So I actually played both Judgment and Yakuza 0 before this. I loved them both and was excited to dive into the Yakuza series in order. Well I'm happy to say I do like this game overall, but it definitely has issues imo.
First things first, yes I did play this on my PS2 so I played with the dub. Honestly, it isn't absolutely terrible. I did actually think some moments were effective even with the voice acting. Plus John Dimaggio is in this a lot so that's epic. Obviously though, the dub can be bad a lot of the time too. Sometimes in very funny ways which really works in humorous scenes...and sometimes it happens in very serious scenes which does stink.
The story...was good overall I'd say. It does throw a bunch of lesser little fetch quests and stuff near the middle of the game and then saves the crazy stuff for the very end, which makes it feel a bit unfocused... but it does have some genuinely good moments I feel. Kiryu was surprisingly emotive in this game compared to Yakuza 0, thought that was interesting.
The combat is honestly solid. Once you get used to your entire move set, it's pretty fun. I really like the chunkiness Kiryu has in this game, it feels really good to punch dudes. The encounters can be annoying though, mostly if they have guns. The game feels a but unbalanced where if its a one-on-one fight with a brawler only enemy or boss, it's usually easy. However, if its an enemy with a gun it can be very frustrating. That 2nd to last battle was incredibly annoying, but at least the final fight was fun albeit too easy.
I didn't do many side missions but the ones I did were cool. The fixed camera in Kamurocho was kind of cool, made the town more atmospheric. I liked the ps2 feel this game had compared to Judgment or Yakuza 0.
While I cannot say I liked this nearly as much as Judgment or Yakuza 0, I did enjoy my time with it even if it's pretty flawed. If I played it subbed, it might be a 7 idk but with how I played it...I'll give it a 6.5.
I'm pretty excited for Yakuza 2 cuz I heard it improved on a lot of shit in this game and that it's peak.
First things first, yes I did play this on my PS2 so I played with the dub. Honestly, it isn't absolutely terrible. I did actually think some moments were effective even with the voice acting. Plus John Dimaggio is in this a lot so that's epic. Obviously though, the dub can be bad a lot of the time too. Sometimes in very funny ways which really works in humorous scenes...and sometimes it happens in very serious scenes which does stink.
The story...was good overall I'd say. It does throw a bunch of lesser little fetch quests and stuff near the middle of the game and then saves the crazy stuff for the very end, which makes it feel a bit unfocused... but it does have some genuinely good moments I feel. Kiryu was surprisingly emotive in this game compared to Yakuza 0, thought that was interesting.
The combat is honestly solid. Once you get used to your entire move set, it's pretty fun. I really like the chunkiness Kiryu has in this game, it feels really good to punch dudes. The encounters can be annoying though, mostly if they have guns. The game feels a but unbalanced where if its a one-on-one fight with a brawler only enemy or boss, it's usually easy. However, if its an enemy with a gun it can be very frustrating. That 2nd to last battle was incredibly annoying, but at least the final fight was fun albeit too easy.
I didn't do many side missions but the ones I did were cool. The fixed camera in Kamurocho was kind of cool, made the town more atmospheric. I liked the ps2 feel this game had compared to Judgment or Yakuza 0.
While I cannot say I liked this nearly as much as Judgment or Yakuza 0, I did enjoy my time with it even if it's pretty flawed. If I played it subbed, it might be a 7 idk but with how I played it...I'll give it a 6.5.
I'm pretty excited for Yakuza 2 cuz I heard it improved on a lot of shit in this game and that it's peak.
A cold damp wind flows across town, invading the pores of your skin. To walk the streets of Kamurocho is being subjected to a freeze frame every 10 seconds as you move across streets, you will listen to the same whispers on the streets looping in the span of a blink or two. Which is why it speaks volumes that Yakuza is still able to envelop you inside itself; the combination of the thick atmosphere and the blaring soundtrack makes every fight feel like a battle for survival. It’s something that I feel has been lost from this franchise, with only 2018’s Judgement being able to replicate that feeling to some capacity. No doubt a million praises have been sung for this game’s atmosphere but every single positive comment is earned.
This is exactly the reason why every gesture of worship I offer the original Yakuza becomes nothing more than another point in a long list of reasons why I don’t like Yakuza: Kiwami. It’s easy for new fans of the series to look at the remake and make a false assumption that it must be better due to the fact it shares 0’s shiny combat as if the combat of the original game is something broken, something “outdated”. People will throw out the statement that the original’s combat “aged badly” as if it was something that needed to be fixed but actually playing the game it’s laughable at how this couldn’t be further from the truth. Every punch every kick has an oomph to it, and each heavy attack has this satisfying sound when your hits connect; although it’s more a question of if your hits connect because despite crafting up a combat system that’s still very enjoyable, there are inevitably a few shortcomings which hold it back from reaching the heights that it can, although maybe I’m just spoiled by later entries as even Yakuza 2 was a step up in this regard, with every entry after it slowly perfecting the combat, and subsequently elevating the legend of the Dragon of Dojima itself, and that is exactly why Yakuza is a game that shouldn’t be overlooked.
It’s easy to look at the bombastic stories of later entries like 0 and think the first game is tame by comparison but what Yakuza lacks in its set pieces, it more than makes up for with a narrative that’s just as enthralling as today as it was in 2005. It’s this game’s very simplicity that raises this entry by a significant margin, it’s a tale about two men who are done running from their problems. This is their destiny, any regrets they carry is baggage that will always weigh them down yet they keep moving onward, they keep moving towards each other. The Koi will shed everything to become the Dragon, even if it means hurting what it once held close. There’s no going back. They can only go forward.
𝗧𝗢 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗜𝗦 𝗧𝗢 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗥𝗨𝗡 𝗔𝗪𝗔𝗬.
This is exactly the reason why every gesture of worship I offer the original Yakuza becomes nothing more than another point in a long list of reasons why I don’t like Yakuza: Kiwami. It’s easy for new fans of the series to look at the remake and make a false assumption that it must be better due to the fact it shares 0’s shiny combat as if the combat of the original game is something broken, something “outdated”. People will throw out the statement that the original’s combat “aged badly” as if it was something that needed to be fixed but actually playing the game it’s laughable at how this couldn’t be further from the truth. Every punch every kick has an oomph to it, and each heavy attack has this satisfying sound when your hits connect; although it’s more a question of if your hits connect because despite crafting up a combat system that’s still very enjoyable, there are inevitably a few shortcomings which hold it back from reaching the heights that it can, although maybe I’m just spoiled by later entries as even Yakuza 2 was a step up in this regard, with every entry after it slowly perfecting the combat, and subsequently elevating the legend of the Dragon of Dojima itself, and that is exactly why Yakuza is a game that shouldn’t be overlooked.
It’s easy to look at the bombastic stories of later entries like 0 and think the first game is tame by comparison but what Yakuza lacks in its set pieces, it more than makes up for with a narrative that’s just as enthralling as today as it was in 2005. It’s this game’s very simplicity that raises this entry by a significant margin, it’s a tale about two men who are done running from their problems. This is their destiny, any regrets they carry is baggage that will always weigh them down yet they keep moving onward, they keep moving towards each other. The Koi will shed everything to become the Dragon, even if it means hurting what it once held close. There’s no going back. They can only go forward.
𝗧𝗢 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗜𝗦 𝗧𝗢 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗥𝗨𝗡 𝗔𝗪𝗔𝗬.
I really hate this mindset that preferring the original Yakuza 1 and 2 over the Kiwami remakes is nothing but elitism.
I started playing this franchise when 0 came to PC in 2018. Even with that, I still prefer these versions of the games. These games have a unique grit to them that the Kiwami games do not capture well at all. For Kiwami 1 in particular, it feels more like 0 but worse and with less content more than a remake of this game. Worst part is that Sega is actively treating the Kiwami games as replacements instead of alternatives.
In terms of the game itself I think it mostly holds up well. Even without the ability to change the directions of combos it does not take long to get used to. Story is still entertaining with my only issue being Nishiki's sudden betrayal (the one thing Kiwami objectively did better).
