on par with judgment. Both are amazing games and i prefer judgment's story to lost judgment but still both amazing. Lost judgment has even better combat somehow and its probably some of my favourite ever.
I wish sugiura stayed a bit mysterious because i don't think he's great in this game. Kaito kinda gets sidelined which is one of my main complaints but i've heard kaito files is amazing. Some chapters are very uneventful and i think there is a bit too much talking. Other than that it's an amazing game
I wish sugiura stayed a bit mysterious because i don't think he's great in this game. Kaito kinda gets sidelined which is one of my main complaints but i've heard kaito files is amazing. Some chapters are very uneventful and i think there is a bit too much talking. Other than that it's an amazing game
This review contains spoilers
Lost Judgment is incredible. Yakuza 0 is likely always going to be my favorite RGG title, but Lost Judgment takes the cake for their best game.
The Combat was an incredible step up from the first game. I did have some issues with it towards the end... mainly with how slow the animations are; I wish this game had better cancel animations, especially since they clearly want you to dodge/parry and not button mash, but it's very satisfying to play otherwise. The detective mechanics were still present, but they felt a lot more toned down, and they were also just less present in the main campaign.
I didn't do much of the side content, but I liked what I did more than the first game. Amasawa was a genuine delight and I'm interested in doing the side content purely for more interactions with her (if they do make a third game, I hope she gets at least a cameo). Dance stuff was cool too.
The story wasn't as strong as the first game, but it was still good imo. It's a lot more personal, and while messy at times, it really stuck with me. I have a lot of thoughts on the central theme, but I really do love the message it sends.
The characters were great too. All of the returning characters were great. Hoshino did kind of get relegated to comic relief (a shame because he was my favorite in the first game) but he was still enjoyable. I loved how they expanded on the friendship between Saori and Yagami. I like how Sugiura was integrated too; he's no longer heavily connected to the emotional core of the story, but his dynamic is great imo. Kaito is HIM, love than man. Higashi was an excellent blend of genuinely cool and dorky af. Mafuyuu was sadly not all that present (another shame because her dynamic with Kaito and Yagami was cute) but it was still neat seeing her again; and Genda was solid too. I liked Tsukumo's increased role too.
The new characters were pretty excellent too. Sawa-sensei is not a character I expected to care about as much as I did, but I really liked her. I dunno, I just have a soft spot for characters that care so much. She’s someone who’s suffered a lot and carries such a large burden on herself, but she’s still a genuinely good person who tries so hard to fight in whatever way she can. I felt like genuinely empty inside when she died because she only ever tried to do good and she was killed simply because she cared too much. I wish we got more than just the rooftop scene, but it was enough to convey what I needed to know about her. Another minor character who I completely loved was Tesso. He’s just a delightfully chill character and I loved all of the “Anaki” stuff. Another character architype I have a soft spot for (the character who is super chill and just follows their gut feelings). The antagonists in this game were also incredible. Soma is such a slippery son a bitch, but I can’t help but admire how much of a shit he is. He’s not quite Adachi level (plus Adachi has the whole paralleling Yu thing going on) but he’s such an effective villain; I hated that man, but I loved hating him. And I mean, where do I begin with Kuwana. He is a fantastic antagonist. He’s completely justified in wanting to seek justice for victims of bullying, especially because of how they’re failed by the justice system, but murdering bullies is just not productive. I thought Yagami’s words during the trial were really impactful; you can’t go around enacting your own justice, it’s the job of the law to bring justice. The law in its current state is not saving those who need saving, so it’s the job of its creators and those who enact it to fix that. I don’t think Kuwana is wrong for how he feels, and I mean he very clearly does regret his lack of action before, but he’s only caused more issues than he’s solved. You can't keep redefining "justice" so it serves your own actions. I don’t condone Kuwana, but I do understand him. He’s a fascinating character, and he really did make me rethink my own thought process; I like characters who do that.
Lost Judgment is far from a perfect game, but it’s pretty damn close and it had a pretty big impact on me. I know there are some complications with continuing this IP, but I really hope RGG is able to work things out and bring us a new Judgment game because this series is so fucking good.
