D
Deleted member 801069
Unconfirmed Member
can't decide whether to go onto this game or Yakuza Kiwami once I beat Yakuza 0 (which is the first Yakuza game I've really played)
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GymWolf
Gold Member
Just don't play the next game too close to 0 for 2 reasons, after 0 every yakuza game seems pretty bad in comparison (except graphics), and also you avoid to get burned out by the formula.
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HotPocket69
Banned
Finished this over the weekend at lvl 70, 70 hours played.
What a fucking ending. Bring on Yakuza 8 and I really hope they carry over all the characters. Adachi is the man and I rubbed one out a few times to Saeko.
What a fucking ending. Bring on Yakuza 8 and I really hope they carry over all the characters. Adachi is the man and I rubbed one out a few times to Saeko.
RNG
Member
I just got to that part right now #sewerlevel.
Big ups to BTS guy for saving Kasuga’s life.
TintoConCasera
I bought a sex doll, but I keep it inflated 100% of the time and use it like a regular wife
I played on spanish and didn't have the bug.
Miles708
Member
Thanks, I'll need to check then. I have to find which tecnique can be used for testing
New Yorks Finest
Banned
DarkestHour
Banned
Just grabbed it off Amazon for that price. Don't care if it came with steelbook or not. Excited to play it after I finish Persona 5.
D
Deleted member 801069
Unconfirmed Member
Tempting but I’m trying to go all digital this generation. Might make an exertion for a Yakuza title but I wanted to play Yakuza 0-6 prior to this. Not sure how feasible that is given I’m on 0 currently. Decisions, decisions.
Shouta
Member
Amazon comes with a steelbook too, at least the Day Ichi version does. I picked it up from there a little while ago
RNG
Member
No PS5 version yet because timed exclusivity on Ek Bok.
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nowhat
Gold Member
So I've now finished the game. I didn't have to grind the dungeon to pass the next quest on my list (in my previous post in the thread), that was handled by clearing side quests around the town - but I did have to grind later on, which I didn't like at all. Anyway, I'll try to be as generic as I can as to not spoil anything, but everything that's in spoiler tags assumes you've completed the main story. You have been warned. Here goes:
Story: I like Kasuga as the main character. There are some obvious similarities to Kiryu (not only the backstory, but the inverted suit as well), but I think he has enough of a personality to function as the lead. I was initially worried this was going just to be a more edgier, trendier Kiryu, but that's not the case. And there's an explanation for the hair. The first few chapters that establish the story were great. Usually Yakuza games really drag at the beginning - gameplay-wise this was true, but when it comes to the story I thought it was well paced. Once the dust settles though, the game does lose its focus a bit. You're introduced to the traditional formula of an open world of a sort, with lots of distractions and side quests. There's even a separate "task list" if you want to grind it out, mostly fetch quests or "defeat X amount of Y", if you're into that kind of thing. But the main story becomes quite a side note at this point.
Which is fine and to be expected in a Yakuza game, I just didn't find the side quests to be that compelling this time around. There are some really great/funny ones in there, but this is far from the best in series. Do them you must though, because now this is a JRPG (which I'll get to later), if you're underleveled you can just forget about even trying to progress the main story. Eventually you'll level up enough to get to the end. And I have to say, I really liked it. Sure, it turns up the melodrama to 11 (I would have been satisfied with 10), but we this time have a main character that has more of an emotional range than a cucumber, so it's fine by me.
My main issue with the story (apart from being quite irrelevant in the middle part, but that's Yakuza for you) is mostly the fanservice. Which, for the most part, I feel was a fan-disservice.
But it's not only the fanservice. The Yakuza series has never been known for realism, and that's not what I'm after. But there was a series of events that was so out there that I just can't accept it:
Any of those events would have me go "ehhh?", but those in combination made me go "ehhh, really???". As said, I'm not into realism, that's not what the Yakuza series is about. But those were just too lazy even for me. Enough about the story though, it's a video game after all, right? It's all about the gameplay. Which brings me to...
