Yakuza Community |OT| Complete Global Saturation

deroli · Dec 26, 2018

Yesterday I finished Yakuza 0, my introduction to the series. And surely it won't be my last Yakuza game as it was absolutely amazing!
80s Japan is a great setting and the story features so many great characters with seemingly competent voice acting. I don't really care about japanese voices in general but it would feel weird to listen to different voice actors if they decide to dub other games. Another highlight is the game's humour. Yakuza 0 is legitimately one of the most hilarious games I've encountered. I had to shake my head a couple of times in disbelief how far they went but they constantly hit the right note IMO.
One thing I do regret however is that I spent too much time (too early) on minigames, specifically Real Estate + Carbaret Club. With all the money involved my characters were pretty much overpowered in the end and it did feel like a grind at times. I left the game idling to receive the payouts and to upgrade later properties in order to challenge the Media King. That's not the way it's supposed to play I guess and it did hamper my enjoyment a bit. I thought the game would be quite short but it took me over 80h to finish it, so I should have approached it differently.

lemonade · Dec 27, 2018

I am 100% sure the black jack in Judgment is rigged. I'm fucking tilted. Wanna punch the dealer in the face.

matrix-cat · Dec 27, 2018

You guys are going to have a lot of fun with the 'Pervert Musketeers' side cases when this comes out in English :P

lemonade said:
I am 100% sure the black jack in Judgment is rigged. I'm fucking tilted. Wanna punch the dealer in the face.

On the plus side, at least you can savescum really easily now that you can save anywhere. I only played enough Blackjack to get the missable Trophy in Chapter 2 and the Skill Book that's available at that casino, but I saw that one of the Kamgo objectives is to win some huge amount and I'm not looking forward to that.

Doctrine Dark · Dec 27, 2018

I've recently completed Kiwami (my first Yakuza game) and I absolutely loved it. I always heard people talk about this series, but I never thought it would capture me the way it did. I'm glad I decided to actually play it. Now I'm not sure where to go with the series. There appears to be quite a few Yakuza games, so I'm hoping reset can help. What would be the best direction to go from here when it comes to experiencing the Yakuza series?

mudai · Dec 27, 2018

Doctrine Dark said:
I've recently completed Kiwami (my first Yakuza game) and I absolutely loved it. I always heard people talk about this series, but I never thought it would capture me the way it did. I'm glad I decided to actually play it. Now I'm not sure where to go with the series. There appears to be quite a few Yakuza games, so I'm hoping reset can help. What would be the best direction to go from here when it comes to experiencing the Yakuza series?

The direct sequel of Kiwami (Yakuza 1) would be Kiwami (Yakuza 2). There's also the prequel to Yakuza 1 which is called Yakuza 0, which is one of the best games in the series. So you can either go play 0 or Kiwami 2 next. From there it gets a bit more difficult sadly. Yakuza 3-5 are PS3 games (and the English version of 3 is missing a lot of side content among other things). I don't really recommend playing 6 before you haven't at least played Yakuza 5, as 6 is a direct continuation of 5's story (it does have a recap for all games including 5 though). Yakuza 3-5 are getting HD remasters (meaning they won't get the same "full remake" treatment the Kiwami releases of 1 and 2 got) on the PS4, but so far none of them have been announced for the west yet. The PS4 port of Yakuza 3 already came out in Japan with Yakuza 4 following in early 2019. Ideally you can play them all by release order and eventually make your way to 6. That way your emotional stakes in the story will be much bigger. But I think that 6's story is also enjoyable if you haven't played all games in the series.

So, if you have a PS3, it's easy to play them all in release order now. If not, you might want to wait for an English release of the HD ports in case you want to experience Kazuma Kiryu's full story in release order. There's also the PS3 exclusive spin-off called Yakuza: Dead Souls, where you're shooting zombies. It's janky but fun in my opinion. Japan got a couple more spin-off games with the most famous one being Yakuza Ishin (or Ryu ga Gotoku Ishin), which is the one most people wanted to see getting localization but sadly it never happened. If you like the Fist of the North Star manga / anime, you might want to check out Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise, too. It's by the Yakuza devs and it's basically a Yakuza game just with the Fist of the North Star characters. The Japanese voice actors of the Yakuza series are voicing the characters in this game (there's also an optional English dub) and it runs on the Yakuza 0 engine.