The Combat was an incredible step up from the first game. I did have some issues with it towards the end... mainly with how slow the animations are; I wish this game had better cancel animations, especially since they clearly want you to dodge/parry and not button mash, but it's very satisfying to play otherwise. The detective mechanics were still present, but they felt a lot more toned down, and they were also just less present in the main campaign.
I didn't do much of the side content, but I liked what I did more than the first game. Amasawa was a genuine delight and I'm interested in doing the side content purely for more interactions with her (if they do make a third game, I hope she gets at least a cameo). Dance stuff was cool too.
The story wasn't as strong as the first game, but it was still good imo. It's a lot more personal, and while messy at times, it really stuck with me. I have a lot of thoughts on the central theme, but I really do love the message it sends.
The characters were great too. All of the returning characters were great. Hoshino did kind of get relegated to comic relief (a shame because he was my favorite in the first game) but he was still enjoyable. I loved how they expanded on the friendship between Saori and Yagami. I like how Sugiura was integrated too; he's no longer heavily connected to the emotional core of the story, but his dynamic is great imo. Kaito is HIM, love than man. Higashi was an excellent blend of genuinely cool and dorky af. Mafuyuu was sadly not all that present (another shame because her dynamic with Kaito and Yagami was cute) but it was still neat seeing her again; and Genda was solid too. I liked Tsukumo's increased role too.
The new characters were pretty excellent too. Sawa-sensei is not a character I expected to care about as much as I did, but I really liked her. I dunno, I just have a soft spot for characters that care so much. She’s someone who’s suffered a lot and carries such a large burden on herself, but she’s still a genuinely good person who tries so hard to fight in whatever way she can. I felt like genuinely empty inside when she died because she only ever tried to do good and she was killed simply because she cared too much. I wish we got more than just the rooftop scene, but it was enough to convey what I needed to know about her. Another minor character who I completely loved was Tesso. He’s just a delightfully chill character and I loved all of the “Anaki” stuff. Another character architype I have a soft spot for (the character who is super chill and just follows their gut feelings). The antagonists in this game were also incredible. Soma is such a slippery son a bitch, but I can’t help but admire how much of a shit he is. He’s not quite Adachi level (plus Adachi has the whole paralleling Yu thing going on) but he’s such an effective villain; I hated that man, but I loved hating him. And I mean, where do I begin with Kuwana. He is a fantastic antagonist. He’s completely justified in wanting to seek justice for victims of bullying, especially because of how they’re failed by the justice system, but murdering bullies is just not productive. I thought Yagami’s words during the trial were really impactful; you can’t go around enacting your own justice, it’s the job of the law to bring justice. The law in its current state is not saving those who need saving, so it’s the job of its creators and those who enact it to fix that. I don’t think Kuwana is wrong for how he feels, and I mean he very clearly does regret his lack of action before, but he’s only caused more issues than he’s solved. You can't keep redefining "justice" so it serves your own actions. I don’t condone Kuwana, but I do understand him. He’s a fascinating character, and he really did make me rethink my own thought process; I like characters who do that.
Lost Judgment is far from a perfect game, but it’s pretty damn close and it had a pretty big impact on me. I know there are some complications with continuing this IP, but I really hope RGG is able to work things out and bring us a new Judgment game because this series is so fucking good.
Really wasn't into the whole school setting or bullying as a central topic from the get-go and the opening hours are quite slow. Some chapters are very uneventful and short, chapter 6 basically nothing of note happens and chapter 7 is just fighting the same boss 6 times in a row.
It the middle section things do get more engaging especially with Yagami and the main antagonists having a really good dynamic and dichotomy going on, even if Yagami is just screaming "SAWA-SENSEI!!!" half the time.
In the final stretch the story tries to connect a random government conspiracy (because every RGG game needs one) to the bully hunter stuff and it's all just pretty convoluted and incoherent, it makes the whole thing seem unfocused and sandwiched together with the RK stuff feeling like a different game. In the Finale there's a random RK brawl which involves the school students that's just there to remind you of their existence since they haven't been seen in like 10 chapters. It really sucks the tension out of things.
