Yakuza 5 announced - Tokyo Street Racing, Virtua Fighter 2(arcade) and Dance battles.

[Hero-of-Time]

 

*Edit*

BTW, @martinist & @ThePigMarcher, either of you manage to get Kiryu to Level 25 on his taxi missions? I went back to it last night to see about getting the decal trophy, but he's on level 24 and I can't seem to level up anymore. Have done all of the missions/races already too, so I think I might actually be screwed with that one now.

 

Dunno if this will help you or not but someone asked about this on Gamefaqs and got the reply of...

 

Do free races if you want to max out your levels and you've done everything else. The third-to-last race is easy, and gives enough XP for a whole level all the way through (or close to it).

[martinist]

I've been wondering how to do that as well. At first I thought they ment the Haruka decal but I was wrong. I was doing the free drive stuff for a while but it just gave me taxi points. I'll have to do the reaces to get the level up.

 

Also I'd advise doing all of Kiryu's training and sending the guy to Kamurocho, Once you find him outside Ryugujo and fight him and his grandfather you'll raise the level cap to 25 for that character. I wasted a load of experience that way, especially with Haruka. I did the Noa Amon dance-off with her capped at level 20 and wasted around 50,000 EXP

[ThePigMarcher]

Also I'd advise doing all of Kiryu's training and sending the guy to Kamurocho, Once you find him outside Ryugujo and fight him and his grandfather you'll raise the level cap to 25 for that character.

 

I found those two to be a serious pain in the backside (except for the quite hilarious dance-off with Haruka) and it initially took multiple attempts with each character to drop them.

 

I seemed to spend most of the time stun-locked and it was an exercise in frustration, that was until I realised you could 'cheat' them with a hammer that was rated 99 damage (I forget them name of it), you only get two hits before it breaks but if your weapon rating is high enough and you time those hits well you eliminate one of them immediately and possibly get the other to half health. Felt cheap but at that point I really didn't care

 

As for taxi driver level 25, I only needed to do a couple of those extra 'free races' to get that done.

Edited January 8, 2016 by ThePigMarcher

[drahkon]

3 hours ago, Julius said:

Loved 5! Definitely a bit longer than the other games in the series up to that point, but I also think it's one of the stronger games in the series (I'd put it behind 0 and alongside Kiwami 2 as one of my favourite entries) if you're looking to take your time and soak it all in. And, if not, I feel like the story has enough momentum/switch-ups to keep driving things forward! 

Will be looking out for your thoughts 

I'm gonna raise this thread from the dead

Properly started this and I think I'm nearing the end of the first character's journey. It's Yakuza alright
Mainly doing the story bits because this is supposed to be the longest game (aside from 7) and because I hate the fact that you have 5 different characters to play as. Didn't enjoy Yakuza 4 that much for similar reasons.

Still, there's intrigue, there's mystery, there's typical Yakuza stuff. It's fun.

Can't wait until I eventually get the 6th installment. Been hearing only great things about it and it's apparently not a nightmare to get 100% completion.

[drahkon]

15 hours ago, drahkon said:

I'm nearing the end of the first character's journey

Spoiler

Ohhhhh, the fight against the Tojo Clan was intense So much fun to just go all out.

So...I guess Kiryu is pulled back in. I knew it was coming, given he always gets pulled back in but still...sucks for him

Played a bit of Part 2 and man...this game is even more cutscene-heavy than the others I've played. Almost at Kojima's level.

Can't wait to get back to it after work

[drahkon]

On 9/20/2023 at 5:53 PM, drahkon said:

I hate the fact that you have 5 different characters to play as.

Yeah, it's starting to annoy me just as it did in the 4th installment...

As soon as things get really interesting and you start to get into a groove with a character the part ends and you move on to the next. Really not my style Just make a game revolve around one

Still, the stories are interesting and will, of course, eventually merge and end with a bang (I assume).

Part 2 is way worse than Part 1, I have to say. I love Saejima but the way his story unfolds and the fact that you explore the city only in his imagination are lame
Maybe the later chapters improve, but I'm not holding my breath.

[drahkon]

Part 2 done.
Thankfully, the finale of that was much better than the first chapters...

So for each playable character there some is some kind of bigger side quest with unique mechanics? I've skipped 'em all, so far, because the introductions to those were boring as hell.
Won't engage with this stuff for future characters, either.

The main plot is great, though! Seems like the biggest and most impactful story of the series (only considering the previous installments, of course). Can't wait to see how it'll all play out.

Spoiler

I know that my boy Majima isn't dead because I've played Like a Dragon.
Still, I probably would've never thought he'd be dead for real given how his death was basically just a matter of people talking about it instead of you actually seeing it

Gonna be interesting to see, though, what the hell he's cooking.

 

[drahkon]

Urgh, Part 3's gameplay is soooo boring.
I mean, I like Haruka and good lord her story is great (and a tear-jerker, what with Park being there for her like a mother ) but this idol thingy is tedious as frick...

Edit: Wow, a few minutes after I posted this, the story took a dark turn...

Edited September 23, 2023 by drahkon

[martinist]

I've been trying to defeat Amon in each of the Yakuza games untill 8 comes out. I'm on 5 at the moment after taking a few months away from it.

At the start of Haruka's part right now, using a guide for all the substories but there are a few of Kiryu's that i can only do in the finale.

Trying to do all the hostesses also for the love shine sticks completion reward.

Looking forward to moving onto Yakuza 6 and the dragon engine where i can throw enemies around like rag dolls. The spear fishing game in Onomichi is pretty fun too.

