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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Gaming "That's rad!": The Yakuza Series

Discussion in 'Community' started by Ramza, May 30, 2019.

  1. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    Gotta play 0 first. I did it this way and once I got through it and Kiwami I was like... I can't imagine having played all this in release order.

    Just play them chronologically.
     
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  2. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    You missed Mark Hamill voicing Majima and it’s not nearly as good as you’d think because the direction was sloppy. There. I have provided the definitive recounting of playing Yakuza in release order. :p
     
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  3. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    I've seen a clip of that utter cringe. Not Mark's fault but um... Really really bad.
     
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  4. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    Also Hamill!Majima calls Kiryu “Kazuma-chan,” which is just sick. Sick and wrong, I say.
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2021
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  5. Darth Chiznuk

    Darth Chiznuk Superninja of Future Films star 8 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Oct 31, 2012
    I don’t have a whole lot to play on my Series X at the moment so I’ll probably play 0 after I finish Miles Morales.
     
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  6. Reynar_Tedros

    Reynar_Tedros Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2006
    As someone who’s playing through Kiwami now, I’m really glad I played 0 first. It does a great job of introducing you to the characters and letting you get attached to them and understand why they are the way they are. Lots of added depth to what’s going on in Kiwami. I don’t think I’d care as much if I skipped 0.

    0 is also good at not making you feel like you’re missing references if you’re not familiar with the series. It’s a great standalone title, period.
     
  7. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    Just to add to the Chiz beatdown - play Zero first!

    Meanwhile Yakuza 7 has a goddamn terrible bit - dragon karting. It explains it badly, it plays badly - yet some masochust reviewers loved it. Why? It's ****ing awful. Why so many game designers think combining racing, map reading and manual camera re-orientation, all at the same time, equals fun is beyond me.

    After that crap, it took a lot of recovery time but it did recover and got far, far better.

    The one enduring flaw is the non-registry of triangle button presses. It is very, very bad.
     
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  8. JoinTheSchwarz

    JoinTheSchwarz Former Head Admin star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Nov 21, 2002
    I also started with 0 first. It's the way to go.
     
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  9. TrandoJedi

    TrandoJedi Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 4, 2011
    I thought about playing them in release order and then I come into this thread...
     
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  10. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    Nope. 0, K, K2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. It’s easy.

    There’s a longer post I made in a different thread where I really angrily explained why this is the play order, but it kind of boils down to: 0 was designed to be a good entry point to the series anyway, and that took off in the west so much that they refocused releases for a few years around making it as painless as possible for new players to claw their way up to 6, with the full knowledge that people would be playing them in this order.
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2021
  11. TrandoJedi

    TrandoJedi Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    May 4, 2011
    Would it be crazy to play the PS2 versions of the first two as well as K and K2?
     
  12. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    I and most other old guard commenters I’ve read think there’s absolutely no reason to play the PS2 version of Yakuza anymore, Kiwami has everything it has, extra story content, better graphics, a tighter fighting engine, a better translation, and does not have the bad English dub (see also: better translation). Yakuza 2 could get a little bit more complicated since K2 used 6’s Dragon Engine, which some people aren’t big fans of, but in the other categories it’s broadly in the “improvement across the board” camp as well, so it’s difficult to justify not going with K2 (especially since the Dragon Engine is unavoidable if you’re playing the whole series). Also, Yakuza 2 is kind of rare because it was a late PS2 title Sega didn’t have a lot of faith in, so it can run you a lot of money (I think when I bought my copy a decade ago it was for... $50 used, not complete in box? It’s bad). It’s typically not worth it.

    Playing the old versions also really doesn’t give you a full picture of the franchise, making it of questionable value for the alleged completionist, as there are a couple of Japan-only titles that were testing grounds for concepts and minigames in later mainline entries.
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2021
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  13. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    Ok, time to drop the bomb, big history / world info in the box for Yakuza: Like A Dragon

    The big one is the Tojo-Omi war is over and the Omi won. The short version? Once Kiryu retired the forever self-destructive Tojo Clan was toast.

    Yes, there is more to it, but it is a sequel. There's neat use of Shangri-La, 18 years on from 2001 Ichiban asks why it is wrecked and is told some maniac drove a dump truck through it!

    Outside of this, it has great enemy names:

    Burnout Bully
    Capitalist Punisher
    Punkling
    Steamed Punk
    Newbie Yakuza
    City Slicker
    Hungry Hungry Homeless
    Battle Bum
    Beerserker
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2021
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  14. Bor Mullet

    Bor Mullet Force Ghost star 7

    Registered:
    Apr 6, 2018
    I just want to talk about the joys of riding a digital forklift, but nobody else wants to.
     
  15. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    Don't talk to me about the Japan only samurai games... I want them so badly. If only I spoke Japanese, I could get copies and play them. Release them in the west with subtitles, you cowards!
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2021
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  16. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    Definitely true for both, although Kenzan is particularly frustrating because I've read a Let's Play and know exactly what we're missing... and what we're missing is Majima as the goddamn Matahachi to Kiryu's Musashi! It's not fair dammit.
     
