Yakuza 2 Review

Yakuza 2

Well that question burnet into my head as i further immersed myself in the beautiful city of Kamurocho and Osaka of Yakuza 2 game. Strolling down the street listening to people conversations as i pass them by. Licking Neopolitan Ice cream. After that beat down thugs who has been shaking the place for months and earn some money and discount. And Spend my blood money on Casino,Girls,Toys and my favorite Japanese cuisine “Sushi”. While once a while thwarting the Osaka Yakuza invading Kanto for some strange and laughable motives.

Life never seem grander. I love Yakuza 2. It captivates me more than Yakuza 1 ever was(partially because the whole setting seemed more Japanese because of the voice acting are now in Japanese and the story vs gameplay Pacing are IMHO better than the slow burning prologue of Yakuza 2). And in my opinion even more engaging than the overhype Shenmue 2.

One of the greatest Strength of Yakuza 2 that its utilize is the attention of detail to its City. Both Kamurocho and Kanto are rendered beautifully and stunning detail to both its world and its interaction.

Ive known few liquor(never drink one but i watched enough movie and read enough books) and Japanese Cuisine to appreciate it name,description and representation in Yakuza 2 world.

Its totally believable and if you are the type of people who love one of the above(like strolling around, test your luck in casino,play some quirky mini games and tasting beverages,liquor, and exotic-unique cuisine) i really suggest you to play Yakuza 2.

The representation is not the best around but the voice acting,animation,the script(i have to warn you that some of its part are utterly riddiculously too cartoonish even for a game, although it acted like it make sense) and once again THE SENSE OF DETAIL.

But to be honest the biggest driving force in this game is the insane amount of detail and its story.

its an interesting mix of Violent Crime Movie(80%) and comic like Fantasy(20%).

The story is Beautiful from the beginning till the end.-i even hold myself from taking a piss just because i want to see what would happen next-

I sincerely became more acquainted and do care a lot with the characters in this game. The so badass its so fucking cool Kazuma Kiryu,Majima,Kazuma Kiryu,Daigo Dojima and Sayama Kaoru.

The music is also great but if you played it for 30 hours like me it sure gets on your nerve. But the music in the cinematic is so great and fit its Yakuza japanese gangster theme perfectly.

The main gameplay beside its mini games(playing Shogi or Mahjong)…

Is so so.

If your talking about the interactivity and extreme complicated gameplay. Then you’ll be disappointed with this one. The interaction is pretty much basic, the resident evil limited inventory is aggravating because youll be shuffle back and forth in search for magical item box that is sparse in this game. The city is seem too small if we compare it to any Grand Theft Auto installment.

The battle is too simple. Its like Street of Rage in 3D. Simple. At first bashing people with Rage moves are insanely fun, but after 20th time you'll be bored. The developer try to spice it up with RPG like level up. But its so basic that you wont even bother with it.

The quest is also to be put simply. Bewildering. It is not a rare moment where you’ll left in the city with no idea where you should go. But this is like a double edge sword. In other hand it forces gamer/user to explore every inch of detail in the environment more. Thus make it more Immersive.

 

For me this game is almost too good to be true. Because i am one of those gamer who put Story in the first priority ahead of Gameplay and Presentation. And i do think that this game story fare better against the like of Bioshock and Half life 2. It just this game hasn't receive the attention it deserved.

Play this game. Or at least rent it. Let yourself play your friend copy or rent it for 3 hours. If until then you dont like it then return it. If until that point you interested on the world even just a little bit, i have to warn you. You wont put down that controller for a while

Pro’s

• Great Presentation
• Great Music
• Superb Story
• Insanely High attention to presentation detail
• Great Voice acting(Because Its Japanese and its also great)
• Violent animation when rumbling against opponents
• Satisfying Climax(a big plus. Most game nowadays still have those To be continued written in its after credits)

Con’s

• Several –only a small portion of the story- Laughable plot points
• The gameplay pacing can be tedious and frustating
• Its graphic cant compare against the Current Gen Console Standard(like Duh?)

SCORE:85