Gameplay: I don't mind the change to a turn-based JRPG - something different was needed, and turn-based is fine by me. And I doubt we'll ever see a purely turn-based game as a major release like ever, so something has to spice up things a little. So we have QTEs that require either you pushing triangle at the right time (which depending on the move may be quite impossible) or mashing the square. And also, you may be able to do a "perfect guard" by hitting circle just at the right moment.
The problem is, it just doesn't work that well. The attacking QTEs work, for the most part (although there are some with the triangle that I just can't hit), but regarding the "perfect guard", that is just a hit-n-miss. Chances are, you never see the attack coming, thanks to the camera. At times it can be infuriating to apply a "potion" to some of your team mates, because it's so hard to select the correct character. There's also hitting an enemy when (s)he is on the ground - the next person may be so far of that it's not going to happen. And then they return to the exact same spot they were in. I don't mind the enemies changing position when selecting a move. But why couldn't I move my characters to a better position, instead of being 500m away from the fight?
But the biggest offender when it comes to gameplay are surely some of the boss fights. Before I get into spoiler territory, there are moments in the game where you absolutely must grind. There is a point where you need quite a bit of cash. That's easy to achieve with the company management minigame, but after you do, you are introduced to a new area and a battle arena where you can get new gear and earn XP easily. Surely that is optional, though? Like hell it is. At least for me, I couldn't progress further without grinding it out, and that arena hands you XP like candy. Also the gear is very nice. But in previous Yakuza games, I could just hit the boss fight completely unprepared, try to complete the fight and fail spectacularly multiple times. And then win, because you just "git gud". Well, no such option here. It's a JRPG, you must be of a certain level or you can forget about it. Still, some of the boss fights (towards the end of the game)...
TL;DR: I think this is a good beginning, even with all the flaws. But I wish the developers would cut the "umbilical cord", so to speak. Let go of the past, it's time for the new hero to shine on his own. As far as numerical scores go, I'd give this a seven and a half. Or maybe eight minus.
Story: I like Kasuga as the main character. There are some obvious similarities to Kiryu (not only the backstory, but the inverted suit as well), but I think he has enough of a personality to function as the lead. I was initially worried this was going just to be a more edgier, trendier Kiryu, but that's not the case. And there's an explanation for the hair. The first few chapters that establish the story were great. Usually Yakuza games really drag at the beginning - gameplay-wise this was true, but when it comes to the story I thought it was well paced. Once the dust settles though, the game does lose its focus a bit. You're introduced to the traditional formula of an open world of a sort, with lots of distractions and side quests. There's even a separate "task list" if you want to grind it out, mostly fetch quests or "defeat X amount of Y", if you're into that kind of thing. But the main story becomes quite a side note at this point.
Which is fine and to be expected in a Yakuza game, I just didn't find the side quests to be that compelling this time around. There are some really great/funny ones in there, but this is far from the best in series. Do them you must though, because now this is a JRPG (which I'll get to later), if you're underleveled you can just forget about even trying to progress the main story. Eventually you'll level up enough to get to the end. And I have to say, I really liked it. Sure, it turns up the melodrama to 11 (I would have been satisfied with 10), but we this time have a main character that has more of an emotional range than a cucumber, so it's fine by me.
My main issue with the story (apart from being quite irrelevant in the middle part, but that's Yakuza for you) is mostly the fanservice. Which, for the most part, I feel was a fan-disservice.
I have no issues with a little nod here and there for people that have played the entire series, I quite like it even. But when Majima and Saejima come out of seemingly nowhere I was already rolling my eyes really hard. That boss fight was also so bullshit that I was already annoyed. But then... out of the blue, here comes Kiryu. For really no reason, at all. He was going to lay low for the rest of his life, right? But here he is, for... what exactly? That bossfight with him was also completely bullshit, the justification for it was just so weak. But more on bossfights later.
