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[Cyberpunkd]

I just finished Like a Dragon after 61 hours:

This thread also sums it up very nicely: https://www.neogaf.com/threads/desp...le-aged-guy-things-according-to-devs.1674619/

The game is just so...mature (and goofy at the same time). The MQ is grounded in reality, with characters not being some caricatures of normal people. They act normal, speak normal, it's a pleasure to learn more about them as you advance in the Bond Level. Side-quests are also incredible: helping girl raise money for her brother's operation ; helping the homeless guy turn his life around. I mean...is it really so hard to put mature themes in games? Because here you have a bunch of devs that managed to do it, and at the same time also putting more lighter things e.g. minigames.

Two nitpicks from my side:

1. Business management minigame is obligatory - good luck going through a game without the income stream from Ichiban Confections. Everything cost money, including fast travel. Want best weapons? Cool, spend over 20 million yen to upgrade the workshop. Want to advance the plot? That will be 3 million yen.
2. Difficulty spike at the end of chapter 12 (*THAT* fight), afterwards all bosses become just HP sponges, they can't hurt you much but you still take 5 minutes with OP attacks to bring them down

Now I probably need to play the whole series, fml.

 

[acidagfc]

Welcome, you're in for a wild ride!

Personally, before starting Infinite Wealth, I'd recommend playing the Yakuza series games. While LAD focuses on Ichiban and there is no need for any prior knowledge, the sequel includes a LOT of Kiryu story, so almost half of the game plot will be lost on you.

Start with Yakuza Kiwami and Kiwami 2, those are the modern remakes of Yakuza 1 and 2 and they are great.
You can also start with Yakuza 0, it is a prequel, but it can be safely played after 1 and 2.
Then I'd personally watch the summary of 3-4-5 on Youtube, as those are PS3-ass games and kinda hard to get into.

Then play Yakuza 6 and The Man Who Erased His Name.

And THEN you can play Infinite Wealth and it will hit you like a truck.

 

[geary]

Welcome, you're in for a wild ride!

Personally, before starting Infinite Wealth, I'd recommend playing the Yakuza series games. While LAD focuses on Ichiban and there is no need for any prior knowledge, the sequel includes a LOT of Kiryu story, so almost half of the game plot will be lost on you.

Start with Yakuza Kiwami and Kiwami 2, those are the modern remakes of Yakuza 1 and 2 and they are great.
You can also start with Yakuza 0, it is a prequel, but it can be safely played after 1 and 2.
Then I'd personally watch the summary of 3-4-5 on Youtube, as those are PS3-ass games and kinda hard to get into.

Then play Yakuza 6 and The Man Who Erased His Name.

And THEN you can play Infinite Wealth and it will hit you like a truck.

And after 500 hours you should play the spin-offs

Like a Dragon: Ishin
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The man who erased his name
Lost Judgement
Judgement

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Welcome, you're in for a wild ride!

Personally, before starting Infinite Wealth, I'd recommend playing the Yakuza series games. While LAD focuses on Ichiban and there is no need for any prior knowledge, the sequel includes a LOT of Kiryu story, so almost half of the game plot will be lost on you.

Start with Yakuza Kiwami and Kiwami 2, those are the modern remakes of Yakuza 1 and 2 and they are great.
You can also start with Yakuza 0, it is a prequel, but it can be safely played after 1 and 2.
Then I'd personally watch the summary of 3-4-5 on Youtube, as those are PS3-ass games and kinda hard to get into.

Then play Yakuza 6 and The Man Who Erased His Name.

And THEN you can play Infinite Wealth and it will hit you like a truck.

Yes, I was planning to start with 0 and go from there. You recommend not playing 3-5?

 

[NanaMiku]

Obligatory post:

Yes, I was planning to start with 0 and go from there. You recommend not playing 3-5?

3-5 is only a remaster of the PS3 games, while 1-2 was a remake. So when you play from Kiwami 2 to 3, it's gonna feel really jank. There are loading before fighting enemies, battle feels stiff, etc.
I played 0 to 6 in marathon before Yakuza: Like a Dragon.

