A.k.a Shin Megami Like A Dragon Quest Tensei
And now for something completely different. With Judgment having been wrapped up and Ryu Ga Gotoku team still not ready to bring back Kiryu, they needed a new hero with a new story. But clearly they felt this was the perfect time to try something different for the franchise. And boy was it different.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon is a turn-based JRPG. The reason being is that Ichiban, a former Yakuza who becomes a problem solving hero, sees life as a video game. Not literally (well, not always) but rather he sees life's issues and solutions as ode's to a favourite game of his (which is alluded to be Dragon Quest and indeed the game has many shout-outs to that franchise.) Thus as he unravels a Yakuza plot wrapped around politics and corruption via power, we bust heads not with timed combos and sidestepping but onscreen commands that see Ichiban and co due abilities, cast "magic" and summons.
This leads to an over-the-top presentation that would be out of place in any other Yakuza game (even with its known goofiness) but here, fits YLAD very well. The visual flair is fantastic and while the animation can be janky and we still have issue, where non-essential character models can look plastic and/or uncanny and even essential characters can have a wooden or derpy look depending on the emotions they are meant to be having. Yakuza games tend to have, it's overshadowed by just how cool and flashy everything is.
While we have brief stops in familar location Kamurocho and Sotenbori, the main crux of the story takes place in Yokohama (Isezaki Ijincho), a place that soon becomes very known in the mind, aside from some weird visual issues such as grass pop-up, retains the vibrant presentation that the Like a Dragon series has shown throughout its games.
Of course, how does the gameplay fare? Very solid. Combat is fun and there is a semi-experimentation vibe due to everyone being able to switch classes (or rather "jobs") and its cool to see how the new attacks look, see what are the most effective for a situation/different enemies and assign favourite ones. Since this is the first implementation of a JRPG system in a Yakuza game though, it's not all clear sailing and it has a element of roughness, as some skills can be RNG due to the ways enemies don't stand still, so lining them up can be due to being ultra quick, lucky that they are in position or waiting an absurd amount of time, meaning some area of effect attacks are wasted.
Also as this is a JRPG AND a Yakuza game, you're going to find its very grindy in places, especially if you want certain items/equipment. The past Yakuza games already required dedication to achieve or gain certain stuff and this being a JRPG just adds to it. While this doesn't affect the main story and substories difficulty too much, aside from a few nasty battles, this can mean you will need to sink an ungodly huge amount of time if you're one of those who seek 100% or even get most stuff.
Still its worthwhile and a lot of fun to experience a Yakuza game as a JRPG and YLAD pulls it off well.
Story wise, its another engaging banger with a great cast of characters (Ichiban easily solidifies himself as a great main character) and a plot that is not just interesting but with some good twists too. Yes its goofy, a lot of the times and there is a lot of great fanservice for those who have played the past games. But its also not afraid to gut punch you many times through it's playthrough, with some hard-hitting scenes. Of course, it has many uplifting wholesome moments as well, mainly in the sub-stories which are, as always, great to go out of your way to see.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is rough around the edges but its a hugely successful twist on the Yakuza series and one that can't help but leave a smile on your face.
Rating: 9/10
And now for something completely different. With Judgment having been wrapped up and Ryu Ga Gotoku team still not ready to bring back Kiryu, they needed a new hero with a new story. But clearly they felt this was the perfect time to try something different for the franchise. And boy was it different.
Yakuza: Like A Dragon is a turn-based JRPG. The reason being is that Ichiban, a former Yakuza who becomes a problem solving hero, sees life as a video game. Not literally (well, not always) but rather he sees life's issues and solutions as ode's to a favourite game of his (which is alluded to be Dragon Quest and indeed the game has many shout-outs to that franchise.) Thus as he unravels a Yakuza plot wrapped around politics and corruption via power, we bust heads not with timed combos and sidestepping but onscreen commands that see Ichiban and co due abilities, cast "magic" and summons.
This leads to an over-the-top presentation that would be out of place in any other Yakuza game (even with its known goofiness) but here, fits YLAD very well. The visual flair is fantastic and while the animation can be janky and we still have issue, where non-essential character models can look plastic and/or uncanny and even essential characters can have a wooden or derpy look depending on the emotions they are meant to be having. Yakuza games tend to have, it's overshadowed by just how cool and flashy everything is.
While we have brief stops in familar location Kamurocho and Sotenbori, the main crux of the story takes place in Yokohama (Isezaki Ijincho), a place that soon becomes very known in the mind, aside from some weird visual issues such as grass pop-up, retains the vibrant presentation that the Like a Dragon series has shown throughout its games.
Of course, how does the gameplay fare? Very solid. Combat is fun and there is a semi-experimentation vibe due to everyone being able to switch classes (or rather "jobs") and its cool to see how the new attacks look, see what are the most effective for a situation/different enemies and assign favourite ones. Since this is the first implementation of a JRPG system in a Yakuza game though, it's not all clear sailing and it has a element of roughness, as some skills can be RNG due to the ways enemies don't stand still, so lining them up can be due to being ultra quick, lucky that they are in position or waiting an absurd amount of time, meaning some area of effect attacks are wasted.
Also as this is a JRPG AND a Yakuza game, you're going to find its very grindy in places, especially if you want certain items/equipment. The past Yakuza games already required dedication to achieve or gain certain stuff and this being a JRPG just adds to it. While this doesn't affect the main story and substories difficulty too much, aside from a few nasty battles, this can mean you will need to sink an ungodly huge amount of time if you're one of those who seek 100% or even get most stuff.
Still its worthwhile and a lot of fun to experience a Yakuza game as a JRPG and YLAD pulls it off well.
Story wise, its another engaging banger with a great cast of characters (Ichiban easily solidifies himself as a great main character) and a plot that is not just interesting but with some good twists too. Yes its goofy, a lot of the times and there is a lot of great fanservice for those who have played the past games. But its also not afraid to gut punch you many times through it's playthrough, with some hard-hitting scenes. Of course, it has many uplifting wholesome moments as well, mainly in the sub-stories which are, as always, great to go out of your way to see.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is rough around the edges but its a hugely successful twist on the Yakuza series and one that can't help but leave a smile on your face.
Rating: 9/10