Greatest game in the fucking series
Combat is way better. Dondoko Island is really fun. Story starts off strong and then falls apart fast (but honestly if these games had 0 story I'd still play and love them so it's not a huge deal)
Just a great time overall!
Just a great time overall!
The combat has seen a huge upgrade and is actually pretty fun now! I love the side content and the vast amount there is of it. Hawaii is a great addition and really brings awesome side content like the Animal Crossing and Pokemon mini-games. I love the changes they made to the gear system. Sub-stories are as funny and endearing as ever. Jobs are so much more versatile now as well. Overall, as game, Infinite Wealth is the best the series has offered me so far.
However, Infinite Wealth is a game that is drowning in its own self-ambition when it comes to the story and characters. The story never fleshes things out because its trying to cram two character's story-lines into one. As a result, Kiyru's side of the story ends up outshining the fuck out of Ichiban's side. Ichiban has no arc and no real place in the story. Hell, barely any of these characters do. Don't get me wrong the story still has great moments and all, but the whole package ends up feeling rushed and overstuffed.
However, Infinite Wealth is a game that is drowning in its own self-ambition when it comes to the story and characters. The story never fleshes things out because its trying to cram two character's story-lines into one. As a result, Kiyru's side of the story ends up outshining the fuck out of Ichiban's side. Ichiban has no arc and no real place in the story. Hell, barely any of these characters do. Don't get me wrong the story still has great moments and all, but the whole package ends up feeling rushed and overstuffed.
This review contains spoilers
Lets get the crisp Hawaiian shaved ice water out the way first: Story took a nosedive not too far off from the final chapters. Very clear they ran out of ideas or budget, or both. With some bafflingly Middling-to-goofball villains, and not in the wacky Yakuza kinda way. Wanted to rip the baindaid off early though because I still got a lot of love for this game. Ripe as ever with phenomenal side content and a refreshing tropical flair while also shamelessly allowing us some thoughtful walks down memory lane. Still packed with a lot of great moments at the early end of the game, particular involving Yutaka "Our Guy" Yamai. Everything good about Y7 is even better across the board now. Did I mention Dondoko island? Or as the philistines like to call it, Dondokino island. Honest to god if they'd have included some actual amusement-parkish fare ala SMS in it that might have been enough to solidify this game as a 4 for me.
Thankfully at this point there shouldn't ever be an excuses to not let Ichiban truly shine as the new protagonist for the series. He didn't develop nearly as much this time around, and Y7 is still the high water mark for him, but he's solidified himself as the lovable gold hearted oaf with the charisma to carry this series forward into the future, assuming they can commit to letting Kiryu go this time. And with some tantalizing half-closure right at the FIN, they better damn well let the old man rest now. (Just please for the love of god just make Kiryu a cameo as a happy grandpa with Haruka. Please RGG let him be happy.)
Thankfully at this point there shouldn't ever be an excuses to not let Ichiban truly shine as the new protagonist for the series. He didn't develop nearly as much this time around, and Y7 is still the high water mark for him, but he's solidified himself as the lovable gold hearted oaf with the charisma to carry this series forward into the future, assuming they can commit to letting Kiryu go this time. And with some tantalizing half-closure right at the FIN, they better damn well let the old man rest now. (Just please for the love of god just make Kiryu a cameo as a happy grandpa with Haruka. Please RGG let him be happy.)
The game is great, gameplay has been improved in basically everything from the first game.
The story is awesome, just like RGG standard, the ending doesent reach the heights of LaD's but its good.
I have taken off half a star from the rating because they basically locked the story's epilogue behind DLC, the game does have closure but there's a bunch of beloved characters' closures that we do not get to see without DLC.
I know this is definitely not RGG's fault but SEGA's,
still sucks anyway.
The story is awesome, just like RGG standard, the ending doesent reach the heights of LaD's but its good.
I have taken off half a star from the rating because they basically locked the story's epilogue behind DLC, the game does have closure but there's a bunch of beloved characters' closures that we do not get to see without DLC.
I know this is definitely not RGG's fault but SEGA's,
still sucks anyway.
Having an adventure with both Ichiban and Kiryu is great, leading to a lot of tender and hype moments. The refinements to the combat and class system feel natural, and the difficulty curve is fairer.
With that said, the story feels lopsided. Ichiban's side is stunted in comparison to Kiryu's, which packs a lot of punches and has bigger stakes. I was expecting a resolution but RGG still doesn't have the balls for it. We've been saying goodbye to Kiryu for three games now ffs.
It is a very safe sequel, and no amount of refinement, elaborate Hawaii maps and Animal Crossing-esque minigames will obscure that. I hope RGG tries to surprise us more in later entries.
With that said, the story feels lopsided. Ichiban's side is stunted in comparison to Kiryu's, which packs a lot of punches and has bigger stakes. I was expecting a resolution but RGG still doesn't have the balls for it. We've been saying goodbye to Kiryu for three games now ffs.
