• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Yakuza 0 |OT| Yes, you can start with this one!

These climax battles are confirming my suspicions. Kiryu's styles really are better than Majima's.

Edit: Really sucks that they excluded some songs from the OST. Really wanted the song that plays when
Kiryu tells Nishiki to shoot him
and the piano tune that plays when
Majima and Makoto are in the warehouse
 

Ennosuke

Member
Finished the game yesterday on normal after 33 hours. I did not spent too much time with sidequests or other stuff, because I was so excited about that story, that I focused only on the main story. However I did some cabaret club and real estate business. Yesterday I played like 5 hours in a row and usually I would have gone to bed, because of work, but here I could not stop playing :D

It is a fantastic game, I mentioned it a couple of times when coming into the thread. And I really hope, that more people will check this game out. I am really looking forward to playing the other 2 Yakuza games which will be coming to the west. Directly after I finished the story I was looking things from the other games up, because I wanted to know, what happens to character X etc.

A few random thoughts about the story:

- Kuze is by far the best villain in the story
- Tachibana was a very interesting character and I was really moved by his death
- I am glad that Makoto survived, because I thought she would die. Majima should have brought her to the hospital and not watch her die. Glad that Sera arrived, who is amazing as well. I feel like he is a great third chairman of the Tojo clan.
- The bond between Kiryu and Nishiki really was written very well. The more it surprises me, what becomes of Nishiki in the next years.
- I did not really buy this "friendship" between Sagawa and Majima. I was waiting each chapter to beat Sagawa to death, because of the things he did to Majima. I like Majima in Yakuza 0, but I don't really understand his motivations and the way he acts.
- I also did not like the fact, that Majima and Mokoto never spoke to each other again. Yes it is a lot of drama, but that she did not recognize him, come on that felt too forced.
- Kiryu is already such a badass and I like his way of being a Yakuza, since I barely don't know anything about the other Yakuza games, I am excited to see what man he will become
 
A few random thoughts about the story:

- I also did not like the fact, that Majima and Mokoto never spoke to each other again. Yes it is a lot of drama, but that she did not recognize him, come on that felt too forced.

Yeah, not recognizing him (though she kinda did) was silly. She recognized Oda's voice almost immediately, yet she couldn't tell Majima's? Of course Majima's actions didn't make much sense, either. He obviously had fallen in love with Makoto, but he chose the yakuza life instead of her? I guess they couldn't do much with his story since his future was already set though.
 
Yeah, not recognizing him (though she kinda did) was silly. She recognized Oda's voice almost immediately, yet she couldn't tell Majima's? Of course Majima's actions didn't make much sense, either. He obviously had fallen in love with Makoto, but he chose the yakuza life instead of her? I guess they couldn't do much with his story since his future was already set though.

He actually never said a word to her in their final encounter
 
I finished the story yesterday with a playtime of 97 hours (lol) and 68% completion. Easily the best Yakuza game I've played yet. Really liked the story and the combat is by far the best it's ever been. Just a few scatterbrained notes I have about the game:

- When it comes to the characters themselves, I prefer Kiryu over Majima. That said, I think Majima had the better story for the most part. Kiryu's story actually surpassed Majima's during the last third of the game.

- Favorite styles were Beast, Thug, Brawler, and Mad Dog. I loved all the grappling options with Beast. Least favorite styles were Rush and Slugger. There just didn't seem to be much going on for Rush and Slugger was too OP against single enemies.

- I finished both the Cabaret Club and the Real Estate minigames. The Cabaret Club was way more involved and thus more fun. Real Estate did give me the best surprise in the game, though
Nugget <3

- Too many of the style upgrades you buy are just passive buffs. Moves also got stupid-expensive by the end.

- The
Virtua Cop segment
in Chapter 13 was dope.

- So many great side quests! My favorites were probably anything to do with Miracle Johnson, the Doll Girl, and helping the dominatrix.

- If it weren't for the stiff in-game cutscenes that felt static, the game wouldn't look that aged. The character models for all of the important characters look great and the cities look beautiful.

- Less heat moves with random objects this time around. I think it was a worthwhile trade off for a deeper combat system.

- The Disco music is incredible but I suck ass at the minigame. The timing is super strict for some reason (it's way more forgiving in the karaoke)!

