Yakuza

I'm liking this a lot more than I thought I would from the demo.

I've heard this complaint before, and while I haven't had too much trouble with this, there is a solution fairly early in the game. Aside from remembering to hold down R1 while fighting and using the shift technique to quickly escape when you find yourself in this situation, there are two reverse attack moves you can learn that pretty much make this a non issue. At the start of Chapter 4 you can go to the alleyway southwest of Theater Square to find Coin Locker Key No. 50. Unlock this locker to get a book on Roundhouse kick techniques. Once your Tech stat reaches 4 you will automatically learn this if you have the book. There is also a Reverse Strike punch to learn from Sensei Komaki in Purgatory, but you have to have Tech built up to 6 for him to teach it to you.
The only "random" encounters in all of chapter 5 for me were the ones on the way to meet Majima, again scripted so they don't really count, none in chapter six so far. Again, too many random encounters is the game telling you to earn more EXP.
All the swearing is an attempt to approximate in English the way Yakuza actually talk. It sort of works but I could see it all coming off much better in Japanese with subtitles. I read that they wanted to include the Japanese language track but there wasn't enough room on the disc.

Okami is great but if I didn't have it I wouldn't trade this for it. The story alone makes it a keeper, for me.

Should read: hold down R1 while fighting to shift and using the dodge technique while shifting to quickly escape

did anyone play yakuza 2 through? seen it mentioned a few times on ILg I think

Sitting on my to-be-played shelf :(

some solid praise from good writer types. been meaning to pick up a copy, but that would necessitate buying a new PS2 memory card.

Yakuza 2 was probably my favorite game of last year. the story is stunningly non-retarded (I never played the first one so I had no idea what to expect), the action is frantic and awesome, and then there's this:

this game is great (regretting putting it on easy tho cos it's a pinch too easy); as james says the story is surprisingly nonretardo, the presentation (gfx+music) is great and the combat is rly satisfying

my only complaints are petty: no 480p even tho the box says so, the camera is a bit iffy, eh

we're never going to see yakuza 3, kenzan or yakuza 4 in the west are we?

fuck yeah!!!!
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=18013966&postcount=424

if this actually goes down I am bullish as hell on the chances of it selling well enough to justify the other games being brought over since (1) there's an actual groundswell of support behind the release and (2) people still haven't figured out how to pirate PS3 games yet. (assuming we're talking about a disc release and not on PSN like foax had been a-sayin').

It's not going to win any awards - unless there's a category for "best golf game unexpectedly inserted into a violent RPG" included in end of the year round-ups - but it's slick stuff, and in the quirky wholeheartedness with which SEGA's underworld adventure throws itself into capturing the feel of Tiger Woods, you can see why people often refer to this series as the spiritual successor to Shenmue.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/yakuza-3-european-hands-on

only one flaw w/that argument YAKUZA rocks SHENMUE sux

anyone who doesn't buy this game should be reincarnated as Amy Winehouse's taint

i say no, no, no to that

i heard eliza dushku is in this, true?

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.joystiq.com/media/2010/02/shenmue-ryo-hazuki-forklift-figure.jpg

lol

poor old sega ;_;

true, but they put out at least 3 classics in the last 3 years (Yakuza 2, Valkyria Chronicles, Bayonetta)

do you have a take on this whole saga jc?

(I assume you've been following the saga of the removed hostess sections in the NA release of Y3; general internet bitching and whining as per)

it sucks that they're removing content, but I never got as much into the hostess stuff as other Yakuzatards so I'm not slitting my wrists over it or anything. as long as I can still win a fight with a tiger by sticking a cigarette in its eye, I'll be good.

new trailer up on PSN for yakuza 4 apparently; features a chainsaw

btw Sega has said that if Y3 sells well enough they'll consider bringing over Yakuza Kenzan (the one set in like 1885), so everyone buy like eight copies

omg cig flick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sl11P__gN1Q

oh fuck yeah

want to play this so bad ;_; are there any ps2 emulators?

yeah, but you need a super beefy machine to get playable frame rates

btw Sega has said that if Y3 sells well enough they'll consider bringing over Yakuza Kenzan (the one set in like 1885), so everyone buy like eight copies

I hope "well enough" is like 10,000 copies, because that's the game I really want to play (and Yakuza 3 is sure not to sell much, come on, not at sixty dollars, not with this packed AAA March). Also based on missing tropies from the western release of Yakuza 3, it seems a lot more than just the hostess club stuff has been cut, but also the japanese games like mahjong and shogi (and more). Kind of a bummer in 2010...