It is a very safe sequel, and no amount of refinement, elaborate Hawaii maps and Animal Crossing-esque minigames will obscure that. I hope RGG tries to surprise us more in later entries.
After spending close to 90 hours on this game I feel entitled to at least write-up a review encompassing this close to 100 hour game. I genuinely love this franchise, spending my entire time in a pandemic locked up binging through Kiryu's tale.
With the new setting of Honolulu itself is as massive as is Ijincho. Infinite Wealth mirrors a lot of it's previous titles in the franchise and proudly establishes it on its chest. from it's "dual protagonists" in its two massive cities it bounces back and forth between each chapter of Yakuza 0. To the overwhelming sized of content it's know to have, and even going further releases like Yakuza 5, and it's much appreciated polish to fix up the slow beats of its previous title the sophomoric time at the turn-based system that divided many in Like a Dragon. It's all amazing, wonderful, and cheerful as the protagonist Ichiban himself is.
With the new setting of Honolulu itself is as massive as is Ijincho. Infinite Wealth mirrors a lot of it's previous titles in the franchise and proudly establishes it on its chest. from it's "dual protagonists" in its two massive cities it bounces back and forth between each chapter of Yakuza 0. To the overwhelming sized of content it's know to have, and even going further releases like Yakuza 5, and it's much appreciated polish to fix up the slow beats of its previous title the sophomoric time at the turn-based system that divided many in Like a Dragon. It's all amazing, wonderful, and cheerful as the protagonist Ichiban himself is.
Even if this game has a mid ending and the story gives off steam for most of the second half it has the best RPG gameplay I have ever seen and it blew me away Ichiban is still just as charming if not more and kiryu is just great to have back as a protagonist this game is amazing for everything except the story and might be my favorite game ever
the story is all over the place and they FUCKED up by releasing gaiden before this
but goddamn. everything else is excellent. they improved on literally almost everything 7 had.
but goddamn. everything else is excellent. they improved on literally almost everything 7 had.
ok i'll make my big boy pants incomprehensible raving ramble review later when i stop sitting on my ass and finish all the other ones for this series. but for now i just NEED to talk about this game man.
infinite wealth to me is like another yakuza 5. yeah, there are some obvious flaws, some really weird story decisions and, hell, both even have divisive final bosses that i grew to really really like over time. but the things that ARE present are so full of heart and so genuine that i can't help but overlook those flaws. ichiban and friends are still such amazing characters who i loved to just see hang out. ichiban himself still proves to be an amazing protagonist, his cheerful and energetic demeanor feeling so refreshing. and of course star of the show himself, the dragon of dojima. maybe i was a little split on kiryu coming back after 6 and even getting a whole ass mini spinoff just to try to make having his mug on the cover art feel justified. but now that i've finally heard the final verse off of kazuma kiryu's swansong? everything in this game feels like a love letter to the LEGACY this man has left on the series. anyone who can call themselves an rgg fan will get so much out of the life links. so much out of the story's main themes of living life and not throwing yourself away. so much out of slowly, but so so surely seeing kiryu realize that the life he's living is one worth fighting for. and i know it will, because it definitely meant so much to me.
infinite wealth isn't perfect. the story is maybe a little mixed. the pacing really falters at times. but this game is worth so much more than the sum of its parts to me. maybe even worth an infinite wealth eh eh eh eh eh
(additionally, just like yakuza 5, this game's combat system is puhpuhpuh-peak and also the ost bangs. kooky has held me captive for months on end now. i would make the whole save me joke but i don't want to escape)
infinite wealth to me is like another yakuza 5. yeah, there are some obvious flaws, some really weird story decisions and, hell, both even have divisive final bosses that i grew to really really like over time. but the things that ARE present are so full of heart and so genuine that i can't help but overlook those flaws. ichiban and friends are still such amazing characters who i loved to just see hang out. ichiban himself still proves to be an amazing protagonist, his cheerful and energetic demeanor feeling so refreshing. and of course star of the show himself, the dragon of dojima. maybe i was a little split on kiryu coming back after 6 and even getting a whole ass mini spinoff just to try to make having his mug on the cover art feel justified. but now that i've finally heard the final verse off of kazuma kiryu's swansong? everything in this game feels like a love letter to the LEGACY this man has left on the series. anyone who can call themselves an rgg fan will get so much out of the life links. so much out of the story's main themes of living life and not throwing yourself away. so much out of slowly, but so so surely seeing kiryu realize that the life he's living is one worth fighting for. and i know it will, because it definitely meant so much to me.
infinite wealth isn't perfect. the story is maybe a little mixed. the pacing really falters at times. but this game is worth so much more than the sum of its parts to me. maybe even worth an infinite wealth eh eh eh eh eh
(additionally, just like yakuza 5, this game's combat system is puhpuhpuh-peak and also the ost bangs. kooky has held me captive for months on end now. i would make the whole save me joke but i don't want to escape)
not gonna lie, that was pretty good
PEAK
This review contains spoilers
Story was messy and poorly executed. Would've liked to see more of a focus on Ichiban's side of the story... the split time between him and Kiryu later in the game just felt awkward. Don't get me wrong I love Kiryu but he did not need to be a protag. I did enjoy seeing Kiryu getting to say his farewells but it left a lot to be desired. The villains were ASS except for Yamai, but im not so sure he counts (I swear we better see him again RGG Studios). Ebina was just a shitty copy of Ryo Aoki/Masato... its just lazy ass writing idk. Don't get me started on the "twist" with Chitose and Eiji. Ichiban and gang taking down Bryce Fairchild was soooo underwhelming like leading up to it I was definitely NOT pumped.