-
Breaking the LAW! Breaking the WORLD!
 

Kimaka

Member
Yeah, not recognizing him (though she kinda did) was silly. She recognized Oda's voice almost immediately, yet she couldn't tell Majima's? Of course Majima's actions didn't make much sense, either. He obviously had fallen in love with Makoto, but he chose the yakuza life instead of her? I guess they couldn't do much with his story since his future was already set though.

He didn't say anything to her at the end so she wouldn't have recognized him that way, but I still think she should have been able to connect the dots. There aren't many tall, slender dudes with high cheekbones and missing an eye walking around. Although, if she really wanted to she could find out Majima's name if she got in touch with Sera.

I saw it as him trying to protect her. He can't be with her without putting her in danger. Even if he got out of the Yakuza, there could be someone in the future that will try to get to him through her for whatever reason. The Yakuza doesn't seem like an organization that will leave you completely alone if you leave.
 
It selling less than major titles does not mean it sold poorly, it probably met Sega's expectations, maybe even beat them too.

People thinking this title was going to sell 500,000 in the West didn't pay enough attention to what the previous titles did. You just don't get a massive jump from 100,000 to 500,000, but a moderate increase to 150,000 to 200,000 is much more likely and believable.

The series is still niche, but before it was a bomba niche that even stuff like Neptunia and Shin Megami Tensei could easily outsell, now it's probably on their level, growth is always a good thing!

Yea, it always a matter of looking at things in perspective, especially with this series.
 

Holundrian

Unconfirmed Member
After finishing Nier A I'm back on working on the plat.
Currently doing batting and it's pretty brutal but I'm starting to get the hang of it again. Although I probably lost a 100 mil just getting used to the first 2 pitches but I'm starting to be able to follow the ball again like I could in 5, currently managing to consistently get 4mill.

All that's left is the legend playthrough, batting, fantasy zone and the no dmg climax battles + all the ultimate ones.
 
Completed climax battle. Some were infuriating, but overall not that bad. Time for Legend playthrough and 100%. No cheat items so I gotta learn how to play mahjong.

Also where's my reward for completing climax battle? They always gave one before
 

ar4757

Member
Not sure if I should go for the plat, seems like there's too much to do! I'm about done with Majima's Cabaret storyline though, it's pretty fun.

Anyone feel like either encouraging me to do it or advising me not to :p

In Yakuza 5 for example I did all the sidestories (hunting, dancing, etc) and most substories but didn't plat
 
Nope! He just beats their asses without saying anything. If anything shoulda been suspicious it would be the fact that Majima has only one eye. How many one-eyed yakuza could there be, Makoto?

He didn't say anything to her at the end so she wouldn't have recognized him that way, but I still think she should have been able to connect the dots. There aren't many tall, slender dudes with high cheekbones and missing an eye walking around. Although, if she really wanted to she could find out Majima's name if she got in touch with Sera.

I saw it as him trying to protect her. He can't be with her without putting her in danger. Even if he got out of the Yakuza, there could be someone in the future that will try to get to him through her for whatever reason. The Yakuza doesn't seem like an organization that will leave you completely alone if you leave.

Damn, guess I misremembered. Good on the writers for dodging her super-hearing.

Yeah I guess you're right about the Yakuza, though after all that I'm not sure who'd want to mess with the Mad Dog.
 

xezuru

Member
Not sure if I should go for the plat, seems like there's too much to do! I'm about done with Majima's Cabaret storyline though, it's pretty fun.

Anyone feel like either encouraging me to do it or advising me not to :p

In Yakuza 5 for example I did all the sidestories (hunting, dancing, etc) and most substories but didn't plat

If you're comfortable with rng / mahjong then this is probably one of the easier Yakuza games to plat, it's still Yakuza though.
My major blockers off the top of my head before I got platinum:
  1. Mahjong High point Hands
  2. JCC RNG for 3 perfect tournies
  3. Getting all the materials for crafting
  4. .
  5. .
  6. .
  7. .
  8. .
  9. 1-8? of Climax Battles
  10. Monotony of Phone Sidequests
  11. Batting
  12. Koi-Koi
  13. Getting Car Parts from DreamMachine
 

xclk07

Member
Completed climax battle. Some were infuriating, but overall not that bad. Time for Legend playthrough and 100%. No cheat items so I gotta learn how to play mahjong.