If you can I do recommend starting with this game and the OG Yakuza 2 and go from release order from there, and playing 0 in between 5 and 6. You'll appreciate how the series naturally grows instead of starting with 0 (which is the best game in the series) then following up with the Kiwami games.
I started playing this franchise when 0 came to PC in 2018. Even with that, I still prefer these versions of the games. These games have a unique grit to them that the Kiwami games do not capture well at all. For Kiwami 1 in particular, it feels more like 0 but worse and with less content more than a remake of this game. Worst part is that Sega is actively treating the Kiwami games as replacements instead of alternatives.
In terms of the game itself I think it mostly holds up well. Even without the ability to change the directions of combos it does not take long to get used to. Story is still entertaining with my only issue being Nishiki's sudden betrayal (the one thing Kiwami objectively did better).
If you can I do recommend starting with this game and the OG Yakuza 2 and go from release order from there, and playing 0 in between 5 and 6. You'll appreciate how the series naturally grows instead of starting with 0 (which is the best game in the series) then following up with the Kiwami games.
I played this game in Japanese with the PS3 HD Remaster and its pretty dang solid. Its got a great aesthetic and the story is tight, probably the easiest to follow in the series while still being interesting. The side content that this series is known for is only here in small servings, and the substories are few and tend to be pretty dramatic, which is both an upside and a downside. This is the Yakuza game with the worst combat, but Kiryu's moveset still feels pretty good and you can absolutely tear through enemies if you know what you're doing. Overall there are reasons to like the original more than its much meatier remake, but I think both have their advantages. Glad I played this, and I will be hopping on 2 at some point.
It is pretty crazy how someway I managed to playthrough Zero without even knowing anything about Yakuza Kiwami/1 which was kinda cool how I got to experience it that way. However, when I jumped from Zero to Kiwami I felt really strange with it and obviously Zero was the better and more memorable experience. I have always wanted to go back and experience the Original installment that started it all and comparing it to Kiwami it was impressive to see how similar it was to Kiwami and the other games even to this day. Truly it felt ahead of its time and I enjoyed it with the English dub which was kind of bad in a good way. It oozed the PS2 style which I absolutely love with the console and very excited to play so many others from the PS2 library I have not got to yet.! My first time playing a Yakuza game for a second time as well and I enjoyed this one even more and makes me so happy I did manage to get the Kiwami Steelbook as this game made me love this one even more than before and now I need to just check out the Japanese live-action movie! Can't believe how many of the homeless people look like Charles Manson dude, and why is that one street hoodlum wearing a green basketball jersey that says "FART"! So many times I looked for a place for Karaoke, but I guess it's not in the original one. No Baka Mitai for meeee!!
I’ve been meaning to play the ’Yakuza’ games for a long while now, but always found myself caught up in different franchises constantly. I can confidently say I hate myself for not playing it sooner. I fucking loved ’Yakuza’. I was hooked to a point where the moment I woke up I thought “I really want to play ‘Yakuza’ right now.” This game exceeded my expectations and then some. It has joined along side ’Silent Hill 4: The Room’ and ’Fatal Frame’ as one of my favorite titles on the Playstation 2 ever. I was in love the entire way through its gameplay, narrative, music, world design, basically everything. Now, the game does have a few issues and in certain aspects hasn’t aged perfectly, but it was still impressive to me how accessible and good ’Yakuza’ felt more than fifteen years later.
The game uses a fixed camera perspective as it's easier for the developers to mask some areas loading in with this technique. I’ve always preferred tank controls you’d find from ’Alone in the Dark’ or ’Resident Evil’ with this camera system, but due to ’Yakuza’ being much faster and action oriented, the 3D control scheme works for the better here. I tend to believe that this movement feels worse in enclosed locations, but ’Yakuza’ has very few moments in small areas and focuses more on a large, wide space to traverse through which works towards its benefit to not feel as awkward. The approach taken here was a good one and it doesn’t get in the way of combat either.
The fights in ’Yakuza’ are fantastic. It may be a bit repetitive for some, but I feel the game gives enough options and risk/reward moments to always make it feel like it doesn’t overstay its welcome. You’ll have a few basic combos that you can use to fight baddies with variations of punches, kicks, and grabs. You’ll also be able to stomp on someone before they get up when you knock them down. Then the big thing that helps it from being too tedious is that almost anything can be a weapon. Grabbing a bicycle and twirling around with it knocking everyone around you down never gets old. It remains fun and some weapons can even have different effects such as the tasers and guns. There are other systems to take note of such as dodging and blocking. Blocking is easy by just guarding at the right time, but dodging I never really got the hang of since it felt awkward to me. Dodging isn’t something that is really required though and you can pretty much go through the whole game without needing to worry about it much. The only time combat feels frustrating is when enemies have weapons that can stunlock you for a long time. There were moments where I would get tased by a guy and after Kiryu takes a few years to stand back up he would get tased again. This looped over and over and that can be annoying, but you can sometimes knock weapons out of enemies hands so that helps balance it out a bit.
The other major part of the combat that I haven't mentioned is the heat gauge. When you do enough damage to enemies, a meter will fill and Kiryu will be engrossed with blue flames and at this moment you can do multiple special moves. The main one you have from the start is you can grab an enemy and slam them against a wall. This does a huge amount of damage, but if you take too long dragging an enemy to a wall, your meter will run out or they can break your grab. This can be difficult to pull off so when you do it, it feels really satisfying especially since it's complemented with a big flashy scene. Sometimes in these moments you’ll get a very quick QTE to stomp them while they are down which just adds to the gratification of the moment. I feel though it can be a bit inconsistent at times. Sometimes I would have gotten the special prompt and would’ve interacted with it at the right time, but it would lead to the same punch he would do when he normally grabs an enemy. It always left me feeling a little empty when this happened as I know I did what I needed to do. There are other kinds of special attacks though. After a few upgrades, you can do two extra special moves. A special stomp while an enemy is on the ground and a special attack with a weapon. Neither of these do anywhere near as much damage as the main one, but still do a good amount. Although they don’t do as much damage, they are much easier to pull off. It leads into the risk/reward system I mentioned perfectly as it makes you choose whether you will go for a full blow or one of the other more simple moves. The choice has to be made quickly as the heat gauge will deplete over time and can fall even quicker if you take enough damage. I adore how the heat gauge works and I think it’s what ends up saving the combat from getting too mundane near the end.
The upgrade system in ’Yakuza’ is very simple, but serves the game well. You have three choices with upgrading being soul, technique, and body. These basically are an improved heat gauge, new combos and moves, and health. You’ll unlock experience from simply engaging in combat which can come at a strikingly fast rate. It isn’t too complex and doesn’t need to be. It feels fleshed out and complements the game's systems and combat really well. I spent almost all my points entirely on health and technique as I found I was able to make choices with the heat gauge quickly and it’s always fun unlocking a new combo or attack and trying it out for the first time.
A majority of the game is spent in a small open world that I enjoy. I tend to be very critical of open world games, but ’Yakuza’ is by far one of the bests I’ve seen with the style. The world is small and compact which leads to you memorizing the world over time and just naturally knowing where to go when you need to go to a certain place. I adore these types of games where over time you look at the map less and less as you learn the layout and have it in the back of your head. It always is extraordinarily satisfying getting to that point. A majority of the side quests are simple and tend to be a civilian losing an item and you need to go find and give it to them, but there are a few notable ones which act out as more important and story driven. These ones were very memorable. There’s also a good amount of stores and places you can actually go into such as arcades, restaurants (from simple chains to fancy bars), casinos, and strip clubs. These all make the world feel real especially since you’ll end up learning where these locations exactly are by heart. There is also a feature where random people in the world will just go up to you and fight you for the dumbest reasons. These were funny, but it is a bit difficult to avoid the encounters sometimes if you are meaning to because of the camera angle. This can be quite annoying, especially when you are at the end of the game and just want to do story stuff, but it isn’t too frustrating that it ruins the game’s pacing or anything.
The normal main storyline campaign is also really well paced and structured. The game doesn’t overstay its welcome and knows how long to keep certain chapters and to keep you engaged… mostly. There can be a few times where it feels the game is padding itself a little bit by making you do small fetch quests, but these aren’t ever too long to be noticeable, usually lasting around fifteen or twenty minutes. I felt it was worth mentioning because this does happen here and there, but it doesn’t waste too much of your time which is why I believe it’s as well paced as it is, especially compared to other open world games that drag itself on for a miserable amount of time.