As mentioned before Yagami is kind of an annoying idiot at times, instead of ever really criticizing the broader issues with vigilantism he just endlessly screams "SAWA-SENSEI!!" like a toddler. Just like Judgement, Lost Judgement has a large cast of supporting characters that are never allowed to actually help out. At numerous points Yagami turns them down for no reason and they just lounge around. It's only in the finale where Kaito & Gang actually do things.
I was already a fan of Yagami's general combat in the last game and Lost Judgement fixes the big issue of Crane Style being a complete joke. It also adds the Snake Style, a parry style (basically Tanimura from Y4) which gives Yagami a distinct, flashy, well rounded 3 style moveset. His overall abilities were cranked up to 11, he's op as shit and especially in heat mode he just flies all over the battlefield like it's bayonetta or something. The Dragon Engine physics is still the achilles heel, it's as unpredictable and janky as ever and maybe because of all the new crazy shit I had noticeably more "what was that" moments than in the predecessor. So many boss attack hitboxes are straight up broken (especially if they involve a grab) and the boss in the 2nd to last fight just kept teleporting across the floor on some attacks.
The detective gameplay is still just whatever and not something I ever look forward to. 1 noticeable change from Judgement is that there's fewer tailing missions but now there's new stealth sections which are somehow even worse. The enemies visions is just so unpredictable and stupid and if you're spotted it's an instant game over no questions asked.
"School Stories" is the main side content piece and while the clubs do offer a lot of content, unfortunately said content isn't all too good and the attached story is boring at best, they even bring back the insufferable Keihin Gang from the first game. Not all clubs were created equally either, some have their own fleshed out (admittedly not great) mini-game while others like the esports club have you play a few rounds of Virtua Fighter and the gambling "club" is just a roundabout way of unlocking the casino, it's not even relevant to the overarching story. The 2 most disappointing ones were the dance and bike club, the Haruka rhythm game stuff from Yakuza 5 was pretty fun but the dance club music just simply stinks and the bike club had me thinking it was going to be a racing mini-game, which are usually quite good in the series, but instead it's a boring gimick brawling "racer". The final race deservers special mention as the entire 7 minute long experience is decided by pixel perfect boost usage at the end since the AI cheats and will catch up no matter what.
While the dance songs suck, the rest of the OST is godlike. Easily some of the most memorable boss themes in the series with the final one being especially good.
Paradise VR had some good minor tweaks done but the most noteworthy change was the addition of rivals that turn the mode into a race to the finish line and since they removed the skill that slows down the dice, it's a heavily RNG based race. Ideally you get enough star points each round to activate the turn skip skill which essentially removes the rival from the game.
The story has it's moments but it's so unfocused that it ends up being forgettable and nowhere near as engaging as the first one. Other things do at least somewhat make up for it, alongside the usual QoL changes that come with a sequel, Yagami's moveset has been drastically improved in basically every aspect and Lost Judgement is easily the best playing Dragon Engine game so far.
It the middle section things do get more engaging especially with Yagami and the main antagonists having a really good dynamic and dichotomy going on, even if Yagami is just screaming "SAWA-SENSEI!!!" half the time.
In the final stretch the story tries to connect a random government conspiracy (because every RGG game needs one) to the bully hunter stuff and it's all just pretty convoluted and incoherent, it makes the whole thing seem unfocused and sandwiched together with the RK stuff feeling like a different game. In the Finale there's a random RK brawl which involves the school students that's just there to remind you of their existence since they haven't been seen in like 10 chapters. It really sucks the tension out of things.
As mentioned before Yagami is kind of an annoying idiot at times, instead of ever really criticizing the broader issues with vigilantism he just endlessly screams "SAWA-SENSEI!!" like a toddler. Just like Judgement, Lost Judgement has a large cast of supporting characters that are never allowed to actually help out. At numerous points Yagami turns them down for no reason and they just lounge around. It's only in the finale where Kaito & Gang actually do things.
