What is Yakuza 0?

The game is a JRPG, and follows its usual trademarks of a video game. Intricate and complex story, well written characters, and an effective battle system, all support the game. While many JRPG’s have a turn based system, the first Yakuza game featured onto the Playstation 2 had a dynamic fighting system. It’s popularity grew as time went by, and Sega developed more and more for the series. Eventually making its way to the western soil. Yakuza 0 was Sega’s katana, and eventually Sega was able to cut down the barrier and make the series more known. With a revitalization of the Yakuza series, Yakuza 0 was then able to make a bigger name for itself with its manly filled stories, and adrenaline rushed fighting styles.

Yakuza 0 Story

An ultimate story of bromance and a heavy presence of testosterone. Kiryu stands with his brother in arms, Nishiki as they are surrounded by a group of Yakuza thugs.

The start of the game features a very young and hot headed Yakuza starting his career. Standing ruthlessly over a man, shaking him down for cash in an empty lot. The complete opposite of the usual calm and respectful man he came to be known for. This is a story of origin. This is how a man came to be feared as the Dragon of Dojima (Dojima no ryu.) After pummeling the victim, he leaves him with parting words and walks away. After a night out with his best friend, Nishiki, Kiryu later finds out he is being framed for murder. The man he had beat in the empty lot earlier, was now found murdered. With determination to set things right, Kiryu tries to clear his name.This was the exclamation mark to the start of Kiryu’s story. As players progresses through the story, they would witness every consequence Kiryu hads because of his decisions. However this game does not feature one story, but two. Yakuza 0 also features another playable character, the notorious “Mad Dog of Shimano”, Goro Majima. What is unique about this game, is that it features both origin stories of two legends of Kamurocho,

A story that just might pique your interest. How does a rugged man seem so calm?

 Majima’s first scene appears grandiose as he is revealed to be the manager of one of the finest cabaret clubs the city had to offer. He later shows his dramatic flair when a rowdy customer comes in, disrespecting the workers and staff.Majima makes a grand display of reverse psychology and ends up making the man pay for drinks for everyone in the club. With it being a huge club, Majima showed his proficiency to use his head and not just violence. And it was a huge club. Majima was sporadic and unpredictable in the earlier games. Yakuza 0 shows players where he started to how he received his nickname. Majima’s loss of his eye is a story in and of itself, and that becomes further explained in this tale of redemption.became notorious. And why he lost his eye. The story alone boasts a worthy play through simply just because of the writing. The dialogue choices are also a plus for this game. However what might shoo away players is the fact that the whole game, is in Japanese, save for the English subtitles. So for players wanting a fuller experience and without having to read every line and phrase, this might drive them away. For a great gaming experience and a wonderful continued story, Yakuza 0 would be a go to choice for players wanting an in depth story.

What About The Adventure?

The rich world of Yakuza 0, like many JRPGs, features an open world setting, bound only to the limits of the city. However walking around a large lifelike city in Tokyo means the world is actually quite large itself. With many things to do, and many side quests available, exploring Japan just got better.Yakuza 0 is actually a very serious game. However the game does not take itself to seriously, as there are many outrageous moments of humor that can occur when playing. This is what makes Yakuza so interesting. Like in reality, there are moments of joy, and pure hatred. Players will be able to empathize and relate to the environment Yakuza brings to the fold. Players will be able to go out and explore the city on their own. In many ways, each side story you play is a fond memory players can look back on. The stories have a mix of pulling heart strings-to thigh slapping humor. That makes Yakuza 0 a game to not miss.

What About The Combat?

Dragon of Dojima punishing the goons in his city. 

Although both characters have their own unique fighting styles, they both For both characters, they have their own fighting style, however each protagonist haves a high paced battle system called “Heat” in which their adrenaline rush reaches an all time high to release an epic hidden move for damage. Much like Final Fantasy 7’s Limit Break., Pplayers will not be able to spam hardcore moves.. Or can they? With a fast paced combat system, Yakuza 0 really does make players feel like a man in the heat of a battle. With a plethora of different “styles” to choose from it feels like a callback to Devil May Cry 3. Eventually players will be able to work on changing styles mid-fight, boosting the savagery tier to an even more expansive and lucrative gameplay.

Kiryu’s lightning fast punches connects as he gets ganged up on by other thugs.

With the versatility of fighting styles, players surely won't feel bored seeing stale attacks and the same fight sequences over and over. They will be able to mix it up.

The Mad Dog Of Shimano’s onslaught.

An example of Majima’s more flashier moveset compared to Kiryu’s.

Majima’s fighting style is more flashy than Kiryu’s however that doesn’t mean he is any weaker than him at all. Both characters have a plethora of abilities and attacks.

What About Yakuza 0's Open World?

What is unique about Yakuza 0 is there is no flying airship, or magical boat to cross. It is steeped in realism where walking is actually a fast way to navigate around the city. Since the Japanese walk to their destinations in everyday life, it made it into the video games as well. Although there are Taxis that are available for hailing the world of Yakuza’s theme is city life. The grand open adventure is all in the players hands so long as they are willing to walk to it. The events of the game mirror that of a real life Japan. With many people walking the urban streets whether day or night.

What About The Graphics and Sound Effects?

Two crazed men play a round of nodachi roulette. Only happens in Yakuza 0 folks.

The graphics are inspired by that of a shounen anime. Like many gamers in the modern day, many also watch anime. Yakuza 0 is essentially a brilliant blend of anime like graphics and storytelling mixed with a real world sense of realism. The sound effects are that of an anime as well. Japanese voice acting that made anime awesome are all too present in the game. The sound effects feature a very realistic sound. A gun sounds like a gun, the slash of a sword whooshes when used. And the sound of breaking someone’s jaw sounds as if a firecracker exploded next to the player.

Does the game have bugs?

On a recent steam thread, there have been bugs spotted when it came to the PC version. Yakuza has been a playstation franchise for its duration of life. Though the series has been ported to different consoles before, the PC version has bugs because of the massive upgrade in graphic quality. As for console players, the forum remains silent about bugs. With the occasional cutscene lag times, the console version of Yakuza 0 is free of bugs. The PC version is in a work in progress mode with the Sega developers, so it should not dissuade eager players to start once all patches and bugs have been fixed.

Is Yakuza 0 fun?

To conclude, the game is ridiculously fun. Yakuza 0 is a game about hard boiled men fighting against each other in a dramatic turn of events at every turn. Yet despite this, it does not fail to include humor as well.

In this sequence, Kiryu takes a break from the rigors of violence and undergoes a dangerous sidequest. Epic phone dating. With a compelling story and awesome side quests the game alone is already a worthy buy. However to also boast fluid combat in a good looking world, what is there not to like? Yakuza 0 should be played because it is the bridge to a whole plethora of games. From Yakuza 0, all the way to Yakuza 6. Players will be stepping into hours and hours worth of storytelling, combat, and adventure.