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[RNG]

Since when were shareholders concerned for the well-being of employees .

 

[Erdrick]

Finished the game last night and did some of the post game stuff... But holy fuck. I won't be finishing the last part of that without grinding first... Recommended level 99 along with Job levels that as well. I tried it for the hell of it and was mauled by the first encounter with my party at level 80 lol

Absolutely superb game and one of the best in the series. Love all the new characters and really enjoyed the writing and dialogue immensely. I can't speak for the English cast but the Japanese dub was fucking outstanding and the actor who played Ichiban fucking NAILED it in the end scenes. The level of emotion and heartfelt speaking was just... Perfect.

The combat is quick and snappy and just as satisfying as the beat em up ones for me. Enjoyed just going around picking fights. The game basically is a Dragon Quest game in the Yakuza series. They pulled it off amazingly well, I feel. There is so much content in the game too. I'm just missing one trophy left for the platinum as well.

Music was so well done as expected. And the graphics are beautiful still. I'm eager to play this again on PS5...

Anyway, game of the fucking year.

 

[a multicultural team of v]

Finished the main story now on Series X, over 60 hours in. Going for all achivments, I was really against the new battle system before trying the game, it works really well, and makes grinding not as tedious as it can get towards the end game in the others. My gripes with the game is in the story as i will explain in spoiler tags bellow, please dont read the spoilers if you have not finished the game and played the other yakuza games, Overall rating 7.5/10

Spoiler

First of all this game is Yakuza 7, its a mainline title, not a spinoff no matter what they call it in the west, but you still have Kashiwagi and Lau Ka Long in the game that are looooong dead.

Plus the returning characters kinda ruin the story, they felt like written parodies of themselves, like some all star crew that they just had to put in the game to please old fans. Saejima and Daigo especially feels like a parody.

Plus Kiryu showing up as bodyguard for Watase, and none of the old tojo guys are suprised at all, barely any reaction at all "i knew you where alive", just stupid writing. Like he would just compromise Harukas safety like that, when he is cautious later in the game.

Also what fucking direction does the game take now that both Tojo and Omi are gone? Are we just going to follow different MC's from now? Thats actually something i would prefer instead of beeing stuck with Ichiban, not that he was a bad mc, but i feel his story is over now.

Also the party composition took away some from the game, Namba, and the chick dont exactly fit in i feel like during cutscenes, it just felt strange and was immersion breaking.

Just left with a sour taste after the ending of the game, all the old guard where just brought back into the story for what and essentialy written out, for what? I would have no problem with this game if it was a spinoff, but that its in the main series leaves me baffled, especially with how they ended it, where do they go from here?

If it just was a spinoff it would have been a great story, Its compelling but certain things just ruin it...

As i said above 7.5/10, great gameplay, runs great, great locations/substories and minigames. But certain story decisions drag the score down heeeeavy for me. Its a great game and i recomend it, but its not a great yakuza game story wise.

The game unfortunately fell into the MGS4 trap of excessive melodrama and pointless fan service that actually harms the narrative because it's so forced.

This is the only Yakuza, and I'm including Dead Souls for what it was, where I walked away disappointed with the story. Which is a shame because the rest of the game was damn near perfect - I love everything about the changes they made (other than game over on Ichiban death and some enemies being ridiculous health sponges). They adapted so many good mechanics and I love the amount of care and detail that went into bringing them all together. The way they present the job system feels so naturally Yakuza.

And was it just me or were the first few chapters really good?

 

[SaturnSaturn]

The game unfortunately fell into the MGS4 trap of excessive melodrama and pointless fan service that actually harms the narrative because it's so forced.

This is the only Yakuza, and I'm including Dead Souls for what it was, where I walked away disappointed with the story. Which is a shame because the rest of the game was damn near perfect - I love everything about the changes they made (other than game over on Ichiban death and some enemies being ridiculous health sponges). They adapted so many good mechanics and I love the amount of care and detail that went into bringing them all together. The way they present the job system feels so naturally Yakuza.

And was it just me or were the first few chapters really good?