’Yakuza’ has a wild fucking story. So many twists, turns, and insane things happening. I fucking love it. The plot centers around three specific people being Detective Date, Haruka, and of course, Kazuma Kiryu. Haruka is a little girl that you and Date try to protect throughout the game as she has a pendant that is worth ten billion yen that was given to her from her missing mother. With a strong focus on characters, that is the best aspect of the story. The more time you spend with these people, the more you care about them. The way they interact with each other and trust one another more is especially well executed. They don’t just do this through cutscenes, but even gameplay at times. I know a lot of people may not enjoy escorting Haruka around the city, but I loved going to arcades and ice cream shops with her. It doesn’t just make the father/daughter dynamic between them feel stronger, but it also makes you care so much more for her. I wanted to do these activities with her because I was so immersed into the game’s world that I felt she needed a break from all the chaos around her. Oh, and Detective Date I obviously love since I always crush hard on detective characters lol.
The characters aren’t the only strong aspect though. The pacing of the story is phenomenal. You pretty much are stuck in the middle between mafia families, street gangs, politicians, the feds. The whole way through you feel like you’re one step behind all of them, not seeing the whole picture. The payoffs at the end feel especially satisfying because it's a moment of full clarity. The amount of people that are pulling at the strings while you desperately try to find leads is very well done. There are a few more things about it that are great, but I don’t want to go overboard and end up spoiling, but I fucking love the narrative of ’Yakuza’ as well as the characters in the world.
The writing and english dub of the game is very of its time, but I mean that in the best way possible. It’s very charming and had me laughing a lot of the time. This isn’t the case for all characters though. Specifically, Detective Date’s voice actor did an incredible job with his performance and it’s honestly no surprise that he’s coming back for the new game as well. Oh, Kiryu’s voice actor in this game rocks as well and I love his stupid one liners before he beats the shit out of someone.
’Yakuza’ looks amazing. Probably one of the best looking PS2 games ever made. The thing that makes it stick out to me especially is how good the models look. I feel the models in this game look even better than the ones you’d get from some games in the seventh generation. The world itself looks great too. I especially like the chapter where there’s slight snowfall, but I feel it's obvious enough I would enjoy that lol. The atmosphere of the world is unforgettable. It’s also optimized pretty well although when the camera switches angles the game will pause for a few seconds which can feel like it lasts a lot longer than it should. I think it’s a fair compromise though for how well detailed the world is as well as the characters in it. I think the fixed camera adds a lot to the atmosphere of the game as well.
The sound design helps elevate its atmosphere with every busy street being filled with people talking and laughing, but can help in more empty moments when no one is in a building. The fights also sound punchy and responsive which greatly improve the impact they have. It is impossible for me to look over the soundtrack as it is fantastic. So many memorable tracks. I love how almost every song with guitars uses harmonics or dead mutes constantly. I’ve always had a soft spot for those in music. Both the sound design of the game and the OST is fantastic and is just another thing ’Yakuza’ excels at.
I loved ’Yakuza’. It has its flaws and can be a bit janky depending on how used to older games one may be, but everything about it just clicked with me. I didn’t want to do anything but play this game when I was going through it. If you are interested in getting into the franchise just like I was, this is an amazing starting point. (Thanks for reading! I tried to make this review so much shorter, but there was so much I wanted to talk about lol)
The game uses a fixed camera perspective as it's easier for the developers to mask some areas loading in with this technique. I’ve always preferred tank controls you’d find from ’Alone in the Dark’ or ’Resident Evil’ with this camera system, but due to ’Yakuza’ being much faster and action oriented, the 3D control scheme works for the better here. I tend to believe that this movement feels worse in enclosed locations, but ’Yakuza’ has very few moments in small areas and focuses more on a large, wide space to traverse through which works towards its benefit to not feel as awkward. The approach taken here was a good one and it doesn’t get in the way of combat either.
The fights in ’Yakuza’ are fantastic. It may be a bit repetitive for some, but I feel the game gives enough options and risk/reward moments to always make it feel like it doesn’t overstay its welcome. You’ll have a few basic combos that you can use to fight baddies with variations of punches, kicks, and grabs. You’ll also be able to stomp on someone before they get up when you knock them down. Then the big thing that helps it from being too tedious is that almost anything can be a weapon. Grabbing a bicycle and twirling around with it knocking everyone around you down never gets old. It remains fun and some weapons can even have different effects such as the tasers and guns. There are other systems to take note of such as dodging and blocking. Blocking is easy by just guarding at the right time, but dodging I never really got the hang of since it felt awkward to me. Dodging isn’t something that is really required though and you can pretty much go through the whole game without needing to worry about it much. The only time combat feels frustrating is when enemies have weapons that can stunlock you for a long time. There were moments where I would get tased by a guy and after Kiryu takes a few years to stand back up he would get tased again. This looped over and over and that can be annoying, but you can sometimes knock weapons out of enemies hands so that helps balance it out a bit.
The other major part of the combat that I haven't mentioned is the heat gauge. When you do enough damage to enemies, a meter will fill and Kiryu will be engrossed with blue flames and at this moment you can do multiple special moves. The main one you have from the start is you can grab an enemy and slam them against a wall. This does a huge amount of damage, but if you take too long dragging an enemy to a wall, your meter will run out or they can break your grab. This can be difficult to pull off so when you do it, it feels really satisfying especially since it's complemented with a big flashy scene. Sometimes in these moments you’ll get a very quick QTE to stomp them while they are down which just adds to the gratification of the moment. I feel though it can be a bit inconsistent at times. Sometimes I would have gotten the special prompt and would’ve interacted with it at the right time, but it would lead to the same punch he would do when he normally grabs an enemy. It always left me feeling a little empty when this happened as I know I did what I needed to do. There are other kinds of special attacks though. After a few upgrades, you can do two extra special moves. A special stomp while an enemy is on the ground and a special attack with a weapon. Neither of these do anywhere near as much damage as the main one, but still do a good amount. Although they don’t do as much damage, they are much easier to pull off. It leads into the risk/reward system I mentioned perfectly as it makes you choose whether you will go for a full blow or one of the other more simple moves. The choice has to be made quickly as the heat gauge will deplete over time and can fall even quicker if you take enough damage. I adore how the heat gauge works and I think it’s what ends up saving the combat from getting too mundane near the end.
The upgrade system in ’Yakuza’ is very simple, but serves the game well. You have three choices with upgrading being soul, technique, and body. These basically are an improved heat gauge, new combos and moves, and health. You’ll unlock experience from simply engaging in combat which can come at a strikingly fast rate. It isn’t too complex and doesn’t need to be. It feels fleshed out and complements the game's systems and combat really well. I spent almost all my points entirely on health and technique as I found I was able to make choices with the heat gauge quickly and it’s always fun unlocking a new combo or attack and trying it out for the first time.
A majority of the game is spent in a small open world that I enjoy. I tend to be very critical of open world games, but ’Yakuza’ is by far one of the bests I’ve seen with the style. The world is small and compact which leads to you memorizing the world over time and just naturally knowing where to go when you need to go to a certain place. I adore these types of games where over time you look at the map less and less as you learn the layout and have it in the back of your head. It always is extraordinarily satisfying getting to that point. A majority of the side quests are simple and tend to be a civilian losing an item and you need to go find and give it to them, but there are a few notable ones which act out as more important and story driven. These ones were very memorable. There’s also a good amount of stores and places you can actually go into such as arcades, restaurants (from simple chains to fancy bars), casinos, and strip clubs. These all make the world feel real especially since you’ll end up learning where these locations exactly are by heart. There is also a feature where random people in the world will just go up to you and fight you for the dumbest reasons. These were funny, but it is a bit difficult to avoid the encounters sometimes if you are meaning to because of the camera angle. This can be quite annoying, especially when you are at the end of the game and just want to do story stuff, but it isn’t too frustrating that it ruins the game’s pacing or anything.
