so far. But the story then becomes extremely convoluted later on and I don't even know why things are happening. In my opinion, the game hits a low with Saejima. He was my favorite character in 4, but his part is one of my least favorite moments in this franchise. Not only do you spend and unnecessary amount of time doing pointless things and tutorials (in the second part of the game, mind you), but it's also a complete rehash of his story from 4. It was so bad I took a long break from this game in the middle of it because I was tired of wasting my time being forced to do pointless tutorials all the time. With part 3, the game becomes good again, though admittedly, Haruka's part is really out of place. I personally didn't mind it. Even though the story is really messy, the game is pretty fun and the substories are really good. It's closer to 0 than the other games I've played (which makes sense since it's the one preceding it) and for that, I think it's definetely worth it.
Finally finished Yakuza 0. My ramblings below, and [spoilers] of course.
I finally finished Yakuza 0 after probably anywhere from one to two months of playing. I made sure to do almost every substory (except the disco shit that's really hard for me), and I tend to go days without gaming, so that's why it took me maybe longer than usual. The Good Stuff I loved the story. Honestly, it's one of the better stories in any game I've played. For a game, it was pretty sophisticated. I still remember seeing the bat tattoo on Tachibana after hearing Makoto talk about her kidnapping by someone with a bat tattoo and thinking "oh, shit." Then, the twist with Oda being the traitor. And the bad guys... you really hate the bad guys in this game. When they shot poor blind Makoto, I couldn't wait to get through the final chapters to absolutely fuck their shit up. I feel like the length and difficulty were just right. If a game is too long, sometimes I lose interest and just... drop it. If a game is too hard, same. I could've breezed through this game easily, but I took my time doing substories. I'm horrible at driving in games, so I appreciated not having to do that here. I loved the contrast of light and dark. One minute, you're trying to avenge a brutal murder, and the next, you're telling a 30-year-old virgin that he's not a loser, then racing him with toys. Hell, I'd love to play minigames or apps based on some of the games here, like Real Estate Tycoon, or the Hostess game. I'd love a drama based on Yakuza, where every other episode is some weird side-story, like Majima beating off all these hostess girls, or Kiryu going on sex hotline dates. The graphics and acting were amazing. Really, well done Sega. The Weird I didn't dig too deep into catfighting, but from what I understand it sucks because it's basically pure luck. And disco... whew. Maybe it's because I have the rhythm of Stephen Hawking, but I beat Kiryu's first challenger, then no one else. I seemed to get worse at it, likely because I got into my own head about it. You don't need it to beat the game, although it sucks that I might not ever platinum this unless someone comes over and does it for me. I might be able to do it, but I don't think it's worth me spending hours practicing. Some of the story elements made me kinda go "huh?" It was hard to keep track of the families, clans, motives for the different old guys. Then again, this was my first time meeting these characters and organized crime stories always have big casts of characters. There was Jimmy Smits guy, Mr. Clean, the guy that looked like Cee-Lo with a curly wig. And in the end, when these guys basically tried to kill the heroes, and innocent people and freaking Makoto, they're convinced not to kill them because it wouldn't be worth it. Huh? On a practical level, why wouldn't Shibusawa go for revenge? Anyway, overall I loved this game. I can't wait to get into the other games in the series. I hear some are rougher than others, some are more polished than others. I've tried to avoid spoilers for future games, I think I want to play them in order, and Judgment, too. Now that I'm done, I think there's a New Game+ (although some said there's no NG+ online), a "Legend" difficulty, and a casual mode where you can do all the side stuff without having to progress through the story again. I only got 57% trophy completion and I'm tempted to do whatever it is to get a better completion (I missed some of the "bad" telephone dates, the disco competitions, and stuff like catching all the fish) but I also feel like I could take a break since I've been playing it off and on for a couple of months.
Yakuza 6 Substories Guide: All Locations and Walkthroughs Tyler Treese Tuesday, April 17, 2018 Check out page one of our Yakuza 6 substories guide for most of the Kamurocho quests. Substories. A staple of the Yakuza series, substories are mini-dramas that you can engage in in order to help the populace of Japan in their lives. These substories are almost all entirely optional, and you'll have to seek them out in order to get involved. In addition to giving you fights to build yourself up, many substories will also lead to items that you could not otherwise get normally Chapter 6 Substories Yakuza 3 Remastered Chapter 6 Substories. Most of these open immediately upon beginning the chapter. I suggest doing as many as you can before you collect Rikiya. #3 - Hometown Girl. THIS CAN ONLY BE DONE WITH RIKIYA. Also, you have to have returned to New Serena to speak with Date. Rikiya will show up and lament he couldn't find the bikini bar he was looking for There are 51 Substories in Yakuza 6, with #52 being the completion reward for finishing them all. As with past games in the Yakuza franchise, Yakuza 6: The Song Of Life Substories open at specific points of the game. Yakuza Kiwami is filled with immersive and rewarding side quests called Substories. This Yakuza Kiwami Substories Guide will tell you where to find each of the Substories, the best way to complete them and any information on the rewards you receive once completed. 6: The Fake Mizuki’s Truth. Requirements: Chapter 13 Note: In order to start this substory, you must leave Haruka in Stardust. Simply head there and talk to Kazuki. Select “No, Not yet” to Substories are additional stories found during the course of Yakuza 6: Song of Life. In all, you are looking at 51 missions. To activate a mission, you need to find it on the map and interact with the right person. This chapter contains a list of all substories and includes a map of their locations: Kamurocho - map; Onomichi - map; Chapter 1 Yakuza 6: The Song of Life Substories 21-24 (Kamurucho) Substory List. 21: Look What the Dragon Dragged In; 22: The Temptation of Live Chat; 23: We’re Committed to Results ; 24: A Man Rises Up Our Yakuza 6 Substories Guide is for finding the side missions or substories in Yakuza 6 and how to successfully complete them. In our Yakuza 6 Guide. Yakuza Like a Dragon has 52 Substories (Side Quests). Completing all of them unlocks the Stories of the Streets trophy or achievement. This guide will walk you through all Substories (side quests) in the game. Substories are extra side quests you can participate in throughout the game for various rewards. You’re introduced to them early on in the story and there are a handful you are
Available: Chapter 5, Complete “30: The Ono Michio Show” Approach the mother and child standing in the corner of the street to trigger this substory. Please ... To obtain this trophy you need to complete three substories regarding the Ono Michio mascot.Here is one of the common locations you will find Ono Michio. Please check out our online guide at http://www.neoseeker.com/yakuza-6/walkthrough Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/devilleon7 Available: Available in Chapter 6. Head to the back lot in Tenkaichi Alley to find three guys surrounding a well-dressed man. Interact with them to trigger t... Majima finds a troubled old woman arguing with two people in odd attire. He approaches her and asks her about the situation, she tells him that her daughter ... Unlocked at Chapter 7. Located in Kamurocho. Go to Nakmichi Street and listen to the two men having a conversation. Talk to the people that are on the ground. Chase the drone (if you lose it it ... More like Nerd King am i right?Nugget is in this one You can win all matches without even trying to recruit players. However, last match you just can't win easily, so i advise to recruit which you will mostly d... Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/devilleon7
