It's probably time I preorder this badboy. Can't say no to a cheaper price.
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Yakuza Community Thread - FEEL THE HEAT!
- Thread starter cj_iwakura
- Start date
It's probably time I preorder this badboy. Can't say no to a cheaper price.
SomewhatGroovy
Banned
Just beat Yakuza 0. Jesus...
Okay,
Catching breath haha...
Before I give my thoughts, I want to preface what I say with that I beat Y1, Y2 and Y3 upon their releases back in the day and my memory of them is very fuzzy. When I started 0, someone had to remind me who Majima was. I say this with context because while some things may make continuity sense, my thoughts come from someone who has not stayed on top of the series.
So, with that said, I kept thinking I was one step ahead of the story but never was.
I was taken aback my Majima's "final form", as it were. Thinking back to what we have known of him for several games now, I was thinking that it would take something more traumatizing than his torture at the hands of his boss to mentally break him into the character we have known.
Flash forward, I am surprised it was not and I am unsure of what transition took place to make him take the leap to such a drastic change in persona. Before I continue with my next thought, I'll skip to Kiryu for a second because I think a plot point centered around him confused me as well and for the same reasons the Majima story went in.
After all Kiryu has seen and done, I did not buy for a second that , at the end of the game , his character would commit to the Dojima family. Like of all people to plead loyalty to, it was Sohei's clan?
The only way I can reconcile why the writers made both leaps for Kajima and Kiryu was simply because the first game called for it and they needed a quick and lazy way to fill in the blanks.
These two points are my only very slight disappointment with the game because I neither bought Majima going Joker or Kiryu joining Dojima.
Now, one thing I think the writer's did subtley was maybe have Majima take on the persona he has after being inspired by the set of people he purposely pointed out were "characters" : Lee, Nishitani ,and someone else, right before his last fight against Amano (who had a killer character arc at the end there btw)
Nishitani, specifically, was someone who blatantly reminded me of Majima in the other games and I thought during those sequences with him that he was going to be influential to Majima.
That Kiryu and Majima never meet in the game up until the final second was surprising as well. It was interesting to see their two parallel stories play side by side. During the last chapter, I thought the writers were going to paint a stark contrast between the two by having one stick to a moral fiber thanks to the help of the people he still had around him (Kiryu and Nishiki) vs Majima who lost people he learned to care for. When Majima fights against that assassin dude, I thought he was going to unload and the hair on my arms were ready for it but it never happens.
I can't help but wonder if that would have been a better moment to throw in there to make him flip switches. Have him murder that dude, only to then have Sera come in and say "She's still alive" minutes after Nishiki tells Kiryu that there is no turning back after you kill someone.
Lastly, I couldn't believe Majima never murdered the fuck out of Sagawa. And, again, I still dont understand why the hell , of all people, he rejoined Shimano.
That said, I love this game so fucking much.
Okay,
Catching breath haha...
Before I give my thoughts, I want to preface what I say with that I beat Y1, Y2 and Y3 upon their releases back in the day and my memory of them is very fuzzy. When I started 0, someone had to remind me who Majima was. I say this with context because while some things may make continuity sense, my thoughts come from someone who has not stayed on top of the series.
So, with that said, I kept thinking I was one step ahead of the story but never was.
I was taken aback my Majima's "final form", as it were. Thinking back to what we have known of him for several games now, I was thinking that it would take something more traumatizing than his torture at the hands of his boss to mentally break him into the character we have known.
Flash forward, I am surprised it was not and I am unsure of what transition took place to make him take the leap to such a drastic change in persona. Before I continue with my next thought, I'll skip to Kiryu for a second because I think a plot point centered around him confused me as well and for the same reasons the Majima story went in.
After all Kiryu has seen and done, I did not buy for a second that , at the end of the game , his character would commit to the Dojima family. Like of all people to plead loyalty to, it was Sohei's clan?
The only way I can reconcile why the writers made both leaps for Kajima and Kiryu was simply because the first game called for it and they needed a quick and lazy way to fill in the blanks.
These two points are my only very slight disappointment with the game because I neither bought Majima going Joker or Kiryu joining Dojima.
Now, one thing I think the writer's did subtley was maybe have Majima take on the persona he has after being inspired by the set of people he purposely pointed out were "characters" : Lee, Nishitani ,and someone else, right before his last fight against Amano (who had a killer character arc at the end there btw)
Nishitani, specifically, was someone who blatantly reminded me of Majima in the other games and I thought during those sequences with him that he was going to be influential to Majima.