Gameplay and music were great. This game had a lot of good but in the end failed to come together and lacked its usual luster. I wanted to write a fleshed out review, but I would want to replay the game before doing so. This is just a quick summary of my general thoughts.
Gameplay and music were great. This game had a lot of good but in the end failed to come together and lacked its usual luster. I wanted to write a fleshed out review, but I would want to replay the game before doing so. This is just a quick summary of my general thoughts.
The gameplay is significantly more fun than yakuza 7, and while I always prefer the beat em up style, this game made me really enjoy the turn based combat.
Story wise I really liked the game but it's kinda like yakuza 5 where its too big for it's own good. The worst part is how Ichiban just stops being the protagonist halfway through. Kiryu's finale was great in the moment, and overall I enjoyed the character arc he had, however there are definitely a large number of flaws in the story, or threads that didn't have enough time in the oven that it still feels far from perfect.
As Kiryu's finale i'd give it a 5/5 but as a game in general I don't think I could move it much higher than this.
Story wise I really liked the game but it's kinda like yakuza 5 where its too big for it's own good. The worst part is how Ichiban just stops being the protagonist halfway through. Kiryu's finale was great in the moment, and overall I enjoyed the character arc he had, however there are definitely a large number of flaws in the story, or threads that didn't have enough time in the oven that it still feels far from perfect.
As Kiryu's finale i'd give it a 5/5 but as a game in general I don't think I could move it much higher than this.
The absolute pinnacle of Yakuza gaming right here. Compelling characters, wacky sidequests, engaging minigames, and the melodramatic main story. Perfection!
Infinite Wealth greatly improves upon Yakuza: Like a Dragon's already great combat system and addresses some quality of life and game balance "issues" from that game, though these were very minor problems to begin with and some of the changes cause the game to be much easier, maybe a bit too much so. The combat now feels a lot more refined and dynamic, and Kiryu's fighting styles are excellently incorporated within a turn based system. I think Hawaii was a great choice for a new location in a series that usually keeps things confined to very few and relatively similar locations. Having the story simultaneously progress in Hawaii and Yokohama by alternating between two protagonists and sets of parties allows for party members to each get more time to shine (aside from one party member who joins the party ridiculously late into the game). Seeing how Ichiban's friends interact with Kiryu was interesting and made me develop an appreciation for characters I previously wasn't too keen on, and I liked the new party members as well, especially Tomizawa. In hindsight Ichiban gets a bit only overshadowed in this game and his chapters get progressively less interesting after the halfway point. It feels like a step backwards to take the spotlight away from the series' new protagonist to this extent in only his second game, but clearly RGG Studio's primary goal here was to do Kiryu justice and retire him as a protagonist in a way that honours his character, which I would say they have done a fairly good job of. Side content was pretty solid and I loved the soundtrack as always. Sure, like with all Yakuza games there's things you could nitpick on but at the end of the day I genuinely don't think I've had this much fun with a game in a while.
Depois de Yakuza: Like A Dragon, a história deste peca por tentar contar muita, mas muita coisa ao mesmo tempo. Ainda assim, Yakuza no seu pior geralmente é melhor que muitas obras afora. Substories e sistemas estão ótimos, a ilha Dondoko e os Sujimons são subgames bem trabalhados. E a tradução um primor. Ri, chorei e me emocionei.
This review contains spoilers
I'm honestly pretty mixed on this entry. While there is certainly a lot to love, which I'll get into, I was honestly really disappointed with how the main story and various character arcs turned out.
The biggest improvement from Y7 is the gameplay. It's much more refined and the difficulty curve is a lot fairer, there's no crazy difficulty spike like the fight against Majima and Saejima in Y7. I really liked how they incorporated normal attacks so it wasn't useless anymore, the new jobs are all pretty great at what they do and it's a lot more versatile which encourages levelling multiple jobs instead of sticking to one broken job like in 7. My only real issue with the new gameplay is that I found the buff/debuffs to be too weak, you have to waste multiple turns to get them to a level that actually felt effective.
Many of the new characters introduced are also pretty fantastic. I absolutely loved Tomizawa and Chitose as both party members and how they were written, honestly I liked them more than Nanba and Saeko respectively. Also great seeing Seonhee crush out on Kiryu, an unexpected but adorable side to her. But the true highlight is easily Yutaka Yamai. This guy is definitely a fan favorite in the making a-la Goro Majima, and I expect him to make an appearance in any future Yakuza game. Also helps that he's voiced by DIO himself.
