Favorite mainline Yakuza game?

Favorite mainline Yakuza game

  • 0

    Votes: 14 42.4%

  • 1

    Votes: 1 3.0%

  • 2

    Votes: 3 9.1%

  • 3

    Votes: 5 15.2%

  • 4

    Votes: 2 6.1%

  • 5

    Votes: 1 3.0%

  • 6

    Votes: 5 15.2%

  • 7 (Like a Dragon)

    Votes: 2 6.1%
  • Total voters
    33
I've only played 0 - kiwami 2, I think I enjoyed kiwami 2 the most. Kiwami 1's story was a let down in some wats and I felt kiwami 2 was a huge improvement and had great surprises and quality of life improvements.
 
I don’t like to count any I haven’t fully completed, so…between 3, 4, and 6, it’s a little close but I feel I enjoyed 6’s story the most at least. I feel I’ll really like 7 but my mind kind of thinks of it as a brand new start so it’s hard to compare. 0 is also good so far, just haven’t gotten back to it.
 
6 has the best presentation and the most refined design to me. I remember I wrote a review for the game back in early 2019 on this forum which I still stand by it now.
Guppy said:
yakuza-6.jpg


Yakuza 6: The Song of Life (2016)

The "last" game for the franchise's main protagonist Kiryu oddly has less of everything when compared to the financial successful Yakuza 0, as in less playable characters, less heat actions, less fighting styles and less side quests than the aforementioned title. And who knew, Yakuza 6 is the better game for it.

Woven under a brand new engine, the combat physics has been overhauled quite a bit as now every time an attack is blocked, it will bounce back, briefly staggering Kiryu and resetting your attack. Though it might not seem much, it adds a certain weight to each blow while the game requires more attentiveness from the players pressing the action, besides bringing a more realistic raggdoll like physics to each fight. Also, the advantage of Kiryu possessing just one fight style is that he now can mix stand up and grappling moves in a seamless manner during combos. Better yet, all these can also be applied to grounded opponents when in previous titles you could only execute single stomps or grappling attacks. A first for the franchise is also having variation of attacks and combos depending on the direction Kiryu is facing. And as long as Kiryu's attacks are not being blocked, combos can change direction on the fly with basically you engaging enemies on all sides at will non-stop. This makes the battle system much more fluid than the one presented in Yakuza 0 or previous games. Better yet, you are no longer restricted by the surrounding area where the fight was initially engaged. If you feel the current area is too cramped for a proper brawl then just run away to any part of the map of your liking that you feel you will have the advantage, even indoor places like convenience stores where more heat action options will be available. The smooth transition between combat and exploration mechanics with the Dragon engine allows for such tactical approach and more (ie. high ground advantage).

Onto the exploration aspect, there is an extra layer of vertical exploration to be had with some segments that resemble 3D platform games, as Kiryu is now able to perform small feats of parkour like jumps between rooftops of buildings, houses and streets (and sewers). Eateries and soda machines now complement combat (or even totally replace them) for experience points and can addionally infuse various buff effects during fights. So grinding, the worst aspect of these games is hugely alleviated by this new eating mechanic element. Another huge improvement is the design choice of minimizing healing items hoarding and weapons in your inventory as the way to bypass difficulty with no drawbacks, like it was done in past games. In Yakuza 6 players can't purchase weapons anymore and can only carry a very limited amount of the same healing item, with no more of the full health recovery types readily available anymore. In exchange, there is a new rage meter in which all heat action orbs can be sacrificed in favour of a temporary "berserk" mode where Kiryu's moveset is slightly altered in combos that can be chained with new heat action moves while the meter lasts plus the extra armor gain. Also, during that mode Kiryu's HP will not drop below zero, meaning he can't die while in rage mode. That feature alone adds another layer of strategy during tough fights that if used correctly, a skilled player never will have to rely on recovery items for the entirety of the game even in the higher difficulty settings.

As for the sidequests, though there are way fewer than previous titles they are all fully voiced and manage to integrate all features new to this game, like the use of the first person camera and vertical exploration. Plus some of these substories lead to new mini-games which subsequently link to other sidequests and new mini-games and by the end, there will be even an in-game acknowledgement of the impact you had in the city if you fully engage on all these sidequests (more apparent in Onomichi, the game's brand new location). Speaking of which, the new location is the only instance in the series the passage of time is depicted in a manner other than only for narrative purposes or simply aesthetics, as some mini-games and substories can only be accessed during certain times of the day as well as you will find some stores staying closed during night time (ie. pharmacy).

