Yakuza 0 is so good that it makes me break my steadfast rule of always playing things in release order. Yakuza 0 does this by simply making a better case for the entire series than the actual first game of the series. You get everything here. The drama, the goofiness, the bombast, the long winding tv-like narratives. Yakuza 0 is The Whole Package.

One of the best iterations of Yakuza's combat lies in this entry as well, serving as light by character-action standards but in-depth by old-school brawler standards. It's a game that is so effortless to play and explore that a completionist run begins to look less like a chore and more like a chance to sink your teeth as far as you're able to.

Kiryu and Majima are both incredible protagonists, though for long-time fans the Majima stuff may in fact be the stronger selling point. However, Kiryu rightfully gets the most momentum going into the next game, setting him and the player forth into a longform exploration of the character over a staggering 7 game saga.

Yakuza can feel like a hard sell at times (it's so weird tonally and the combat is "janky" by modern standards) but if there was ever a game to successfully convince an unitiated public to give it a serious chance, it was this one.