"Sega does it again"

Well Sega has done it again. But what is "it" you may ask. Well "it" is really two things. Not only has Sega delivered another heavily story-driven series but once again it teases its non-Japanese fans.

Yakuza is the 1st in a 2 game series as of this writing. The first title in question was released outside Japan but the sequel was not. Shenmue anyone? Unlike Shenmue 2's later re-release on the xbox for non-Japanese fans, it looks like Yakuza 2 is going to pull a Shenmue 3 and no show altogether.

So does anyone care? Well read on and I'll explain why you might want to.

Story:

The soul of Yakuza is none other than its story. Yakuza is an action game but it was made to be more of an interactive action-movie.

Yakuza's story centers around a Japanese gangster named Kazuma Kiryuu. At the start of the game, gamers are treated to a scene which depicts our protagonist standing over his now dead Yakuza (Japanese mafia) boss whilst holding the murder weapon. Its about this time the fuzz show up and naturally Kazuma is sent away to pay for his crime.

The game shifts from this moment to the present day where Kazuma has just been released from prison. Kazuma was a top dog in his Yakuza family (the Dojima clan) and has come to be feared and renowned by all of Japan's Yakuza families. Having just returned to the streets with no explanation for his treachery, Kazuma is in for a world of hurt from his former allies let alone his former enemies.

The story of Yakuza is a very touching one chock full of many things you would expect from a mafia style story. Sure there is plenty of badass moments, fight scenes (though you mostly do the fighting) and catchy phrases but there is also a lot of drama, twists and turns. Very quickly and without really spoiling anything, Yakuza becomes much like the anime Gungrave, a mafia story of two former best friends now rivals.

While mentioning catchy phrases, do note Kazuma is chock full of them and good ones at that. Yakuza had me busting out laughing literally aloud whilst playing. Good times. But what really makes this tale more interesting is that Kazuma does not seek to clear his name nor justify his reasoning. Kazuma is merely trying to work his way back into life while dealing with the mass amounts of backlash he's receiving.

Yakuza's cinematic approach is captivating and its story, while not as layered as an epic, is very moving and enduring. If anything, Yakuza weaves and spins a great tale.

Gameplay:

The second portion of our serving from Yakuza is less hearty than the first. Yakuza's controls leave a lot to be desired. The fighting itself is plenty badass and nicely varied. There is a good depth and a lot of of fun to be had here but it's kind of hard to enjoy bashing a street punk's face in when you can't seem to hit him. To put it simply, Yakuza lacks a lock on button or any way to break combo mid-swing to change direction. Since you're almost always facing against multiple opponents who purposely try to surround you, controlling Kazuma can be a bit frustrating.

Yakuza serves up a decently sized area in which the player is free to move about as they see fit. Players are offered several appetizer minigames such as a batting cage, a mini-dating type game, a small casino and a few other detours but none really lure you away from the game's real dish, the story.

Combat in Yakuza is like an RPG. Yep you heard me. When roaming about the area, Kazuma is often chased down by angry street punks, rival families, or former friends now enemies spouting things like "hey what the ****?!". If touched by one of these foul-mouthed fighters, Yakuza loads into a new screen in which players can move about freely to whoop some booty. The loading isn't terribly long but with the abundance of battles and relative short time it takes to finish the chumps off, it does become annoying. Thankfully you can keep running from these people and avoid many of them or walk behind them and they won't see you.

There are of course segments of Yakuza that are more linear where combat can not be avoided. These segments usually end up squaring the badass anti-hero Kazuma against some King of the Fighters-level cheap boss. Good thing players can buy and find weapons and food to help them through these encounters. Maybe my Yakuza skills are subpar but I'm not sure beating some of the later bosses would have been possible without the super-powerful baton I got from beating the sidequest battle arena. Well not possible while still having my Dual-shock fully intact.

It's not too cheap, however, since weapons wear out as you use them and are then discarded. Yep even my special baton. Well no worries, players can grab many things around the room or alongside the road to battle with such as signs, bicycles or even large street cones. Combining this with deadly looking "finishing" moves makes watching Yakuza's battles a real joy. And of course if you can deal with the wonky camera and lack of a targeting button, playing Yakuza is also a blast.

Audio:

Since Yakuza is a very story-driven game, it's only natural that casting is made of the utmost importance. Good thing too because Yakuza's voice crew does a bang-up job. Kazuma is meant to be like a sleeping bear. Leave him be and he looks cute and kind but push his buttons and Kazuma will open a can. Kazuma's VA did a great job of portraying this. The supporting crew doesn't fall too far behind in quality though. Several characters are actually equally well cast making the story even more engaging.

Sound-effects are also nicely done in Yakuza. Outside on the streets, there's a constant roar of the crowd and in battle cracking skulls sounds pretty nice. Well if cracking someone's skull could sound nice.

Yakuza has a nice soundtrack as well. I especially liked how I can walk from the roaring streets into a nice small shop to buy some dog food (don't ask) and get treated to nice Japanese shop music. Well I have actually been into a couple Japanese shops myself and I don't particularly remember the music, but when I imagine one, this is the kind of music that plays in my silly head.

Video:

There's no denying the PS2's age as of Yakuza's release. Yakuza when compared to other PS2 games does hold it owns though. Most of Yakuza's visual allure comes from details and most of that is texture work. Walking into those small shops not only sounds like it should but also looks like it. Magazines, shelves stocked with all sorts of food, a counter full of random junk and people standing about. Out on the streets, the neons, crowds of people and things strewn about the side of the road give Yakuza's world a sense of believability.

Character models are also well textured. Much like big brother Shenmue, Yakuza's main work lies in the faces. Faces in Yakuza are easily recognizable, if the Japanese names aren't to you, making cutscenes more involving. And as mentioned prior, cutscenes themselves are well shot and directed.

Overall, Yakuza is a solid looking PS2 title that excels in details and does a very solid job with textures even if it's not pushing Doom 3 polys. It goes to show the importance of textures compared to things like bump-mapping and the like.

Conclusion:

I enjoyed Yakuza a lot. So much that I actually grew to care about its characters and world. Having heard the great news of reduced load times, the ability to shift direction mid-combo and several other improvements to its sequel, Yakuza was hopefully to be a stepping stone into a much larger pool of gaming goodness. Apparently despite Yakuza's solid sales (at least in Japan) and critical acclaim, Sega would rather focus on Sonic games that average mediocre to abysmal scores.

Still though, for what I have, I am thankful. Sega has given me Yakuza if only a sample. Unlike Shenmue, Yakuza tells a complete story. Players won't need to play Yakuza 2 to feel satisfied or have any questions answered. Yakuza is much like the 1st Matrix in this regard. Still though I can't help but want to experience more with better controls.

If you're into badass games, busting faces and/or solid drama stories than Yakuza is a must play. One can not overlook the control issues and load times when reviewing but someone captivated by a grand story might. Give it a shot and see if that someone is you.

Be warned Yakuza is a very adult game littered with f bombs, curse words and plenty of good old violence. It's not grotesque though and outside of the abundance of dirty-mouthed random street punks, the cursing is used as you would expect from a mobster style story.

Score: 7.6/10 (Based on technical achievements)

Bias: 8.6/10 (Based on personal preferences)
Biased for Story-driven game fan

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/13/07