[drahkon]

This is definitely the weakest Yakuza I've played, so far...

As soon as the story goes somewhere, bam - you have to play as a different character...

Nothing interesting happens in the first 3 chapters of each character. It's only about their side-stories, which I find as interesting as watching paint dry. I've done the tutorial and mandatory stuff and that was it.
I've also done zero substories because I don't want to spend more time with the game as necessary. If the over-arching story didn't advance in only the final 5% of each character's playtime, I would've spend some more time outside of the main missions

Still...the over-arching story is great, as usual, and it's what's keeping me going. But I won't deny that I'll be happy when the game is done and dusted.

Really hope Yakuza 6 only as one protagonist...

[drahkon]

And it's done.

Absolutely hated the character switching, the unnecessary side-plots and the fact that the main story only advances in one or two chapters per character. And this one also suffers from bosses who can block constantly, counter everything and are just annoying to fight...

Absolutely loved the main story, though.   And the final chapter was incredible.

Shinada is a lovable goof. I shed a tear for him at the end
And Haruka's speech

Well...definitely the longest Yakuza game (aside from 7, of course) and definitely the one with the worst pacing. But as usual, the story bits and twists deliver and the characters are very well written

 

Edited September 25, 2023 by drahkon

[martinist]

On 25/09/2023 at 8:34 AM, drahkon said:

Really hope Yakuza 6 only as one protagonist...

Thankfully it's all Kiryu all the time in Yakuza 6.

Funny enough Yakuza 7 has seven party members.

Still slogging through with Haruka / Akiyama on my end. The last two substories with Haruka have to be activated on a certian chapter which is just awkward. Nice to go back to the usual gameplay again with Akiyama. Was getting sick of playing the same two songs over and over again with Haruka.

Edited September 27, 2023 by martinist

[drahkon]

29 minutes ago, martinist said:

Thankfully it's all Kiryu all the time in Yakuza 6.

Good!

30 minutes ago, martinist said:

Funny enough Yakuza 7 has seven party members.

True, but it was still much better than Yakuza 5

 

[Julius]

On 9/25/2023 at 9:52 PM, drahkon said:

Absolutely loved the main story, though.   And the final chapter was incredible.

Yeah, 5's main story is a blast, and definitely feels like a culmination of everything that's come before (well, the main story at least). That final chapter...man, just thinking about it brings a longing smile to my face  for me, it's the best main story besides 0 and Kiwami 2 (of the games that I've completed). 

On 9/25/2023 at 9:52 PM, drahkon said:

Well...definitely the longest Yakuza game (aside from 7, of course) and definitely the one with the worst pacing.

Yeah, it's a tricky one for me to read as someone that loves 5, and while I totally get the criticism, I think - perhaps more than any other game in the series - it's really down to how you approach the game. Which is both a strength and a weakness, in my eyes. To go into that more I'll address...

On 9/25/2023 at 8:34 AM, drahkon said:

It's only about their side-stories, which I find as interesting as watching paint dry. I've done the tutorial and mandatory stuff and that was it.
I've also done zero substories because I don't want to spend more time with the game as necessary. If the over-arching story didn't advance in only the final 5% of each character's playtime, I would've spend some more time outside of the main missions

To be honest, I think the bread and butter of this game is in the side content, more than other Yakuza. You don't get all that much time with the main cast just following the crit path, and their side content is (well, apart from maybe Shinada) super meaty, to the point that at times it feels like you're playing a completely different game. It takes the approach of substory/mini-game strings in some of the other games and basically makes that the core part of their content, because, besides Shinada, these are all returning characters – we know where most of them stand.

Personally, I also just really enjoyed the side content and getting to do different things in these games, for me it freshened things up after Yakuza 4 was a bit of a mess (very linear compared to 5, weaker story, and the returning playable character didn't get used until the end, so the hook was waaaaaaaaaay weaker - a lesson they clearly learned from as shown in 5, structurally, at least), but it does also make some parts of 5 seem a bit...emptier than you're used to for a Yakuza game. The playable flashback sequence you mentioned before immediately comes to mind (though I think it comes with its own payoff a little later on in the game). 

But yeah, I think with 5, it's just the approach which has so much of a bearing on your time with the game. I remember when I played 5 I just buried myself in all its glory because of personal things going on at the time, and so naturally that meant enjoying as much as I could of the substories/side content, which alleviates a lot of the pacing issues and feels like a deeper dive content-wise. However, if I wasn't in the mood for burying myself in a game like that? I think the game would be a much more middling experience. If you're buried in the game the way I was, it's actually much better paced...up until you get to Shinada, where the game has the opposite problem of 4 and has you playing as a new, original character for its penultimate chapter, and that's where the pacing truly comes screeching to a halt if you play through the game that way. 

Considering that you didn't put much time into substories/side content, honestly I'm just happy that you enjoyed the main story beats as much as you did! Very curious to read up on what you think of 6, when you get around to it, as it feels like a huge departure from 4 and 5 in terms of its structure and story approach. 

Also curious – at this point, how would you rank the games in the series that you've played so far?

Would love anyone else to chime in with their thoughts, too 

[drahkon]

38 minutes ago, Julius said:

Also curious – at this point, how would you rank the games in the series that you've played so far?

Phew...well, first place goes to Yakuza 7. Turn-based goodness mixed with Yakuza craziness and a great main character...no way it's not #1

The rest...I'd say 4 and 5 share last place, 3 slightly above both. And 0, Kiwami and Kiwami 2 share second place.