Story
Yakuza casts the player as Kazuma Kiryu, a former member of the Yakuza crime syndicate who has spent the last ten years in prison for a crime he did not commit. After returning to Tokyo from his ten year sentence and becoming reacquainted with his significant others, he is informed that ten billion yen are stolen from his former clan -- the Tojo clan. With a friend having mysteriously vanished and the disappearance of ten billion yen, Kazuma comes across a young girl who happens to be the key to the missing money.
The plot of Yakuza is very deep and happens to be the driving force behind the game. In actuality, cut-scenes make up anywhere from 35 - 60% of the game.
Gameplay
The crux of Yakuza's gameplay consists of brawler-style fighting sequences (save for a single on-rails car chase shootout). When free-roaming the city, random encounters are a sure bet. Various thugs and hooligans will confront Kazuma, prompting an arena style battle chock full of fisticuffs. Such encounters are synonymous with random encounters in most RPG's.
Traditional RPG Encounters
A more articulate comparison would be between stationary trainers in Pokemon games; in both games enemy encounters can be avoided if the player reacts in time. While these confrontations are engaging the first few times, they become quite tedious, lending themselves solely for the purpose of grinding; experience points and loot are integral to character progression.
How the Combat Works
The combat mechanics are definitely fun and gratifying, albeit a tad sickening to curb stomp an enemy's skull into the pavement (that's right, there were games utilizing the infamous "curb stomp" prior to Gears of War). Pure hand to hand combat is the essence of the fighting here; building up a combination of grabs, punches, kicks and special attacks.
Interaction with the Environment
Kazuma is also able to interact with various objects within the environment to his advantage. Chairs, umbrellas, bats, knives, swords and even benches can be used as melee weapons to pulverize enemies. After linking enough combos together -- filling up Kazuma's "Heat" meter -- a number of powerful special attacks can be used.
Character Progression
The character progression is ultimately what seals the deal giving the combat a much appreciated level of depth. The player earns experience points through brawling which can be distributed amidst three upgradable slots: mind, technique and body.
New abilities and perks earned can be things like extended life bar, new attacks and special moves, increased strength and agility. When the player hits level seven or so in each tier is about the time the combat really gels becoming more complex and diverse.
Picture Perfect
Yakuza portrays contemporary Tokyo in such spot-on detail and spirit, much like in Grand Theft Auto IV does with it's picture perfect parody of New York City. For example: Tokyo's own Shinjuku district has a significant presence in Yakuza. It really feels like a living, breathing organic city with the crowds of people, pedestrians and the loud chatter of metropolis noise.
City in a Bubble
While the environment is rich and believable, the feeling of being in a city enclosed in a bubble is always present... and never really lifts. The farthest corners of the mini map become blackness and at the end of each street is a dead end marked by a generic barricade. It always has the player wondering what lies outside the metropolis bubble.
Superfluous Dialogue
This game manages to be a gritty, mature game in every aspect of its breadth. Brothels, Prostitutes, scatters of bars, misogynistic males and dialogue as coarse and shocking as the English language permits. Now, crude language in video games is nothing new, but the way characters use it in Yakuza is utterly shameless.
Not that its necessarily a bad thing, it often just comes off as unbelievable. Random enemy encounters in particular exhibit just how mature a 'mature' rated title can be. Here is a taste of a few hilariously inappropriate lines from random passersby:
- “You arrogant little s**t, How would you like it if I ripped your eyes out?”
- "You think I’m just some small time f**k, so you ignored me?! I’m soo gonna teach you a lesson.”
- “A*****e, you don’t even know why I stopped you! I’ll teach you. I don’t like the way you look!”
In Short
With a deep, well crafted, slightly convoluted plot and a gratifying, responsive combat system, Yakuza is a win. Character progression allows the combat to remain fresh almost throughout the whole game by allowing for a slew of new moves to be learned and more complex combos to be performed. Sure the camera has to be babysat on occasion and the in-between brawler segments can grow tiresome, but the pros heavily outweigh the cons in this great title.
Score: B+
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