SEGA is back with another Yakuza game. This time a prequel, Yakuza 0 takes place in 1988 Japan. Players are transported back in time to a fictional bustling city where they alternate control between two men, Kiryu and Majima. In an intense story right out of an action movie, players will explore the city, play a HUGE assortment of mini games, and generally beat the crap out of anyone who gets in their way. At an impressive estimated 80 hours to complete, Yakuza 0 will be sure to keep players busy for quite a while.
If you have played any of the previous Yakuza games, you will know what to expect in Yakuza 0. This is not Grand Theft Auto, and that’s okay. There are no vehicles and the cities are somewhat small compared to the grand sandbox games we have seen in recent years. The streets that players explore are away from the bustle of traffic, more like an outdoor shopping mall really. What Yakuza 0 lacks in size it makes up for in content. The story alone is huge, using many cut-scenes and tons of quests. I can see why it took almost two years to convert all of the text to english. Yeah, just the text though, no english speaking parts; sorry, folks.
Yakuza 0 does a great job transporting players to a time and place I knew very little about, Japan in the 1980s. From the clothing, to the pagers both characters carry around, to the phone booths used to save your game, many millennials will be thrust into a world they know even less about than I do, and I grew up in the ‘80s. Yakuza 0 is a retrospective bonanza for people in the know about Japan in that era, but unfortunately much of the references will be lost on players in other countries, I think. My favorite spot has to be the SEGA arcade. Visit and play some classics like Space Harrier, OutRun, and Hang-On. There is even a frustratingly realistic crane and claw game.
Combat in Yakuza 0 is a blast and the shining point in a very repetitive game. Both Kiryu and Majima have three different styles. Players can change them on the fly with the d-pad while engaged. Kiryu has a brawler stance, a classic fighting style that players of previous Yakuza games will know well. He also has beast stance, focusing on powerful attacks with objects or just throwing enemies around. Lastly, his rush style is full of fast-paced, low-damage attacks with lots of dodging. Majima’s main stance is called thug, and is rather generic, but well rounded. His slugger mode is by far my favorite, wielding a bat and cracking heads at a distance. Majima’s final stance, breaker, is a break dancing mashup of quick spins and kicks. Fun and flashy!
Gone are the experience for leveling and unlocking skills; in Yakuza 0 cash is king. Players are awarded cash based on how flashy and quickly they defeat enemies. Each fighting style has its own wheel of colored dots that can be unlocked for cash. Everything from hit point increases to new and powerful attacks. This is great because even if you are no good at the combat aspect of Yakuza 0, players can use cash gained playing mini games and completing quests to increase their power.
Combat, again, is amazing in Yakuza 0. Players can pick a style they enjoy, and while button mashing is somewhat effective, skill goes a long way to getting higher cash payouts. There are many places to hone your skills in around the city. From training areas to unlock new attacks, to just random fights in the streets every block or so. As you fight, players build up three “heat” bars that allow you to perform special attacks, they will change depending on where you are: near a wall, smash the guy’s face into said wall. Some are downright vicious but always enjoyable to watch.
The majority of Yakuza 0 is spent reading subtitles for the many hours of storyline, cutscenes, and quests. This was my major complaint, as the story tends to drag on and on. If you are a fan of the previous titles in the serious though, you will probably not mind, and even enjoy the cheesy ‘80s Japanese mob story. As the story jumps back and forth between the main player characters, I found it very confusing at times trying to follow along and not to fall asleep in a 15 minute cutscene.
There is so much to do in Yakuza 0. There are well over 20-plus mini games like darts, bowling, baseball, dancing, mahjong, and the ever popular betting on girls in swimsuits in a “cat fight.” Yakuza 0 should not, I repeat, NOT be played in front of anyone you know that is easily offended. To say Yakuza 0 is chauvinistic is putting it lightly. From the sexist story line to the “phone cards” that players collect to watch sexualized videos of young girls and later on try to date them, Yakuza 0 is a man’s world — a dirty old man’s world.
Overall, Yakuza 0 is more of the same in the series but with 10 years worth of fine tuning. If you enjoyed the previous Yakuza games, Japanese culture in the 1980s, and are willing to sit through the story, you should get your money’s worth out of Yakuza 0. For the average American player however, it’s really just a sandbox beat ‘um up with a million mini games to play and a bunch of references to a culture very different from ours. While not a bad game, it just has nothing new or original enough to keep me playing. The combat while fun, cannot save Yakuza 0 from being just above average.
Yakuza 0 is available January 24th on Playstation 4. This review is based on a copy provided for that purpose.
