This will include the Yakuza games that I've played (which is all of them, but not the original versions of some of them from 20 years ago, just the most current and modern versions of each).
Best: Playing as Goro Majima. His fighting style is so much more fun than Kiryu's, employing fast moves and even breakdancing at times. Kind of crazy that this was the only game (for a long time) in the series to let you do this.
Worst: Considering you play as him for like 85% of this series, Kiryu isn't as interesting to play as Majima, and you're stuck playing as him for half the game. They made Majima so much fun to play that it's actually a bummer when the game switches back to Kiryu after a Majima chapter. So basically this game made most of the other games in the series look bad in terms of fun factor and playability.
Yakuza Kiwami
Best: Akira Nishikiyama in general, what an antagonist. The guy who starts out as your best friend in the previous game has now assumed the role of ruthless Yakuza kingpin, remaking the organization in his image incredibly quickly. He's a fully fleshed-out character and a compelling one, with as much charisma as video game characters ever get. The series probably never topped him as a villain.
Worst: The combat is the most rudimentary it ever gets in the series, considering the original Yakuza came out ages ago on PS2. Even the Kiwami remake doesn't do a whole lot to improve that, so you're stuck with fairly bland fights. Especially after how awesome Yakuza Zero's fights were.
Yakuza Kiwami 2
Best: The visuals. This game had hands-down the best visuals (for its era) of any game in the series. They absolutely maximized what the PS4 was capable with this one. Not only is it high-def, it also has terrific art direction all around, and Kamurocho comes to life like no other game in the series. This used a different engine than the rest of the series, as far as I'm aware, and pretty much pushes the PS4 to its absolute max. Only the most recent entries on PS5 surpass it. HM goes to the villain, Ryuji Goda, probably the second-best villain in this series. They did a great job making him a deadly foil to Kiryu and pretty much his equal on every level. They could have spent more time building on who he was, though, so I give the nod to the visuals.
Worst: This is the game that establishes Kiryu as an unbeatable superman. Ryuji Goda here is the last time anyone in this series is a legitimate threat to Kiryu. At one point Kiryu gets stabbed by an assassin, basically gets up and no-sells it, then goes on to beat up a legion of goons. Not sure I ever felt like anything in this series was any sort of threat to Kiryu (except Father Time) after this game.
Yakuza 3 / Yakuza Kiwami 3
Best: The beautiful scenery of Okinawa and the peaceful setting of the orphanage. A lot of people have Yakuza 3 down as the worst game in the series because not a whole lot really happens, but I liked the peacefulness and quiet of a lot of this story. The same goes for both the original and the Kiwami version, in both this and the Worst.
Worst: It's true that not a whole lot really happens in this one, and it's a bit of a letdown after the heights of the previous three. The story has some nice elements like Kiryu looking out for the kids at the orphanage, but I'd say the overall plot here is the weak point of the game. Nothing about this caught my interest or kept me playing to see what would happen next, like the earlier games.
Yakuza 4
Best: The new characters, specifically Akiyama and Saejima. The game has you switching between four different characters with four different stories, which made for a more interesting narrative (not to mention the gameplay differences) after being locked in with Kiryu until now. This is my personal least-favorite game in the series, and one I just kinda burned through to get it done. I made the mistake of playing several of these back to back, and this is not a series to be plowed all at once; it's something you play one at a time with months between each one.
Worst: Kamurocho is really old at this point after being featured in 3 games; at least Yakuza 3 took us to a new location even if not much happened in it. Yakuza 4 going back to a location that really got maxed out with Yakuza 2 wasn't a great choice. They added some new areas, like the subway and sewers, that were all uniformly pretty bad. This was Kamurocho at its worst, really.
Yakuza 5
Best: The sheer size and scope, which I don't think has been equalled again. This game is HUGE compared to the others, and encompasses multiple cities, with dozens of hours of things to do. It's like a classy Japanese version of a GTA game. Easily the largest game in the series outside of the two RPGs, and even then it probably isn't far off at all.
Worst: The sheer size and scope. This game can take an age and a half to get through, so you better be having a good time. If one were to pick a single worst part, though, the prison chapters with Saejima are super tedious, take away your freedom (ironically), and just aren't interesting or fun.