I was already a fan of Yagami's general combat in the last game and Lost Judgement fixes the big issue of Crane Style being a complete joke. It also adds the Snake Style, a parry style (basically Tanimura from Y4) which gives Yagami a distinct, flashy, well rounded 3 style moveset. His overall abilities were cranked up to 11, he's op as shit and especially in heat mode he just flies all over the battlefield like it's bayonetta or something. The Dragon Engine physics is still the achilles heel, it's as unpredictable and janky as ever and maybe because of all the new crazy shit I had noticeably more "what was that" moments than in the predecessor. So many boss attack hitboxes are straight up broken (especially if they involve a grab) and the boss in the 2nd to last fight just kept teleporting across the floor on some attacks.
The detective gameplay is still just whatever and not something I ever look forward to. 1 noticeable change from Judgement is that there's fewer tailing missions but now there's new stealth sections which are somehow even worse. The enemies visions is just so unpredictable and stupid and if you're spotted it's an instant game over no questions asked.
"School Stories" is the main side content piece and while the clubs do offer a lot of content, unfortunately said content isn't all too good and the attached story is boring at best, they even bring back the insufferable Keihin Gang from the first game. Not all clubs were created equally either, some have their own fleshed out (admittedly not great) mini-game while others like the esports club have you play a few rounds of Virtua Fighter and the gambling "club" is just a roundabout way of unlocking the casino, it's not even relevant to the overarching story. The 2 most disappointing ones were the dance and bike club, the Haruka rhythm game stuff from Yakuza 5 was pretty fun but the dance club music just simply stinks and the bike club had me thinking it was going to be a racing mini-game, which are usually quite good in the series, but instead it's a boring gimick brawling "racer". The final race deservers special mention as the entire 7 minute long experience is decided by pixel perfect boost usage at the end since the AI cheats and will catch up no matter what.
While the dance songs suck, the rest of the OST is godlike. Easily some of the most memorable boss themes in the series with the final one being especially good.
Paradise VR had some good minor tweaks done but the most noteworthy change was the addition of rivals that turn the mode into a race to the finish line and since they removed the skill that slows down the dice, it's a heavily RNG based race. Ideally you get enough star points each round to activate the turn skip skill which essentially removes the rival from the game.
The story has it's moments but it's so unfocused that it ends up being forgettable and nowhere near as engaging as the first one. Other things do at least somewhat make up for it, alongside the usual QoL changes that come with a sequel, Yagami's moveset has been drastically improved in basically every aspect and Lost Judgement is easily the best playing Dragon Engine game so far.
After playing Judgment 1, I was really hyped for the second one. They had already sold me on the characters and the world, and I was expecting a story on the same level as the first. While they improved the game overall, with significantly less repetitive missions and new gameplay modes, without a doubt making it a superior game, I feel like the story fell a bit short compared to the first. It's not that the story is bad; it's just not as good. However, the Kaito Files DLC has a really cool story and was a lot of fun to play. I recommend it to anyone who has already bought the second game to consider getting the DLC, as it offers plenty of content and is quite enjoyable.
Better combat, more side content, and a story that while falling short to the original in spots I loved even more. Lost judgement is peak RGG.
THE YEAR OF THE DRAGON
From the get-go, Lost Judgment already displayed how much of a glow-up it is technically from its predecessor. The experience RGG had with their powerhouse of the Dragon Engine feels the most polished here, delivering unquestionably the best real-time action gameplay they’ve ever done, even more so than the mainline Yakuza/Like A Dragon entries. While not quite to the lengths I prefer it to be taken, the premise of following a detective feels better taken advantage of with unique gameplay additions like radar detection and a dog to help sniff out the map. Judgment was still a great game, but its biggest blemish that dragged it from being an absolute peak was the side-content being… much less than desirable. Something which has been mostly addressed here, with side-cases feeling more entertaining showcases of Yagami as a detective and extra mini-games beyond Drome Racing and Paradise VR. They took cues from Yakuza 0 and greatly reworked his moveset to incorporate four different brawler styles with revamped skills worth buying. Yakuza/Like A Dragon may shift gears to an attempt at turn-based combat, but I think what RGG cooked with the gameplay here proved there’s still room for the older real-time action combat to stick around alongside it. From the sounds of it, I’m very impressed by how much of an improvement Lost Judgment was from Judgment and even consider it to be, overall, just a better game. Except… despite how much I preferred playing this more over Judgment, I still think it fell short in one department where the other game still had an edge over it.