But it's not only the fanservice. The Yakuza series has never been known for realism, and that's not what I'm after. But there was a series of events that was so out there that I just can't accept it:
So Arakawa shot Kasuga just the right way that he wouldn't die - that there is an assassin that's able to perfectly replicate someone - that there'd be two babies left in coin lockers, on the same night, right next to each other, and one of the babies would be silent while the coin locker next door is being brute forced - that Adachi, who thus far hasn't been show as a great detective, suddenly has a bad feeling about this and tells people to GTFO - that the replicate assassin decides hey I'll go with anther gig with you guys just to nail the real bastard behind all this
Any of those events would have me go "ehhh?", but those in combination made me go "ehhh, really???". As said, I'm not into realism, that's not what the Yakuza series is about. But those were just too lazy even for me. Enough about the story though, it's a video game after all, right? It's all about the gameplay. Which brings me to...
Gameplay: I don't mind the change to a turn-based JRPG - something different was needed, and turn-based is fine by me. And I doubt we'll ever see a purely turn-based game as a major release like ever, so something has to spice up things a little. So we have QTEs that require either you pushing triangle at the right time (which depending on the move may be quite impossible) or mashing the square. And also, you may be able to do a "perfect guard" by hitting circle just at the right moment.
The problem is, it just doesn't work that well. The attacking QTEs work, for the most part (although there are some with the triangle that I just can't hit), but regarding the "perfect guard", that is just a hit-n-miss. Chances are, you never see the attack coming, thanks to the camera. At times it can be infuriating to apply a "potion" to some of your team mates, because it's so hard to select the correct character. There's also hitting an enemy when (s)he is on the ground - the next person may be so far of that it's not going to happen. And then they return to the exact same spot they were in. I don't mind the enemies changing position when selecting a move. But why couldn't I move my characters to a better position, instead of being 500m away from the fight?
But the biggest offender when it comes to gameplay are surely some of the boss fights. Before I get into spoiler territory, there are moments in the game where you absolutely must grind. There is a point where you need quite a bit of cash. That's easy to achieve with the company management minigame, but after you do, you are introduced to a new area and a battle arena where you can get new gear and earn XP easily. Surely that is optional, though? Like hell it is. At least for me, I couldn't progress further without grinding it out, and that arena hands you XP like candy. Also the gear is very nice. But in previous Yakuza games, I could just hit the boss fight completely unprepared, try to complete the fight and fail spectacularly multiple times. And then win, because you just "git gud". Well, no such option here. It's a JRPG, you must be of a certain level or you can forget about it. Still, some of the boss fights (towards the end of the game)...
So I thought fighting Kiryu was bullshit, both in concept and execution, but Tendo takes the cake, easily. It's one thing for the enemy to announce that "coming up, power move". It's one thing that you're not given a chance to "guard" (and even if you guard, you have to get a "perfect guard" in order to survive) for the entire team, at least you can do it for some. But if the announcement and attack come at the same turn, that's just 100% unadulterated bullshit. It's not challenging or fun. It's just bullshit.
TL;DR: I think this is a good beginning, even with all the flaws. But I wish the developers would cut the "umbilical cord", so to speak. Let go of the past, it's time for the new hero to shine on his own. As far as numerical scores go, I'd give this a seven and a half. Or maybe eight minus.
Laconian Sword
Member
I didn't read your spoilers so I don't know the details, but they could've focused on Judgment if they really wanted to shift gears. The writing in that game is top tier and it has a very likeable cast of characters that we've bonded with already. They just need to drop the tedious tailing missions.
xellos2099alpha
Member
While playing Dragon quest 1 or 2~11 year old Ichiban somewhere in there, right? Yakuza Ø
NanaMiku
Gold Member
It's definitely better than Yakuza 6 in terms of the polish
Alexios
Cores, shaders and BIOS oh my!
BertleTheTurtle
Member
Took a break because I didn't feel like grinding (chapter 12) but now after finding out they fixed the weakness bug for ps4 (finally), I'm back in. The arena is actually kind of fun too.
Hudo
Member
Well, I guess I am officially a Yakuza fan now, lol.