That Kiryu and Majima never meet in the game up until the final second was surprising as well. It was interesting to see their two parallel stories play side by side. During the last chapter, I thought the writers were going to paint a stark contrast between the two by having one stick to a moral fiber thanks to the help of the people he still had around him (Kiryu and Nishiki) vs Majima who lost people he learned to care for. When Majima fights against that assassin dude, I thought he was going to unload and the hair on my arms were ready for it but it never happens.
I can't help but wonder if that would have been a better moment to throw in there to make him flip switches. Have him murder that dude, only to then have Sera come in and say "She's still alive" minutes after Nishiki tells Kiryu that there is no turning back after you kill someone.
Lastly, I couldn't believe Majima never murdered the fuck out of Sagawa. And, again, I still dont understand why the hell , of all people, he rejoined Shimano.
That said, I love this game so fucking much.
Shadowman16
Member
Interesting article about why we aren't getting any dub for the Yakuza games any time soon:
http://www.usgamer.net/articles/the...undubbed-to-emulate-a-foreign-film-experience
I'd always just assumed it was a budget thing myself but apparently that isn't the case this time. Then again, after spending 10 years with these characters (bar the original English Yakuza release) it'd be darn weird hearing anything but the Japanese voice cast used for the characters. Still, glad to hear that Kiwami's script is getting redone as well (as if there was really any likelihood that wouldn't happen), hopefully that means they cut out the masses of F bombs!
http://www.usgamer.net/articles/the...undubbed-to-emulate-a-foreign-film-experience
I'd always just assumed it was a budget thing myself but apparently that isn't the case this time. Then again, after spending 10 years with these characters (bar the original English Yakuza release) it'd be darn weird hearing anything but the Japanese voice cast used for the characters. Still, glad to hear that Kiwami's script is getting redone as well (as if there was really any likelihood that wouldn't happen), hopefully that means they cut out the masses of F bombs!
Haha, it was obvious that it was a money issue with Y2, but with the time I imagined that even if newer games became hits, they still wouldn't bother. And honestly the fantastic voice work in these is so iconic that they might as well be completely different experiences with english voices.
Goodbye F bombs tho...
-There's a rumor that our mon-
-SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!
Goodbye F bombs tho...
-There's a rumor that our mon-
-SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!
They should include dual audio but only for Majima.
Oh I loved the F bombs. I always felt like they toned the rest of the series down. So glad I still have my copy of Yakuza 1 but its not something I'd bust out and play. It's still funny to listen to the script of scenes from the first game... at the time I just thought they went further than any game had any right to go in terms of strong language. I usually don't like crass language in movies but the tongue in cheek style in Yakuza 1 made it fun.
Also Yakuza with subs is the best way to enjoy the story, but as the article says, having a dub does allow more people to enjoy it who are otherwise not inclined to do the whole read subs thing. Its tricky, the best thing is to just have both and let the player choose, in fact it should be an important choice right when you start the game. Obviously most purists do not want a dub, but people should be free to enjoy the game however they want. I know many friends years ago who won't touch foreign language movies because they can't be bothered to read subtitles, having a dub at least gives some hope that more people will play Yakuza.
Even though the game is pretty Japanesey by your average gamer standards, there are still many great moments that transcend culture here for all people to enjoy. There will always be people who find some of the Japanese things awkward in this game, but I think the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. It's a neglected series, that really doesn't deserve to be neglected too much longer. One of the consistently highest quality game series on the market honestly, and hopefully if Sega play their cards right and release PC versions, more people can appreciate the series.
PensivePen
Member
I've been thinking about Yakuza 0 lately a lot as Kiwami comes close to release. I think 0 might very well be my favorite game in the franchise so far, in terms of both plot and gameplay. But there are some major gripes regarding its treatment of characters and how it connects to later games that I felt like writing up. General series spoilers follow.
Anyway, as I said, still loved the game. But it's just something that bothered me as I felt like they came so close to creating a perfect prequel to Yakuza 1, but got cold feet at the end. Just to end on a positive note, I have to say that one thing Yakuza 0 does resoundingly well is depicting
The game's failure to properly bridge Majima's character between Yakuza 0 and 1 is probably my biggest gripe. And it felt like something that they could have done if they wanted to, but once again the story fell prey to the writers refusal to cast player characters with any degree of moral ambiguity, something that I think has become an increasing problem and has also weakened Kiryu as a character in the long run, which I think is part of the reason he's seen as a kind of 'boring' character (in addition to general fatigue after 7 games). Overall I felt they wrote an excellent self contained story, but that doesn't come together as a prequel to the first Yakuza.
