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Yakuza 4 |OT| Welcome back, hostess bars & proper boxart!

Picked this up at Best Buy yesterday, my first Yakuza game (though i feel very up to date after watching close to an hour's worth of recaps), and yeah, another vote for Akiyama's awesomeness
 
They should just reboot the franchise with Akiyama. More personality and charisma in 20 minutes than Kaz has showcased over 3 games.
 

Ploid 3.0

Member
Red Blaster said:
They should just reboot the franchise with Akiyama. More personality and charisma in 20 minutes than Kaz has showcased over 3 games.

I hear the game changes characters, when you do change do you ever go back to Akiyama?
 

maxxpower

Member
Guys I've never played a Yakuza game before so this would be my first one. Do I need to play the previous games before? Is there any backstory I should read up on?
 
Ploid 3.0 said:
I hear the game changes characters, when you do change do you ever go back to Akiyama?

Games does change characters, I don't know about the second question; only three hours in.


graywolf323 said:
the franchise doesn't need rebooting :|

It definitely does. We've been hanging around Serena since 2005, the next game has to be in an entirely new location.
 
i still don't get reviews saying it's not as good as the "industry leaders". what games are even talking about?

surely they don't mean GTA4. that game is shit next to Yakuza 4.

Kamurocho's growth and familiarity is a lot of the fun to me. i was running around admiring all the little things, improved textures, etc.
 

Bizzyb

Banned
Serious question:

How are they able to make so many Yakuza games??

It seems like they have some kind of formula or procedure down pat. Correct me if I'm wrong but, these games are very detailed, have large scripts, tons of movie elements, and are fairly large in size and scope with many different gameplay elements.

SO then how can they be pumping out Yakuza games every 9 months like nobody's business? Especially when it takes a game of similar size and scope many many years. Or am I missing something here?
 

explodet

Member
Yuterald said:
omg at Part II intro scene...this game is incredible.
That scene was BRUTAL.

maxxpower said:
Guys I've never played a Yakuza game before so this would be my first one. Do I need to play the previous games before? Is there any backstory I should read up on?
Yakuza 3 and 4 (and possibly the second game too, I never played it) have summaries of all the previous games in the game itself, so if you start on either of them you can get caught up on the story. Grab some popcorn though, they're pretty long.
 
Bizzyb said:
Serious question:

How are they able to make so many Yakuza games??

It seems like they have some kind of formula or procedure down pat. Correct me if I'm wrong but, these games are very detailed, have large scripts, tons of movie elements, and are fairly large in size and scope with many different gameplay elements.

SO then how can they be pumping out Yakuza games every 9 months like nobody's business? Especially when it takes a game of similar size and scope many many years. Or am I missing something here?

Every game takes place in literally the same area (Kamurocho District of Tokyo). The 2nd and 3rd game have other areas (Osaka and Okinawa respectively) but the fact that a good 75% of the series takes place in one location speeds up the development process dramatically.

It's an interesting formula, taking the same area and simply repopulating it with different characters/stories. After 4 games though, it's time for some new blood.
 

Yuterald

Member
Part II Chapter 1 & 2 are just...holy shit. HOLY SHIT is this game awesome. Some scenes in these chapters sent chills down my spine!
 

depths20XX

Member
quinntendopower said:
i still don't get reviews saying it's not as good as the "industry leaders". what games are even talking about?

I don't really get that either. What games are even out there that play like Yakuza? Why does this series seem to be so overlooked.
 
TheExodu5 said:
Ugh. They ruined the box art with the stupid INCLUDED BONUS CONTENT bit.
Only in America and Europe it seems, I picked up my UK copy today and the front cover thankfully is free from that horrible box. Thumbs up to Sega UK.

Honestly, whoever at Sega created this cover deserves a round of applause. Not only is the front artwork eye-catching and stylish but the back is also incredibly well presented with a blurb that should really help to sell it to the mainstream audience.
 

borghe

Loves the Greater Toronto Area
depths20XX said:
I don't really get that either. What games are even out there that play like Yakuza? Why does this series seem to be so overlooked.
It was either eurogamer or guardian that said it best. Had Rockstar released this game, it would likely have sold a million.

Sega's name today carries baggage with it. The mainstream doesn't care (or maybe doesn't even know anymore) who Sega is, and the core gamer let go of all goodwill from Sega years ago.