The normal main storyline campaign is also really well paced and structured. The game doesn’t overstay its welcome and knows how long to keep certain chapters and to keep you engaged… mostly. There can be a few times where it feels the game is padding itself a little bit by making you do small fetch quests, but these aren’t ever too long to be noticeable, usually lasting around fifteen or twenty minutes. I felt it was worth mentioning because this does happen here and there, but it doesn’t waste too much of your time which is why I believe it’s as well paced as it is, especially compared to other open world games that drag itself on for a miserable amount of time.
’Yakuza’ has a wild fucking story. So many twists, turns, and insane things happening. I fucking love it. The plot centers around three specific people being Detective Date, Haruka, and of course, Kazuma Kiryu. Haruka is a little girl that you and Date try to protect throughout the game as she has a pendant that is worth ten billion yen that was given to her from her missing mother. With a strong focus on characters, that is the best aspect of the story. The more time you spend with these people, the more you care about them. The way they interact with each other and trust one another more is especially well executed. They don’t just do this through cutscenes, but even gameplay at times. I know a lot of people may not enjoy escorting Haruka around the city, but I loved going to arcades and ice cream shops with her. It doesn’t just make the father/daughter dynamic between them feel stronger, but it also makes you care so much more for her. I wanted to do these activities with her because I was so immersed into the game’s world that I felt she needed a break from all the chaos around her. Oh, and Detective Date I obviously love since I always crush hard on detective characters lol.
The characters aren’t the only strong aspect though. The pacing of the story is phenomenal. You pretty much are stuck in the middle between mafia families, street gangs, politicians, the feds. The whole way through you feel like you’re one step behind all of them, not seeing the whole picture. The payoffs at the end feel especially satisfying because it's a moment of full clarity. The amount of people that are pulling at the strings while you desperately try to find leads is very well done. There are a few more things about it that are great, but I don’t want to go overboard and end up spoiling, but I fucking love the narrative of ’Yakuza’ as well as the characters in the world.
The writing and english dub of the game is very of its time, but I mean that in the best way possible. It’s very charming and had me laughing a lot of the time. This isn’t the case for all characters though. Specifically, Detective Date’s voice actor did an incredible job with his performance and it’s honestly no surprise that he’s coming back for the new game as well. Oh, Kiryu’s voice actor in this game rocks as well and I love his stupid one liners before he beats the shit out of someone.
’Yakuza’ looks amazing. Probably one of the best looking PS2 games ever made. The thing that makes it stick out to me especially is how good the models look. I feel the models in this game look even better than the ones you’d get from some games in the seventh generation. The world itself looks great too. I especially like the chapter where there’s slight snowfall, but I feel it's obvious enough I would enjoy that lol. The atmosphere of the world is unforgettable. It’s also optimized pretty well although when the camera switches angles the game will pause for a few seconds which can feel like it lasts a lot longer than it should. I think it’s a fair compromise though for how well detailed the world is as well as the characters in it. I think the fixed camera adds a lot to the atmosphere of the game as well.
The sound design helps elevate its atmosphere with every busy street being filled with people talking and laughing, but can help in more empty moments when no one is in a building. The fights also sound punchy and responsive which greatly improve the impact they have. It is impossible for me to look over the soundtrack as it is fantastic. So many memorable tracks. I love how almost every song with guitars uses harmonics or dead mutes constantly. I’ve always had a soft spot for those in music. Both the sound design of the game and the OST is fantastic and is just another thing ’Yakuza’ excels at.
I loved ’Yakuza’. It has its flaws and can be a bit janky depending on how used to older games one may be, but everything about it just clicked with me. I didn’t want to do anything but play this game when I was going through it. If you are interested in getting into the franchise just like I was, this is an amazing starting point. (Thanks for reading! I tried to make this review so much shorter, but there was so much I wanted to talk about lol)
It freezes on chapter 3 on an emulator probably because my computer is from hell and i can't check it out on a real console since I traded my ps2 for a vita, maybe some other time....
But so far the dub is actually not bad and Kamurocho seems way more dirtier and overpopulated. Cool stuff
But so far the dub is actually not bad and Kamurocho seems way more dirtier and overpopulated. Cool stuff
I already told you, I'm NOT Yakuza (2005). Are you [redacted] or just deaf?
just great. fun combat, a great sense of visual style, and a fun dub cast. excited to start this journey
Im a sucker for the bad english dub and the atmosphere. yes the gameplay doesnt hold up to any standard and is incredibly frustrating at times but I think it says something about a game if you pick it up on a hunch for 5 bugs and fall in love with it despite all the flaws.
Really solid game with an incredible story and great characters on both sides.
Combat is cool but some encounters really sour the game for me, dropping it down to a 7 from a 9 personally.
The remake is better, imo but the ps2 version is still worth your time.
Combat is cool but some encounters really sour the game for me, dropping it down to a 7 from a 9 personally.
The remake is better, imo but the ps2 version is still worth your time.
Played on PCSX2 with the "Yakuza Restored" patch.
Genuinely might've become one of my favorite games, everything about this game holds up way better than people online would have you believe. The amount of damage Kiwami has done to this game's reputation is astounding and extremely unfortunate.
Genuinely might've become one of my favorite games, everything about this game holds up way better than people online would have you believe. The amount of damage Kiwami has done to this game's reputation is astounding and extremely unfortunate.
quero ser pai de menina
While Yakuza Kiwami is the definite Y1 experience nowadays and this lacks a bunch of the content and general QOL from later games, this can still be worth trying if you wanna see how the series started. Also, the dub is an experience
(Beware of missables if you wanna fight Amon though, there's no postgame here either)
(Beware of missables if you wanna fight Amon though, there's no postgame here either)
nishiki is so me
(Played with the Yakuza Restoration patch)
I decided to start with the first Ryu Ga Gotoku game on PS2 instead of starting with 0 like everyone else, for the sake of seeing how the gameplay evolves with each entry. I have to say, this isn't a bad introduction to the franchise.
Say what you will about the gameplay, but if you put all of that aside, you're left with an interesting crime drama about the lengths people go to for power, and how it affects the world around them.
I found it hard to care for some aspects of the story such as Nishikiyama and Kiryu's relationship because of the little screentime they had together, along with the deaths that are only there for shock value, but I couldn't help but get invested thanks to the story revolving around Haruka's value. If it weren't for her inclusion, I wouldn't have been as invested. I also appreciate the side characters like Makoto Date and Goro Majima for having their own fun relationships with Kiryu. Date is an intelligent detective who was willing to help Kiryu with his problems despite him being an ex-yakuza, and Majima is just batshit insane.
Of course, since this is the first game in the series, things are going to be rough around the edges. I've had some gripes with the combat being a little bit stiff, and the camera being uncooperative at times, but it's not as horrible as some people make it out to be. You should breeze through everything so long as you manage your healing items carefully and learn extra moves (which shouldn't be optional in the first place) from Komaki. I think the only real problems are how unreactable the QTEs are, the groups of enemies constantly pouncing on you, and how annoying it is to fight gun-wielding mooks—especially that one boss I nearly died to. How was I supposed to know where to get a bulletproof vest?
One last thing I want to appreciate is the general aesthetic of the game. The graphics aren't on par with the things we have today but it's not bad by any means. The lighting is great, alongside the characters looking realistic and expressive. Kamurocho's nighttime strolls full of civilians walking around, gangsters lurking, and interesting landmarks are quite immersive and makes the world feel like it's truly lived in. The soundtrack also has this grungy 2000's feel that I think is awesome, and it's also one of the reasons why I played this over Kiwami. That OST just doesn't hit the same.
Overall, I think the game is good, but flawed in most areas. I think this is a valid starting point if you've got an available way to play PS2 games. But I feel like I have to start BEGGING you not to play the original English version, because the dub is terrible and a lot of dialogue is butchered (or in some cases, enhanced) by gratuitous swearing. Or suit your fucking self and play it anyway. I'm not your fucking dad, motherfucker.
I decided to start with the first Ryu Ga Gotoku game on PS2 instead of starting with 0 like everyone else, for the sake of seeing how the gameplay evolves with each entry. I have to say, this isn't a bad introduction to the franchise.