The graphics are great as usual for a Dragon Engine game, while it doesn't look as clean as Lost Judgment, they have massively improved the lighting from Y7. The soundtrack also slaps, if there's one thing this series has never missed on, it's the music. No complaints there.
Now for the negatives. Let's start with the side content: They're all pretty disappointing. The substories are extremely lackluster in this game, which is especially disappointing since a good portion of the humor this series has is derived from the wacky substories. The more interesting substories are simply rehashed from previous games. Dondoko Island is also an absolute chore and I could not be any less interested in it. What a massive downgrade from the confectionary minigame from Y7. Sujimon collecting was also a bore, and the dungeon crawling became too repetitive. It's actually kinda funny this game came out around the same time Persona 3 Reload did because the dungeons in this game is basically just dimestore Tartarus. The minigames I've never really played in any other Yakuza game, and I skipped those here too. Didn't care for them.
The main issue I have with this game is how the main story progresses. It's extremely predictable, about as subtle as a sledgehammer to the face, and just really really boring in general. Pacing is a big problem in general, and while nowhere near as egregious as Yakuza 5's pacing was, cutscenes felt like they went on forever which is really aggravating when you can already predict what's gonna happen. I did praise the minor villains like Yamai and I also enjoyed Dwight Mendez, but the main villains are just so disappointing and lame. Ebina and Bryce have no aura despite having a lot of influence, and Ebina in particular has 0 buildup which makes his fight unmemorable, he's easily the least interesting final boss that Kiryu has ever faced.
I was also not a big fan with the direction the game took with a lot of the characters. They basically undo everything that the gang had accomplished in 7, introduce a potential romance between Kasuga and Saeko that has no satisfying conclusion, and most disappointing of all, the reunion between Kasuga and his birth mother is barely given any screentime at all. They also really go hard on the inherent evilness of social media, as if they didn't already tackle this issue with some actual nuance in Lost Judgment a few years earlier. A lot of the biggest moments in The Man Who Erased His Name is also undone in this game, to the point where that title feels pointless to play through now. Also a minor gripe I have is that mfing sex trafficker Jun Oda got a remembrance for the Dragon's Awakening mechanic over so many other characters that Kiryu actually liked and had a meaningful connection with, makes no sense.
Overall I did enjoy my time with this game but was disappointed by the direction the story took. The gameplay is a step forward but the story is two steps back. Maybe wait for a sale before getting this.
The biggest improvement from Y7 is the gameplay. It's much more refined and the difficulty curve is a lot fairer, there's no crazy difficulty spike like the fight against Majima and Saejima in Y7. I really liked how they incorporated normal attacks so it wasn't useless anymore, the new jobs are all pretty great at what they do and it's a lot more versatile which encourages levelling multiple jobs instead of sticking to one broken job like in 7. My only real issue with the new gameplay is that I found the buff/debuffs to be too weak, you have to waste multiple turns to get them to a level that actually felt effective.
Many of the new characters introduced are also pretty fantastic. I absolutely loved Tomizawa and Chitose as both party members and how they were written, honestly I liked them more than Nanba and Saeko respectively. Also great seeing Seonhee crush out on Kiryu, an unexpected but adorable side to her. But the true highlight is easily Yutaka Yamai. This guy is definitely a fan favorite in the making a-la Goro Majima, and I expect him to make an appearance in any future Yakuza game. Also helps that he's voiced by DIO himself.
The graphics are great as usual for a Dragon Engine game, while it doesn't look as clean as Lost Judgment, they have massively improved the lighting from Y7. The soundtrack also slaps, if there's one thing this series has never missed on, it's the music. No complaints there.
Now for the negatives. Let's start with the side content: They're all pretty disappointing. The substories are extremely lackluster in this game, which is especially disappointing since a good portion of the humor this series has is derived from the wacky substories. The more interesting substories are simply rehashed from previous games. Dondoko Island is also an absolute chore and I could not be any less interested in it. What a massive downgrade from the confectionary minigame from Y7. Sujimon collecting was also a bore, and the dungeon crawling became too repetitive. It's actually kinda funny this game came out around the same time Persona 3 Reload did because the dungeons in this game is basically just dimestore Tartarus. The minigames I've never really played in any other Yakuza game, and I skipped those here too. Didn't care for them.
The main issue I have with this game is how the main story progresses. It's extremely predictable, about as subtle as a sledgehammer to the face, and just really really boring in general. Pacing is a big problem in general, and while nowhere near as egregious as Yakuza 5's pacing was, cutscenes felt like they went on forever which is really aggravating when you can already predict what's gonna happen. I did praise the minor villains like Yamai and I also enjoyed Dwight Mendez, but the main villains are just so disappointing and lame. Ebina and Bryce have no aura despite having a lot of influence, and Ebina in particular has 0 buildup which makes his fight unmemorable, he's easily the least interesting final boss that Kiryu has ever faced.