 

[acidagfc]

Yes, I was planning to start with 0 and go from there. You recommend not playing 3-5?

You can, if you are not easily offput by PS3 era load times and overall jankiness.

Quite possibly you will love Kiryu so much by the end of Kiwami 2 that it will not stop you. But I see no problem in just watching a summary on Youtube.

 

[Vyse]

So excited for you. Just finished Infinite Wealth and ready to get my pirate on! Love these games. As said above, don’t sleep on the Judgement games!

 

[FoxMcChief]

Probably the least talked about JRPG. I absolutely loved it. I got my brother into it too.

 

[acidagfc]

And after 500 hours you should play the spin-offs

Like a Dragon: Ishin
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The man who erased his name
Lost Judgement
Judgement

I really think Gaiden should be played between LAD and LAD2, the whole reason Kiryu is on that island is explained in Gaiden.

 

[DenchDeckard]

Yes, it's incredible.

Infinite wealth is still my goty. I don't know how the studio does it. But to be able to weave so much insane stupid shit with an also deep and sometimes quite emotional main story arc is genius.

My favourite long standing franchise of all time.

 

[Cakeboxer]

Not too much into japanese games besides Nintendo, but loved it. Even the minigames on their own were more fun than some so called western AAA games.

 

[LectureMaster]

I just finished Like a Dragon after 61 hours:

This thread also sums it up very nicely: https://www.neogaf.com/threads/desp...le-aged-guy-things-according-to-devs.1674619/

The game is just so...mature (and goofy at the same time). The MQ is grounded in reality, with characters not being some caricatures of normal people. They act normal, speak normal, it's a pleasure to learn more about them as you advance in the Bond Level. Side-quests are also incredible: helping girl raise money for her brother's operation ; helping the homeless guy turn his life around. I mean...is it really so hard to put mature themes in games? Because here you have a bunch of devs that managed to do it, and at the same time also putting more lighter things e.g. minigames.

Two nitpicks from my side:

1. Business management minigame is obligatory - good luck going through a game without the income stream from Ichiban Confections. Everything cost money, including fast travel. Want best weapons? Cool, spend over 20 million yen to upgrade the workshop. Want to advance the plot? That will be 3 million yen.
2. Difficulty spike at the end of chapter 12 (*THAT* fight), afterwards all bosses become just HP sponges, they can't hurt you much but you still take 5 minutes with OP attacks to bring them down

Now I probably need to play the whole series, fml.

Play Judgement, if you want real serious mature stories.

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

It's a wonderful game, loved the story and characters.

I think they kind of dropped the ball with the goofiness of the main character in the sequel. Kasuga is goofy and naive, and trusting to a fault, but there is a basis for him wanting to believe in that person he trusts, some kind of shared history or special connection. In Infinite Wealth Kasuga will give his life for a person he barely knows that's acting suspicious. I still like the second game but I felt like the character's complexity and depth really evaporated.

Anyway this is the extremely short video I show people to sell them on Like a Dragon:

 

[NanaMiku]

It's a wonderful game, loved the story and characters.

I think they kind of dropped the ball with the goofiness of the main character in the sequel. Kasuga is goofy and naive, and trusting to a fault, but there is a basis for him wanting to believe in that person he trusts, some kind of shared history or special connection. In Infinite Wealth Kasuga will give his life for a person he barely knows that's acting suspicious. I still like the second game but I felt like the character's complexity and depth really evaporated.

Anyway this is the extremely short video I show people to sell them on Like a Dragon:

Yeah, it's the same case with me for Lost Judgment.

 

[Hrk69]

So good! I'm happy you enjoyed it.

Infinite Wealth still is my GOTY 2024.

 

[GymWolf]

I still need to play the sequel because i heard it's vastly inferior to the first one, way too bloated and the story\villains are not as good.

But the first one was one of the best yakuza games.