Now as for the core appeal of the series, its action setpieces, what you will find here are simply the best ones yet, as they are all well paced and varied thematically and design wise. In one instance you will find yourself trying to stealthily sneak in to an enemy compound, while in another there is a setpiece out of a Resident Evil level design book, and a third one in which you will be platforming from ship container to container in a port like location. Setpieces with a full gang, a single partner or simply solo, you will have it all and these scenarios are highly memorable simply because there is nothing quite like them, even among the best ones found within the long running franchise.

Less is more, and Yakuza 6 embodies that with gusto.

Highly recommended: 5/5
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Yakuza 0 by a country mile. What a fantastic game!

My favourites, in order:

Yakuza 0
Yakuza 6
Yakuza Kiwami 2
Yakuza 4
Yakuza 5
Yakuza 3
Yakuza Kiwami

I'm still in two minds about Like a Dragon because turn-based combat really isn't my jam. I'll give it a go when I can get it for a relatively low price, though.
 
I'm with Dan in that I prefer the titles that focus on Kiryu, so it's always 3 for me.

As I've written numerous times, of the mainline titles, it goes for me:

3
5
1/Kiwami
6
7
0
4
2

5 and 2 are the only outlier to that, really, but yes, those are my favs and I'm sticking by it! :D
 
I still haven't touched a Yakuza game lol. Maybe when Sega help to get Shenmue finished. After all it was the one that started it all and still hasn't seen its conclusion. How many Yakuza and spin-off titles do we have now? Compared to Shenmue's... 3? Often feels like a bit of a slap in the face.
 
danielmann861 said:
I gravitate to either 3 or 6 these days. I really like the low key vibes of Okinawa in Y3. Same with Hiroshima in Y6.

I've always said I prefer the games that focus directly on Kiryu and those two are two of the best for me.
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Dan, it's time to vote for 3. I love 6, but you, me, and Truck are basically the lone defenders of 3. The 3 gang of 3! :geek: ... a-ahem. I mean, please choose wisely.

Sonoshee said:
I still haven't touched a Yakuza game lol. Maybe when Sega help to get Shenmue finished. After all it was the one that started it all and still hasn't seen its conclusion. How many Yakuza and spin-off titles do we have now? Compared to Shenmue's... 3? Often feels like a bit of a slap in the face.
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I don't blame you at all honestly. I love Yakuza, and yet I still get a little butthurt/jealous with how many installments it got compared to Shenmue's measly 3. And then people tell Yu he needs to wrap it up by 4 (some nutters even said he should've wrapped it up with 3) to make matters worse. Like, I get it, the future of the series is always uncertain and whatnot. But man, what I wouldn't give for a full Ryo Shenmue hexalogy like Kiryu got with Yakuza...
 
Meh, I think for as long as it’s been, it’s probably for the best Shenmue hasn’t been milked to death and its integrity can remain intact. I love Yakuza and all but it’s a bit of a different beast, especially when not everyone agrees on which games are actually good.
 
For me, I would say Ryu Ga Gotoku VI, would be my favorite. This may sound strange, but I can relate to Kiryu as someone who is approaching middle-age. I just do not have the energy to care anymore about all the nonsense that is happening around me. With that said, I enjoyed the story and beat every minigame which is something that I have rarely done in a Ryu Ga Gotoku title.

My only complaint is that I wish Haruka had left with Kiryu. After seeing how strong their bond was in the fifth title which is my favorite ending scene in the mainline series, I think she just compliments him perfectly. She has become stronger because of him and he has become kinder because of her. She is the daughter Kiryu never had.
 
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1. 5 and 0
2. 6 and Judgment
3. 7 and 3
4. 1 (Kiwami)
5. 4
6. 2 (Kiwami)

0 gets a huge bonus point in the list for me because it was my first Yakuza title that i was able to play.
I only watched Youtube videos of Yakuza 4 and 5 years before because i never had a PS3.
I watched a whole Yakuza 5 playthrough on Youtube with like 200 parts and loved it.
Overall i enjoyed all of them most of the time, the only one i really didnt feel was 2 Kiwami.
 
1. Kiwami 2
2. Y0
3. Y3 / Y6

I’ve said this many times before, but the Dragon Engine is the deal-breaker for me. I the characters, story, and presentation of Y0, and even when Y6 came out, Y0 was still my favorite at the time. But the refinements made to the engine in Kiwami 2 did it. It’s not only my favorite Yakuza game of the series, but it’s my favorite game ever.