Say what you will about the gameplay, but if you put all of that aside, you're left with an interesting crime drama about the lengths people go to for power, and how it affects the world around them.
I found it hard to care for some aspects of the story such as Nishikiyama and Kiryu's relationship because of the little screentime they had together, along with the deaths that are only there for shock value, but I couldn't help but get invested thanks to the story revolving around Haruka's value. If it weren't for her inclusion, I wouldn't have been as invested. I also appreciate the side characters like Makoto Date and Goro Majima for having their own fun relationships with Kiryu. Date is an intelligent detective who was willing to help Kiryu with his problems despite him being an ex-yakuza, and Majima is just batshit insane.
Of course, since this is the first game in the series, things are going to be rough around the edges. I've had some gripes with the combat being a little bit stiff, and the camera being uncooperative at times, but it's not as horrible as some people make it out to be. You should breeze through everything so long as you manage your healing items carefully and learn extra moves (which shouldn't be optional in the first place) from Komaki. I think the only real problems are how unreactable the QTEs are, the groups of enemies constantly pouncing on you, and how annoying it is to fight gun-wielding mooks—especially that one boss I nearly died to. How was I supposed to know where to get a bulletproof vest?
One last thing I want to appreciate is the general aesthetic of the game. The graphics aren't on par with the things we have today but it's not bad by any means. The lighting is great, alongside the characters looking realistic and expressive. Kamurocho's nighttime strolls full of civilians walking around, gangsters lurking, and interesting landmarks are quite immersive and makes the world feel like it's truly lived in. The soundtrack also has this grungy 2000's feel that I think is awesome, and it's also one of the reasons why I played this over Kiwami. That OST just doesn't hit the same.
Overall, I think the game is good, but flawed in most areas. I think this is a valid starting point if you've got an available way to play PS2 games. But I feel like I have to start BEGGING you not to play the original English version, because the dub is terrible and a lot of dialogue is butchered (or in some cases, enhanced) by gratuitous swearing. Or suit your fucking self and play it anyway. I'm not your fucking dad, motherfucker.
the streets are soaked in melodrama. To Live Is To Not Run Away. hell yes brother.
see, what sega did here was basically update kunio-kun for 3D because nobody else was gonna do it, and god bless em for it because this game rocks. a game from the golden era of open worlds, with a razor-sharp sense of scope and locations only as detailed as they needed to be for 480i.
yakuza opens with a sleek, stylish and totally unique sega logo, and from that point the presentation never lets up. the opening song "recieve you" instantly sets the tone, and the soundtrack as a whole consists of tasteful funk-rock and alt-metal motifs alongside some brilliant sampling work. visually, the game's a killer too. city streets are adorned with gorgeous baked lighting, and the fixed camera angles paint beautiful portraits of the night life. UI elements are given a clean modern look that reflect kiryu's stoic yet transparent personality. good shit.
storytelling as always is something i'll have trouble articulating my thoughts on but i enjoyed how soapy this was. i could see the big twist coming from 200 miles away but it didn't matter to me. the game successfully makes you care about haruka and yumi and nishiki and everyone else and that's all i can ask for. the notorious voice acting in all fairness WAS pretty bad (save for mark hamill as majima; what an inspired casting!!!) but it didn't hamper my enjoyment of the story in any way. i am also soooo glad this one doesn't have that many substories... not looking forward to the RGG games that mainly consist of those.
the traversal and exploration is very understated though i found it incredibly novel here. kamurocho, being only one district of tokyo, makes for a very small "open world" but one i adore. this is the only game to recreate the feeling of finding a shop/restaurant in your hometown you never knew about, and that rules to me. lots of fun stuff tucked into every corner, like the arms dealer hidden inside a porno dvd shop.
the combat to my surprise was mostly very fun! crowd control is very tough early on, but once you get more upgrades it becomes a fun puzzle to solve for each encounter. keeping the heat gauge up is tricky but it's also incredibly rewarding. almost all good but my two main complaints lie here: most weapons are useless, and turning around is needlessly difficult. you learn to work around these issues but "work around" is the right term here unfortunately.
in the end i'm glad i chose to play this after 2 hours of kiwami left me disappointed years ago. yakuza 1 kicks major ass and part of that is due to how streamlined it feels. that sense of scope i mentioned earlier is there, but it never feels overwhelming. never trust a remake, kids.
(late review, this took me a while to write)
see, what sega did here was basically update kunio-kun for 3D because nobody else was gonna do it, and god bless em for it because this game rocks. a game from the golden era of open worlds, with a razor-sharp sense of scope and locations only as detailed as they needed to be for 480i.
yakuza opens with a sleek, stylish and totally unique sega logo, and from that point the presentation never lets up. the opening song "recieve you" instantly sets the tone, and the soundtrack as a whole consists of tasteful funk-rock and alt-metal motifs alongside some brilliant sampling work. visually, the game's a killer too. city streets are adorned with gorgeous baked lighting, and the fixed camera angles paint beautiful portraits of the night life. UI elements are given a clean modern look that reflect kiryu's stoic yet transparent personality. good shit.
storytelling as always is something i'll have trouble articulating my thoughts on but i enjoyed how soapy this was. i could see the big twist coming from 200 miles away but it didn't matter to me. the game successfully makes you care about haruka and yumi and nishiki and everyone else and that's all i can ask for. the notorious voice acting in all fairness WAS pretty bad (save for mark hamill as majima; what an inspired casting!!!) but it didn't hamper my enjoyment of the story in any way. i am also soooo glad this one doesn't have that many substories... not looking forward to the RGG games that mainly consist of those.
the traversal and exploration is very understated though i found it incredibly novel here. kamurocho, being only one district of tokyo, makes for a very small "open world" but one i adore. this is the only game to recreate the feeling of finding a shop/restaurant in your hometown you never knew about, and that rules to me. lots of fun stuff tucked into every corner, like the arms dealer hidden inside a porno dvd shop.
the combat to my surprise was mostly very fun! crowd control is very tough early on, but once you get more upgrades it becomes a fun puzzle to solve for each encounter. keeping the heat gauge up is tricky but it's also incredibly rewarding. almost all good but my two main complaints lie here: most weapons are useless, and turning around is needlessly difficult. you learn to work around these issues but "work around" is the right term here unfortunately.
in the end i'm glad i chose to play this after 2 hours of kiwami left me disappointed years ago. yakuza 1 kicks major ass and part of that is due to how streamlined it feels. that sense of scope i mentioned earlier is there, but it never feels overwhelming. never trust a remake, kids.
(late review, this took me a while to write)
It has been almost 4 years since I last played the original Yakuza game, released on the PlayStation 2.
It started a whole series, giving way to not only sequels, but spin-offs, a movie, a TV drama series based on one of the spin-offs, and merch (especially perfumes).
Back in 2020, I had a big Yakuza mood, and I played through 1, 2, 3, Kenzan!, 4 & 5 all in that year.
I haven't played any other Yakuza games since, not just because of the lack of consoles to play them on, but also because after 5, I got a bit burnt-out, and 5 was the biggest Yakuza game yet.
It's been a few years, and I decided to revisit the 1st game in the series, not only to see what I would think of it now, but also because it's gonna be important for my current college thesis.
Yakuza 1, in many aspects, still holds up!
The story is really engaging, and throws you into a big mystery regarding the Tojo Clan, the 10 billion yen surronding it, and the little girl known as Haruka.
It has many twists and turns throughout; some characters even double-crossing, or fuck it, even triple-crossing, playing games with each other.
There's a lot to unpack in this story, but I do believe it is well-written, even with all these twists, each can be something easy to fuck up, but thankfully, it all makes sense by the end, and the character's motivations also make sense.
With that in mind, I feel like I do need to discuss the game's voice acting.
It's no secret to everyone who has heard about this series, that the 1st game was, for the longest time, the only one to ever get an English Dub.
The biggest thing about it, is that they actually got some pretty well-known and talented voice actors in it, ranging from Bill Farmer, Debi Derryberry, Robin Atkin Downes and, of course, Mark Hamill, playing Goro Majima.