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

Yeah, it's the same case with me for Lost Judgment.

That's a good point.

Judgement is the better game of the 2. In Lost Judgement Yagami just keeps going "is this what dead lady would have wanted?"

Snake style was a good improvement to the combat tho

 

[CliffBronger]

It's a fantastic game.
Infinite Wealth is also my GOTY so far.

 

[Skifi28]

I still need to play the sequel because i heard it's vastly inferior to the first one, way too bloated and the story\villains are not as good.

But the first one was one of the best yakuza games.

I guess I could agree in terms of story, but I think most other aspects are vastly improved including balancing and especially combat.

 

[GymWolf]

I guess I could agree in terms of story, but I think most other aspects are vastly improved including balancing and especially combat.

They made the game way harder? Because the first one was a cakewalk except for like 2 fights (that i still beated first try).

 

[Labadal]

Infinite Wealth is fun snd all, but difficult, it is not.

 

[Skifi28]

They made the game way harder? Because the first one was a cakewalk except for like 2 fights (that i still beated first try).

The first game had really weird balancing. It was generally very easy, but then had some really odd difficulty spikes where you had to grind for a couple of hours to overcome (at least I did). In Infinite the difficulty curve feels much better. I generally didn't have to grind and the game would always inform you what level was recommended before continuing the main quest which was quite helpful. I just hate banging my head against a wall in jrpgs.

Edit: in the first, your average street brawl would give you practically no xp after a point so the grinding had to be done at specific dungeons which I thought were a chore. In infinite you can just run around beating everyone on the street and still get decent xp.

 

[Markio128]

I keep meaning to go back to this because I really enjoyed the first 20 or so hours, but then something stopped me from continuing. I think being set upon by gangs on a more regular basis was becoming irksome, but necessary, and some of the side stuff seemed a bit laborious. But yeah, the characters are great, as are some of the stories.

I get the feeling that I may enjoy Infinite Wealth more based on various opinions, but I’m loath to play it without finishing Like a Dragon first.

Mmm, maybe this can be my pre-Pro game because I am in a bit of a gaming limbo atm.

 

[Comandr]

Welcome, you're in for a wild ride!

Personally, before starting Infinite Wealth, I'd recommend playing the Yakuza series games. While LAD focuses on Ichiban and there is no need for any prior knowledge, the sequel includes a LOT of Kiryu story, so almost half of the game plot will be lost on you.

Start with Yakuza Kiwami and Kiwami 2, those are the modern remakes of Yakuza 1 and 2 and they are great.
You can also start with Yakuza 0, it is a prequel, but it can be safely played after 1 and 2.
Then I'd personally watch the summary of 3-4-5 on Youtube, as those are PS3-ass games and kinda hard to get into.

Then play Yakuza 6 and The Man Who Erased His Name.

And THEN you can play Infinite Wealth and it will hit you like a truck.

Wat? No. Jesus. Start with 0. Kiwami 1's story has profoundly more gravity if the player has played 0 beforehand. 3, 4, and 5, yes are ... more challenging to love, simply because they are SO dated. But there's still a lot of great characterization and things to explore there. If you enjoyed the side quests and mature themes - don't sleep on any entry.

There is a ton of charm and characterization in all of them. All of these form a larger tapestry of Kiryu's story. If you're going to commit to playing the games, just play ALL of them. Steep yourself in the side stories; allow yourself to become fully immersed in all of it. There are a ton of characters that appear in multiple games and revisiting them and seeing their stories unfold over time is a joy.

I only discovered the Yakuza franchise when 0 came out, but I went back and played all of them after that and it quickly became one of my absolute favorite franchises and one of my best overall gaming experiences to date.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Yes, I will play Yakuza 0 next, want to wrap up some 8-12 hour games first sitting on my Steamdeck (started Citizen Sleeper).

 

[Chuck Berry]

Zero should be your top priority next.

I think it's arguably still the best out of the whole franchise and a contender for best prequel ever.