Also based on missing tropies from the western release of Yakuza 3, it seems a lot more than just the hostess club stuff has been cut, but also the japanese games like mahjong and shogi (and more). Kind of a bummer in 2010...

okay, THAT is a bummer; the insanely-fleshed-out minigames added a lot of flavor to Y2 even if I never actually beat any of them. I still remember flipping through like 10+ pages of tiny-ass text explaining how to play mahjongg; it was more imposing than most of the fights.

still preordering it since beating people's asses in Y2 is impossibly fun, though.

while I don't agree w/sega's decision I can understand their rationale and I don't think this is the wrong-headed idiocy that the internet wd have you believe

tht being said the hostess club content is interwoven throughout the game, losing that loses you a significant proportion of the non-combat experience. how many small events that enriched yakuza have now been lost because the hostess club backbone has been removed?

the qn is how many side missions dependent on the hostess club content have we lost? it has a domino effect.

if yakuza was just a fighting game I wouldn't be interested.

hopefully they leave it on the disc and then patch a translation in later.

it totally affects different threads throughout the game tho so presumably they'll have to remove those and insert other scenes; don't see tht happening myself jc

http://kotaku.com/5478862/sega-you-are-once-again-making-a-giant-mistake

I agree with his point but as with most Ashcraft articles, the only thing I end up taking away from it is that Brian Ashcraft should be dropped from a great height

it seems mr. ashcraft has missed the subtext of sega's 'you wouldn't get it, sugar' explanation: pretty sure they just couldn't afford to translate all the game (and have said as much in a subsequent statement iirc) - they had to cut something and decided this was the most non-essential portion of the game

The couldn't afford it explanation reeks of bullshit - honestly, how could it cost more to translate a few hundred lines (or whatever) of text compared to paying a programmer to take out those sections of code and reprogram the game to work w/o those sections?

that makes sense, I guess, iunno, sick of reading about this and discussing it by now tbf ;_;

can't stop reading the GAF thread on this, against my better judgement. must. stop.

2 lazy to google relevance but translation is iirc really expensive whereas deleting shit not so much. i mean idk anything abt how/what/how much has been cut but i can see that being both a) cheaper and b) quicker

i dont think is like snes ear nintendo i just think its sega rushing/doing the trans on the cheap *shrug* in the would i rather wait for the ~right~ version of the game vs getting the game at all/soon im usually predisposed to go with the latter

I agree with his point but as with most Ashcraft articles, the only thing I end up taking away from it is that Brian Ashcraft should be dropped from a great height

he is like the worst writer ever. i know i've mentioned it before, but also 85% of his articles for kotaku are creepy thnigs about japanese soft-porn actresses, he reminds me of that shiroi basket shoes guy with the creepy flickr page.

Finally started Yakuza 2 last night (and played for a little over an hour - is it always that long between save points? I think in the first one you could save at phone booths?) I know they did it to save money, but the decision to stick with the Japanese language track was the best thing to happen with this game - it really adds to the atmosphere. I was also surprised to actually be into the story (so far)... that just happens so rarely with games it's sort of shocking. On the negative side, the way the camera works in these games still kind of annoys me, especially in those awkward moments when you take a few steps and it has to load a new angle or whatever. And I still feel like the brawling in 3d is just a little more clunky then it should be - game would benefit from a Demon's Souls style lock-on maybe. Anyhow, definitely looking forward to playing some more over the weekend.

yeah, the story is surprisingly engaging and well written

that whole game is just such a treat. definitely going to place in my top 3 when we get around to the PS2 poll.

Here's a new, long trailer for Yakuza 4 (out in March in Japan, I think?), mostly focusing on the side games you can play in the game...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNd9HlQ_OwY

You can’t tell me Kiryu and Nishiki never slept together at least once and that’s as far as I’m going with that. I did like that the plot of Mine being in love with Daigo is not remotely played for laughs or gay panic though.

Majima pirate game

https://www.ign.com/articles/majima-focused-like-a-dragon-pirate-yakuza-in-hawaii-announced-at-rgg-summit-as-next-yakuza-game

MAJIMA PIRATE GAME

Every time I think “this sounds dumb” as a spin off game it’s gold so


MAJIMA PIRATE GAME

(Re)playing all the entries in such quick succession really drives home that Kiryu's biggest flaw is his inability to accept help, there's so many moments where he tricks an ally so that he can go fight the Big Bad alone. Meanwhile Kasuga has absolute and total trust in his allies and derives his strength from believing in the power of friendship. It's kind of a beautiful evolution for the franchise.

it's great stuff lads

What one are you playing now? I started playing the Man Who erased his name again recently because I want to play the newest one and it’s legit. I’m so fucking rusty on karaoke though.

The new one! It's out!!

!!!

Wait is this the Majima one? I need to know that there’s somehow a cabaret minigame

Majima Pirate Game

I need a setting that gives you the Japanese voice track but keeps Samoa Joe's English va

Majima Pirate Game

I love how right in the first scene Goro goes "the language barrier was hell to get through...but I'll spare you all that" and it's never mentioned again, everyone in Hawaii and surrounding islands speaks fluent Japanese, just go with it

Also loled at the speech about how piracy used to be about honour and "keeping land and sea safe", these newcomers are only interested in lucre and power, they do not understand the code of the yakuz...sorry, of the PIRATE, this is all about PIRATES.

Important question: does Goro acquire a parrot?

so far no, but we do have an adorable tiger cub

no cabaret game yet either, but I have spent a lot of time at the pirate batting cages

the actual ship stuff is tons of fun too

Just met New York finance kingpin SPADE TUCKER, Japanese game designer names for Americans will never not rule.