I was completely surprised by how Lost Judgment’s story tackled sensitive topics that I never thought RGG would think themselves capable of making a game about. It’s unexpected as a direction to take after a mystery like the first game, but I applaud the bold approach in shinning a light on the cyclical nature of bullying. The actual threats are hardly ever held accountable for their actions, and so no justice was truly delivered by a broken system that continuously failed the victims who suffered. While Yagami isn’t quite interesting here as he was in Judgment, his dynamic with the main antagonist underlined his conviction as someone who believes law, imperfect as it is, needs people like him to make it by protecting the ones it couldn’t save. The main antagonist definitely deserves to be included in the conversations of amazing RGG villains, perhaps being the most complex and sympathetic. I really enjoy aspects of the wider narrative but the actual ‘storytelling’ itself left a lot to be desired, if that distinction makes sense. Judgment’s story may be a more typical mystery conspiracy thriller with much less to say about current social issues, but it was one that felt personally involved with set-up that paid off in what I still see as one of the best final stretches of any RGG game. The Judgment Four all had a personal stake in the conspiracy that linked them all together to put a stop to the root of their troubles. It wasn’t so much about Yagami and the gang solving a mystery to unearth the truth, but to ensure judgment was given to those responsible for ruining people’s livelihoods, including the ones closest to them. Here, they’re all underutilized within the plot, except for Yagami, never having a personal stake for why they’re investigating a murder mystery together that made you feel like these guys are a team working towards a common goal. It made the narrative feel emotionally disconnected, despite Yagami reminding you constantly what’s driving him about this, which felt artificial after a while as a motivation compared to the last game. I would try to weigh in my thoughts on its message about bullying but to be honest this is out of my range to give a nuanced discussion on, so all I can say is that I think RGG just aren’t the best developers to tackle this subject matter, even if I respect the attempt.
I’m not familiar with the current status of the Judgment subseries, too afraid to do some deep-diving research for the sake of potential spoilers for Infinite Wealth, but I hope this isn’t the end. Despite their imperfections, I'm grateful for their efforts to enhance and broaden both the story and gameplay aspects of Yakuza/Like A Dragon. I definitely think there is a Judgment game from the potential kept brewing here to be a close favorite of mine. A certified all-timer, even. Yagami is already an honorable mention for one of my all-time favorite fictional protagonists, so I just want my newfound GOAT to get the perfect game he deserves.
From the get-go, Lost Judgment already displayed how much of a glow-up it is technically from its predecessor. The experience RGG had with their powerhouse of the Dragon Engine feels the most polished here, delivering unquestionably the best real-time action gameplay they’ve ever done, even more so than the mainline Yakuza/Like A Dragon entries. While not quite to the lengths I prefer it to be taken, the premise of following a detective feels better taken advantage of with unique gameplay additions like radar detection and a dog to help sniff out the map. Judgment was still a great game, but its biggest blemish that dragged it from being an absolute peak was the side-content being… much less than desirable. Something which has been mostly addressed here, with side-cases feeling more entertaining showcases of Yagami as a detective and extra mini-games beyond Drome Racing and Paradise VR. They took cues from Yakuza 0 and greatly reworked his moveset to incorporate four different brawler styles with revamped skills worth buying. Yakuza/Like A Dragon may shift gears to an attempt at turn-based combat, but I think what RGG cooked with the gameplay here proved there’s still room for the older real-time action combat to stick around alongside it. From the sounds of it, I’m very impressed by how much of an improvement Lost Judgment was from Judgment and even consider it to be, overall, just a better game. Except… despite how much I preferred playing this more over Judgment, I still think it fell short in one department where the other game still had an edge over it.