The Yakuza devs also just released Judgment (or Judge Eyes) in Japan, which is an entirely new IP featuring famous actor and singer Kimura Takuya as the main character (a private detective). It's set in the Yakuza universe (it even in Kamurocho) and feels and plays like a Yakuza game but is actually an entirely new IP. K It'll see an English release (featuring the original Japanese as well as an optional English dub) in summer 2019.

Also, welcome to the Yakuza series. Always great to see so many new people starting with the series.

Aurc · Dec 27, 2018

Doctrine Dark said:
I've recently completed Kiwami (my first Yakuza game) and I absolutely loved it. I always heard people talk about this series, but I never thought it would capture me the way it did. I'm glad I decided to actually play it. Now I'm not sure where to go with the series. There appears to be quite a few Yakuza games, so I'm hoping reset can help. What would be the best direction to go from here when it comes to experiencing the Yakuza series?

Mudai already gave you a pretty comprehensive response, so I'll go for a simpler one: play 0, then play Kiwami 2. 0 first, because it holds more relevance to the characters and events you just experienced in Kiwami, and the combat is similar. For some, I reckon it'd be jarring to play Kiwami 2, then go back to the old engine afterwards.

So yeah, simple answer: play 0 next.

Doctrine Dark · Dec 27, 2018

Wow, thanks for answering so quickly, Mudai and Aurc. That's about as in-depth as it can get. Thinking about going with 0 right now. I'd like to see more pertaining to the origins of Kiryu, his friendship with Nishiki, and his connection with Majima. So looking to go with 0 then Kiwami 2. After that, I think I'll wait for Yakuza 3/4/5 to get released and then just go in that order before playing 6. Judgment looks pretty dope, so I'll have my eye on that, too.

Thank you for the welcome.

Aurc · Dec 27, 2018

Doctrine Dark said:
Wow, thanks for answering so quickly, Mudai and Aurc. That's about as in-depth as it can get. Thinking about going with 0 right now. I'd like to see more pertaining to the origins of Kiryu, his friendship with Nishiki, and his connection with Majima. So looking to go with 0 then Kiwami 2. After that, I think I'll wait for Yakuza 3/4/5 to get released and then just go in that order before playing 6. Judgment looks pretty dope, so I'll have my eye on that, too.

Thank you for the welcome.

Sure thing, glad you enjoyed your first exposure to the series. Sounds like you've got it worked out, this path makes the most sense. Have fun.

Lulu · Dec 27, 2018

Hey, just pocked 0 on Steam. This is my first Yakuza but I'm wondering if there's anything I should know

eyeball_kid · Dec 27, 2018

Doctrine Dark said:
Wow, thanks for answering so quickly, Mudai and Aurc. That's about as in-depth as it can get. Thinking about going with 0 right now. I'd like to see more pertaining to the origins of Kiryu, his friendship with Nishiki, and his connection with Majima. So looking to go with 0 then Kiwami 2. After that, I think I'll wait for Yakuza 3/4/5 to get released and then just go in that order before playing 6. Judgment looks pretty dope, so I'll have my eye on that, too..

You're in for a treat with Y0. Be aware that the batshit crazy Majima you saw in Kiwami will not be the one you see in 0. I actually enjoyed him more in 0, and it really fleshes out his back story.