The problem is, even if these actors try their best with what they're given, the overall direction feels stitled, and some lines even have slight cuts in the middle of dialogue, or some emotions are not conveyed properly... or fuck, some of them are trying too hard, it seems.
One of the worst examples has got to be Darryl Kurylo as the main protagonist, Kazuma Kiryu.
Now Kazuma Kiryu is, perhaps, one of the most bad-ass characters in gaming and a total gentlemen, and his original Japanese voice conveys that so well, being voiced by Takaya Kuroda.
But it really seems like, with the direction he was given, Kurylo had a hard time emoting the right amount for many scenes or, and this is most likely a consequence of having to try to lip-sync dialogue properly, he speaks too quickly.
The voice in general is good, and he has some pretty bad-ass lines, but it's clear that the voice direction overall makes the voice acting suffer.
And that's not even to talk about the sometimes excessing swearing the English Dub has, but that didn't really affect me as much. Actually, many times it was understandable, considering the Japanese language barely has swears of the typical type, so with people like the yakuza or punks swearing, it makes sense.
Okay, time to go to the actual gameplay, and... it's fun!
While you're not exploring the red-light district of Kamurocho, you're engaging in battles that function pretty much like a 3D beat'em up, using a combination of punches, kicks, grabs and throws to put your opponents in their place.
It can feel a bit clunky sometimes locking on to the target you want, but after learning some of Komaki's techniques later in the game, you gain more options for crowd control, which is nice.
Outside of that, you can participate in various activities in Kamurocho, such as playing arcade games, gambling in the casino, go to hostess clubs and try to hold a conversation, or simply eat food at a convenience store or a restaurant.
There's plenty of side-missions for you to do too. I didn't engage in all of them, I think I only ended up doing 16, but they were alright, and get you more engaged with the world around you, even if some of them are not very interesting.
The overall presentation of the game is nice. Graphics are nice and detailed, even if some NPCs take a hit in graphical fidelity, and the music is pretty good too, with the main battle theme, Funk Goes On, being one of my favourites.
Overall, while Yakuza 1 does have its share of flaws, I believe it's a good first game in a long-running series, and it holds up pretty well in my eyes.
It started a whole series, giving way to not only sequels, but spin-offs, a movie, a TV drama series based on one of the spin-offs, and merch (especially perfumes).
Back in 2020, I had a big Yakuza mood, and I played through 1, 2, 3, Kenzan!, 4 & 5 all in that year.
I haven't played any other Yakuza games since, not just because of the lack of consoles to play them on, but also because after 5, I got a bit burnt-out, and 5 was the biggest Yakuza game yet.
It's been a few years, and I decided to revisit the 1st game in the series, not only to see what I would think of it now, but also because it's gonna be important for my current college thesis.
Yakuza 1, in many aspects, still holds up!
The story is really engaging, and throws you into a big mystery regarding the Tojo Clan, the 10 billion yen surronding it, and the little girl known as Haruka.
It has many twists and turns throughout; some characters even double-crossing, or fuck it, even triple-crossing, playing games with each other.
There's a lot to unpack in this story, but I do believe it is well-written, even with all these twists, each can be something easy to fuck up, but thankfully, it all makes sense by the end, and the character's motivations also make sense.
With that in mind, I feel like I do need to discuss the game's voice acting.
It's no secret to everyone who has heard about this series, that the 1st game was, for the longest time, the only one to ever get an English Dub.
The biggest thing about it, is that they actually got some pretty well-known and talented voice actors in it, ranging from Bill Farmer, Debi Derryberry, Robin Atkin Downes and, of course, Mark Hamill, playing Goro Majima.
The problem is, even if these actors try their best with what they're given, the overall direction feels stitled, and some lines even have slight cuts in the middle of dialogue, or some emotions are not conveyed properly... or fuck, some of them are trying too hard, it seems.
One of the worst examples has got to be Darryl Kurylo as the main protagonist, Kazuma Kiryu.
Now Kazuma Kiryu is, perhaps, one of the most bad-ass characters in gaming and a total gentlemen, and his original Japanese voice conveys that so well, being voiced by Takaya Kuroda.
But it really seems like, with the direction he was given, Kurylo had a hard time emoting the right amount for many scenes or, and this is most likely a consequence of having to try to lip-sync dialogue properly, he speaks too quickly.
The voice in general is good, and he has some pretty bad-ass lines, but it's clear that the voice direction overall makes the voice acting suffer.
And that's not even to talk about the sometimes excessing swearing the English Dub has, but that didn't really affect me as much. Actually, many times it was understandable, considering the Japanese language barely has swears of the typical type, so with people like the yakuza or punks swearing, it makes sense.
Okay, time to go to the actual gameplay, and... it's fun!
While you're not exploring the red-light district of Kamurocho, you're engaging in battles that function pretty much like a 3D beat'em up, using a combination of punches, kicks, grabs and throws to put your opponents in their place.
It can feel a bit clunky sometimes locking on to the target you want, but after learning some of Komaki's techniques later in the game, you gain more options for crowd control, which is nice.
Outside of that, you can participate in various activities in Kamurocho, such as playing arcade games, gambling in the casino, go to hostess clubs and try to hold a conversation, or simply eat food at a convenience store or a restaurant.
There's plenty of side-missions for you to do too. I didn't engage in all of them, I think I only ended up doing 16, but they were alright, and get you more engaged with the world around you, even if some of them are not very interesting.
The overall presentation of the game is nice. Graphics are nice and detailed, even if some NPCs take a hit in graphical fidelity, and the music is pretty good too, with the main battle theme, Funk Goes On, being one of my favourites.
Overall, while Yakuza 1 does have its share of flaws, I believe it's a good first game in a long-running series, and it holds up pretty well in my eyes.
Joguei com o Patch Restored no emulador, restaurando a dublagem original e corrigindo algumas questões de tradução.
Como joguei o remake primeiro, vou tá levando muito em consideração a comparação aqui. Acho que o Kiwami consegue fazer um ótimo trabalho de atualizar a gameplay e a narrativa pra algo que conhecemos nos jogos mais recentes, e ainda tenho uma preferência pelo remake, considerando o combate do original, que da metade pra frente(treinando com o Komaki) consegue se segurar bem, mas ainda tem seus problemas, e a exploração por Kamurocho, que aqui é o que mais peca, pela lerdeza e os encontros com inimigos apresentando loadings chatos e demorados. De resto, acredito que o jogo original é artisticamente melhor em alguns quesitos, considerando toda a ambientação de Kamurocho, pasmem, os personagens possuem expressões faciais melhores num jogo de PS2!😱 e a trilha sonora é MUITO melhor. Então assim, claro, a lerdeza, os loadings, o Kiryu socando o nada, são pontos que não envelheceram bem, acho que tanto esse quanto o remake são ótimos jogos, e mesmo cada um com seus problemas, ambos são experiências que não se excluem, vale muito a pena dar uma chance pra Yakuza de PS2.
Como joguei o remake primeiro, vou tá levando muito em consideração a comparação aqui. Acho que o Kiwami consegue fazer um ótimo trabalho de atualizar a gameplay e a narrativa pra algo que conhecemos nos jogos mais recentes, e ainda tenho uma preferência pelo remake, considerando o combate do original, que da metade pra frente(treinando com o Komaki) consegue se segurar bem, mas ainda tem seus problemas, e a exploração por Kamurocho, que aqui é o que mais peca, pela lerdeza e os encontros com inimigos apresentando loadings chatos e demorados. De resto, acredito que o jogo original é artisticamente melhor em alguns quesitos, considerando toda a ambientação de Kamurocho, pasmem, os personagens possuem expressões faciais melhores num jogo de PS2!😱 e a trilha sonora é MUITO melhor. Então assim, claro, a lerdeza, os loadings, o Kiryu socando o nada, são pontos que não envelheceram bem, acho que tanto esse quanto o remake são ótimos jogos, e mesmo cada um com seus problemas, ambos são experiências que não se excluem, vale muito a pena dar uma chance pra Yakuza de PS2.
7,5/10.
Não vou elaborar, serei direto e n vou justificar por agora, posso fazer isso quando jogar o kiwami.
Uma história curiosa e um tanto intrigante, ainda que de certa forma algo tradicional, bastante funcional.