The sad part is sega has had some decent releases over the past year. Infinite Space on the DS, Yakuza 3 (and now 4), Valkyria Chronicles II on the PSP.... I'd actually say sega has shaped up a bit... but from crappy releases (sonic, sonic, sonic and others), to going back to the "classics well" just one two many times (with awful emulation usually to boot), to the fact that probably Sega's most popular franchise currently (Total War) people don't even know it's sega... yeah, they have a marketing problem. big time.

but yeah, with that being said, I can say I am happy with over half of Sega's output right now. they've had some strong original releases over the past year and have some fun stuff coming up. Hopefully they can get their name out to the public a little better (and IMHO sonic 4 Episode 2 being MIA is a very good thing... hopefully they took the criticism of Ep1 to heart and are working on things)

anyway, I now have 3 and 4 in my hands... however I just saw that a few gstops close to me have used copies of 1 and 2...... may give a shot at getting those as well. having never played any of the Yakuza's before, am I in for a treat starting at 1 and playing through, or am I really just better off starting at 3?
 

Yuterald

Member
borghe said:
having never played any of the Yakuza's before, am I in for a treat starting at 1 and playing through, or am I really just better off starting at 3?

If you can readily get your hands on both Yakuza 1 & 2, buy them now and play through them from the start. If ANYTHING though start with Yakuza 3 if you can't get your hands on Yakuza 1 & 2 anytime soon. This game has tons of scenes and immediate references directly tied to Yakuza 3. The game also mirrors the original Yakuza in a way with some flash back scenes that tie this game directly to the first Yazkua game as well.

Definitely don't start with Yakuza 4 though unless you want to miss out on saying stuff like, "hey, don't tell me they are talking about that guy?" or "this guy is back!?" or "is that who I think it is!?!?!". To me though, that's where a lot of the excitement comes from with this series.
 
depths20XX said:
I don't really get that either. What games are even out there that play like Yakuza? Why does this series seem to be so overlooked.

I think the guy at Eurogamer compared it to GTAIV in his review. WTF!
 
Red Blaster said:
It definitely does. We've been hanging around Serena since 2005, the next game has to be in an entirely new location.

Yeah but that is what it needs, a new location to spice things up, not a reboot with all new everything.

I was hoping that Yakuza 3 would have been located in Korea and Kiryu would have gone after some remaining Jingweon members or something :p
 

Cruzader

Banned
Yuterald said:
If you can readily get your hands on both Yakuza 1 & 2, buy them now and play through them from the start. If ANYTHING though start with Yakuza 3 if you can't get your hands on Yakuza 1 & 2 anytime soon. This game has tons of scenes and immediate references directly tied to Yakuza 3. The game also mirrors the original Yakuza in a way with some flash back scenes that tie this game directly to the first Yazkua game as well.

Definitely don't start with Yakuza 4 though unless you want to miss out on saying stuff like, "hey, don't tell me they are talking about that guy?" or "this guy is back!?" or "is that who I think it is!?!?!". To me though, that's where a lot of the excitement comes from with this series.
Hey I beat Y1 back in the day and since Y2 took too long to come out, skipped it. I just bought Y3 and wondering if I need to replay Y1 and then play Y2 for me to enjoy Y3. I feel like Ill miss references or hints/scenes if I havent played those games. But if Y3 doesnt rely heavily on those games, might just start on Y3. Any advice is appreciated.
 

Bizzyb

Banned
Red Blaster said:
Every game takes place in literally the same area (Kamurocho District of Tokyo). The 2nd and 3rd game have other areas (Osaka and Okinawa respectively) but the fact that a good 75% of the series takes place in one location speeds up the development process dramatically.

It's an interesting formula, taking the same area and simply repopulating it with different characters/stories. After 4 games though, it's time for some new blood.


Well, are there at least new areas to explore within then Kamurocho (sp?) area? Or are there the same stores/places in the same exact locations?
 
Noisepurge said:
Yeah but that is what it needs, a new location to spice things up, not a reboot with all new everything.

I was hoping that Yakuza 3 would have been located in Korea and Kiryu would have gone after some remaining Jingweon members or something :p
They should just expand the game to all of Tokyo.
 
