-They improved the combat in every conceivable way possible.
-Story was worse than its predecessor but I don't really mind that because I don't think it is humanly possible to create a better story than the first game.
-This game have one of, if not, the best side contents in any Yakuza game ever.
-My only problem with this game is "unresolved" story beats. Epilogue was too short. Not enough conclusion to the story (I guess they are planning to make "dissolution" stuff a trilogy)

Now the worst part about this game is the fact that it ended. What the fuck am I going to do now? Wait for another 4 years?????

I have so much to say about this game but I'm gonna stop myself.

Once again, Rockstar has proven that throwing money at problems doesn't magically solve the issues games have.

This game is rumored to have 350 million dollars budget, making it one the most expensive games to date. But the quest design is still reeks of early 2000's. The story missions are unconnected, at least until the Island sections, making it hard to follow what you are doing or why. They resemble Ubisoft levels of filler content (though this might be a bit harsh; at least this game has presentation quailty).

This game had enormous potential, but Rockstar played it safe and shot themselves in the foot.

There are an abundance of mechanics: gun cleaning, horse cleaning, camp investments, hunting, doing chores for the camp, dressing appropriately for the weather, bathing, shaving, etc. However, 90% of these mechanics are just "there." It's as if they had ten different teams "shitting" opinions about which mechanics to add to the game and added all of them at the same time.

You do things, a very inconsequential thing changes, you don't care about that mechanic anymore, and the game throws in another mechanic at you. The cycle repeats.

I guess they wanted to make this game some sort of "cowboy" life simulation RPG game? Or did they? Because the player has VERY MINIMAL control over how the story goes. They threw in another mechanic called "honor" that changes some dialogue in the game and changes the ending i guess, that's it.

And don't get me started on the freedom in missions because this game is likely the MOST restrictive open-world game in terms of mission design. You have to do everything just as you're told by the game, or you fail. Oh, you wanted to go slightly right instead of left? Too bad, "Mission Failed - Arthur left the squad."

They really thought they could get away with throwing very inconsequential choices in some missions. "Do you want to kill the single guy standing in front of you, or do you want your ally to do it for you?" Thanks a lot, game. Now I really feel "free." I can let my ally kill that guy so I can finish this mission without engaging with the only "gameplay" mechanic you have.

Another problem I have is the lack of progression. There is NO meaningful progression in this game; the first shootout you get into in the first scene plays out exactly like your last one in the game. Not every game should have skill trees or classes, but I don't think adding some progression mechanics to this 350 million dollar game would hurt.

Graphics...

Just for the record, I played this game on ultra graphics. The game looks beautiful sometimes; when you're riding your horse in the beautifully moonlit empty lands, it's hard not to be impressed. But the keyword here is "sometimes." The game is beautiful until you get close to anything. Oh boy, this game has literally the worst anti-aliasing issues I've ever seen (still hasn't been fixed after years; you need to install mods to LESSEN the issues). The game can look downright bad at times, especially when there is thick vegetation, trees, or rocks. Considering this game takes place in the wild west, everywhere is filled with those assets.

Character faces are bad too. Facial hairs look like blocks, faces look grainy and yellowish, making them downright disgusting to look at under some lighting conditions. I'm glad GTA 6 is not coming to PC on release because I cannot imagine how bad these issues would be if they tried that.

I really wanted to like this game, and I did a bit, frankly. A 3/5 is not bad at all. But just thinking about the possibilities and the potential this game had makes me visibly mad. And the fact that I gave it 3 stars after complaining this much still shows that the game had a lot going for it, just way less than it had the potential for.

This is everything a Yakuza fan could ask for. I think RGG lied to us when they said they made this game "6 months". Because there is no way they made this in 6 months, this is not an asset flip, there is a lot unique bosses, animations, cutscene animations etc. There is a whole new fighting style and they refined the Dragon style. There is beefy substories, a giant Arena minigame which could be a game on its own.

They really nailed the characters as well, I don't think any other game could make you care about characters in a such short time.

While its true that its shorter than a normal Yakuza game, it's filled with content and I cannot recommend it enough.

Just be warned though, the game pretty much spoils the Yakuza 6 ending in the first scene (they showed the ending entire ending cutscene) and they also spoil Yakuza Like a Dragon (this is expected since this game was meant to be a DLC for LaD before it was turned to standalone DLC).