i really dont know what id actually rate this game, its so unique compared to the other games in the franchise which makes it interesting, i did however enjoy my time overall and finally being able to play as ryuji goda was an extremely fun thing even if non canon, the gunplay and overall gameplay loop is most definitely janky but i still found a lot of fun to be had learning how best to counter and take down obstacles, also minor complaint but man it takes way to long to get kiryu's anti material rifle. overall an enjoyable game that id recommend to any yakuza fan even as a curiosity.

After having played Yakuza 0-7, Kenzan, Ishin, Judgement, and Lost Judgement... Yakuza Dead Souls Overall just dumb fun and a nice noncanon spinoff to the series.

Yakuza Dead Souls is a noncanon spinoff taking place in an alternative universe for Yakuza, taking place after Yakuza 4. The game's story is ridiculous, but it's also very nice in terms of having an overarching plot of revenge against Kiryu over the events of Yakuza 2/Kiwami 2.

However where it falls flat is in terms of the gameplay, at first it's very interesting to take previous/future installments usage of weapons and making that the focal point of the game. However the decision to make the shoot button R1 always confused me. Also another issue had to be that you're not allowed to move while aiming with L2 which was just plainly annoying because theres a head shot perk which allows you to perform head shots. The weapons feel distinct from each other, however most of the time you will be using the shot guns, or Strong Pistol (infinite ammo), or Gatling gun.
The game has the issue of trying to combine a zombie survival game with the aspects of Yakuza, which makes it more so feel like the substories are tacked on for the most part, they're good no doubt just, 80% you have to go the quarantine areas in order to complete/find certain substories, and usually you want to die a little inside when a substory that seems to be able to be completed away from the quarantine area leads into the quarantine area.

The game features mutated infected that honestly feel like they're inspired by L4D special infected:

Crybaby: Sort of a mix between the witch in terms of being the only female mutated infected, mixed with the cut screamer enemy from the l4d beta, and technically the boomer because that's what the screamer later became, where when she shouts a horde comes to attack you
Meatheads: Kind of Like the Tank in terms of design, but slow as hell, but can also cause shock waves to do damage/knock you down.
Monkey Boys: Sort of like Jockeys who jump around crazy, however acts moreso like the hunter when it pounces on you.
Fatties: Like boomers however, instead of causing a horde to appear, it's polluted gas powers up the zombies around it to do more damage and become more aggressive.
Aggros: Look like Hunters, and mostly just a pain in the ass because they're good at knocking you down.
Diptera: Flying Spitters, that look more like Aliens instead of Zombies.
The Hermits: Sort of a mix of the Charger and Tank because like the charger when you're spotted it charges at you buy rolling at you, and like the tank has a lot of heatlh but thats because of the hermits armor.

I will not say they copied it, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was inspired.

Also really quickly... FUCK THE MOLOTOV-ERs ZOMBIES, they are the most important enemies you will deal with, all they do is throw Molotov's non-stop and the issue isn't that they exist, it's that they have a endless supply of molotovs that after being thrown at you has a chance of knocking you to the ground, and because the interval of them pulling out another molotov in 2 seconds, you can get stuck in a loop of being knocked down, BECAUSE there are usually 3 paired up together.

The Subterranea is awful interms of being a nonstop dungeon exploration for the 4 protagonist to essentially uncover a tunnels, that eventually lead to Zombie Amon. Exploring the dungeon feels like a worse version of Tartarus from Persona 3. The same corridors split up between the 4 protagonist adding up to a total of 121 Levels (keep in mind you have to go twice for each character):

Akiyama (1st): 5 levels; (2nd): 15 Levels
Majima (1st): 10 Levels; (2nd): 20 Levels
Ryuji (1st): 15 levels; (2nd): 25 Levels
Kiryu: (1st) 30 levels, (2nd) Final confrontation with Amon BUT you must have all substories completed and all other protagonists Subterranea dungeons in their respective parts.

The final chapter does not let you switch protags, only premium adventure does. So incase you are planning to try to fight Amon without having to go complete the dungeons afterword in premium adventure, I suggest you complete the dungeons for eat protags as soon as they're assigned. Pretty much Kine (the guy who tells you about the dungeons) will tell you where this pot whole is and it has a purple evil aura around it, thats where the dungeon is. After you complete the dungeon the first time (lets say with Akiyama) you return to Kine and then he wants you to go back. He will do this for Akiyama, Majima, and Ryuji. As for Kiryu you only get the hell whole of the 30 straight levels of the same underground corridor. and then you get to fight Amon's Zombie Ancestor.

The game has the beauty of allowing 4 different protags all aligning into a cohesive story. However a big issue I had is that the end of the game lacked a satisfying ending in terms of having the 4 protagonists for the final boss, because we never get that in the actual game.
Like you have 4 parts for 4 protagonists and for the final chapter you don't have all 4 during the final boss like what.
Imo what they could've and should've done is had 4 phases for the boss, or they could've given the final boss a lot of health and pretty much as you take down some chunks of health the game switches to different protagonist to focus on a different aspect of gunfire, considering the 4 protags have specific weapons:

Akiyama: Dual Wielded Pistols
Majima: Shotgun
Ryuji Goda: Arm Cannon Gatling Gun
Kiryu: Anti-Material Sniper

Like the idea i have is the first phase with Akiyama where you use the pistols to shoot bubbles sprouting on the final boss causing damage until a certain point. Then for majima having a part where the boss gains strong skin and you switch to Majima and use the shotgun to destroy the tough skin. Then switching to Ryuji to use his gatling gun to pierce and cause damage to the exposed areas majima blasted off. Finally using Kiryu to specifically headshot the final boss and later finishing it with a Rocket Launcher.

However sadly it's just a final boss with Kiryu. The issue is not that Kiryu is playable only for the final boss, but considering this came out after Yakuza 4, they could've had a more satisfying final boss featuring the 4 protagonists (like the idea i stated in the previous paragraph)

The charming part of the game are the characters though, just seeing Majima get hyped over getting to kill zombies and act crazy is amazing, having Akiyama care so much about Hana and also trying to help Kiryu later on was just sweet, and seeing Kiryu and Ryuji interact and respecting eachother as 2 dragons was just so badass.

I love the Yakuza games, all of them, so much so I've played nearly all of them now, including this one. Only have 2 left to play being YAKUZA BLACK PANTHER 1 and 2. So I enjoy all of them and love every single one, though i do prefer some over others. I do have to say in terms of all the games this is the weakest in the franchise, however if you turn off your brain for this one, you'll enjoy it. But still I believe it's satisfying for Yakuza fans.

In the future I hope Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios makes a Yakuza LOST LEGACY COLLECTION for PS4/PS5/XBOX/STEAM featuring english versions of Kenzan, Ishin, Black Panther 1 and 2, and Dead Souls.
However realistically, we might get Yakuza 8 before anything I mentioned. But regardless, I just love this series so much, regardless if I felt that this was the weakest overall entry, I still enjoyed it.

Thanks so much :D

Dead Souls isn't an awful game, but there's so much that could be better about it. The story's a fun amalgamation of various zombie tropes featuring some of the Yakuza series most popular characters, but the gameplay ranges from alright to bad, with framerate dipping so low that the game is almost unplayable. The charm of the Yakuza games is even still in Dead Souls, with some alright substories, but I can't recommend playing Dead Souls unless you play it on easy and can put up with the framerate.