Bizzyb said:
Well, are there at least new areas to explore within then Kamurocho (sp?) area? Or are there the same stores/places in the same exact locations?

Rooftops and sewers. While there is not much content on rooftops (what was i expecting anyway), sewers offer some fun stuff for a certain character!
 
borghe said:
It was either eurogamer or guardian that said it best. Had Rockstar released this game, it would likely have sold a million.

Sega's name today carries baggage with it. The mainstream doesn't care (or maybe doesn't even know anymore) who Sega is, and the core gamer let go of all goodwill from Sega years ago.

The sad part is sega has had some decent releases over the past year. Infinite Space on the DS, Yakuza 3 (and now 4), Valkyria Chronicles II on the PSP.... I'd actually say sega has shaped up a bit... but from crappy releases (sonic, sonic, sonic and others), to going back to the "classics well" just one two many times (with awful emulation usually to boot), to the fact that probably Sega's most popular franchise currently (Total War) people don't even know it's sega... yeah, they have a marketing problem. big time.

but yeah, with that being said, I can say I am happy with over half of Sega's output right now. they've had some strong original releases over the past year and have some fun stuff coming up. Hopefully they can get their name out to the public a little better (and IMHO sonic 4 Episode 2 being MIA is a very good thing... hopefully they took the criticism of Ep1 to heart and are working on things)

anyway, I now have 3 and 4 in my hands... however I just saw that a few gstops close to me have used copies of 1 and 2...... may give a shot at getting those as well. having never played any of the Yakuza's before, am I in for a treat starting at 1 and playing through, or am I really just better off starting at 3?

If you can stomach 1's horrible load times and lulzworthy English voice acting (SHOTEH FOCK OP) then starting from there would be best. I've just started 4 so I'll have to reserve judgement on it but 2 is the best entry in the series and should be played by anyone interested in getting into the Yakuza games. Unfortunately, 3 is the worst game in the series. That's not to say it's bad, the game's still pretty good; but the story doesn't come close to the other games.
 
Red Blaster said:
If you can stomach 1's horrible load times and lulzworthy English voice acting (SHOTEH FOCK OP) then starting from there would be best. I've just started 4 so I'll have to reserve judgement on it but 2 is the best entry in the series and should be played by anyone interested in getting into the Yakuza games. Unfortunately, 3 is the worst game in the series. That's not to say it's bad, the game's still pretty good; but the story doesn't come close to the other games.

If he is going to play all 4 games in order, i think he might like the third game more than the fans of the series because of the slower pace and different feeling that Okinawa gives.
 

Lindsay

Dot Hacked
BB's ship to store is so slow they estimate I can't pick up until early april. Okamiden still hasn't shown up in the mail yet either -_-; But for $42.39 I'm not complaining! I got 3 games this week and which'll hold me over!
 

depths20XX

Member
BobTheFork said:
Well, shit. I went to Best Buy and either they never got any or they sold out because they didn't have any.

When I went to Best Buy they had all the copies buried behind Star Wars Force Unleashed II. Took me a while to find them. lol
 
Square Triangle said:
It's still on sale on the site. Order now!
I'll see if I can pick it up at any local stores.

It's completely on back order....wtf? did they make half the copies this time. You coudl have choked on the number of Y3 copies.
 
Do locker keys carry over with every character? I think one is glitched (it's on a hydro box in a tunnel and it won't let menpick it up) and I want to see if another character can grab it.
 

Clott

Member
GrayFoxPL said:
Depends how much sideline shit you wanna do. I say about 20h.



What type of side stuff does this game offer? is it empty grindy stuff? or quests that expand on characters?
 

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
The detective dude is great so far. lol 'Superchunk'

Clott said:
What type of side stuff does this game offer? is it empty grindy stuff? or quests that expand on characters?
Loads of side stuff like baseball, mahjhong, golf. It's obviously not as good as games BASED on those sports, but they are a fun distraction. The side quests are pretty funny and sometimes relate to characters in the story.

In 3 there's an insurance scam guy that consistently tries to fight Kazuma despite losing every time. He brings more and more guys until he finally gives up
 
zoner said:
The detective dude is great so far. lol 'Superchunk'


Loads of side stuff like baseball, mahjhong, golf. It's obviously not as good as games BASED on those sports, but they are a fun distraction. The side quests are pretty funny and sometimes relate to characters in the story.