In Yakuza 1 we see that Kiryu is a man who is forced to walk a thin line to maintain his own moral code in the world of Japanese crime. All around Kiryu are people who have been put into the Yakuza machine and come out with their moral fiber bent, twisted, or completely broken. We see it in Majima's insanity and disregard for himself and others, the callousness of characters like Shimano, and Nishiki who lost just about everything important to him. The fact that you can look at so many different characters as this distorted reflection of Kiryu serves to put his resolve into proper context. This effect has been diluted more and more as the series goes on, not just from the character's reuse but also introducing more and more characters like him to the point that it doesn't seem all that hard anymore to be a Yakuza without inevitably turning into a monster. To paraphrase one reviewer: "Everyone is batman."
It's hard to reconcile Majima's refusal to kill at the end of Yakuza 0 when the very first scene he ever appeared in depicted him ready to nonchalantly impale a man in the face with an umbrella. I think his characterization would have been more effective if the ending of Yakuza 0 had depicted that moment where he diverged from following that morally upright path. I suppose you could argue there were ten years between Yakuza 0 and 1 for him to become that character, but that kind of defeats the purpose of making a prequel story doesn't it? I suppose in the end the writers just didn't feel going for a dark ending like that would be keeping in tone with the endings of other games in the franchise.
In Yakuza 1 we see that Kiryu is a man who is forced to walk a thin line to maintain his own moral code in the world of Japanese crime. All around Kiryu are people who have been put into the Yakuza machine and come out with their moral fiber bent, twisted, or completely broken. We see it in Majima's insanity and disregard for himself and others, the callousness of characters like Shimano, and Nishiki who lost just about everything important to him. The fact that you can look at so many different characters as this distorted reflection of Kiryu serves to put his resolve into proper context. This effect has been diluted more and more as the series goes on, not just from the character's reuse but also introducing more and more characters like him to the point that it doesn't seem all that hard anymore to be a Yakuza without inevitably turning into a monster. To paraphrase one reviewer: "Everyone is batman."
It's hard to reconcile Majima's refusal to kill at the end of Yakuza 0 when the very first scene he ever appeared in depicted him ready to nonchalantly impale a man in the face with an umbrella. I think his characterization would have been more effective if the ending of Yakuza 0 had depicted that moment where he diverged from following that morally upright path. I suppose you could argue there were ten years between Yakuza 0 and 1 for him to become that character, but that kind of defeats the purpose of making a prequel story doesn't it? I suppose in the end the writers just didn't feel going for a dark ending like that would be keeping in tone with the endings of other games in the franchise.
Anyway, as I said, still loved the game. But it's just something that bothered me as I felt like they came so close to creating a perfect prequel to Yakuza 1, but got cold feet at the end. Just to end on a positive note, I have to say that one thing Yakuza 0 does resoundingly well is depicting
the friendship between Kiryu and Nishiki, something I think greatly strengthens the plot and themes of Y1 in addition to being entertaining and heartwarming in its own right. In the first game we just kind of have to accept what we're told about their friendship, but in Y0 its depicted well and comes across as genuine, both in the moments where they're fighting back to back, or just hanging out and being pals. It makes me appreciate Nishiki far more as a character and gives the first game's plot far more weight. It's part of the reason if I recommend new people to the series in the future I'll suggest they play the first game before 1/Kiwami.
Start with this one so that you won't be disappointed by the omissions...jk
I think playing the first game & 5 before you start 6 would be ideal.
lucebuce12
Member
Yes. First play Y0 then Y:Kiwami.
After Kiwami, you have options depending on if you have a PS3. IF YOU DO, then you can play Yakuza 3, 4 and 5. Yakuza 3 is a game that you CAN skip if you don't want to play it but it's a terrific game and I still recommend playing it. Yakuza 4 was like a very soft-reboot. It still has Kiryu but adds 3 new protagonists and entirely new characters and storylines. Y5 continues off of Y4.
Regardless of whether or not you play Y2,3,4 or 5, you can still jump into Yakuza 6 after you're done with Kiwami.
If you DON'T have a PS3, then just Y0 -> Y:Kiwami -> Y6.
EDIT: But I guess for now, just focus on playing Y0 and see if you enjoy it lol, then think about continuing on with the rest of the series.