Its a really well made game, and i find myself grinding to get all achivments, the gameplay loop is not tedious at all! But as you said the fan service hurt the narrative bigtime.

dont read spoilers if you are not finished with the game

Spoiler

I actually found myself enjoying the story for what it was up until chapter 12, also the namba stuff and how easy ichiban forgave everything was rage inducing, the MC is more naive than Kiryu. but it never felt like a Yakuza story, not enough yakuza buisness in it, i mean for christ sake both the omi and tojo got disbanded lol. it just got really dumb at chapter 12 with the returning chars, it should have stood on its own feet, also its pretty much confirmed that the next game will be a followup to this, so more ichiban i guess, not sure where his story goes from here tbh, its a good one off game but i cant see this cast as the future of the series.

 

[Erdrick]

Just a quick question on this game as well as others in the series: Are all the Sega arcade games available in the Yakuza games full versions of the arcade counterpart, or are they cut down mini games experiences?

Aside from Virtua Fighter 5: Final Showdown missing some options I think... The other games are all full versions. Really get a bang for your buck with these games.

Also... Getting the final trophy for beating the True Millennium Tower is such a slog. I'm in the process of doing it but it's definitely for hardcore fans only to earn this. So... Much... Level grinding...

Love the game though still. Absolutely game of the year for me. Possibly my favourite in the series as well.

 

[Royal-Slime]

The game unfortunately fell into the MGS4 trap of excessive melodrama and pointless fan service that actually harms the narrative because it's so forced.

This is the only Yakuza, and I'm including Dead Souls for what it was, where I walked away disappointed with the story. Which is a shame because the rest of the game was damn near perfect - I love everything about the changes they made (other than game over on Ichiban death and some enemies being ridiculous health sponges). They adapted so many good mechanics and I love the amount of care and detail that went into bringing them all together. The way they present the job system feels so naturally Yakuza.

And was it just me or were the first few chapters really good?

Isn't that every Yakuza? "Excessive melodrama and pointless fan service"? I've lost count of how many times I've seen an ending with men taking off their shirts, throwing them away and fighting each other while some music plays... usually all of this is accompanied by some kind of "unexpected betrayal", usually it happens on a taaaaall tower and someone always cries in the end.

I like Yakuza 0, Kiwami 1-2 a lot but I feel like every single entry after those games is the same thing over and over. Like a Dragon seems to change the formula a little bit, from what I've seen. I love the Dragon QUest references and Ichiban is nice but everyone else seems boring. Stuff like this makes me regret getting a digital PS5 >_>

 

[Alexios]

Wut, the story is great and quite moving too. Ichiban is very relatable somehow, you really root for the guy, and having the party with you at all times participating in the major scenes etc. gives it a very different feel to previous Yakuza games too. I only don't like that many of the side quests are things you've seen already but then again Yakuza games constantly do that (ie the baby diaper yakuza family). It was great to be in a whole new and large area for most of the game and it felt much more open to exploration. Maybe certain character cameos could be done without but I don't think they were overemphasized or anything and the boss fights all were pretty sweet. Some of the party members that join you later don't have enough time to warm up to them in the same way as the first few and I do wish it was some different folks that joined you (particularly from the Koreans) but oh well, a minor gripe, they do all have their bonding story lines but you'll have to focus on doing them before the end where with the first few it happens organically. Huge developments as far as the Yakuza families go, not just the personal journey, it'll be interesting to see what the sequel does with that, hopefully it's not a cop out where they somehow overall return to business as usual like nothing happened just because obviously there may be power hungry people left wanting to take the reins for themselves, that would be a let down, but with a good story I could get over it I guess.

Spoiler

Like, maybe the next game won't even be called Yakuza but just Like a Dragon 2 because the yakuza is basically over? That could be interesting, but it's already showing they're leaving things behind and not going for fan service, but some characters/stuff deserved the send off appearance. And yeah I wouldn't have forgiven anyone like Nanba myself but on the other hand that's another unexpected turn of events and nice to see Ichiban so devoted and understanding and have it work out after all too showing he was basically right to keep believing in him despite all his crap.