NorthernSword
Member
I just started playing this on PC this week and this is shaping up to be tied with 0 as my favourite of the series. 6 was good but I would say it was a step back from 0. This game is a very good reboot for the series. I'm just starting Chapter 5 and I think the turn based combat system is really really well done.
Shouta
Member
Finished the game and I had a blast with it. The change to turn-based RPG worked out well and honestly, I'd be happy with another Ichiban game like this but modeled after another Dragon Quest title. There's still a lot of room for improvement but the base is really great. For example, I could do with the enemies and characters moving around a bit less so I could be a bit more tactical or at least have indicators for how far an AOE skill will hit. They definitely need to rework the animations or hits for Perfect Guard because it's really hard to time when it'll land on your character making the mechanic pretty inconsistent. Job classes could also have their skill lists either made more generally useful or pared down a little bit. I also would have liked everyone get full access to every job or at least expand the women's list more so. I could go on with things but good stuff overall.
Story was definitely a Yakuza tale but it had a very optimistic feel to it that really set it apart from the other Yakuza titles. Having the supporting cast be around as party members helped that a lot. The camaraderie was great and I loved their interactions as a whole. They bounce off Ichi well and it helps really differentiate him from Kiryu. The ending and Ichi's voice acting really got me tearing up. The cameos in this were great too. I kind of want to see more on that front especially since it's from a different perspective but it probably would have really interfered with the story if they did more.
I would say this is probably one of better games in the series as a whole package. The story is also one of the better ones, at least to me. Considering how many games there have been in this franchise, it's amazing they're still doing such an amazing job.
Story was definitely a Yakuza tale but it had a very optimistic feel to it that really set it apart from the other Yakuza titles. Having the supporting cast be around as party members helped that a lot. The camaraderie was great and I loved their interactions as a whole. They bounce off Ichi well and it helps really differentiate him from Kiryu. The ending and Ichi's voice acting really got me tearing up. The cameos in this were great too. I kind of want to see more on that front especially since it's from a different perspective but it probably would have really interfered with the story if they did more.
I would say this is probably one of better games in the series as a whole package. The story is also one of the better ones, at least to me. Considering how many games there have been in this franchise, it's amazing they're still doing such an amazing job.
a multicultural team of v
Member
It should be illegal to make an RPG where you get a game over if the main character gets knocked out mid fight.
Koroviev
Member
I read somewhere that disabling the action prompts (QTEs) might make it so that the effectiveness of your actions is determined by RNG instead. Have any of you tested this?
(I'd prefer that because I have chronic hand pain from work and would like to avoid additional strain when possible.)
(I'd prefer that because I have chronic hand pain from work and would like to avoid additional strain when possible.)
Virt McPolygon
Banned
What jobs have you guys been assigning the characters? I'm a little unsure of what suits each character, but right now I'm on Ch 7 and have Ichiban as Bodyguard, Nanba as Chef, Saeko as Night Queen, and Adachi as the riot cop(forgot the name).
Also, is it worth unlocking Eri for the party? The business management side activity has been a struggle lol
Also, is it worth unlocking Eri for the party? The business management side activity has been a struggle lol
kbear
Member
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kbear
Member
Foreman for ichiban is good so you can break obstacles and in general it’s good
Idol is one of the best jobs in the game
Default job for Nanba, Homeless Guy, is really good. The pyro DoT skills are great
Enforcer is good, the lightning abilities are great
Remember you can steal abilities from other jobs if they have the red circle next to them. For example, if a job has an ability you really like and it’s red, just level it up to that point and the character permanently retains the ability even if you switch jobs
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Miles708
Member
Thanks!
TintoConCasera
I bought a sex doll, but I keep it inflated 100% of the time and use it like a regular wife
Give Saeko the idol job until she lears the healing hability, then you can switch jobs while keeping that one.
And yeah, you should be doing the business minigame, as later on you'll need that money.
Nah. Later on in the game there is a difficulty spike that makes you wanna level up. The thing is, just before hitting that spike the game provides you of a secondary dungeon in which you can level up, and doing that dungeon once is enough to beat that spike.