For the number 3 spot, I can’t decide between Y3 and Y6. I love the atmosphere of both. I enjoy Y3’s story more, but Y6 plays better. Y3 was the reason why I got a PS3 in the first place (aside from Heavy Rain), and it was that first trailer that sold me on it back then. It really blew me away. On the flip side, if Y6 spent a little more time in the oven, I think it really could’ve been my favorite Yakuza game overall.

As for the others, I enjoy them in their own way. Although I still really, really dislike Kiwami, and the PS2 original is nostalgic for the wrong reasons for me.
 
I loved Y1 at the time (PS2) but it's a deeply flawed game. Y2 improved the formula in so many ways, so much so that Y3 felt like a sidewards step to me -- not enough progress was made going from PS2 to PS3. I'd appreciate it more now...maybe. Y4 was a slow burn but I really liked the characters...and that was the last one I played! Despite buying them all.

My order would be 2 > 1 (mostly nostalgia) > 4 > 3
 
orient said:
I loved Y1 at the time (PS2) but it's a deeply flawed game. Y2 improved the formula in so many ways, so much so that Y3 felt like a sidewards step to me -- not enough progress was made going from PS2 to PS3. I'd appreciate it more now...maybe. Y4 was a slow burn but I really liked the characters...
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100%

Feel like Yakuza 1 needed a Kiwami, but Yakuza 2 only needed a rermaster (speaking of which, I really wish we got the PS3 HD version localized). They just wanted an excuse to use Dragon Engine again haha

2, 4, 1, 3, 5, 6
 
I just hooked up the old PS3 and started playing the HD collection of Y1 and 2. Man, it really is a shame these were never localized. I think the graphics hold up pretty well even today because of the art direction, similar to Metal Gear Solid 2 and 3 (not saying they’re similar graphically, but that they both hold up because of their art style). The tweaks made to the combat in Y1 makes it so much more enjoyable to play.
 
I think it being released on the WiiU as well (not to mention this was the, "dead era," for the series, where nothing was localized), killed any momentum it would've had in the West.

I think the Kiwamis gave it the right treatment, outside of the extra Majima crap (Majima Anywhere in Kiwami and the stupid 3 chapter uselessness in Kiwami 2).

Still, I prefer the first, warts and all, to either HD or Kiwami and don't like 2 in any way shape or form (lol), so I wasn't banging on the door for the HD versions.
 
Tsukuyomimagi99 said:
For me, I would say Ryu Ga Gotoku VI, would be my favorite. This may sound strange, but I can relate to Kiryu as someone who is approaching middle-age. I just do not have the energy to care anymore about all the nonsense that is happening around me. With that said, I enjoyed the story and beat every minigame which is something that I have rarely done in a Ryu Ga Gotoku title.

My only complaint is that I wish Haruka had left with Kiryu. After seeing how strong their bond was in the fifth title which is my favorite ending scene in the mainline series, I think she just compliments him perfectly. She has become stronger because of him and he has become kinder because of her. She is the daughter Kiryu never had.
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Never saw your post, Tsukuyo, so sorry for the late reply, but you touch on some points in your second paragraph:

1. That was the whole point in Kiryu leaving; he knows their bond is unbreakable and because of this, if he sticks around, so will she and what will follow is a mess of bs, heartache and a worse life, as everyone and everything that is involved with Kiryu, is downtrodden.

2. Because they have assisted each other with their weaknesses, through bonding and the growth between a father/daughter, they CAN live separately in happiness (well, Kiryu is happy that she's happy, but there is surely a bit of longing there).

It's why that ending is brilliant and perfectly-executed; it shows what Nagosh and Yokoyama (and others) have been trying to convey since the beginning: these are NOT everyday heroes that we should emulate or sympathise for; they have killed/maimed/destroyed people and their lives, they are involved with a horrible, criminal underworld, where the only positives that come out of it, are temporary and fleeting (which mean the same thing, I know lol) and there is no lasting happiness or positivity that comes out of it.

The best quote for this in the entire series, is in 5:

"I can take another name, and build a new life... But on the inside I'll always have that instinct, no matter how much I hate it. I'm yakuza through and through. Guile only gets you so far in this game. Remember that. You won't get another chance."
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Phenomenal writing.

I actually feel bad for Haruto the most lol, but as he grows up, he probably won't remember who Kiryu was at all (that last scene has me bawling... I'm about to tear up just thinking about it :'().

But yeah, a lot of fans didn't like that, but that's what makes that ending/plot/game so damn brilliant; how it bucked the trend, did something refreshing and actually gave PEACE to both of the characters.

Phenomenal writing.
 
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