Kiryu é um protagonista que tem um boa escrita e demonstra potencial em jogos futuros.
Dito isso a narrativa dessa versão é fraca demais, talvez as limitações e o contexto da produção realmente pesou,então vou ser brando.
Um combate que tem alguma substância quando tu aprende as técnicas com o komaki e upa os 3 segmentos de skill em 10, aí o jogo realmente mostra o seu brilho e fica consideravelmente mais divertido, mas até lá.... demora demais.
Muita coisa não funciona apropriadamente, acaba sendo um combate medíocre, principalmente se eu pensar em querer comparar com god hand ( mas não vou por que seria desonestidade).
O que foi skill issue eu consertei com o tempo, mas de fato esse jogo envelheceu em algumas mecânicas e isso afetou minha experiência, não tanto quando poderia, mas o suficiente pra eu me divertir bem pouco no geral.
As sides de fato são boas, algumas tem um valor cômico bom, outras tem um tom de drama interessante, mas raso, ainda que bom e etc, a forma como kamurocho foi projetada e como algumas sides se inciiam é algo bem inteligente, soa orgânico algumas coisas nesse jogo e isso me pegou.
Não fiz todas as sides, fiquei cansado não hei de negar, mas ainda assim é algo de destaque e valor.
As OSTs são boas, eu só acabei baixando a funk goes on pra ouvir, mas dei uma ouvida em outras fora de jogo e de fato nenhuma chega a ser ruim, parabéns hidenori shoji.
Eu gostei do capítulo do date com a filha dele, aquilo ali foi bom, ainda assim só comecei a engatar mesmo no história do ch 7 em diante e sim tem quebra de ritmo em x momentos, acho isso um cu, acontece com mais frequência em kurohyou.... pqp!
A batalha final é muito boa em narrativa e em gameplay. Algo que n mencionei, as boss fights desse jogo são boas... A do majima, a do lao e contra o nishiki são realmente um ponto acima nesse jogo.
É isso, ansioso pelo yakuza 2 e dps vou pros remakes, mas num geral gostei, causou uma boa impressão da franquia.
Obs: sim eu sei que esqueci de falar da haruka e mais coisas, mas não vou falar aqui e sim no kiwami então até a próxima.
Não vou elaborar, serei direto e n vou justificar por agora, posso fazer isso quando jogar o kiwami.
Uma história curiosa e um tanto intrigante, ainda que de certa forma algo tradicional, bastante funcional.
Kiryu é um protagonista que tem um boa escrita e demonstra potencial em jogos futuros.
Dito isso a narrativa dessa versão é fraca demais, talvez as limitações e o contexto da produção realmente pesou,então vou ser brando.
Um combate que tem alguma substância quando tu aprende as técnicas com o komaki e upa os 3 segmentos de skill em 10, aí o jogo realmente mostra o seu brilho e fica consideravelmente mais divertido, mas até lá.... demora demais.
Muita coisa não funciona apropriadamente, acaba sendo um combate medíocre, principalmente se eu pensar em querer comparar com god hand ( mas não vou por que seria desonestidade).
O que foi skill issue eu consertei com o tempo, mas de fato esse jogo envelheceu em algumas mecânicas e isso afetou minha experiência, não tanto quando poderia, mas o suficiente pra eu me divertir bem pouco no geral.
As sides de fato são boas, algumas tem um valor cômico bom, outras tem um tom de drama interessante, mas raso, ainda que bom e etc, a forma como kamurocho foi projetada e como algumas sides se inciiam é algo bem inteligente, soa orgânico algumas coisas nesse jogo e isso me pegou.
Não fiz todas as sides, fiquei cansado não hei de negar, mas ainda assim é algo de destaque e valor.
As OSTs são boas, eu só acabei baixando a funk goes on pra ouvir, mas dei uma ouvida em outras fora de jogo e de fato nenhuma chega a ser ruim, parabéns hidenori shoji.
Eu gostei do capítulo do date com a filha dele, aquilo ali foi bom, ainda assim só comecei a engatar mesmo no história do ch 7 em diante e sim tem quebra de ritmo em x momentos, acho isso um cu, acontece com mais frequência em kurohyou.... pqp!
A batalha final é muito boa em narrativa e em gameplay. Algo que n mencionei, as boss fights desse jogo são boas... A do majima, a do lao e contra o nishiki são realmente um ponto acima nesse jogo.
É isso, ansioso pelo yakuza 2 e dps vou pros remakes, mas num geral gostei, causou uma boa impressão da franquia.
Obs: sim eu sei que esqueci de falar da haruka e mais coisas, mas não vou falar aqui e sim no kiwami então até a próxima.
both ps2 games clear the kiwamis
I was gonna play Kiwami, but after hearing the dub and seeing the off the balls intro, this is the only way the game is mean't played, I don't care if I'm wrong
The start of a journey with the Dragon of Dojima.
I played this with the Restoration Patch cause I wanted to see how this game originally was. I'll probably play the English Dub on day just see how silly it is. But yeah the combat is very poor and limited, many fights are just won by spamming square then triangle and others were annoying with constant near speed of light quicksteps and invincible frames. Some bosses were just not that fun and many of the arena fights were a slog to get through. I had to just skip Jo Amon because grinding to get the weapons to beat him took forever and I just wasn't having any fun at that point. Also I have no idea if it was the game or me but when I try punch forward it would sometimes turn me around the other way. It happened so frequently I think it was just the game itself. But there were also moments of clarity where you'd but doing your square combo and square/triangle combo and there was something soothing about brutality beating down whatever enemies were in front of you.
That's something this game is a masterclass in; the vibe this game offers. It basically is like watch a B movie gangster action flick. I know I just threw out a gargle of buzzwords but I think they all fit this game to a T. The story was good it did lack in some areas (Jingu's Scenes -_-) but there were something it did really well.
I know I mostly just complained at the battle but I'd say to give this a chance just to see what the game was originally like. I literally wasn't even planning on finishing this game when I first started I just wanted to see how different it was from Kiwami and why certain people liked this more. I just was gonna play a few chapters in but then I got into it a bit and now were here. I get it now though, personally I'm either or since I'm not that crazy about the first game.
Also why is the end credits song Amazing Grace, what a weird song to put in this game.
I played this with the Restoration Patch cause I wanted to see how this game originally was. I'll probably play the English Dub on day just see how silly it is. But yeah the combat is very poor and limited, many fights are just won by spamming square then triangle and others were annoying with constant near speed of light quicksteps and invincible frames. Some bosses were just not that fun and many of the arena fights were a slog to get through. I had to just skip Jo Amon because grinding to get the weapons to beat him took forever and I just wasn't having any fun at that point. Also I have no idea if it was the game or me but when I try punch forward it would sometimes turn me around the other way. It happened so frequently I think it was just the game itself. But there were also moments of clarity where you'd but doing your square combo and square/triangle combo and there was something soothing about brutality beating down whatever enemies were in front of you.
That's something this game is a masterclass in; the vibe this game offers. It basically is like watch a B movie gangster action flick. I know I just threw out a gargle of buzzwords but I think they all fit this game to a T. The story was good it did lack in some areas (Jingu's Scenes -_-) but there were something it did really well.
I know I mostly just complained at the battle but I'd say to give this a chance just to see what the game was originally like. I literally wasn't even planning on finishing this game when I first started I just wanted to see how different it was from Kiwami and why certain people liked this more. I just was gonna play a few chapters in but then I got into it a bit and now were here. I get it now though, personally I'm either or since I'm not that crazy about the first game.
Also why is the end credits song Amazing Grace, what a weird song to put in this game.
This shit a visual novel broken up by stim toy combat sections, very cool. I like the models a lot, particularly Kiriyu and Haruka are super cute. I think putting them together made for really great character moments.
The atmosphere is perfect, it's somehow always dark outside and the fixed camera angels give off kind of a boxed in feel.
Majima shows up 3 times to be weird and have nothing to do with the plot and I think that's extremely funny. It's like hes getting popular character cameos but its literally the first entry in the franchise.
I played this with jp voice acting (my mistake tbh) but watched some cutscenes on youtube and that shit is crazy!!!! Are you **** or just deaf???