Best soundtrack too

 

[nowhat]

You can also start with Yakuza 0, it is a prequel, but it can be safely played after 1 and 2.

I'd personally suggest starting with Zero*), it gives a lot of context to the events of 1. Had I not played it first, I would have been most of the time "ok, there's a guy", instead of "holy fuck, there's that guy!". And also some inter-personal relationships which I shall not spoil. But IMHO, starting with Zero is the right call.

*) Incidentally, it was also the first Yakuza game I've ever played. Never owned a PS2 or PS3, so sue me. But in my defense, I've bought and played every game since. Spinoffs and all.

 

[The Cockatrice]

Welcome to the club. What the fuck took you so long? Be warned tho, Infinite Wealth, while overall great, takes a nose dive story wise and you may have a hard time feeling anything towards the story if you never played any of the Yakuza games with Kyriu. Still if theres anything consistent with the franchise is the amazing soundtrack, the amazing characters and the whacky shit. Main stories have always been up and down despite what some hardcore Yakuza fans will tell you. 0 is peak story telling tho.

 

[Grildon Tundy]

The Yakuza/Judgment/Like a Dragon games are treasures. Filled with humanity, absurdity, melodrama, actual tension, fun, and pathos. Love 'em.

 

[GymWolf]

Zero should be your top priority next.

I think it's arguably still the best out of the whole franchise and a contender for best prequel ever.

Best soundtrack too

The only problem with zero is that you play the highest peak of the saga first.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

Welcome to the club. What the fuck took you so long?

3 kids + wife. Steamdeck saved me, I even put 60 hours in Fallout 4. Finishing some smaller games + introducing kids to Elden Ring (little fuckers just adore to watch me die, not gonna lie), then Yakuza 0. Hopefully it will be soon on sale on Steam, I have 22€ in the wallet for selling cards.

 

[The Cockatrice]

3 kids + wife. Steamdeck saved me, I even put 60 hours in Fallout 4.

You better put the franchise in those kids hands. Theyll learn a lot.

 

[GymWolf]

I really like how cohh describe y0, he was a yakuza virgin like me so i can understand his surprise

 

[Fbh]

Yeah It's a great game and IMO definitely the breath of fresh air that the franchise needed.
Yakuza has always been good at mixing together serious and silly themes and somehow making them work together. The combat is a bit simplistic (and IMO much improved in Infinite Wealth) but it was still enjoyable, and seeing them adapt a lot of traditional RPG concepts to a modern setting was a lot of fun.

Welcome to the club. What the fuck took you so long? Be warned tho, Infinite Wealth, while overall great, takes a nose dive story wise and you may have a hard time feeling anything towards the story if you never played any of the Yakuza games with Kyriu. Still if theres anything consistent with the franchise is the amazing soundtrack, the amazing characters and the whacky shit. Main stories have always been up and down despite what some hardcore Yakuza fans will tell you. 0 is peak story telling tho.

Yeah I'm playing Infinite Wealth right now and the story is definitely a significant step down from Like a Dragon. The whole part about Kyriu going back to Japan and have to go through a bunch of "member berries" moments in particular was quite annoying and felt like unnecessary padding that kills the pacing.
That said the characters are still great, the new setting is fun and I think they made some big improvements to the gameplay and addressed some of my main annoyances with Like a Dragon, so overall I'm still having a blast with it.

 

[Dr.Morris79]

Bunch of fools forgot to include this again in your 'You gotta play' this next rhetoric, didn't Ya!

Didn't YA!!!

Pffft. Amateurs

Everyone forgets the best!!

 

[GymWolf]

Bunch of fools forgot to include this again in your 'You gotta play' this next rhetoric, didn't Ya!

Didn't YA!!!

Pffft. Amateurs

Everyone forgets the best!!

These characters don't hit the same if you don't play their games first.