I was also not a big fan with the direction the game took with a lot of the characters. They basically undo everything that the gang had accomplished in 7, introduce a potential romance between Kasuga and Saeko that has no satisfying conclusion, and most disappointing of all, the reunion between Kasuga and his birth mother is barely given any screentime at all. They also really go hard on the inherent evilness of social media, as if they didn't already tackle this issue with some actual nuance in Lost Judgment a few years earlier. A lot of the biggest moments in The Man Who Erased His Name is also undone in this game, to the point where that title feels pointless to play through now. Also a minor gripe I have is that mfing sex trafficker Jun Oda got a remembrance for the Dragon's Awakening mechanic over so many other characters that Kiryu actually liked and had a meaningful connection with, makes no sense.
Overall I did enjoy my time with this game but was disappointed by the direction the story took. The gameplay is a step forward but the story is two steps back. Maybe wait for a sale before getting this.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Runtime
Forever an infinitely difficult series to review without turning it into a minefield of spoilers, I'll tread carefully in my Infinite Wealth review and provide a fairly short writeup for a game that is as cavernously deep as the eigth-ish-ninth-ish (main) entry in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchise. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth was a game that despite being a tremendous fan of the series' heart wrenching moments, delicately web narratives, and impeccable lived in worlds, I was timid about actually playing. The gargantuan length of its immediate predecessor and slower grind-heavy gameplay took a lot out of me, even if I was a pretty big fan of the story being told. From what I'd heard through media outlets and friends alike, Infinite Wealth had made the game even larger and more grandiose, and after playing it myself I can verify that to be true.
LAD 8 is the first title within the series to take place significantly outside of Japan, this time having the bulk of its gameplay (mostly through Ichiban) taking place in the fiftieth American State: Hawaii. Previously I thought this would be a significant boon to my enjoyment of the title because I thought the series could use a fresh start outside of its typical close quarters Japanese city streets where you're shoulder to shoulder with pedestrians and throwing down in alleyways. It turns out that I actually wasn't a fan of the transition in the slightest. Never having been to Hawaii myself I can't verify this to the actual existence of the city, but much of Infinite Wealth's streets felt almost too large and full of empty expanse. With the series prior, I'd grown use to the almost claustrophobic feeling of having too much to see and too much to do around you. However many of the games taking place in Kamurocho be damned, I took to a significant liking of the familiar sites and sounds. As the series grew and expanded to Okinawa, Osaka, and Hiroshima, I felt like Sega and RGG did a pretty good job at introducing the player to new locales that played into the DNA of what players knew. Hawaii felt big and... interestingly empty for a Yakuza/LAD title. I didn't feel connected to the valley-like wide roads and emptiness between buildings... the beach and the town didn't really feel inviting to me, for whatever reason nothing took. In addition to this, the enemy placement for such an expansive entry was abnormally dense. It felt like I couldn't run my party more than a few feet without turning myself into an engagement. I understand this is probably beneficial to levelling up characters and jobs, but man does it make for a disrupted and un-rhythmic experience. I was dodging streets and pulling detours to a far greater level than I ever was in the beat-em'-up titles that came out prior.
On the topic of not being able to buy into the new world put forth by RGG in Infinite Wealth, the voice acting and languages used came off as a bit... strange. I understand that Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is a Japanese game that takes place in America, and in an American state that has a significant Japanese population, but I didn't understand the rhyme or reason behind how many characters spoke and understood English or Japanese. It seemed like the language spoken altered based on narrative convenience rather than a logical sequence, which made some characters that spoke in a broken English like the American born Bryce interesting. This doesn't really matter to anything in the long run but it made buy-in to the locale a little more difficult for me.
Now outside of the map being not my fancy, what actually rubbed me the wrong way? Mandatory fungames! I didn't buy Animal Crossing, please don't subject me to three days of woo hoo tee hee ha ha silly Animal Crossing on an abandoned Island in an otherwise (mostly) serious game. I didn't enjoy going from chasing disappearances and trying to dissolve Hawaii's gang violence to talking to the Western Kentucky mascot Big Red and cleaning trash so I could raise tourism to a location I did not want to be at. When I found out I couldn't leave at my own will, I looked up at the sky like that one gif of Willem Dafoe from At Eternity's Gate. Adding this on to the two forced moments in which you have to participate in a Roguelike a Dragon and I was (sarcastically) livid with several moments of the game. I get why you include these things, and in the long run its good for people trying to get the most dollar per hour value out of the game, but my plead with RGG going forward is that they strip this out of what the player has to do and leave it up to what the player could do. Rebirth made this same mistake and I'm wondering why this trend is proliferating in the modern JRPG space.