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HotPocket69
Banned
Edit wrong thread
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RNG
Member
They’ve been bugged since launch unfortunately.
Alexios
Cores, shaders and BIOS oh my!
They've worked for me since day 1. I read some people say for some reason they didn't have the rom folders/files after installation, maybe he can try to acquire those (if on PC I guess, idk about consoles). Shouldn't it still have the prompts and give a black screen or other issue instead though?
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Miles708
Member
Yeah I'm on ps4, so I can't do that unfortunately. I don't know if I'm on the latest patch, need to check if there's an update. This is the very first time I encounter a bug in any yakuza game, usually they are as solid as it gets.
RNG
Member
Wow this actually worked and it was all because of a missing folder. You had one job RGG studios! jk
SaturnSaturn
Member
Finished the main story now on Series X, over 60 hours in. Going for all achivments, I was really against the new battle system before trying the game, it works really well, and makes grinding not as tedious as it can get towards the end game in the others. My gripes with the game is in the story as i will explain in spoiler tags bellow, please dont read the spoilers if you have not finished the game and played the other yakuza games, Overall rating 7.5/10
First of all this game is Yakuza 7, its a mainline title, not a spinoff no matter what they call it in the west, but you still have Kashiwagi and Lau Ka Long in the game that are looooong dead.
Plus the returning characters kinda ruin the story, they felt like written parodies of themselves, like some all star crew that they just had to put in the game to please old fans. Saejima and Daigo especially feels like a parody.
Plus Kiryu showing up as bodyguard for Watase, and none of the old tojo guys are suprised at all, barely any reaction at all "i knew you where alive", just stupid writing. Like he would just compromise Harukas safety like that, when he is cautious later in the game.
Also what fucking direction does the game take now that both Tojo and Omi are gone? Are we just going to follow different MC's from now? Thats actually something i would prefer instead of beeing stuck with Ichiban, not that he was a bad mc, but i feel his story is over now.
Also the party composition took away some from the game, Namba, and the chick dont exactly fit in i feel like during cutscenes, it just felt strange and was immersion breaking.
Just left with a sour taste after the ending of the game, all the old guard where just brought back into the story for what and essentialy written out, for what? I would have no problem with this game if it was a spinoff, but that its in the main series leaves me baffled, especially with how they ended it, where do they go from here?
If it just was a spinoff it would have been a great story, Its compelling but certain things just ruin it...
As i said above 7.5/10, great gameplay, runs great, great locations/substories and minigames. But certain story decisions drag the score down heeeeavy for me. Its a great game and i recomend it, but its not a great yakuza game story wise.
Plus the returning characters kinda ruin the story, they felt like written parodies of themselves, like some all star crew that they just had to put in the game to please old fans. Saejima and Daigo especially feels like a parody.
Plus Kiryu showing up as bodyguard for Watase, and none of the old tojo guys are suprised at all, barely any reaction at all "i knew you where alive", just stupid writing. Like he would just compromise Harukas safety like that, when he is cautious later in the game.
Also what fucking direction does the game take now that both Tojo and Omi are gone? Are we just going to follow different MC's from now? Thats actually something i would prefer instead of beeing stuck with Ichiban, not that he was a bad mc, but i feel his story is over now.
Also the party composition took away some from the game, Namba, and the chick dont exactly fit in i feel like during cutscenes, it just felt strange and was immersion breaking.
Just left with a sour taste after the ending of the game, all the old guard where just brought back into the story for what and essentialy written out, for what? I would have no problem with this game if it was a spinoff, but that its in the main series leaves me baffled, especially with how they ended it, where do they go from here?
If it just was a spinoff it would have been a great story, Its compelling but certain things just ruin it...
As i said above 7.5/10, great gameplay, runs great, great locations/substories and minigames. But certain story decisions drag the score down heeeeavy for me. Its a great game and i recomend it, but its not a great yakuza game story wise.
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