A very flawed but good game in its own right that just pales in comparison to the emotional masterpiece that its prequel Yakuza 0 is.
+ interesting narrative continuation that shows a satisfying recognition of the protagonist's rise to infamy
+ two fascinatingly developed antagonists
+ generally well-made cutscenes with excellent voice acting again
+ sizable amount of entertaining optional content
+ decent introduction to the best girl in the series
+ small quality of life improvements (autosaves and manual saving anywhere, menu navigation)
- removal of the two most involved minigames
- changes to poise making some early fights very frustrating
- very few noteworthy side quests
- short main story with a terribly slow start and no outstanding climaxes
- often questionable scene direction with abrupt tonal shifts
- cartoonishly evil final villain
- many significant deaths that aren't executed or utilized effectively
- much lessened narrative impact when played before Yakuza 0