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2021
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  17. Reynar_Tedros

    Reynar_Tedros Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2006
    Last edited: Mar 7, 2021
  18. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    *audible gasp*
     
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  19. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    Yakuza: Like A Dragon today, so much utter insanity....
     
  20. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008


    To think we've gone from long petition campaigns just to get a mainstream release to the embarrassment of riches that is "Well obviously we need to remake Kenzan and Ishin just to sell them to western audiences."
     
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  21. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    Yakuza: Like A Dragon

    I'm at the 25 hour mark, on Chapter 5 of about 15 and this is a weird RPG. It's not bad but some of its ideas are decidedly half-baked.

    Let's start with its Perfect Guard idea. Here, if you hit the button at the right time, you are supposed to take less damage. The problems are that the windows for when you hit are vague, the camera frequently doesn't help you and the rewards are all over the place. I've had enemy do a two hit attack, was hit on the first for 6 points of damage, perfect guard the second but still get hit for 5 points. So it only saved me 1 point? The hell? Also, doing perfect guard for all the combo attacks feels next to impossible and almost every enemy has a standard two hit attack.

    Next, it has the idea that everyone is moving around in battle. OK, but this doesn't work well with other ideas. For instance, if you are near to an object, you automatically pick it up and do more damage. The problem is you can't really know if this will happen in advance because it's not that clear. Similarly, enemies can intercept and block attacks, but the degree of space they need to do this is hazy. Sometimes your character will run right by an enemy to hit another; other times they will be blocked. The worst hit is on area attacks because you cannot ever work out with any reliability who you will hit with one of these, maybe you'll get the entire group or just one.

    A more minor flawed aspect is you can knock enemies over, leaving them open to a more severe attack but the clock for this counts down while you are going through the menus to choose what you want to do and who to target. It's quite easy to lose an opportunity to hit a downed enemy because they recovered while you were in the menus. An easy fix - just freeze time on menu choices.

    Even with these defects, it's still enjoyable battle system, but it's very easy to see how it could be so much better with a bit more refinement.

    Its job system is another case where it's OK, works well enough, but it could be better - especially where switching jobs is concerned. Why? Because many of your stat increases is linked to the job, not the character. Change a job, even for a much better one, and initially it'll be far worse until you've gone grinding to get the rank up.

    It's not a bad game, I'm enjoying it for what it is and want to keep playing it. But it is a flawed game.
     
  22. Reynar_Tedros

    Reynar_Tedros Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2006
    ****. You can see the sub stories on the map in Kiwami 2. My trek through this series just got a lot longer. In 0 and K1, I just did them as I came across them naturally. In K2, I’ve spent two hours in Sotenbori going to every ellipsis on the map and gambling and singing karaoke.

    I’m adjusting to the new engine. Whereas K1 felt like a slight step back from 0, K2 feels like a step forward in some ways and a step backward in others, mainly performance. I miss the silky smooth frame rate of 0 and K1, whereas K2 sacrifices that for some enhanced graphics and a lack of load times entering buildings, which is a nice touch. Not sure how I feel about the progression system. Is five or six different forms of EXP really necessary?

    But hey, the combat’s still great, the sub stories seem to be a return to form after they disappointed in K1, and Kazuma Kiryu is still the bee’s knees. I expect this one will take me a while to get through, and may lead into a longer break before I hit the 3, 4, and 5 remasters. But the setup to the story has me itching to continue, if only I can keep from getting distracted long enough to make it to that pink waypoint. This Daigo character intrigues me.
     
    Last edited: Mar 18, 2021
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  23. Reynar_Tedros

    Reynar_Tedros Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 3, 2006
    Ugh, Majima Tower Defense Construction Co.?

    [face_talk_hand]

    Other than that, Kiwami 2 is fantastic. Much better and closer in quality to 0 than Kiwami 1 was. If it had Real Estate Royale, I’d be tempted to call it superior to 0.
     
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  24. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    And it is time for you to go to the Yakuza That Was, with the Remastered trio.

    I have yet to find an across-the-game Yakuza minigame that I enjoy. I just get through its mandatory intro and leave it afterwards. Thst said it only turns up in 6, 0, 1, 2 and 7.

    Talking of - running around Yokohama, whacking Steamed Punks and Capitalist Punishers with a big hammer, in a tiger onesie. What other game gives you this?

    Now on Chapter 11, which made the perplexing devision to combine a major difficulty spike with placing the shop you need to get decent weaponry for a new character, slap bang in a high-level area with the enemies teleporting and wandering around very randomly. It was pure luck I slipped in and out, via taxi, to the shop and back. Getting the sword was worth it but it was blatantly bad coding. Once I was out of there, it got better but there is going to be a major grind now.
     
    Last edited: Mar 22, 2021
  25. Ramza

    Ramza Administrator Emeritus star 9 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Jul 13, 2008
    I wasn’t into the tower defense game... and I wish I was because you can recruit The Great Muta and his special ability is literally just using the Shining Wizard.

    If he came out to his debut entrance I probably would’ve forced myself through it, not gonna lie.