Infinite Wealth takes all of the good that was established in Yakuza: Like A Dragon and decides "you know, all of the weird, rigid things to make it more like a classic RPG made it weird and rigid. Let's smooth all those out". And then boom, the job system is suddenly a lot more flexible, the gameplay system is significantly better made to take advantage of positional combat, the simple addition of being able to wipe out an encounter for slightly reduced EXP if you're multiple levels over them is a godsend to traversal. To make up for your time not being held up by random battles as often, Infinite Wealth is filled to its gills with content, and goes to the furthest reaches of the LAD series' goofiness for its scenarios, substories, and general tone. This is among one of the most consistently funny titles that uses its absurdity to constantly add more animations, more gameplay systems, more mini-games that could be their own games to add in to the general level of zaniness. And when you are ping-ponging between taking pictures of perverts in a rail shooter segment, having Sam Rigel tell you puns while you try to mine enough gold ore so that you can make the golden statue of Goro Majima you want to make for the sleazy district of your resort island, petting the weird man dressed as Captain Crunch that agreed to fight for you in the underground sicko fighting ring because you NEED a water-type Sujimon with high attack, helping investigate this woman claiming her chicken was abducted by aliens, and learning how your friends somehow all know what a Sega Dreamcast is still, the game is an utterly daunting amount of content that refuses to stop giving.
It then decides to hinge its plot on two VERY important facets: the fact that you (as the player) likely REALLY like Ichiban Kasuga as a character and that he's just an inherently likable guy to the world around him, and the fact that Kazuma Kiryu is really, really tired and deserves a rest, but refuses to take it. The game milks these aspects for all they're worth, giving Ichiban every opportunity to show off his larger-than-life personality and weaponize it to win others over, whilst utilizing Kiryu to properly reminisce about the Yakuza series that came before, the overwhelming totality of his legacy, and his place in it moving forward. The game manages to create a beautiful balance between its bittersweet moments and its riotous future to make for an absolutely intoxicating adventure that seems to just KEEP going and CONTINUE expanding until well into the 70, 80 hour mark where you can drag yourself back to the main plotline.
... and it's, unfortunately, here where Infinite Wealth falters for me. The previous two Like A Dragon games have two of the strongest endings I have ever encountered in a game, as they end with incredibly personal stories coming to fruition and either resolving or continuing in some of the most emotionally resonant scenes I've ever seen in a game. Infinite Wealth was unlikely to reach these, but it spreads itself so thin with the minutea of the game that the main plot takes a bit of a backseat, reaching for all of these grand ideas and statements and political plans. Some of the twists in the middle of it are QUITE strong, but it seems like a lot of pieces that were thrown into the mix had to be consolidated and resolved in a hurry. Ultimately, the note that Infinite Wealth leaves on is a satisfying one, but the individual steps to get there are not nearly as thrilling as one would hope. I do think that I prefer the first of Ichiban's games for the stronger emotional arc it takes me on - which is hard to say, going back to it after Infinite Wealth's improvements is difficult! - but I will say that Infinite Wealth is probably the MOST Yakuza any Yakuza game has been. And that's worth something!
It then decides to hinge its plot on two VERY important facets: the fact that you (as the player) likely REALLY like Ichiban Kasuga as a character and that he's just an inherently likable guy to the world around him, and the fact that Kazuma Kiryu is really, really tired and deserves a rest, but refuses to take it. The game milks these aspects for all they're worth, giving Ichiban every opportunity to show off his larger-than-life personality and weaponize it to win others over, whilst utilizing Kiryu to properly reminisce about the Yakuza series that came before, the overwhelming totality of his legacy, and his place in it moving forward. The game manages to create a beautiful balance between its bittersweet moments and its riotous future to make for an absolutely intoxicating adventure that seems to just KEEP going and CONTINUE expanding until well into the 70, 80 hour mark where you can drag yourself back to the main plotline.
... and it's, unfortunately, here where Infinite Wealth falters for me. The previous two Like A Dragon games have two of the strongest endings I have ever encountered in a game, as they end with incredibly personal stories coming to fruition and either resolving or continuing in some of the most emotionally resonant scenes I've ever seen in a game. Infinite Wealth was unlikely to reach these, but it spreads itself so thin with the minutea of the game that the main plot takes a bit of a backseat, reaching for all of these grand ideas and statements and political plans. Some of the twists in the middle of it are QUITE strong, but it seems like a lot of pieces that were thrown into the mix had to be consolidated and resolved in a hurry. Ultimately, the note that Infinite Wealth leaves on is a satisfying one, but the individual steps to get there are not nearly as thrilling as one would hope. I do think that I prefer the first of Ichiban's games for the stronger emotional arc it takes me on - which is hard to say, going back to it after Infinite Wealth's improvements is difficult! - but I will say that Infinite Wealth is probably the MOST Yakuza any Yakuza game has been. And that's worth something!