Weirdest live action footage in a yakuza game yet

Oh God this reminds me of the live cabaret girls in Gaiden…wasn’t a fan

It is somehow both less horny and more off putting than those, and Lord knows they were plenty off putting.

The very last cutscene, after the credits...it gives you some info that puts the whole zany adventure of the rest of the game in a totally different light, and damn it really got me.

If it isn't a weird blend of wackiness, funniness and unexpected emotional resonance it wouldn't be a Yakuza game tbf

Yes, it's just very stark this time. Most of the emotional beats in the game otherwise rang a bit hollow for me, it's got that family friendly blockbuster energy (including Disney style musical number) and I was up for that but it meant most of the emotional stuff was very flat. That last cutscene just kills it tho.

I'm so far behind with these games

same i've still only played 0 and judgment, i'd like to do the full run at some point. there are simply too many good videogames these days

I’m finally playing Infinite Wealth! I can’t get over the size of the Honolulu area, perhaps the biggest one we’ve had in a game? Honestly I don’t want to do anything I just want to eat shaved ice and ride the trolley talking to Kiryu

It's so huge. I decided to limit myself a little the first go round because I was just getting overwhelmed, did the pokemon game and the animal crossing game more on my second playthrough.

The WHATS

I HAVEN’T EVEN FOUND WHERE YOU PLAY MAHJONG YET IN HAWAII

I was reading back some of this thread’s old posts and laughing, so I made a very subjective bingo card for this series.

https://i.imgur.com/dm2FlIK.jpeg

It’s probably most applicable to the Kiryu games but all three series have some of these points.

Some notes

Sexually innocent middle aged protagonist - doesn’t mean they’re a virgin, it means they sometimes have zero clue they’re being hit on despite spending 99% of their time in the red light district

Kanrai - I just like it ok? And it’s in all the Kamurochos

“I want a beef bowl” - placeholder for any restaurant where you order something and I’m like, that looks or sounds fucking delicious, I wish I had it rn

I am also deep into it right now!

And I'm horribly addicted to the Dondoko Island game, I may need an intervention

Been thinking about polling the karaoke songs for the last week

Honolulu mahjong was a pig to find and frustrated me until I finally found it

Saeko's "Spring Breeze" is best song btw

Do you MIND

I love that they give you Koi No Disco Queen to play everywhere

How do I get the radio show on the playlist, it’s the first side quest and I don’t have it

It's in Yokohama, near the homeless base, you rescue a reporter.

The radio show however is in Japanese with no subs so :/

I meant on the playlist app but I found it by scrolling down :) I did walk around the beach for a bit listening to local radio which was great.

I cleared the Barracudas (fighting on a catwalk was incredible btw) and that was maybe the longest boss slog since Majima or Kiryu at the end of 0 maybe? It just kept going and going.

I still haven’t found mahjong. However I have been playing Sujimon a bit.

I need to find a place that sells pineapples…like actually.

I can't stress enough how much "Spring Breeze" loops round in my brain every day

I am the Sujimon Master btw

Easy money: playing my party at mahjong

Pineapples don’t grow on trees!

Classic Yakuza trope that always messes with my anxiety:

Main Storyline - "We need to go rescue somebody, there's no time to waste"
Me - spends a week playing Mahjong and collecting coconuts

Oh I'm too much of a roleplayer for that. If the characters tell me shit is super urgent I just go and do it.

Oh I'm too much of a roleplayer for that. If the characters tell me shit is super urgent I just go and do it.

I try to do the same, but I'm also constantly making the NPC leading me somewhere wait as I lag behind to check for items/loot on our path.

But then you miss half the best stuff! Shit is almost always "urgent"

You're right tho, it's the role-player in me that struggles with it

A mate was watching me play Yakuza 4 (I think it was) and I got a phone call so I ran out of the indoor parking lot onto the street, for reception. "Wow does the game actually factor that in?" he asked. "I don't...think so...?" was my reply, I had just done this instinctively. He couldn't stop laughing.

I also gave up on Judgement the first time because I was getting text messages to save ppl from hooligans ALL THE TIME and had no time left for anything else. "Just ignore the messages", ppl said, but when I started doing that I would then get angry "wtf where were you??" messages too. It's hard to be a hero.

I must admit in Infinite Wealth I'm still compelled to rescue people getting hassled by gangs even when the XP and money returns are negligible

I do this every time!

The best mechanic this game introduced was “smack down” for weak enemies…I’ll take the $17.38 for a second “battle” and go buy some more iced coffee

I am too dedicated to the grind to use the smackdown

https://i.imgur.com/cctY1Nz.jpeg

the other karaoke banger that won't leave my head is "Hands"

Actually there is a an awful lot to be said for "If I Could Love the One I Love" but the game does its best to ruin it by putting a stupid talkover from Ichi or Kiryu on there

God I'm working while half 6 tonight just want to go home and spend the weekend hanging with the gang