My first Yakuza game and a lot of mixed feelings. The story ranges from super captivating and mind blowing to really really dumb, but is definitely still the highlight. I get that this is the point of these games, but it just tries to do so many different types of gameplay that the vast majority are just so surface level - Stealth is absolutely terrible, for instance. Parkour isn't as offensively bad but just pointless and boring.

It has a ton of charm in nearly every aspect, but there's also such a grind related to nearly every little thing. Want to complete the fantastic School Storyline side quest chain? Hope you're ready to plug away for hours and hours doing shit like flirting with random women in a bar to the point of doing the same dialogue over and over, and paying to get in each time. With all that vented out, I don't regret playing it, it was a positive experience overall, and I will try another Yakuza game when the time feels right. But I may be a bit hesitant at first.