Yakuza 6
Best: Not much, this game is just...kinda bland. The story is probably the best part of this one, and the only reason to play it really. It gives Kiryu a nice conclusion to his story, and is worth playing for that reason.
Worst: Not much, this game is just...kinda bland. It might give Kiryu a nice conclusion, but considering the series (and Kiryu) go on after this, that conclusion is no longer a conclusion but rather just another (rather mundane) chapter. So the worst thing about this one is how time rendered it a bit irrelevant. Also Haruka's characterization in this is pretty bad. It's a forgettable game that would be relevant if it had really been the last chapter of Kiryu's story.
Like a Dragon: Issin
Best: An interesting spinoff taking place in historical Japan with look-alikes of the characters we know, this game was fun for what it was. Best thing for me was the summon cards that let you channel a signature attack based on various celebrities, one of which was wrestler Kenny Omega. Needless to say I spammed the Kenny Omega card as much as possible.
Worst: Despite having four fighting styles to flip between, the fights got very redundant after a while. This is a common issue with a few of the games in this series, but here it really stood out. At the end of the day it's a remake of an old game.
Like a Dragon: Yakuza 7
Best: The turn-based gameplay really works, and going all-in with classes and so forth was really inspired. This is what happens when already-talented game developers decide to try a new genre and knock it out of the park by emulating what worked in other great genre games.
Worst: The RPG nature of this one means random battles, and sometimes there are way too many random battles. Getting harassed constantly while you're just trying to walk around can get tedious after a while.
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name
Best: A sort of "alternate Yakuza 7" getting us up to date on what Kiryu was doing during that game, this game generally flew under the radar. Which is unfortunate because it's actually quite good, better than some of the main games in the series. Best thing about it is, without a doubt, the villain / final boss fight. They go for this "masked devil" storyline during the game, which is a compelling mystery. Who's under the mask and what do they want? The game keeps you guessing, and fans had a few ideas dancing around. While the final reveal wasn't anybody I expected, it leads to a great final boss battle that might be the best in the series overall.
Worst: Probably nothing from the game itself, so much as the fact that the playerbase didn't really take this one too seriously and it didn't seem to really get any press or attention. It's a shame because it's far from a side-story, and works well as a sequel to Yakuza 6 (which, honestly, this is superior to). It's the alternate take on 7 before the two protagonists combine for the next game.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (Yakuza 8)
Best: Pretty much everything. This is one of the best RPGs of the last twenty years. A big one is the class system (which is a hoot and a half) and how the postgame allows you to mix and match your party (finally) while displaying their class outfits while walking around. This makes the postgame that much more awesome and helps with the (incredibly long) process of getting the plat. However, for single best thing about this game, I'm going to go with the lategame fight against Goro Majima and several other series major players. It's a fight in the snow between Kiryu's new allies and his old allies, and it's the single most memorable moment in the series in quite a while.
Worst: The way the game is designed, your party is completely nerfed against foes more than four levels above you. A lot of games do this (WoW comes to mind) to varying degrees to keep players from slaying anything that's too big for their britches. Unfortunately I ran into this issue at the worst time: The final boss, who they bumped the level of a bit too high compared to his subordinates. As a result, the first time I got there, it was impossible to beat. This forced me to reload, grind, and redo the final dungeon. However, this could be a "me problem" as there was a ton of side-content I didn't do, most notably the Yokohama Underground, which gets you a ton of levels. I did do the Hawaiian Haunt, at least. Those are the two Tartarus-like random dungeons of the game, and while they're pretty redundant, they're also kind of necessary. So I guess, when it comes down to it, Yokohama Underground and Hawaiian Haunt are probably the worst thing about this game, since they're boring as hell and exist only to catch up your levels.
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
Best: Another spinoff game like Issin, this one gets to play around a lot with the setting and characters. Best thing is probably the way Samoa Joe plays an outstanding villain. He's fearsome, combining physical power with money/influence and sharp mental acuity to present Goro Majima's best foil to date. Well, besides Kiryu of course. Really liked the battles with Joe, whether it was the ship-to-ship cannon battles or the final brawl in his throne room.
Worst: The settlement minigame. I'm generally not a fan of settlement-building minigames because most of the time they're not done very well (the occasional times where they're done right, they're great). This is one that wasn't particularly interesting or fun, and they force you to spend time in it which is unfortunate.
No comments:
Post a Comment