In 3 there's an insurance scam guy that consistently tries to fight Kazuma despite losing every time. He brings more and more guys until he finally gives up
The best one ever I remember was from Y3 where this guy keeps trying to kill himself because he owns money to a loan shark. You keep talking him down then eventually go talk to the loan sharks and it turns out they are idiots and can't run a Shylock business right and Kaz gives them advice on running their business if they agree to leave the guy alone.
 

Mooreberg

is sharpening a shovel and digging a ditch
Nearest Kmart seems to have never gotten the game, will try another on Friday. I can't play this until next week anyway but I'd like to get Yakuza 3 with it since I actually want to go back and do a lot of the side missions that I didn't touch when I rented it. If all else fails, $39 at Best Buy isn't bad either.
 
Well I found a copy at a BB a bit farther than I wanted to travel, but I suppose the 20 off makes up for it. As soon as I get some road supplies I'll head out and grab it!
 

hamchan

Member
Good to see positive impressions and people realizing the awesomeness of Akiyama (though I reckon all 4 dudes are pretty damn good).
 

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
hamchan said:
Good to see positive impressions and people realizing the awesomeness of Akiyama (though I reckon all 4 dudes are pretty damn good).
I'm really digging the cop the more I get into him
 

kiryogi

Banned
zoner said:
I'm really digging the cop the more I get into him

Tanimura is probably the most unique of the 4 in terms of playstyle. In that regard he was probably the most fun to play as.

Right now I'm super on the fence if I want to get this or not. Which would be doubledipping for me (I imported it last year)... I think what might push me over the edge is if I see how that hostess premium theme looks like.
 

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
kiryogi said:
Tanimura is probably the most unique of the 4 in terms of playstyle. In that regard he was probably the most fun to play as.

Right now I'm super on the fence if I want to get this or not. Which would be doubledipping for me (I imported it last year)... I think what might push me over the edge is if I see how that hostess premium theme looks like.
It's pretty quality so far. Better than I thought without being too creepy.
 

~Kinggi~

Banned
Lmao, watching a stream, the Hostess clubs are treated just like a Gran Turismo upgrade system for the girls, hell even the music sounds the same. Edit: nevermind now the music is saying "make me a lady" on loop.
 

Brandon F

Well congratulations! You got yourself caught!
Only ever played Yakuza 1(and only played up to Chapter 9 or so...half or more of the game?).

One thing that always irritated me was how easily some quests and key items are permanently missed. Did that ever change as the series grew?

Seriously considering taking the next couple months to steamroll through the franchise entirely. I've always had a hard curiosity about the sequels(and what I didn't see of part 1), and I think it's time to finally check them all out.
 
Brandon F said:
Only ever played Yakuza 1(and only played up to Chapter 9 or so...half or more of the game?).

One thing that always irritated me was how easily some quests and key items are permanently missed. Did that ever change as the series grew?

Seriously considering taking the next couple months to steamroll through the franchise entirely. I've always had a hard curiosity about the sequels(and what I didn't see of part 1), and I think it's time to finally check them all out.
Yes and no. In Y3 you could still miss a quest because of the story moving on or not having the right character with you and you could not go back and do it...while playing the game. AFTER you beat the game, they let you run around and do any old mission. I think they kept that 'completion mode'
 

kiryogi

Banned
Brandon F said:
Only ever played Yakuza 1(and only played up to Chapter 9 or so...half or more of the game?).

One thing that always irritated me was how easily some quests and key items are permanently missed. Did that ever change as the series grew?

Seriously considering taking the next couple months to steamroll through the franchise entirely. I've always had a hard curiosity about the sequels(and what I didn't see of part 1), and I think it's time to finally check them all out.

It's still like that. Hasn't ever really changed. Keep a FAQ handy :eek:

Also went out and picked it up. Hostess theme is pretty tasteful.

That said, not gonna open it up anytime soon. Although I'm super tempted currently just to see how it turned out in english. If I only had acted sooner on Best Buy's deal
 

Data West

coaches in the WNBA
So does garbage ever do anything? There's so many different types I wasn't sure if you could open them up with an item or use them to make something or if they're just there to waste inventory/storage

edit: Nevermind. It seems there is apparently a guy underground who will use it
 
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