Lulu said:
Hey, just pocked 0 on Steam. This is my first Yakuza but I'm wondering if there's anything I should know

Don't equip the Charismatic Autobiography.
Do remember to save; there's no auto save, so you have to save in phone booths.
Do keep a good stock of health drinks, which come in very handy during some boss battles.
Do play on Hard if you are good at action games; it provides a good challenge without being overly unfair. You can change difficulty on the fly though.
Do balance your time between narrative, side stories, and mini games.
Do know that there's a NG+ after the narrative is done which will allow you to continue doing the side stories and mini games, so don't feel pressured to complete everything.
Do have a nice glass of whiskey around when you play.

Lulu · Dec 27, 2018

How do you find side quest? I just got my first one and I randomly stumbled on it. It was number 6 on the list so I'm guess I'm missing a few...

eyeball_kid · Dec 27, 2018

Lulu said:
How do you find side quest? I just got my first one and I randomly stumbled on it. It was number 6 on the list so I'm guess I'm missing a few...

That's basically how you do it, just by exploring the city. Every chapter a few more unlock, but it's kind of random what NPC you'll run into. There's a few that have specific spots they'll be at, but generally just walk around and they'll find you. I like it, as it makes side quests feel less like an RPG and more organic.

Lulu · Dec 27, 2018

Ehh, not big on it. Do you sometime have to go into builds/businesses to Trigger them?

eyeball_kid · Dec 27, 2018

Lulu said:
Ehh, not big on it. Do you sometime have to go into builds/businesses to Trigger them?

Some NPCs are inside businesses, but those are generally "friendship" quests and not the regular side stories.

If you're on the first chapter or two, there just aren't many unlocked yet. Once you get a few chapters in they'll practically be on every street corner.

Sumio Mondo · Dec 28, 2018

Did Kiwami 2 and Fist of the North Star both really bomb hard? I saw practically nobody talking about either of them, even on here (the OT for FOTNS was lifeless). They just came and went with very little fanfare. Yakuza 6 at least got some air time.

Romain · Dec 28, 2018

Back in November I spent some time in Kabukichô and took a lot of pictures from famous spots seen in Yakuza games. I put those pictures next to Yakuza 6 screenshots I took and I'm suite happy with how it turned out. For those of you who would like to see the results, the pictures are there: http://www.gameblog.fr/dossier_1182_yakuza-une-reproduction-de-shinjuku-quasi-identique-a-la-dec

As I went with my wife I was afraid that she wouldn't like Kabukichô. But as it is quite lively she enjoyed going there. Eating sushi right next to Tenkaichi Street was quite unreal.

Aurc · Dec 28, 2018

Wonderful pictures, Romain. Actually going there after playing through the entire series and developing an intimate knowledge of Kamurocho seems like it'd be the most surreal thing.

Desmond · Dec 28, 2018

Too bad Kabukicho is a dump lol

Aurc · Dec 28, 2018

Desmond said:
Too bad Kabukicho is a dump lol

Looks lovely in the photos, especially the real world Theater Square. Some areas do look a good bit more glamorized in the game, but that's to be expected.

LAM09 · Dec 28, 2018

Sumio Mondo said:
Did Kiwami 2 and Fist of the North Star both really bomb hard? I saw practically nobody talking about either of them, even on here (the OT for FOTNS was lifeless). They just came and went with very little fanfare. Yakuza 6 at least got some air time.

The latter seem to

Desmond · Dec 28, 2018

Aurc said:
Looks lovely in the photos, especially the real world Theater Square. Some areas do look a good bit more glamorized in the game, but that's to be expected.

I meant in seediness, not appearance haha.

mudai · Dec 28, 2018

Romain said:
Back in November I spent some time in Kabukichô and took a lot of pictures from famous spots seen in Yakuza games. I put those pictures next to Yakuza 6 screenshots I took and I'm suite happy with how it turned out. For those of you who would like to see the results, the pictures are there: http://www.gameblog.fr/dossier_1182_yakuza-une-reproduction-de-shinjuku-quasi-identique-a-la-dec

As I went with my wife I was afraid that she wouldn't like Kabukichô. But as it is quite lively she enjoyed going there. Eating sushi right next to Tenkaichi Street was quite unreal.