 

[NanaMiku]

Currently at chapter 9 and I'm really bummed that this game is pretty region lock for the DLC. Bought the reg 2 (EU) version since it's cheaper in my country. My main account is US and redemeed my pre-order bonus on EU region. The DLC is not recognized in my main account (This is really rare). Tried getting the slot DLC from US store but still not recognized in the game.

 

[thatJohann]

How’s the loading and frame rate of the PS4 version running on PS5? I played it on Series X but thinking of getting the PS4 version to play on PS5. Don’t want to wait till March. Thoughts?

 

[Erdrick]

Platinum'd the game this past night. I tend to savour these games and with this basically being a love letter to DQ, I was in heaven. The real final post game fight wasn't as horrific as I has thought but you definitely had to plan and be careful for every fight leading to and during those segments.

First Yakuza game that I got every trophy in. Helps that you don't have to basically do the entire completion list this time around.

Loved it. Hope they do more with Ichiban and this style.

 

[Hudo]

Wut, the story is great and quite moving too. Ichiban is very relatable somehow, you really root for the guy, and having the party with you at all times participating in the major scenes etc. gives it a very different feel to previous Yakuza games too. I only don't like that many of the side quests are things you've seen already but then again Yakuza games constantly do that (ie the baby diaper yakuza family). It was great to be in a whole new and large area for most of the game and it felt much more open to exploration. Maybe certain character cameos could be done without but I don't think they were overemphasized or anything and the boss fights all were pretty sweet. Some of the party members that join you later don't have enough time to warm up to them in the same way as the first few and I do wish it was some different folks that joined you (particularly from the Koreans) but oh well, a minor gripe, they do all have their bonding story lines but you'll have to focus on doing them before the end where with the first few it happens organically. Huge developments as far as the Yakuza families go, not just the personal journey, it'll be interesting to see what the sequel does with that, hopefully it's not a cop out where they somehow overall return to business as usual like nothing happened just because obviously there may be power hungry people left wanting to take the reins for themselves, that would be a let down, but with a good story I could get over it I guess.

Spoiler

Like, maybe the next game won't even be called Yakuza but just Like a Dragon 2 because the yakuza is basically over? That could be interesting, but it's already showing they're leaving things behind and not going for fan service, but some characters/stuff deserved the send off appearance. And yeah I wouldn't have forgiven anyone like Nanba myself but on the other hand that's another unexpected turn of events and nice to see Ichiban so devoted and understanding and have it work out after all too showing he was basically right to keep believing in him despite all his crap.

Yeah, when they first introduced him as the new protagonist, I was like "I'm not really feeling the guy...". But after I've played Like A Dragon, I like Ichiban more than Kiryu.. Ichiban is like "Positivity: The Guy." and I somehow like this.

 

[Virt McPolygon]

Does anyone know why the icon for the Cockroach is all pixelated compared to other bugs you collect?

 

[Nixonomics]

Does anyone know why the icon for the Cockroach is all pixelated compared to other bugs you collect?

I think it's just poking fun of censored porn and the the name of the insect.

 

[Virt McPolygon]

I think it's just poking fun of censored porn and the the name of the insect.

Should've known it was just that lol

 

[RNG]

Just did the cleaning robot sub story, never change RGG studios, never change.

 

[NanaMiku]

Does anyone know why the icon for the Cockroach is all pixelated compared to other bugs you collect?

It's typical for Japanese content. They always censors cockroach on manga/anime too

 

[NecrosaroIII]

This will be my first Yakuza game. Got it as a Christmas present. I was curious because I love turn-based JRPGs. I love the Dragon Quest references. Great stuff. Very slick.

 

[Coconutt]

Yo the ring leader of the circus, seriously fuck that guy, gave me a few laughs though lol.

 

[GeorgPrime]

So i just finished Yakuza 5 now jumping into Yakuza 6 - Song of Life The last game before i can start with Yakuza Like A Dragon

 

[Miles708]

So i just finished Yakuza 5 now jumping into Yakuza 6 - Song of Life The last game before i can start with Yakuza Like A Dragon

Nice!
Please don't rush Yakuza 6, it's rough around the edges but I think it's one of the best games on PS4.

 

[GeorgPrime]

Nice!
Please don't rush Yakuza 6, it's rough around the edges but I think it's one of the best games on PS4.