I was completely surprised by how Lost Judgment’s story tackled sensitive topics that I never thought RGG would think themselves capable of making a game about. It’s unexpected as a direction to take after a mystery like the first game, but I applaud the bold approach in shinning a light on the cyclical nature of bullying. The actual threats are hardly ever held accountable for their actions, and so no justice was truly delivered by a broken system that continuously failed the victims who suffered. While Yagami isn’t quite interesting here as he was in Judgment, his dynamic with the main antagonist underlined his conviction as someone who believes law, imperfect as it is, needs people like him to make it by protecting the ones it couldn’t save. The main antagonist definitely deserves to be included in the conversations of amazing RGG villains, perhaps being the most complex and sympathetic. I really enjoy aspects of the wider narrative but the actual ‘storytelling’ itself left a lot to be desired, if that distinction makes sense. Judgment’s story may be a more typical mystery conspiracy thriller with much less to say about current social issues, but it was one that felt personally involved with set-up that paid off in what I still see as one of the best final stretches of any RGG game. The Judgment Four all had a personal stake in the conspiracy that linked them all together to put a stop to the root of their troubles. It wasn’t so much about Yagami and the gang solving a mystery to unearth the truth, but to ensure judgment was given to those responsible for ruining people’s livelihoods, including the ones closest to them. Here, they’re all underutilized within the plot, except for Yagami, never having a personal stake for why they’re investigating a murder mystery together that made you feel like these guys are a team working towards a common goal. It made the narrative feel emotionally disconnected, despite Yagami reminding you constantly what’s driving him about this, which felt artificial after a while as a motivation compared to the last game. I would try to weigh in my thoughts on its message about bullying but to be honest this is out of my range to give a nuanced discussion on, so all I can say is that I think RGG just aren’t the best developers to tackle this subject matter, even if I respect the attempt.
I’m not familiar with the current status of the Judgment subseries, too afraid to do some deep-diving research for the sake of potential spoilers for Infinite Wealth, but I hope this isn’t the end. Despite their imperfections, I'm grateful for their efforts to enhance and broaden both the story and gameplay aspects of Yakuza/Like A Dragon. I definitely think there is a Judgment game from the potential kept brewing here to be a close favorite of mine. A certified all-timer, even. Yagami is already an honorable mention for one of my all-time favorite fictional protagonists, so I just want my newfound GOAT to get the perfect game he deserves.
This shit kept putting me to sleep oh my god the story sucks like major ass, snake style and tiger style in this game are probably some of the best styles in the whole series but the enemies are so weak and easy and i don’t think the story is nearly long enough to get that much out of the gameplay, school stories were alright i guess the robotics one was cool but i think yokohama was such a waste in this game and traversing is so insanely boring also yagami is so fucking boring
WHAT. A. GAME. WHAT A STORY MY GOD.
my god i love this maybe a bit too much, the fixating on the injustice in the court system to taking justice with your own hands, this game really has one the best MORALLY GREY casts of all time.
kuwana is just too good, what a villian. just CINEMA. hes so ominous, the mental torture and the cruelty he projects on his former students and victims in the name of justice, just amazing.
i know people found annoying, but i think yagami bringing up sawa sensei everytime is great. and he makes a pretty good point, can you call what happened to her justice? emphasizing how she deserves justice as well and how kuwanas actions directly led to her death.
ehara and soma were also great characters, and the kaito files were also great.
the combat wow, RGG perfected it, this the peak of combat in the entire franchise, the details the new movesets, the new fighting styles, all the new great Ex-action. honestly top 5 combat of all time.
my god i love this maybe a bit too much, the fixating on the injustice in the court system to taking justice with your own hands, this game really has one the best MORALLY GREY casts of all time.
kuwana is just too good, what a villian. just CINEMA. hes so ominous, the mental torture and the cruelty he projects on his former students and victims in the name of justice, just amazing.
i know people found annoying, but i think yagami bringing up sawa sensei everytime is great. and he makes a pretty good point, can you call what happened to her justice? emphasizing how she deserves justice as well and how kuwanas actions directly led to her death.
ehara and soma were also great characters, and the kaito files were also great.
the combat wow, RGG perfected it, this the peak of combat in the entire franchise, the details the new movesets, the new fighting styles, all the new great Ex-action. honestly top 5 combat of all time.