RiderKairuu
Member
Was not prepared for Yakuza 5 to turn into Initial D..what the hell lol
For all the faults in Yakuza 5, I think it has some of the highest highs in the series haha. Kiryu's chapter is the GOAT.
RiderKairuu
Member
That's pretty much why I went ahead with my playthrough now, in case I'll need a break between this and when Kiwami is out. I've heard nothing but mixed opinions on this game but most people say that highs are pretty high.
lucebuce12
Member
Personally I think Yakuza 3 hit the highest highs. The scene in
the bullfighting ring, the ending with Mine.
Every other game had great moments but very few of them had the emotional impact that Yakuza 3 did. Even Yakuza 2, the best story in the series, did so by being consistently great but IMO it still didn't reach quite the highs and the impact that some parts of Yakuza 3 did.
With that being said, Yakuza 5 was probably the most badass Kiryu has ever been.
Shadowman16
Member
I loved those scenes in 3. Everyone gets to be awesome in that game (even Daigo!)
Kiryu gets a few really badass scenes in 6 as well, especially toward the end of the game, even with its faults it has some really awesome scenes throughout the entire game. Can't wait to replay it next year in English.
Yeah I was a bit sad to find out the game is even hated by some. I think if you go with your expectations in check you should have a good time. Overall my problems were that chapter 2 is largely a slog and that the story gets crazy complicated and nonsensical, even for the series' standards.
I would agree but to me the entirety of Y3 is a high
it's my favorite in the series, I enjoyed every single moment haha.davidwhangchoi
Member
yes! it's such a great price =)
yakuza 3 is so good
i still need to finish 5, i got burned out. hopefully i'll get to it before 6. but kiwami is right around the corner.
why people always rank it last... i donno, the story is so good. i couldn't put it down.Yeah I was a bit sad to find out the game is even hated by some. I think if you go with your expectations in check you should have a good time. Overall my problems were that chapter 2 is largely a slog and that the story gets crazy complicated and nonsensical, even for the series' standards.
I would agree but to me the entirety of Y3 is a high
asariN7
Member
Thanks man,Im into jrpg and anime but never got around playing this series, even tough I had a launch ps3.I think it would fit my style like a glove.
I dont have a ps3 anymore but maybe they will put the games on ps now, or I can watch playthroughs on youtube.
Bandersnatch1
Member
Push on through. There is a strong narrative hook towards the end of Haruka's chapters and once you hit that it's all smooth sailing from there.
Son Of Sparda
Member
Yakuza 3 had a crazy plot. That's for sure, haha.
For me the highest high of the series, is most likely that last boss fight in Yakuza 5. It's not interesting story wise, but man the fight itself is so amazing.
That and the bit in the final chapter of Yakuza 5 where
everyone kneel in front of Akiyama, out of respect.
Shadowman16
Member
The final boss in 5 is brilliant gameplay wise, especially if your highly leveled - I don't think I ever used the same heat move twice in that fight, managing to use different heat moves as the opportunity provided itself! Loved it, felt so epic.
However I can't say its the best. That award goes to Ishin. Not only is the boss fight excellent in terms of story, its music, actual fight, QTE moments etc. Its fucking epic, I've watched that fight over and over on Youtube, played it through several times and listened to the soundtrack over and over! Its such a pity that it hasn't got a English release, as its such a great game.
However I can't say its the best. That award goes to Ishin. Not only is the boss fight excellent in terms of story, its music, actual fight, QTE moments etc. Its fucking epic, I've watched that fight over and over on Youtube, played it through several times and listened to the soundtrack over and over! Its such a pity that it hasn't got a English release, as its such a great game.
Son Of Sparda
Member
I've finished Ishin and really loved it, but man, I can't remember a thing about its last boss fight. I remember the general flow of the last chapter but no matter how hard I try I can't remember anything about the boss fight at the end.
That's weird, hahaha.
That's weird, hahaha.
Guess the state of the first & only dub plays a big part too.
Really is great. It is the best part of the game for me.
Shadowman16
Member
I'd say that seems completely unbelievable, but seeing as I can't remember 75% of Yakuza 4 I can't really talk! I think its high time for me to replay that game!
Son Of Sparda
Member
I'm really bad at remembering last boss fights. Like, you all say how hype Yakuza 3's last boss fight was, but here I am left wondering "why I can't remember anything about it?"
I can't even remember anything about the last boss fight in DMC1 lol
Shadowman16
Member
You mean the Mundus boss fight or that weird Bi Plane bit! I really need to play through the DMC series again some time soon...