Thank you so much for the photos. They're great!

Xypher · Dec 28, 2018

Is there a dedicated Judge Eyes discussion Thread somewhere?

shadowman16 · Dec 28, 2018

Xypher said:
Is there a dedicated Judge Eyes discussion Thread somewhere?

Nope, really just on here and in discord. There's not really enough people on here to play it to make a lively thread until it gets a wider release in Summer '19

Romain said:
Back in November I spent some time in Kabukichô and took a lot of pictures from famous spots seen in Yakuza games. I put those pictures next to Yakuza 6 screenshots I took and I'm suite happy with how it turned out. For those of you who would like to see the results, the pictures are there: http://www.gameblog.fr/dossier_1182_yakuza-une-reproduction-de-shinjuku-quasi-identique-a-la-dec

As I went with my wife I was afraid that she wouldn't like Kabukichô. But as it is quite lively she enjoyed going there. Eating sushi right next to Tenkaichi Street was quite unreal.

Awesome shots :)

lucebuce · Dec 28, 2018

Poor Judgu Eyesu.

Xypher · Dec 28, 2018

shadowman16 said:
Nope, really just on here and in discord. There's not really enough people on here to play it to make a lively thread until it gets a wider release in Summer '19

Thanks for your reply. I guess spoiler talk will have to wait.
One thing I noticed while playing today is that it seems like they got rid of Ryan's textbox with the most recent update. Yagami still turns towards him and you can hear his voice, but no need to scroll through the text anymore.

Desmond · Dec 28, 2018

Xypher said:
Thanks for your reply. I guess spoiler talk will have to wait.
One thing I noticed while playing today is that it seems like they got rid of Ryan's textbox with the most recent update. Yagami still turns towards him and you can hear his voice, but no need to scroll through the text anymore.

Every battle lol

cj_iwakura · Dec 28, 2018

I visited Kabukicho when I went, but I didn't go anywhere past the main street with the iconic sign. It felt like I was rolling the dice at 8:30PM, lol. I just looked around, then went to the nearby Namco Station and played Maximum Tune.

matrix-cat · Dec 28, 2018

Judgment |OT| What's a cat doing in a place like this?

Deleted member 29464 · Dec 29, 2018

Replaying Yakuza 0, wondering...

Who had Nishtani killed? I always thought it was Shibusawa but seeing as how he was still up to catch Makoto, it makes me wonder if it could have been somebody else. I guess Shibusawa found him to be a liability, but I'm now wondering if it could have been Sagawa, Shimano, or even Sera.

shadowman16 · Dec 29, 2018

Halfling said:
Replaying Yakuza 0, wondering...

Who had Nishtani killed? I always thought it was Shibusawa but seeing as how he was still up to catch Makoto, it makes me wonder if it could have been somebody else. I guess Shibusawa found him to be a liability, but I'm now wondering if it could have been Sagawa, Shimano, or even Sera.

I could have sworn it mentions Shibusawa offing him in the game. From what I understood they were working together (Nishtani being his contact in Osaka and hence why he wanted Majima to give up the girl).
Its not Shimano as his whole grand plan was to use Majima so killing him served no purpose and likewise I don't think it was Sera either. Sagawa though... well they were rivals so while I don't remember things exactly, I'd not put it past him to eliminate him when he had the change, but again there's no mention of that in the game from my knowledge, I'm certain its Shibusawa

.

Dmax3901 · Dec 29, 2018

Gone back to do the cabaret and clan creator stuff in Kiwami 2, some great stuff in the former for fans of 0 :)

Deleted member 29464 · Dec 29, 2018

Well I just failed that car chase scene in Yakuza 0 for the first time on legend. What a load of shit not letting you restart? What were they thinking?

shadowman16 · Dec 29, 2018

Halfling said:
Well I just failed that car chase scene in Yakuza 0 for the first time on legend. What a load of shit not letting you restart? What were they thinking?