I really dug Judgment when I played it earlier this year so I was pretty hype for the sequel. For my taste, it doesn't quite stack up. I still think it's a pretty solid title but I have my hang ups.
To start on the positive side, the combat is super smooth. Some of the most fluid gameplay they've had. Snake style is a ton of fun, I loved parrying and making enemies look like fools. That said, I could've done without Yagami taking so fucking long to get up sometimes. I get it's to make him feel more human compared to other protagonists (mainly Kiryu) but it started to grind my gears some. I played with the Japanese audio but the voice acting is always great. Visually this thing's beautiful.
Story wise I'm up and down. They went a similar route with the prior title, giving sympathetic edges to the villains. I dug a fair amount of the characters, I liked seeing the gang back again. But I do think this lost me a little towards the end. I'd personally prefer if they did these LA Noire style with different cases. Maybe give me four cases, four chapters each. The long winded conspiracy shit started to drain me. I think the court segments help tie everything together but it's still so drawn out it gets exhausting.
The side content has always been a plus for me with these games. There's a ton of it, some won't appeal to you at all, but surely something will catch your eye. I liked the side cases here though I'm not into the whole listening to people on the street and trying to twitter search keywords to find substories. Some of this stuff was kinda overwhelming with just the amount of content I didn't find too interesting. I don't care about finding squirrel graffiti then wandering in a circle for 2 minutes to find a fuckin' pebble or something. Extracts can be useful but I never really needed them, I'll never care about VR, I don't care much about becoming BFFs with every stray cat either. So for me, outside of the side cases none of them really hit for me.
Outside of the combat I had issues with the other gameplay features. Parkour is boring, the stealth is pretty weak even laughable at times. Tailing still isn't very good. Chases sequences are still just OK. I wasn't too big on the gadgets either. It felt like filler to pad out the gameplay. Nothing kills momentum like fighting your way through a warehouse of thugs only to stop and start lockpicking doors or fumbling around searching for some obscure clue on where to go next.
All in all, I liked it. Overrated to a degree. If they make another Judgment I'll play it, if not I won't lose any sleep.
To start on the positive side, the combat is super smooth. Some of the most fluid gameplay they've had. Snake style is a ton of fun, I loved parrying and making enemies look like fools. That said, I could've done without Yagami taking so fucking long to get up sometimes. I get it's to make him feel more human compared to other protagonists (mainly Kiryu) but it started to grind my gears some. I played with the Japanese audio but the voice acting is always great. Visually this thing's beautiful.
Story wise I'm up and down. They went a similar route with the prior title, giving sympathetic edges to the villains. I dug a fair amount of the characters, I liked seeing the gang back again. But I do think this lost me a little towards the end. I'd personally prefer if they did these LA Noire style with different cases. Maybe give me four cases, four chapters each. The long winded conspiracy shit started to drain me. I think the court segments help tie everything together but it's still so drawn out it gets exhausting.
The side content has always been a plus for me with these games. There's a ton of it, some won't appeal to you at all, but surely something will catch your eye. I liked the side cases here though I'm not into the whole listening to people on the street and trying to twitter search keywords to find substories. Some of this stuff was kinda overwhelming with just the amount of content I didn't find too interesting. I don't care about finding squirrel graffiti then wandering in a circle for 2 minutes to find a fuckin' pebble or something. Extracts can be useful but I never really needed them, I'll never care about VR, I don't care much about becoming BFFs with every stray cat either. So for me, outside of the side cases none of them really hit for me.
Outside of the combat I had issues with the other gameplay features. Parkour is boring, the stealth is pretty weak even laughable at times. Tailing still isn't very good. Chases sequences are still just OK. I wasn't too big on the gadgets either. It felt like filler to pad out the gameplay. Nothing kills momentum like fighting your way through a warehouse of thugs only to stop and start lockpicking doors or fumbling around searching for some obscure clue on where to go next.
All in all, I liked it. Overrated to a degree. If they make another Judgment I'll play it, if not I won't lose any sleep.
the inverse of judgment
AMAZING combat but the story is middling
AMAZING combat but the story is middling
they have really improved on the overall game engine, fighting mechanics and cutscene production for this game
More Judgement is a good thing, and this one comes with the added bonus of having a bunch of silly minigames to do at school and I love it.
