Yakuza 0 (PS4)

[Happenstance]

Interesting. Apparently there is some interest from Sega to create a sequel to Yakuza 0 set between 0 and 1 due to 0’s popularity. I would definitely be up for that and going back to the 80s era!

Edited March 19, 2018 by Happenstance

[nekunando]

I couldn't get any time to play recently but I've managed to burn through 5 chapters this week leaving me at the beginning of Chapter 16

I've definitely been having a better time by focusing on advancing the story rather than messing around with all of the other activities and aim to clear the game Inthe next couple of days!

It has definitely grown on me throughout and while I may not be ready for another entry in the franchise in the near future, I wouldn't rule of a purchase of Kiwami somewhere down the line

[nekunando]

Only just making it to bed now That last chapter really dragged after the final save point!

It's over now, though..

[Hero-of-Time]

I've been looking for something to play now that God of War is done and dusted and decided to have another crack at this game. I gave up playing it when it first got released and i'm about to do the same again.

I was loving the start of the story, just as I done the last time, but once again I fall out of love with it once all of the stupid side stories start and i'm left to run about the town on my own. I done a side story last night that involved me pretending to be movie producer. It felt like it had no meaning at all and completely random. I then done another that had me chasing down a guy from a videogame, and then another guy...and then another guy. I ended up sacking the side stories off and went to the Sega arcades and played some OutRun and Space Harrier instead. I also won a Mega Drive on the crane machines.  

I really want to like the game and get into the series but it's just not clicking with me at all. Maybe I should just forget about all the fluff and concentrate on the main story which I was enjoying. 

[RedShell]

48 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

I really want to like the game and get into the series but it's just not clicking with me at all. Maybe I should just forget about all the fluff and concentrate on the main story which I was enjoying. 

If you enjoy the main story and its gameplay I’d say that’s the best thing to do, yeah. Knowing how into trophies you are though I imagine it could end up being a bit annoying if you ended up just missing the ones tied to substories, but if you don’t enjoy those then surely it’s best to just ignore that aspect and at least enjoy the rest of the game?

[Hero-of-Time]

39 minutes ago, RedShell said:

If you enjoy the main story and its gameplay I’d say that’s the best thing to do, yeah. Knowing how into trophies you are though I imagine it could end up being a bit annoying if you ended up just missing the ones tied to substories, but if you don’t enjoy those then surely it’s best to just ignore that aspect and at least enjoy the rest of the game?

Ignore trophies? Easier said than done.  

[RedShell]

7 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Ignore trophies? Easier said than done.  

Yeah, I know. Be a shame to miss out on stuff as a result of that though.

Just try to imagine you’re playing it on a Nintendo platform* and there were no trophies.  

*Damn... I would kill for a Switch version of any Yakuza game.  

[nekunando]

2 hours ago, Hero-of-Time said:

I've been looking for something to play now that God of War is done and dusted and decided to have another crack at this game. I gave up playing it when it first got released and i'm about to do the same again.

I was loving the start of the story, just as I done the last time, but once again I fall out of love with it once all of the stupid side stories start and i'm left to run about the town on my own. I done a side story last night that involved me pretending to be movie producer. It felt like it had no meaning at all and completely random. I then done another that had me chasing down a guy from a videogame, and then another guy...and then another guy. I ended up sacking the side stories off and went to the Sega arcades and played some OutRun and Space Harrier instead. I also won a Mega Drive on the crane machines.  

I really want to like the game and get into the series but it's just not clicking with me at all. Maybe I should just forget about all the fluff and concentrate on the main story which I was enjoying. 

I'm not sure if you followed my relationship with the game but I was also getting burnt out by the constant distractions as it was totally ruining the flow. If I was in my younger days and only had Yakuza 0 to play, all of those side stories and mini games would no doubt have been very welcome as there's a lot of variety to enjoy but I eventually got through to the stage where I was entirely focused on the main plot and, as a result, chapters 10-16 went by very quickly while the final chapter ended up dragging its feet well into the early hours of the morning without a much-desired opportunity to save!

The gameplay was never particularly compelling so it was basically the story getting me through it and it's not often I say that about a game.

My advice would be to forget about most of the extra content and see if progressing the story can absorb you enough to continue. While I haven't ruled out picking up one of the other titles in future, I'm not sure I could stomach more of the same.. certainly not right now!

[Hero-of-Time]

10 minutes ago, nekunando said:

My advice would be to forget about most of the extra content and see if progressing the story can absorb you enough to continue. 

If I do continue to play it then this is probably what I will do, especially if i'm not getting anything substantial from them. The ones I have done were boring or just trying to hard be funny. I had a look and see there are 100 of these things, not to mention the other random stuff you have to do in order to complete the check list. Crazy. I wonder how long the game will be if I just critical path it?

[nekunando]

4 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

If I do continue to play it then this is probably what I will do, especially if i'm not getting anything substantial from them. The ones I have done were boring or just trying to hard be funny. I had a look and see there are 100 of these things, not to mention the other random stuff you have to do in order to complete the check list. Crazy. I wonder how long the game will be if I just critical path it?