This review comes off as overtly negative, and for honesty's sake it kind of is... but there is a lot of Yakuza charm once again present in this title. There are the silly moments from Ichiban and company that have you (metaphorically) rolling on the floor in laughter, and the gut wrenching moments minutes later that the series is known to inflict. I was a fan of... about one half of this game and those were the sections devoted mainly to series mainstay Kazuma Kiryu. It's not necessarily because he's the old guy who we've grown accustomed to over the last few decades, but because his story felt more focused and mature. I do really enjoy Ichiban and think he's a perfect protagonist for the series henceforth, but the segments focused on him felt a little all over the place narratively and didn't hit me as hard as what we see the Dragon of Dojima go through. Familiar faces hit hard, and the cast in Infinite Wealth can go toe to toe with just about any game out there, I just wish they were employed in a more uniform and focused plot.
I usually wrap up my reviews with a plead to either play or not play the title based upon its expectations from the player base and my enjoyment of the title overall, but I feel like people looking to play Infinite Wealth and continue the story of Kiryu, Ichiban, and company will do it regardless. I didn't enjoy this title nearly as much as I did LAD7, but I'm glad we got to ride out with the crew one more time.
Forever an infinitely difficult series to review without turning it into a minefield of spoilers, I'll tread carefully in my Infinite Wealth review and provide a fairly short writeup for a game that is as cavernously deep as the eigth-ish-ninth-ish (main) entry in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchise. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth was a game that despite being a tremendous fan of the series' heart wrenching moments, delicately web narratives, and impeccable lived in worlds, I was timid about actually playing. The gargantuan length of its immediate predecessor and slower grind-heavy gameplay took a lot out of me, even if I was a pretty big fan of the story being told. From what I'd heard through media outlets and friends alike, Infinite Wealth had made the game even larger and more grandiose, and after playing it myself I can verify that to be true.
LAD 8 is the first title within the series to take place significantly outside of Japan, this time having the bulk of its gameplay (mostly through Ichiban) taking place in the fiftieth American State: Hawaii. Previously I thought this would be a significant boon to my enjoyment of the title because I thought the series could use a fresh start outside of its typical close quarters Japanese city streets where you're shoulder to shoulder with pedestrians and throwing down in alleyways. It turns out that I actually wasn't a fan of the transition in the slightest. Never having been to Hawaii myself I can't verify this to the actual existence of the city, but much of Infinite Wealth's streets felt almost too large and full of empty expanse. With the series prior, I'd grown use to the almost claustrophobic feeling of having too much to see and too much to do around you. However many of the games taking place in Kamurocho be damned, I took to a significant liking of the familiar sites and sounds. As the series grew and expanded to Okinawa, Osaka, and Hiroshima, I felt like Sega and RGG did a pretty good job at introducing the player to new locales that played into the DNA of what players knew. Hawaii felt big and... interestingly empty for a Yakuza/LAD title. I didn't feel connected to the valley-like wide roads and emptiness between buildings... the beach and the town didn't really feel inviting to me, for whatever reason nothing took. In addition to this, the enemy placement for such an expansive entry was abnormally dense. It felt like I couldn't run my party more than a few feet without turning myself into an engagement. I understand this is probably beneficial to levelling up characters and jobs, but man does it make for a disrupted and un-rhythmic experience. I was dodging streets and pulling detours to a far greater level than I ever was in the beat-em'-up titles that came out prior.
On the topic of not being able to buy into the new world put forth by RGG in Infinite Wealth, the voice acting and languages used came off as a bit... strange. I understand that Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is a Japanese game that takes place in America, and in an American state that has a significant Japanese population, but I didn't understand the rhyme or reason behind how many characters spoke and understood English or Japanese. It seemed like the language spoken altered based on narrative convenience rather than a logical sequence, which made some characters that spoke in a broken English like the American born Bryce interesting. This doesn't really matter to anything in the long run but it made buy-in to the locale a little more difficult for me.
Now outside of the map being not my fancy, what actually rubbed me the wrong way? Mandatory fungames! I didn't buy Animal Crossing, please don't subject me to three days of woo hoo tee hee ha ha silly Animal Crossing on an abandoned Island in an otherwise (mostly) serious game. I didn't enjoy going from chasing disappearances and trying to dissolve Hawaii's gang violence to talking to the Western Kentucky mascot Big Red and cleaning trash so I could raise tourism to a location I did not want to be at. When I found out I couldn't leave at my own will, I looked up at the sky like that one gif of Willem Dafoe from At Eternity's Gate. Adding this on to the two forced moments in which you have to participate in a Roguelike a Dragon and I was (sarcastically) livid with several moments of the game. I get why you include these things, and in the long run its good for people trying to get the most dollar per hour value out of the game, but my plead with RGG going forward is that they strip this out of what the player has to do and leave it up to what the player could do. Rebirth made this same mistake and I'm wondering why this trend is proliferating in the modern JRPG space.