 

[Humdinger]

I really loved Yakuza Zero. That was my first Yakuza game, and I was impressed. After that, I went to Kiwami 1 and 2, which were okay but lacked the charm (imo) of Zero. In light of that, I'd suggest jumping next into Yakuza Zero. Chronologically, that's appropriate, since it's the prequel, and I just think it's a more entertaining game than the Kiwamis. Your choice, though.

 

[Dr.Morris79]

These characters don't hit the same if you don't play their games first.

Japanese
Guns
Zombies

The battles already won

 

[Chuck Berry]

Bunch of fools forgot to include this again in your 'You gotta play' this next rhetoric, didn't Ya!

Didn't YA!!!

Pffft. Amateurs

Everyone forgets the best!!

Blows my mind how they have not touched this up a bit and re released it. It's completely ignored like the retard you keep in the basement.

 

[GymWolf]

Yeah I'm playing Infinite Wealth right now and the story is definitely a significant step down from Like a Dragon. The whole part about Kyriu going back to Japan and have to go through a bunch of "member berries" moments in particular was quite annoying and felt like unnecessary padding that kills the pacing.
That said the characters are still great, the new setting is fun and I think they made some big improvements to the gameplay and addressed some of my main annoyances with Like a Dragon, so overall I'm still having a blast with it.

Any example?

 

[The Cockatrice]

Yeah I'm playing Infinite Wealth right now and the story is definitely a significant step down from Like a Dragon.

Yeah the villains are pretty bad as well. I also hated the island minigame.

 

[nowhat]

You better put the franchise in those kids hands. Theyll learn a lot.

Hell, if some of the kids are still toddlers, they may even learn about how to take care of babies (big or small).

 

[Hotel Security]

Not the same game, but, after hearing my friends talk it up, I had my first attempt into the Yakuza world a few months ago with Yakuza 0. Was pretty impressed at the huge variety of stuff to do though I was surprised at how short the actual plot content was compared to the side stuff...you basically HAVE to do side stuff or it feels like an empty game that you can beat in a few days. But I did so and got 100% and enjoyed it. I also see how easily the series could become an RPG since they already have random battles in Y0. I picked up LAD as well as Kiwami 1&2 so I have a lot to dive into with Yakuza going forward.

The only problem with zero is that you play the highest peak of the saga first.

Well now I'm sad...

 

[Comandr]

Zero should be your top priority next.

I think it's arguably still the best out of the whole franchise and a contender for best prequel ever.

Best soundtrack too

Wait, this song is the one you pick out when this banger will live rent free in your head for the rest of your life?

 

[nowhat]

The whole part about Kyriu going back to Japan and have to go through a bunch of "member berries" moments in particular

I think Yakuza 6 would have been a fitting end for the character, and yes, that was quite jarring. Like. Not all of those moments/characters were particularly memorable. But we'll see where the series goes.

 

[GymWolf]

Not the same game, but, after hearing my friends talk it up, I had my first attempt into the Yakuza world a few months ago with Yakuza 0. Was pretty impressed at the huge variety of stuff to do though I was surprised at how short the actual plot content was compared to the side stuff...you basically HAVE to do side stuff or it feels like an empty game. But I did so and got 100% and enjoyed it. I also see how easily the series could become an RPG since they already have random battles in Y0. I picked up LAD as well as Kiwami 1&2 so I have a lot to dive into with Yakuza going forward.


Well now I'm sad...

Don't be, the saga has a lot of great games and maybe the plot of 0 is not gonna resonate with you like it did with some of us.

 

[Chuck Berry]

Wait, this song is the one you pick out when this banger will live rent free in your head for the rest of your life?

Yes that's the song I pick. It's my fav track

 

[GymWolf]

Let's not spoil the entire soundtrack to OP

 

[Comandr]

Yes that's the song I pick. It's my fav track

 

[Dr.Morris79]

Blows my mind how they have not touched this up a bit and re released it. It's completely ignored like the retard you keep in the basement.

One day we'll get our justice. One day the office Tea maker will trip over the last copy their using as a door stop to the supply cupboard and run into the manager with it

And then...

Maybe.