Also where's my reward for completing climax battle? They always gave one before

Did you mainly stick to one style/moveset for the last 6 ultimate battles (for each character) or did you use a wide range?
 

xclk07

Member
My major blockers off the top of my head before I got platinum:
[*]Getting Car Parts from DreamMachine

I don't think this is necessary though... got the 100% trophy without all the parts. I think there are enough to fulfill the CP requirements from the part store.

Agree with your top 3 though! I'm also struggling a bit with the ultimate battles.
 
I don't think this is necessary though... got the 100% trophy without all the parts. I think there are enough to fulfill the CP requirements from the part store.

Agree with your top 3 though! I'm also struggling a bit with the ultimate battles.

I never used the dream machines either and I 100%ed 0 just fine. I just got the items from the shop within the pocket fighter building while also using the pawn shop and hidden shop (the one that needed the password in one side quest) to get other items to let me complete the pocket fighter mini game.
 
Man, reading ZhugeEX's tweets regarding Yakuza 0 Sales in the West has been really depressing...

QvCO3Qf.png

7LJm39R.png

b4neJ03.png


This game had the best chance to succeed with it being a prequel and all the great receptions it's gotten by major YouTubers and gaming medias, but nope... despite all that it still sold poorly. I guess this series is forever doomed in the West.
Juc2z108Y.gif
 

Shaneus

Member
This game is so fucking good, and I've only just unlocked the
real estate side of things
. I'm sure I've got far to go, just relishing every moment of this game. Love the shit out of it.
 
Did you mainly stick to one style/moveset for the last 6 ultimate battles (for each character) or did you use a wide range?

Stick to dancer for Majima and abuse squarex3 followed by mashing triangle. Only fight you might have to change is Sera fight in 4-2. For Kiryu I played with brawler the entire time. Make sure to use heat moves as little as possible. The more heat you have the faster your attacks are.
 
Screw the negative sales angle, i'm hoping it at least sold more than all the other West released titles. since reviewers are making gamers aware, more will be on board in the summer.

Yakuza will break through!
 
Screw the negative sales angle, i'm hoping it at least sold more than all the other West released titles. since reviewers are making gamers aware, more will be on board in the summer.

Yakuza will break through!

That's all that matters. 3 sold about 70,000 in the US, and those were the best in the series.

If 0 can beat that, it's all that matters. The games just need to turn a profit.
 

ar4757

Member
Eh. We're still getting Kiwami and 6, that's enough for me. As long as it sells enough to break even and we get more, that's what matters.

Yeah I'm real happy about that.

I bought Kenzan and Ishin recently too, and since those are untranslated, they'll take me longer to play, meaning even more time playing and less time wishing more games are localized haha - sad but true logic
 

wedca

Member
- I also did not like the fact, that Majima and Mokoto never spoke to each other again. Yes it is a lot of drama, but that she did not recognize him, come on that felt too forced.

I've been thinking about this and how it relates to a scene that came after it.

I thought she had a vague suspicion when she ran into Majima on the street, especially after she commented on him having a very sad look in his eye, and finding the repaired watch at the vacant lot later confirmed that feeling for her by verifying that her savior was in Kamurocho.

When the tune played... so good.
 

Jimrpg

Member
In Europe at least, this game sold out at launch. So it's obviously sold more than retailers were expecting.

FTFY

As explained by Sam Mullen before who came into one of the Yakuza threads, the retailers put in orders for number of copies, that obviously depends on preorders too so its not strictly the retailers fault. But obviously the only things retailers have to go by for ordering games are past sales history and preview/review buzz online. You don't get the jump up from 100,000 to 500,000 copies because retailers aren't going to bet big on a title like that when their retail returns are miniscule and they have a lot more to lose if it doesn't sell, they might be lucky to get 10% of the sale at RRP and sometimes they discount on Day 1 to drive sales anyway.

If you're disappointed by Yakuza 0 sales, look on the bright side, it probably did way better than Yakuza 5.

