Posted on: June 20, 2023
CanadaCat
Games: 246 Reviews: 27
An Ambitious Entry
If you are familiar with Yakuza 0 or Kiwami 1, this one plays a lot like those games. And while not the greatest entry, I really appreciate the ambition they tried with this game. This entry really shoots for the stars as we follow the storyline of 4 main protagonists across the game: the new mainstays in Akiyama and Saejima, the one-off wonder of Tanimura, and, of course, the mascot Kiryu. Not only does each character have their own story, but they also have their own narrative and sub-stories, but they also have their own unique fighting style, weapon specializations, karaoke songs, and interactions with the city. For example, Akiyama runs a cabaret club where he can train a hostess, which serves as one of the unique minigames, that other characters can date later on. That being said, it's a rather divisive game in the series notably in the story and Saejima. 1) The story is coherent but it goes all over the place and has way more twists than an M Night Shymalan movie, and they are not particularly good twists. While there are good supporting characters and villains, most of their actions don't really make sense outside of "it has to happen to move the plot along." That being said, it was really cool as a fan of Yakuza 0 to see the events that were referenced in the game play out on screen. 2) This game hates Saejima. Like REALLY hates Saejima. The prison break sequence that is his introduction is the most hated sequence in all of Yakuza because it's pretty easy to screw yourself if you pick the wrong talents. Not to mention you get limited healing items, an irritating mini-boss fight half-way through, and an irksome "dodge the sniper" sequence. After that, while it makes sense as you are a felon, Saejima has take the scenic route to dodge policemen and doesn't even do some of the minigames. Overall, the game holds up really well for a PS3 game and it well worth a play if you love Yakuza.
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