I already love the better fighting system and tje faster loading times

 

[SkylineRKR]

Nice!
Please don't rush Yakuza 6, it's rough around the edges but I think it's one of the best games on PS4.

Its better than Like a Dragon imo. Y6 is perhaps my number one in the saga. It has the best pacing, trimmed a lot of the fat. But still some awesome side quests. I didn't like the clan minigame that also reappeared in Kiwami 2. But in general I think the whole Hiroshima part is the best Yakuza ever.

 

[Miles708]

Its better than Like a Dragon imo. Y6 is perhaps my number one in the saga. It has the best pacing, trimmed a lot of the fat. But still some awesome side quests. I didn't like the clan minigame that also reappeared in Kiwami 2. But in general I think the whole Hiroshima part is the best Yakuza ever.

100% agree.
I've always felt Yakuza's had too much everything (side-quests, minigames, characters), this is laser-focused on making everything meaningful and heartfelt, from story to side-characters to the enviroments, while trimming everything else, and I think they've greatly succeded.
The best in the series and one of the best games of this gen for me.

 

[GymWolf]

Yeah yakuza 6 is fucking great, my favourite after Y0.

can't wait to play like a dragon in a day or 2.

 

[Isa]

This is still holding up as my GotY. I really love Ichiban, he's a great protagonist. Its a testament that I want to play every side story, especially after a lengthy 15+hr days these past few weeks. Sadly many story heavy games tend to help me relax and sleep, but I'd start up the game debate on actually playing it then start up another side story and then somehow they manage to hook me so I have to see how it all plays out. I love the humor in the game, but man sometimes the game can throw a curveball like in the ss Forget me Not. My girl was crying at the end and I was all teary eyed. Its crazy how a studio that's been doing this for so long can keep bringing the magic. Plus all the DQ love is very much appreciated. The combat and job system is great.

 

[GymWolf]

Bought on steam with the 25% discount a moment ago, time to finish cyberpunk and start this one.

 

[GymWolf]

Wow puddle reflections in this game are almost rtx tier, far better than ssr at psycho in cyberpunk, they are detailed, not just a blur.

Also the game has some top tier rendering, look the white leather and the watch

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

only like 3 hrs in but totally in love rite now

 

[TintoConCasera]

Wow puddle reflections in this game are almost rtx tier, far better than ssr at psycho in cyberpunk.

Also the game has some top tier rendering, look the white leather and the watch

Dragon engine looks amazing, specially in cutscenes. I remember watching Yakuza 0 trailers back in the day and thinking the faces where the most realistic I've seen.

 

[Alexios]

Wow, so off to hear that in English. I can't imagine the more emotional/screaming/crying scenes like that, haha.

 

[GymWolf]

Dragon engine looks amazing, specially in cutscenes. I remember watching Yakuza 0 trailers back in the day and thinking the faces where the most realistic I've seen.

Yakuza 0 didn't use dragon engine tho
First title with dragon engine was Y6.

 

[GymWolf]

Wow, so off to hear that in English. I can't imagine the more emotional/screaming/crying scenes like that, haha.

Yeah jap is a must for these games.

But the eng VA is not half bad either.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Yakuza 0 didn't use dragon engine tho
First title with dragon engine was Y6.

Aw really? My bad bud, I thought all of them used the same engine, just different versions.

 

[Alexios]

Yes, wasn't awful, just super off, like that ace attorney burgers meme, like most dubs are even when we're talking fantasy settings, never mind modern Japan as here (but even in fantasy anime they have Japanese culture and behaviors and mannerisms).

Also it makes me think of foreign soap operas they used to dub here for grandmas and kids shows, movies and series and everything has commonly been using subtitles here, though it might have been cool if we did dubs like Japan with actors per actor.

Yeah jap is a must for these games.

But the eng VA is not half bad either.

 

[GymWolf]

Aw really? My bad bud, I thought all of them used the same engine, just different versions.

Nevertheless, faces in Y0 are pretty good yeah, especially the 3 bosses (scanned from real actors).

But dragon engine is a step up.

 

[TintoConCasera]

Nevertheless, faces in Y0 are pretty good yeah, especially the 3 bosses (scanned from real actors).