You do realise that Legend difficulty on every Yakuza game kicks you back to your last save game? No checkpoints here. Believe it or not, Kiwami has a much harder chapter on the hardest difficulty.

eyeball_kid · Dec 29, 2018

Halfling said:
Replaying Yakuza 0, wondering...

That scene is not something you'd see in a western game, or most games. In most games either he'd be let off the hook, or his fate would be left unknown for a possible sequel. I respect how the Yakuza games have real consequences for the actions of characters. I really grew to like that character, which was a great bit of writing, because if he wasn't likable then that outcome wouldn't have been as poignant.

Golnei · Dec 29, 2018

eyeball_kid said:
That scene is not something you'd see in a western game, or most games. In most games either he'd be let off the hook, or his fate would be left unknown for a possible sequel. I respect how the Yakuza games have real consequences for the actions of characters. I really grew to like that character, which was a great bit of writing, because if he wasn't likable then that outcome wouldn't have been as poignant.

Do you mean just

Nishitani's death? I actually think his sort of arc is pretty common for prequels getting rid of their newly introduced characters so they don't have to complicate the pre-existing 'later' titles with them.

Deleted member 29464 · Dec 29, 2018

shadowman16 said:
You do realise that Legend difficulty on every Yakuza game kicks you back to your last save game? No checkpoints here. Believe it or not, Kiwami has a much harder chapter on the hardest difficulty.

I didn't know that because the only times I've died on legend is to Shakedowns which don't give you a game over. I had no idea and I really hate reload punishment systems, especially when they make you sit through dialogue and rewatch cutscenes. Guessing that's no longer a thing with the newer games unless it is with just manual save anywhere. Got past it now though anyway.

eyeball_kid · Dec 29, 2018

Golnei said:
Do you mean just

Nishitani's death? I actually think his sort of arc is pretty common for prequels getting rid of their newly introduced characters so they don't have to complicate the pre-existing 'later' titles with them.

I was actually

mistakenly thinking of Sagawa, as Nishitani's death was a bit more formulaic. But Yakuza doesn't just do that to prequel characters -- look at Reina of Bar Serena for instance. A good character -- and a woman, who are usually immune from death when not explicitly villains -- killed off after being introduced in Y1.

Deleted member 29464 · Dec 29, 2018

eyeball_kid said:
I was actually

mistakenly thinking of Sagawa, as Nishitani's death was a bit more formulaic. But Yakuza doesn't just do that to prequel characters -- look at Reina of Bar Serena for instance. A good character -- and a woman, who are usually immune from death when not explicitly villains -- killed off after being introduced in Y1.

The best example I can think of is Rikiya... :(

matrix-cat · Dec 30, 2018

I'm up to Chapter 5 of Judge Eyes now, and shit just got super real and I'm loving it. They're still introducing main mechanics, as usual for a Yakuza, and right now we're finally getting into some courtroom/trial action, which is exactly what I'd hoped for. I'm also really enjoying the way the story's going so far. It's still yakuza-related, but the fact that so many of the main characters are civilians means there's room for a lot of fun relationships beyond the kyoudai and father/son dynamics we usually see in these games. Don't get me wrong, I unabashedly love Yakuza tropes, but it's really exciting to have a story that might not ultimately be solved by fighting shirtless on the roof of Millennium Tower :P

shadowman16 · Dec 30, 2018

Halfling said:
I didn't know that because the only times I've died on legend is to Shakedowns which don't give you a game over. I had no idea and I really hate reload punishment systems, especially when they make you sit through dialogue and rewatch cutscenes. Guessing that's no longer a thing with the newer games unless it is with just manual save anywhere. Got past it now though anyway.