This review comes off as overtly negative, and for honesty's sake it kind of is... but there is a lot of Yakuza charm once again present in this title. There are the silly moments from Ichiban and company that have you (metaphorically) rolling on the floor in laughter, and the gut wrenching moments minutes later that the series is known to inflict. I was a fan of... about one half of this game and those were the sections devoted mainly to series mainstay Kazuma Kiryu. It's not necessarily because he's the old guy who we've grown accustomed to over the last few decades, but because his story felt more focused and mature. I do really enjoy Ichiban and think he's a perfect protagonist for the series henceforth, but the segments focused on him felt a little all over the place narratively and didn't hit me as hard as what we see the Dragon of Dojima go through. Familiar faces hit hard, and the cast in Infinite Wealth can go toe to toe with just about any game out there, I just wish they were employed in a more uniform and focused plot.
I usually wrap up my reviews with a plead to either play or not play the title based upon its expectations from the player base and my enjoyment of the title overall, but I feel like people looking to play Infinite Wealth and continue the story of Kiryu, Ichiban, and company will do it regardless. I didn't enjoy this title nearly as much as I did LAD7, but I'm glad we got to ride out with the crew one more time.
Extremely hard to talk about the positives and negatives of this game without getting into spoilers but I'm going to do my best.
Real quick I'll give a tl;dr on my overall thoughts: fantastic game with strong emotional highs, with some stumbling lows, but overall still ends up one of the best games in the series.
The game is basically split in half and my opinion is that while the Ichiban half starts and ends EXTREMELY strong its a bit messy pacing wise, the Kiryu half is extremely strong though and an amazing love letter to the entire series. Elements of Kiryu's story hit extremely close to my personal life and I will love this game forever for telling the story it chooses too. I wish certain parts were a bit tighter but overall its another fantastic game.
I think the combat is the best the series has seen so far and I hope we get more RPGs like this ! The minigames are also great, all fun and nothing super frustrating or janky like past entries. I'd buy and play a full game version of Dondoko Island.
I don't want to say too much more, I loved this game, I loved experiencing it, and I am excited to see what happens next.
Real quick I'll give a tl;dr on my overall thoughts: fantastic game with strong emotional highs, with some stumbling lows, but overall still ends up one of the best games in the series.
The game is basically split in half and my opinion is that while the Ichiban half starts and ends EXTREMELY strong its a bit messy pacing wise, the Kiryu half is extremely strong though and an amazing love letter to the entire series. Elements of Kiryu's story hit extremely close to my personal life and I will love this game forever for telling the story it chooses too. I wish certain parts were a bit tighter but overall its another fantastic game.
I think the combat is the best the series has seen so far and I hope we get more RPGs like this ! The minigames are also great, all fun and nothing super frustrating or janky like past entries. I'd buy and play a full game version of Dondoko Island.
I don't want to say too much more, I loved this game, I loved experiencing it, and I am excited to see what happens next.
While not on the same level as its predecessor with regards to the story (I'm speaking as a newbie of the series, not having the privilege of understanding every single piece of reference to Kiryu's saga), I find IW to be a superb JRPG, with extremely engaging turn based combat, a super fun job system and (as usual for the series) a ton content. Just great.
Not as good as 7 story wise but everything else surpasses it. 10/10 in terms of enjoyability.
It's an incredible mess and i writing a review for this game make me feel like i'm diving in a huge messy place trying to put some order to understand what the hell i'm looking at.
You have one side, with an incredible gameplay, some absolute banger track, some story parts that are emotional and intense and eye candy etc... The substories ? Hard time deciding if they're better than seven, but they're very good.
And now the other side : after the later half of the game, the pacing become insane, with huge stretches that does not make me want to play the game. It also have huge scaling issues, even worst than seven on that front, the ennemies are far less fun to beat the more u advance in game, despite the huge amount of move u can discover.
Some substories are just weird ? not funny weird, just plain weird in how they resolve themselves, to the point where i ask myself if the writer had any idea on how to conclude those.
You have one side, with an incredible gameplay, some absolute banger track, some story parts that are emotional and intense and eye candy etc... The substories ? Hard time deciding if they're better than seven, but they're very good.
And now the other side : after the later half of the game, the pacing become insane, with huge stretches that does not make me want to play the game. It also have huge scaling issues, even worst than seven on that front, the ennemies are far less fun to beat the more u advance in game, despite the huge amount of move u can discover.
Some substories are just weird ? not funny weird, just plain weird in how they resolve themselves, to the point where i ask myself if the writer had any idea on how to conclude those.
While it improves upon everything that Yakuza 7 does in terms of gameplay, the narrative is lacking in a couple areas. The kind of shot themselves in the foot by writing Gaiden after Infinite Wealth and Ichiban's relevance in the story wanes in the latter half.
This review contains spoilers
Gonna start by saying this is still one of the best games we got in this year and I enjoyed a lot of my time with it, but man I feel like the hype of the trailers regarding the story and Kiryu's part set my expectations for it way too high, cause I found myself underwhelmed with the game around the endpoint.