I can't remember specific times but I was probably on something like Chapter 6 after around 20 hours or more and anticipating well over 60 hours to finish the game.. and that was daunting

Like I say, though, once I got into the second half of the game I felt like I blitzed most of it and finished in something like 40 hours, a figure that I'm sure could be brought down even further!

[RedShell]

Zero has the longest main story (excluding Yakuza 5) I imagine it’d take around 30 hours if purely focusing on that. Although H-o-T might be able to get that down to around 25.  

[Ashley]

So this is my first game in the series and it's interesting, although movement controls are janky. 

Had to laugh though as some random hooligans started to rush me but then it gave one of those "you're going the wrong way" messages and they stopped. Very considerate of them. 

[Hero-of-Time]

Okay, so I've just finished the dominatrix sub story and then finished another one about buying underwear from a high school girl. What the hell is this game!? 

[RedShell]

7 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

What the hell is this game!? 

A masterpiece of digital entertainment, that's what.

[Happenstance]

I love the mixture of gritty crime drama and wacky hyjinx personally. Kiryu is this complete badass at one moment and is then tying boobs into a web chat the other.

I spent some time chasing a Roomba around Kamurocho yesterday and loved every minute of it

[Hero-of-Time]

Majima's entrance.  

[Happenstance]

Not sure if there has ever been a better introduction to a character in video games than Majima's entrance in Zero.

[Ashley]

2 hours ago, Ashley said:

So this is my first game in the series and it's interesting, although movement controls are janky. 

Had to laugh though as some random hooligans started to rush me but then it gave one of those "you're going the wrong way" messages and they stopped. Very considerate of them. 

Seriously, am I doing something wrong? I can only seem to run, but get stuck on things often, or take small juddery steps.

[Happenstance]

22 hours ago, Ashley said:

Seriously, am I doing something wrong? I can only seem to run, but get stuck on things often, or take small juddery steps.

I don't remember anything like that at all. I'm wondering if theres something wrong with your game. Might be worth reinstalling/downloading.

[Hero-of-Time]

Absolutely loving the main story. Once I stopped doing all the silly side stories I'm enjoying the game so much more. I put a fair few hours into it yesterday and have just reached chapter 10 this morning. My jaw dropped when...

Spoiler

I seen Tachibana had the bat tattoo on this arm! That son of a bitch better have a good explanation! 

I'm gonna assume this is how the stories are connected, then? I was wondering if the Kiryu and Majima stories were going to intersect at some point or whether they were just going to be separate. Looks like I haven't got long to find out.

[nekunando]

3 hours ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Absolutely loving the main story. Once I stopped doing all the silly side stories I'm enjoying the game so much more. I put a fair few hours into it yesterday and have just reached chapter 10 this morning. My jaw dropped when...

  Early Chapter 10 Spoilers (Reveal hidden contents)

I seen Tachibana had the bat tattoo on this arm! That son of a bitch better have a good explanation! 

I'm gonna assume this is how the stories are connected, then? I was wondering if the Kiryu and Majima stories were going to intersect at some point or whether they were just going to be separate. Looks like I haven't got long to find out.

That's great The story is what kept me coming back!

As I mentioned before, the second half of the game seems to accelerate things at a faster pace so.. enjoy

[Hero-of-Time]

Spoiler

What a chapter! It was hype as hell when Nishiki and Kiryu end up back together, whip off their shirts and then proceed to lay they smackdown on all comers. 

I was fuming with what happened with Tachibana. I felt Kiryu's rage and went all out on Kuze and his lackeys.

The scene after that fight was very emotional.  Gutted he's dead. 

I loved the Virtua Cop style gameplay in chapter 13. Even the cross hairs were exactly the same.  

[Happenstance]

Glad you've started enjoying it now (even though you have no joy in your soul to enjoy the side quests ). Do you think you'll try to work your way through the series?

[Hero-of-Time]

1 hour ago, Happenstance said:

Glad you've started enjoying it now (even though you have no joy in your soul to enjoy the side quests ). 

You can't of enjoyed them that much. You never even finished 40 of them. Dem trophy stats don't lie.  

1 hour ago, Happenstance said:

Do you think you'll try to work your way through the series?

Indeed. I'm already looking for a copy of Kiwami. It's a little tougher  than just getting it from Argos tomorrow as I want the standard version and not the steel book. Few sellers on Amazon have it but I need to make sure it's the UK version and not the US. Hopefully I'll be playing it come Tuesday or Wednesday.

Im now on the final chapter of the game but reading nekunando's earlier comments it's probably best to save it until I finish work tomorrow. It seems that it's a long chapter with few save points.

Is one of the characters ( name escapes me at the moment ) based on Ken Watanabe? Dude looks the spitting image of him.

[Happenstance]

He does look very similar but no it’s not Watanabe.

I did enjoy the side stories, I just didn’t seek them out. I played the ones I was presented with.