You can skip cutscenes though, so that's... well a little mercy. You couldn't originally (or had to enable the option to via the options menu which was dumb. But I'm not aware of any game in the series not punishing you in the same way (no checkpoints) for any long battles or boss battles in EX Hard/Legend mode since you can't save mid fight. Not sure about common random street fights, but I never lose those anyway so couldn't tell you!

matrix-cat said:
I'm up to Chapter 5 of Judge Eyes now, and shit just got super real and I'm loving it. They're still introducing main mechanics, as usual for a Yakuza, and right now we're finally getting into some courtroom/trial action, which is exactly what I'd hoped for. I'm also really enjoying the way the story's going so far. It's still yakuza-related, but the fact that so many of the main characters are civilians means there's room for a lot of fun relationships beyond the kyoudai and father/son dynamics we usually see in these games. Don't get me wrong, I unabashedly love Yakuza tropes, but it's really exciting to have a story that might not ultimately be solved by fighting shirtless on the roof of Millennium Tower :P

Courtroom stuff arrived earlier than I expected, but that's great to hear :) How linear are those sections? Guessing its probably like Phoenix Wright where you basically have to present evidence etc. to move on the section and there's really only one right answer?

matrix-cat · Dec 30, 2018

shadowman16 said:
Courtroom stuff arrived earlier than I expected, but that's great to hear :) How linear are those sections? Guessing its probably like Phoenix Wright where you basically have to present evidence etc. to move on the section and there's really only one right answer?

Pretty much, yeah, and as far as I've seen so far there isn't any penalty for presenting the wrong evidence. But I've only done what I assume is the tutorial trial so far (it wasn't actually in a courtroom, we're not quite there yet, but I assume later ones will be), so it could always get more complex from here. Lots of good, dramatic, finger-pointing "OBJECTION!" moments already, though. I'm really excited to see how it goes, but at the same time I want to do every Side Case that pops up and make friends with everyone in the city, so I'm making slow progress :P

shadowman16 · Dec 30, 2018

matrix-cat said:
Pretty much, yeah, and as far as I've seen so far there isn't any penalty for presenting the wrong evidence. But I've only done what I assume is the tutorial trial so far (it wasn't actually in a courtroom, we're not quite there yet, but I assume later ones will be), so it could always get more complex from here. Lots of good, dramatic, finger-pointing "OBJECTION!" moments already, though. I'm really excited to see how it goes, but at the same time I want to do every Side Case that pops up and make friends with everyone in the city, so I'm making slow progress :P

Sounds great :) And slow progress in Yakuza is really just normal speed for me! Its just not a playthrough if I don't stop what I'm doing to waste time on any of the distractions!

mudai · Dec 30, 2018

Thanks for all the Judgement impressions! I'm really, really looking forward to the game. I actually didn't know there will be some courtroom action (I thought there would be but I wasn't sure), so hearing that it's in there is super, super exciting!

shadowman16 · Dec 30, 2018

So for anyone who's planning on 100%ing Judge Eyes, there's a new Shogi requirement. Complete the 10 stage challenge mode (no, you can't just replay the first challenge over and over!)

Thankfully, the super helpful gachapin managed to track down this vid:

Which shows you how to clear all 10! I'll still give the missions a try legit but my continued quest of never managing to learn Shogi at least doesn't impact my 100% run now!

FLCL · Dec 30, 2018

I was hoping Kiwami 2 would be on sale this winter but so far nothing... Is there still hope? There usually is a part 2 of january sale, what are the odds of it being there you guys think?

Sumio Mondo · Dec 31, 2018

Do they plan on releasing a soundtrack for Kiwami 2 or Fist of the North Star? Music in both those games are so good. I love Hidenori Shoji's work.

Sargerus · Dec 31, 2018

Happy New Year, kyodais

WHERE THE FUCK IS KIWAMI PC?

NeoChaos · Dec 31, 2018

Sargerus said:
WHERE THE FUCK IS KIWAMI PC?

Delayed so they don't fuck up the cutscene lighting for a second consecutive game.

lemonade · Jan 1, 2019

Just when I save scummed enough coins for the ticket at the black jack place, I was introduced to the hobo place. God damn it.

Judge eyes sure has a lot of busy work from the QR codes to the tickets.

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