Video Game Review: Yakuza Kiwami 2

Video Game Review: Yakuza Kiwami 2

AAAYYYOOOO! Unicorn here, with another trash review for you to waste your time on. However, I ASSURE you this one won’t be as long or in depth as my other reviews since I suck at this game…

First off, let me start out by saying I have never played these games before.. I usually shy away from the style of games like this.  I mainly jumped at the opportunity because I spoke to some fellow “gamers” who convinced me to give it a try. So… with that said. Here I am.

The game itself is awesome. I loved the cinematics (The first part of the game is essentially a movie, catching you up on the story of Ex-Yakuza gang member, Kazuma Kiryu) though I admit at first I thought it was a bit much…. Considering it was almost 45 minutes of story before you really got to start playing.

Once the play time kicks in, I was automatically hooked. Now, there are a few things I would like to point out about the game that I love(d) – First… I have to call out the “battle music”. If your a jazz lover… then this track is amazing. I think that’s what got me right off the bat… the chaotic horns. Another thing I liked was the fighting… the slow-mo on certain hits and the button combinations… SO. MUCH. FUN. Once you actually get into the city of Kamurocho and you do your first couple of missions, you get to finally explore. This is one of the main attractions for me, someone who loves to loot.

LOOT LOOT LOOT.

You’ll find all sorts of things down alleyways, up stairs and on sidewalks. Locker keys are, in my opinion, the best loot. These open lockers (OBVIOUSLY) that have random loot inside. Money, food, tonics for health and stamina, weapons.. And so on.

There are plenty of things to do within the world, which is awesome. I finally took a stab at Karaoke and that shit was so much fun. If you like button mashing… it’s definitely a good time.

Other mini games include an arcade, where you can play fighting games or the claw game (which is still a bastard to win anything, as it is in real life).

There is also a Mahjong room (and even little tables outside where you can play with random city people). I found that I  suck at Mahjong… so, one of the substories is proving to be a little harder as I can’t seem to fucking win a single match! DAMNIT!

An interesting thing I found while exploring the streets was a “Video Aarcade” (AKA: a porn shop) where you can actually partake in viewing some of the videos they have on hand. This was a nice little treat for me, being a deviant myself. Though you can’t actually SEE what he’s watching, you can definitely hear it. *wink *wink

While wandering the city you will also periodically run into gangs, all different levels of difficulty. A word of advice, fight them when you run into them. You can pick up weapons and other things like cash. Plus… you gain stat points that you can use to level up Kiryu. I found that I worked on my defense stats and my combat stats the most in the beginning and it seemed to help me out when it came time to fight with the gangs.

Now, a word of advice… it seems (and I could be wrong) that you need to complete a majority of the substories (if not all) in order to open up important parts of the map. I say this because I have been stuck on Chapter 4 for WEEKS now without being able to progress in the game. I even completed some substories within this chapter to see if it would open up the part of the map I need in order to move forward with the main story… yet… I’m still. Fucking. Stuck. I have never felt like more of a failure/quitter until now. There have been moments where I even just want to throw the damn controller, but then I remember them shits cost $60+…

SO yeah… I think my ass has to start the game all over again to see if my theory holds true. Unless anyone out there has some advice for me?

Until next time,

-UnicornRES

About Yakuza: Kiwami 2:

Yakuza 2 was released to the world in 2008 for PlayStation®2, a sequel to the critically acclaimed Yakuza, following the journey of Kazuma Kiryu as he attempts to distance himself from the criminal underworld he was raised in. Ten years later, Yakuza Kiwami 2 brings that world to the PlayStation®4, completely rebuilt from the ground-up. In the tradition of 2017’s Yakuza Kiwami, the envelope is pushed to the extreme, using the all-new Dragon Engine to update one of the series’ stand-out titles into a modern classic.

Kazuma Kiryu thought his Tojo Clan days were behind him. He and his young ward, Haruka Sawamura, have built a peaceful life from the ashes of conflict. All it took was a single gunshot to shatter that peace. Yukio Terada, the fifth chairman of the Tojo Clan, has been assassinated. With war on the horizon, the legendary Dragon of Dojima is pulled back into the world he wanted to leave behind.

Yakuza: Kiwami 2 was released Aug 28th, 2018 for PS4.

http://yakuza.sega.com/kiwami2/home.html