But dragon engine is a step up.

Totally, can't wait to play Kiwami 2.

 

[Virt McPolygon]

I live near a few American locations of food chains that are in the Yakuza series. Just learned that the Ringer Hut location nearby is closing. They had restaurants in Yakuza 6 and I believe Zero and/or Kiwami.

 

[BouncyFrag]

I’m playing Persona 5R and it got me thinking I need to find a wacky Japanese turn based game with mini games...and then I discovered this!!! My copy arrives Monday.

Edit:
Copy came early.

 

[Potato Chip PRO]

Bought it today! Can't wait to play it!!

 

[NecrosaroIII]

I'm on chapter 4. Great game so far. Best playable cast in a JRPG in a long time. I love Ichiban.

 

[Senhua]

RGG 7: Hikari to Yami no Yukue is my top 2020 GOTY followed by FFVIIR and Tsushima.
Enjoy the game guys.

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

This is great dude.

A weak enemy is called a "Punkling."

You have a character class called "Homeless Guy" whose bad breath harms enemies.

Enemies use bin lids as shields.

Off to a great start!

 

[GymWolf]

I know that i'm a broken record, but 5-6 hours in and story and characters are already more engaging than all ND games combined.

I don't understand why yakuza team doesn't receive the same praise of people like ND or obsidian or whoever people praise for the writing in games.

 

[Touch fuzZy. get BizZay]

I know that i'm a broken record, but 5-6 hours in and story and characters are already more engaging than all ND games combined.

I don't understand why yakuza team doesn't receive the same praise of people like ND or obsidian or whoever people praise for the writing in games.

Yeah, Yakuza games have "heart"

 

[Isa]

I know that i'm a broken record, but 5-6 hours in and story and characters are already more engaging than all ND games combined.

I don't understand why yakuza team doesn't receive the same praise of people like ND or obsidian or whoever people praise for the writing in games.

Exactly! Over the years I've gathered a huge album of screenshots across PS4 and now with Yakuza 7 my PS5. My friends and I will respond or communicate with ss from games and I haven't lost a single conversation yet haha. Seriously though the writing is amazing, as are the characters. I can't believe Ichiban skyrocketed to one of my favorite lead characters so easily, and I was skeptical at first. At least those of us willing to give more niche games a chance recognize the quality therein. I gotta credit the translation team as well.

 

[Kimahri]

So after finishing Like a Dragon I really want to play the other games, but I just can't spend as much time on them as I did this one.

Do I miss a lot if I just breeze through the story and skip extras? I just want to get the story of the whole saga, and I can't spend 8 hours on all games, hah.

 

[Isa]

So after finishing Like a Dragon I really want to play the other games, but I just can't spend as much time on them as I did this one.

Do I miss a lot if I just breeze through the story and skip extras? I just want to get the story of the whole saga, and I can't spend 8 hours on all games, hah.

That's a good question. Some titles are shorter than others but some can be fairly lengthy as well. Obviously steamrolling through to story beats is possible for the most part, but I can't help but get caught up in side stories. I don't play every minigame though, just the ones that really catch my fancy. If only we had all these games when I was younger, I would've loved having a huge series to delve into. Now work and relationships take priority. I'm doing it all wrong, I gotta work to game lol.

Hope it works out for you, there are some great moments in the series for sure.

 

[GymWolf]

This game is fucking fantastic

 

[RNG]

Completed Chapter 12... wow that was a lot of fan service.

 

[Ecto311]

Man this game is good. Never played a Yakuza game before. I kept hearing about it from the gaming media that I listen to and thought ok it's on sale good time to give it ago. I liked it so much I got 20hrs in on xbox then moved to steam and blasted past all the story to get to where I was and basically start over. It loads and plays so much better on PC than base level xbox one.

It's been a long time since I have played a game this much. There isn't really an aspect of this game I don't like. The story is good, the side quests are interesting, the game is full on my sense of humor and surprising. Most of the time you can see the joke or the story going somewhere and this thing just takes a left I didn't see coming.

Are the other games similar but without the RPG parts? I did see a handful of them on gamepass but not sure where to start once we get through this one.