Also I finished Chapter 1 and it was amazing. Easily the best start to a Yakuza 0 yet and I love that it developed the villain straight away. The music is fantastic and the combat is a HUGE improvement. I had to cheese
Kuze
though because I ran out of Toughness X, I don't know if it makes any difference on hard difficulty but I was a bit too ambitious and only carried 4 of them to Dojima's HQ. All I did was bait his combo and then uppercut him and I could do that easily without getting hit.

If it keeps up this level of quality, I don't have any doubt that Y0 will be my favourite of the Yakuza games.

Also this is surely the most BADASS game ever. I love how everything always escalates!
 
- I did not really buy this "friendship" between Sagawa and Majima. I was waiting each chapter to beat Sagawa to death, because of the things he did to Majima. I like Majima in Yakuza 0, but I don't really understand his motivations and the way he acts.

Think of Sagawa as more of a lousy parent who ultimately means well for their child but expresses it horribly and you can see why Majima ultimately ended up respecting him in the end. And you gotta feel bad for the guy at the end, he did what he thought was right but ended up being manipulated by everyone else, like a cautionary tale if Majima ended up doing nothing but following orders.
 

xezuru

Member
- I did not really buy this "friendship" between Sagawa and Majima. I was waiting each chapter to beat Sagawa to death, because of the things he did to Majima. I like Majima in Yakuza 0, but I don't really understand his motivations and the way he acts.
Think of Sagawa as more of a lousy parent who ultimately means well for their child but expresses it horribly and you can see why Majima ultimately ended up respecting him in the end. And you gotta feel bad for the guy at the end, he did what he thought was right but ended up being manipulated by everyone else, like a cautionary tale if Majima ended up doing nothing but following orders.

My interpretation of Sagawa in Y0:
While agree with some notions of this, I have no sense of Sagawa havnig this like urge of friendship at all, I do sense sympathy however. I see Sagawa having that previously mentioned sense of disappointment around him simply due to the positioning of Shimano. Shimano commands one of the top families in the Tojo, and is one step away from having the entirety of the Tojo at his beck and call as well as having the Omi backing. On the other hand, Sagawa, Shimano's sworn brother, is just another Omi patriarch in the line of the "outclassed by Tojo Omi" and not only that, Sagawa knows he just another pawn in the chessboard for the other commanding pieces to move at will. He has to sit there in this shitty Sotenbori doing shitty jobs for Shimano and take care of his shitty dog, and in this Sagawa feels the same pains and expendability as Majima, but Majima is something different. Unlike Sagawa, Majima takes his position in stride, he hates making money and having this simple life of simply making cash money with the simpilist means in the Yakuza world, but he does everything to the very-T for his sworn brother and just to have even a tiny little space in the Tojo for Majima's goals. Sagawa can't understand this, it's an anomaly, why go this far, for money? obviously not. for pride and honor? Majima doesn't give a shit he sits in his cabaret club licking customers shoes for approval. Sagawa doesn't understand why a pawn like Majima would do all this self depricating shit just to continue to be a Tojo lapdog, this especially being prevelant because of the stark contast between the relations shit of sworn brothers, Sagawa's relationship, and Majima's.
 

Jimrpg

Member
About Chapter 1 -

Can someone explain why Kuze cuts his little finger off at the end of Chapter 1? Is it because he expelled Kiryu? Or did he disobey Dojima for some other reason?
 
About Chapter 1 -

Can someone explain why Kuze cuts his little finger off at the end of Chapter 1? Is it because he expelled Kiryu? Or did he disobey Dojima for some other reason?
He
made a serious decision without consulting the head of the family. And Dojima is not the forgiving type.
 
The Yakuza IRL are by far the weirdest criminals in the fucking world.

Listverse said:
Most yakuza violence involves gang rivalries, and sometimes, the conflicts explode into full-on gang wars. Such was the case in 2006, when a group of 500 men from the Dojin-kai broke off and started a new gang called the Kyushu Seido-kei. The split stemmed from a disagreement about leadership. After the Kyushu Seido-kei broke off, they affiliated themselves with the Dojin-kai's rival, the Yamaguchi-gumi, and this new affiliation led to war.