I can remember most of the boss battles in the Yakuza series, Kenzan's was the weirdest in a way as they get the big epic boss fight out of the way at the beginning of the final level, as opposed to the end (though there are still some pretty epic battles in that level), 4 I can only remember 3/4 of the final bosses and I probably only remember Dead Souls final boss because it felt like your standard monster/tyrant grade boss from any Resident Evil game. I don't think I remember the final boss of the first PSP Yakuza game though...
davidwhangchoi
Member
I really need to finish Y5
Son Of Sparda
Member
^
David you need to finish Yakuza 5, but not because of Kazuma. Because of what happens with another character. That bit of Yakuza 5 was so hype
Form the titles that you mentioned I don't remember a lot of stuff about Dead Souls and Kenzan..... though I do remember really liking Kenzan.
David you need to finish Yakuza 5, but not because of Kazuma. Because of what happens with another character. That bit of Yakuza 5 was so hype
I meant the Mundus part. Weirdly enough I do remember the plane bit.
Form the titles that you mentioned I don't remember a lot of stuff about Dead Souls and Kenzan..... though I do remember really liking Kenzan.
Shadowman16
Member
My lasting memory of Kenzan is me not getting to fight Amon, its the only game I've not fought him in, so that needs a replay as well. So the second PSP game, 0, Kiwami, 6, Kenzan and 4 all need (re)playing. Now where did I put my spare time...
SpartanForce
Member
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0CCX55xe0w
I made a vídeo about the personality of Nishiki and the changes. Only watch if you don't mind spoilers.
I made a vídeo about the personality of Nishiki and the changes. Only watch if you don't mind spoilers.
I don't know the name but the actor who plays Nishiki is the best voice actor this series got.
As for Nishiki related, I love ↓ video. I posted this a couple of times across the yakuza related threads and I'm doing it again
https://youtu.be/JJBqg5bavbk
cj_iwakura
Member
I'm amazed Sega PR was able to tell people that they could go from Kiwami to 6 with a straight face.
davidwhangchoi
Member
ok, i'm motivated, going to fire up the ps3 right now for Y5,^
David you need to finish Yakuza 5, but not because of Kazuma. Because of what happens with another character. That bit of Yakuza 5 was so hype
I meant the Mundus part. Weirdly enough I do remember the plane bit.
Form the titles that you mentioned I don't remember a lot of stuff about Dead Souls and Kenzan..... though I do remember really liking Kenzan.
oh dead souls! the underrated one in the series =P
My copy of Yakuza 3 just arrived in my mailbox and I am having trouble not playing it. While I really want to wait for Yakuza Kiwami to move on to 3 I currently have nothing to play and I am pretty bored. I was wondering if there were any merit to just watching the recap of 1 in Yakuza 3, playing 2, 3, 4, and 5, and then playing Kiwami? I know it's not recommended but do you guys think that I'll be missing any must play scene from part 1? What are the major issues playing this way?
It will make one of the best sub-stories less enjoyable. But that's not a big problem, I guess.
davidwhangchoi
Member
resuming yakuza 5 yesterday, i'm finally past taxi missions and moved onto the prison story. wow finally a new area =) the flash back imaginations are pretty funny.
i just got a snow mobile key to break out.
i just got a snow mobile key to break out.
SomewhatGroovy
Banned
So for Yakuza 0, do i choose premium adventure mode or whatever to go back to all the sidequests i missed etc? New Game resets everything right?
Shadowman16
Member
Yeah, if you do Premium Adventure you can clear all the stuff you missed in the main game so you can finish all your side stories, mini games etc.
Peroroncino
Member
lol'd at the 'not you' part
SomewhatGroovy
Banned
Kiwami will be great to go through as I can't even remember why Nishki
. For those who have those details fresh in their minds, the Y0 do a good job foreshadowing any of it?
betrays Kiryu and turns heel.
Honestly, I just finished the game yesterday, and there's nothing there hinting at that. Mind you it's been a while since I played 1 but even still there would've been something. I do like the contrast between his character in 0 and later on in the timeline though.
SomewhatGroovy
Banned
i thought so too.
to those whom have beaten kiwami, are there new cutscenes or is it a straight remake? im wondering if some of the characters are fleshed out in light of Yakuza 0's release.
SomewhatGroovy
Banned
awesome. this makes a whole lot of sense. great news.
RiderKairuu
Member
Does Kiwami have the quick change item from Zero? Switching styles on the fly was a blast, couldn't find any concrete info.