Lost Judgment took everything I loved about the first game and cranked it up a notch! Yagami's a great detective, and the story is super intriguing, but the combat is where it really shines – it's so satisfying to pull off those wild moves. Yokohama feels even bigger to explore, and there are tons of wacky side cases to keep you busy. Some of the stealth sections can be annoying, but if you love action games, detective stories, and just a bit of Japanese craziness, Lost Judgment is a must-play.
Quite literally every single problem I had with Judgment was fixed and then some. I thought the Yakuza games peaked with 2 but RGG has finally topped it. Every single aspect about this game is nearly perfect, the combat the story the side content the characters, basically everything is done incredibly well. This is the best RGG game that doesn't have Kenzan in the title.
le poulet
Loved it other the final chapter which was a bit of an overlong slog. I love the story of the Judgment games, I’d go so far to say that they’re both in my top 5 videogame stories. The characters remain great, Yagami is my boy! I even think the combat felt a little better in this compared to the others I’ve played. I’d say the side stories are a little weaker too as none of them were particularly memorable but admittedly I didn’t do them all.
The best combat RGG has made, great side content, cool QOL changes, less tailing missions, overall big upgrade to Judgment.
Only the story is mixed - great villains, good topic of the story, cool to have a lot of returning characters, but writing is sometimes weird and Yagami as a protag is worse in this game.
Only I wish there was more long battles and boss battles missions and coliseum in side content. Also boxer style should be unlockable in boxing minigame.
Only the story is mixed - great villains, good topic of the story, cool to have a lot of returning characters, but writing is sometimes weird and Yagami as a protag is worse in this game.
Only I wish there was more long battles and boss battles missions and coliseum in side content. Also boxer style should be unlockable in boxing minigame.
Really amazing combat with a really frustrating story. I hate how they basically undid all of Yagami's personal growth in this game. It's also a bit larger than I'd like, but I found most of the side content to be enjoyable at least.
Es hat die bekannten Yakuzastärken und die bekannten Yakuzaschwächen.
Die Story und die Hauptdialoge sind super.
Die Nebenstorys zum Vergessen schlecht.
Die Minigames alle viiieeel zu langsam und unbedeutend.
Monopoly ist nachweislich das schlechteste Brettspiel der Welt. Und dennoch wurde hier eine noch schlechtere Version eingebaut. Warum?
Und dennoch bin ich froh, dass ich trotz dem mieserabelen Yakuza Like a Dragon Lost Judgment gespielt zu haben.
Die Dialoge der Mainstory haben so eine hohe Qualität, gerade in Verbindung mit dem genialen Soundtrack.
Wäre nicht alles andere (vom Kämpfen, über die Kletterpassagen bis hin zu den Verfolgungsszenen) nervig, könnte man das Spiel jedem problemlos empfehlen.
Aber die Yakuzakrankheiten bleiben, daher idealerweise auf leicht stellen und einfach ALLES ignorieren, was nicht der Mainstory dient.
Die Story und die Hauptdialoge sind super.
Die Nebenstorys zum Vergessen schlecht.
Die Minigames alle viiieeel zu langsam und unbedeutend.
Monopoly ist nachweislich das schlechteste Brettspiel der Welt. Und dennoch wurde hier eine noch schlechtere Version eingebaut. Warum?
Und dennoch bin ich froh, dass ich trotz dem mieserabelen Yakuza Like a Dragon Lost Judgment gespielt zu haben.
Die Dialoge der Mainstory haben so eine hohe Qualität, gerade in Verbindung mit dem genialen Soundtrack.
Wäre nicht alles andere (vom Kämpfen, über die Kletterpassagen bis hin zu den Verfolgungsszenen) nervig, könnte man das Spiel jedem problemlos empfehlen.
Aber die Yakuzakrankheiten bleiben, daher idealerweise auf leicht stellen und einfach ALLES ignorieren, was nicht der Mainstory dient.