The war lasted seven years. The most volatile time was in August 2007, when a member of the Kyushu Seido-kei killed the leader of the Dojin-kai. Beyond that, there were over 45 violent incidents, which included crimes like bombings, grenade tossings, shots exchanged during high-speed car chases, and the murders of 14 people. At least half of those 14 deaths, which included one civilian, were from gunfire, which may not seem like a lot until you consider how many gun deaths typically happen in Japan. For example, in 2006, there were only two. In 2007, there were 22 deaths, and it was a national scandal. By 2008, the number of deaths dropped to only 11.

The war came to an end on June 11, 2013, when members of both gangs went to a police station. They announced that the war was ending and that the Kyushu Seido-kei was going to dissolve. They also publicly apologized for all of the problems that they caused.
http://listverse.com/2015/08/28/10-notorious-crimes-committed-by-the-yakuza/
 
Think of Sagawa as more of a lousy parent who ultimately means well for their child but expresses it horribly and you can see why Majima ultimately ended up respecting him in the end. And you gotta feel bad for the guy at the end, he did what he thought was right but ended up being manipulated by everyone else, like a cautionary tale if Majima ended up doing nothing but following orders.

My interpretation of Sagawa in Y0:

I think both of you make good points about Sagawa. He was ambitious and wanted to be a major player, and thus was going to keep a tight leash on Majima to make sure the plan succeeded. Plus, like an angry owner who abuses their dog, he was taking out his own frustrations on Majima. He just didn't realize eventually the dog was going to bite back.

At the same time, his personality was about trying to enjoy what he could make of life, in the small way that his life and position provided. When he invited Majima to eat with him, he was genuinely enjoying the moment. When he and Majima attacked Sera's HQ, he was enjoying himself and I think he began to respect Majima in the same way that Kuze began to respect Kiryu, even if in both cases the respect wasn't mutual.

It was a sad ending for Sagawa; he got the shit end of the deal. But he rolled the dice, he knew he was a pawn, and he paid the price. The one strange bit was when Majima rolled up with a gun, asked him if he was going to kill his sworn brother, and just let him pass. Maybe he knew he couldn't stop Majima, or maybe just didn't care?

p.s. I disagree that Majima hated his job. Someone isn't that good at their job if they hate it. He may have had another goal in mind, but I think he also enjoyed running the Grand (and the hostess club), aside from the groveling to customers part.
 
i interviewed to be an account manager for a real estate website. over a month later i get a call saying i didn't get the job :(

but if i did get it, i would've put on facebook that i started working for tachibana real estate =]
 

aravuus

Member
i interviewed to be an account manager for a real estate website. over a month later i get a call saying i didn't get the job :(

but if i did get it, i would've put on facebook that i started working for tachibana real estate =]

Should've gone in person

At least you would've gotten a cab fare that way
 
Are the other Yakuza games this good? I'm about 20h in and it's...phenomenal!? Any other Yakuza game that runs on PS4?

Intro to chapter 3 got a little over the top though.
 
I love you guys.
Are the other Yakuza games this good? I'm about 20h in and it's...phenomenal!? Any other Yakuza game that runs on PS4?
There are currently 4 Yakuza games available on the PS4 in Japan, but only 1 for the West right now.

  • 1 of them is Y0 which you're playing.
  • Yakuza: Ishin is a Samurai-themed spinoff that was NOT translated so you have to import it as it's not getting translated anytime soon.
  • Yakuza: Kiwami is coming out in Summer 2017. It's a remake of the first ever Yakuza game, Yakuza 1 and takes place after the events of Yakuza 0.
  • Yakuza 6 is coming out in Early 2018. It's the final chapter of Kiryu's story and it uses a brand new engine and new assets.
 
It takes a long time to figure out if a prospective hire is actually just scamming them out of cab fare.
i don't think it was a scam bruh..
Are the other Yakuza games this good? I'm about 20h in and it's...phenomenal!? Any other Yakuza game that runs on PS4?

Intro to chapter 3 got a little over the top though.
there is a spinoff yakuza game that was a launch title in Japan, that's it. the remake of yakuza 1 retitled Kiwami is coming here in the summer, I think august

edit: of course luce does a better job explaining all this shit
 
They're referencing the Kiryu
substory where you have to interview potential job applicants for your business and try to figure out if they're good candidates or just trying to scam you.
ohhhh ahahh, i should have known this was an in game reference. i must have missed this substory or just clicked the fuck through to get through it and not paid attention to the dialogue.
 
Top Bottom