The atmosphere is perfect, it's somehow always dark outside and the fixed camera angels give off kind of a boxed in feel.
Majima shows up 3 times to be weird and have nothing to do with the plot and I think that's extremely funny. It's like hes getting popular character cameos but its literally the first entry in the franchise.
I played this with jp voice acting (my mistake tbh) but watched some cutscenes on youtube and that shit is crazy!!!! Are you **** or just deaf???
mejor hubiera jugado kiwami
replayed this game using the restored patch and god damn, it's pretty jarring how someone like kiryu tends to be more soft-spoken than he usually is, I assume because takaya kuroda was younger during the release of this game (which is why he's able to reach higher pitches far more easily compared to his performances in kiwami 1; no shade to that game's voice acting bc it's still good, just something me and others have noticed) and they didn't really know how stoic they wanted kiryu to be yet. in general the voice direction for this game seems to be far more low-key than other yakuza games
on a different note man! I actually kinda jive with this game's combat more! it still unfortunately has that unavoidable jank with the unreliable lock-on, and what I'm about to tell you of course needs a bit of progress on your end which is kind of a shame
that being said, upgrading your dash enough and achieving the komaki fist reversal (which isn't actually that hard) brings kiryu a little closer to his y2 counterpart
combined with the more heavy movement in this game, I think this makes for a really interesting take on yakuza's combat (retroactively, of course) where you have to work around kiryu's sluggish movement and make good use of heat actions, the grab, and the fist reversal - you're being attacked basically on all sides and you don't have the speed necessary to go all in like you would in yakuza 2 onward. landing hits and managing to get away in time is more harder in this game, which I think makes every hit you do land and every enemy you defeat feel INCREDIBLY satisfying
needless to say I actually enjoyed my time with this y1 replay quite a bit! it still manages to have that awesome moody and gritty flair unique to the ps2 games and a rock solid introduction to the world of yakuza.
this replay was mainly to have y1 fresh in my mind for when I play k1, so this should prove very interesting..
on a different note man! I actually kinda jive with this game's combat more! it still unfortunately has that unavoidable jank with the unreliable lock-on, and what I'm about to tell you of course needs a bit of progress on your end which is kind of a shame
that being said, upgrading your dash enough and achieving the komaki fist reversal (which isn't actually that hard) brings kiryu a little closer to his y2 counterpart
combined with the more heavy movement in this game, I think this makes for a really interesting take on yakuza's combat (retroactively, of course) where you have to work around kiryu's sluggish movement and make good use of heat actions, the grab, and the fist reversal - you're being attacked basically on all sides and you don't have the speed necessary to go all in like you would in yakuza 2 onward. landing hits and managing to get away in time is more harder in this game, which I think makes every hit you do land and every enemy you defeat feel INCREDIBLY satisfying
needless to say I actually enjoyed my time with this y1 replay quite a bit! it still manages to have that awesome moody and gritty flair unique to the ps2 games and a rock solid introduction to the world of yakuza.
this replay was mainly to have y1 fresh in my mind for when I play k1, so this should prove very interesting..
I played this using the Yakuza Restored Patch on my jailbroken ps2, you can find that patch here and I'd highly recommend it. Ive heard this game has some obnoxious loading issues, but considering I was playing this off of my HDD I won't really factor that into my review as it never was really a problem. https://youtu.be/YXsiu9PUbxM?si=AebYm1WSkwDOm7NV
This game definitely gets a bad rap nowadays. People will just say to play the remake or skip it entirely. I've heard people say it's unplayable and that the combat is so bad. I really wanted to challenge that perception and start at beggining. Playing them from the two remakes, back to the older three games, then back to the new stuff just sounds a bit unappealing to me. I'd much rather see it's roots and how it grew mechanically. I'm glad I did because I found a lot to love about this despite its issues.
The star of the show here is Kamurocho. It's such a well realized setting, it's densely packed with unique interactions, big crowds, beautiful fixed camera shots, and fun stuff to do. I don't think I've felt an open city setting feel quite as alive as this. It's also just drenched in atmosphere. Thick fog, appropriate use of motion blur, very unique lighting are all indicative of the strengths of the ps2 aesthetic.
I think the story is quite good here and it helped me truck through the game. I really love all the characters. There were some really neat twists that actually got me, and it all comes together by the end. Kiryu's relationship with Haruka is the heart of this game and I really like how despite losing so much he finds a new family in her. I do have a hard time following these dense kind of noir stories, so I'm glad the broad strokes of the story satisfied me.
I think the combat isn't great, but it's definitely not unplayable. I think an issue with it is that it makes a bad first impression. Your dodge sucks, the lock on has a strange learning curve to it and your move set is very limited. But as you upgrade stuff and do more side missions that give you new moves, it does start to open up and become more functional. This is one of those where you just get stunlocked and knocked on your ass a lot which can be annoying. And also the game is just a bit too easy? Other than some weird bosses that kicked my ass it never really presents a challenge. And when it does get more intense the game showers you with restorative items. So you kinda just get into a lull of repetition with it. But I'd argue the game isn't really trying to give you the deepest combat system, what makes the game special is the experience of it and all the things you can do in the city, and that aspect of it really worked for me. It gets dangerously close to being boring but the game always picks itself up.
This series is definitely prohibitive to new players to catch up, I totally understand if someone wants to start with one of the more recent ones. But I think Yakuza 1 has a lot going for it and shouldn't be forgotten. If you really appreciate the ps2 era then you really should try it and see if you like it. It's a very unique experience and it was fun to experience the humble begginings of this giant series.
This game definitely gets a bad rap nowadays. People will just say to play the remake or skip it entirely. I've heard people say it's unplayable and that the combat is so bad. I really wanted to challenge that perception and start at beggining. Playing them from the two remakes, back to the older three games, then back to the new stuff just sounds a bit unappealing to me. I'd much rather see it's roots and how it grew mechanically. I'm glad I did because I found a lot to love about this despite its issues.
The star of the show here is Kamurocho. It's such a well realized setting, it's densely packed with unique interactions, big crowds, beautiful fixed camera shots, and fun stuff to do. I don't think I've felt an open city setting feel quite as alive as this. It's also just drenched in atmosphere. Thick fog, appropriate use of motion blur, very unique lighting are all indicative of the strengths of the ps2 aesthetic.
I think the story is quite good here and it helped me truck through the game. I really love all the characters. There were some really neat twists that actually got me, and it all comes together by the end. Kiryu's relationship with Haruka is the heart of this game and I really like how despite losing so much he finds a new family in her. I do have a hard time following these dense kind of noir stories, so I'm glad the broad strokes of the story satisfied me.
I think the combat isn't great, but it's definitely not unplayable. I think an issue with it is that it makes a bad first impression. Your dodge sucks, the lock on has a strange learning curve to it and your move set is very limited. But as you upgrade stuff and do more side missions that give you new moves, it does start to open up and become more functional. This is one of those where you just get stunlocked and knocked on your ass a lot which can be annoying. And also the game is just a bit too easy? Other than some weird bosses that kicked my ass it never really presents a challenge. And when it does get more intense the game showers you with restorative items. So you kinda just get into a lull of repetition with it. But I'd argue the game isn't really trying to give you the deepest combat system, what makes the game special is the experience of it and all the things you can do in the city, and that aspect of it really worked for me. It gets dangerously close to being boring but the game always picks itself up.
This series is definitely prohibitive to new players to catch up, I totally understand if someone wants to start with one of the more recent ones. But I think Yakuza 1 has a lot going for it and shouldn't be forgotten. If you really appreciate the ps2 era then you really should try it and see if you like it. It's a very unique experience and it was fun to experience the humble begginings of this giant series.
Esse jogo rodar no PS2 é um troço meio surprendente, tem seus problemas obvio, ainda mais considerando que é o primeiro de uma serie que vai evoluindo, mas mesmo na sua primeira interação, é uma obra que tem muita alma, carinho e amor envolvido.
Super recomendo
Super recomendo
There are some things I prefer in this and in kiwami, but overall this is my preferred version of the game.
Annoying as fuck to play when there are a million enemies surrounding you, but other than that it's enjoyable