Gameplay is an insane improvement from 7, proximity range my beloved, didn't feel like I had to grind a lot to be able to actually progress, only times I struggles the most were during the chapter with the two cranes and the millenium tower, the default jobs are great, but a little too great cause I didn't feel like actually trying out other jobs as a result outside of just how funny they look
Average Yakuza OST W as always not much to say about it, The Four my goat 🔥
Story had a nice start, character writing is great as always, and I loved Ichiban's relationship with Tomizawa and Chitose, but the story took an absolute dive around the last few chapters where it just started having too many antagonists and too many thread reveals and too many surprised, literally 5 but more bloated (and not as cool), half the time I literally forgot some characters cause they just disappeared never to be seen again until the game suddenly reminds you of them
Substories and Bucket List was honestly a dissapointment, outside of some of the well written ones like Ichiban's rivalry with the MMA streamer and the Bucket List with Date and reconciling with Akiyama and the taxi guy from Yakuza 5 , most of them felt too flat to me or too samey, Bucket List is literally just a fucking slideshow of Kiryu going to random areas and being greeted with a png from a past game, with SOME of them being designed like actual substories, albeit still falling flat in my opinion
Despite the flaws it's still a great game, I just wish the story didn't feel half baked around the last few chapters......
Alsotheendinglikeliterallywhatthefuckisthepointofgaidenandyakuza6nowTHEREISNONE
Gameplay is an insane improvement from 7, proximity range my beloved, didn't feel like I had to grind a lot to be able to actually progress, only times I struggles the most were during the chapter with the two cranes and the millenium tower, the default jobs are great, but a little too great cause I didn't feel like actually trying out other jobs as a result outside of just how funny they look
Average Yakuza OST W as always not much to say about it, The Four my goat 🔥
Story had a nice start, character writing is great as always, and I loved Ichiban's relationship with Tomizawa and Chitose, but the story took an absolute dive around the last few chapters where it just started having too many antagonists and too many thread reveals and too many surprised, literally 5 but more bloated (and not as cool), half the time I literally forgot some characters cause they just disappeared never to be seen again until the game suddenly reminds you of them
Substories and Bucket List was honestly a dissapointment, outside of some of the well written ones like Ichiban's rivalry with the MMA streamer and the Bucket List with Date and reconciling with Akiyama and the taxi guy from Yakuza 5 , most of them felt too flat to me or too samey, Bucket List is literally just a fucking slideshow of Kiryu going to random areas and being greeted with a png from a past game, with SOME of them being designed like actual substories, albeit still falling flat in my opinion
Despite the flaws it's still a great game, I just wish the story didn't feel half baked around the last few chapters......
Alsotheendinglikeliterallywhatthefuckisthepointofgaidenandyakuza6nowTHEREISNONE
This series became my LIFE for around 8 months and to be caught up for a new release felt so GOOD to be apart of.
Probably one of the best Yakuza games and RPG's in general that I have ever played. From the Hawaii setting, Party Chats, Combat, Mini Games and Side Content there's ALOT to enjoy in this game.
The story is the only department I was slightly let down in but luckily any parts that I thought were meh was carried by the best cast of characters I think to be in the Yakuza series yet!
Peak Game, Peak Series, Peak of PEAKS
Probably one of the best Yakuza games and RPG's in general that I have ever played. From the Hawaii setting, Party Chats, Combat, Mini Games and Side Content there's ALOT to enjoy in this game.
The story is the only department I was slightly let down in but luckily any parts that I thought were meh was carried by the best cast of characters I think to be in the Yakuza series yet!
Peak Game, Peak Series, Peak of PEAKS
This review contains spoilers
This is it. This is arguably RGG Studio's Magnum Opus.
Gameplay
To start of Gameplay in this game is phenomenal and a huge improvement from Yakuza: LaD in every single way. As a loyal Lost Judgment fan, I'm not a big fan of Turn-based combat and I'm not experienced with it but the combat flows so well in this game I don't mind at all, infact every single second was fun and never found it tedious unlike LaD where it did get boring after a while. To be honest most things that were added in LaD IW should have been in LaD like being able to move freely and wallbounces from knockback hits etc but oh boy does it make a difference. Kiryu's combat is just perfect. The incorporation of the three styles from previous games and the classic brawler extreme heat mode to top it all of?! too based for turn-based. Quick time events felt weird at times with the excessive and unnecessary camera shakes and the out of place sound of effects combined with the lack of responsiveness when hitting the prompt. Ichiban suffered from this problem the most while Kiryu's qte's were better.
There are so many possible combinations and builds and especially with the skill inheritance feature. You will surely find something to your liking. Almost all jobs are worth taking a look at and the skill sets are all fun.
Speaking of moveset, another thing that LaD IW does better is the moveset of bosses. Yamai and Ebina were my favorite.
Story
The narrative is as always a treat in Yakuza games and this is no exception however no Yakuza game is perfect. This is ofcourse subjective but it had a few short comings with villains. When it comes to characters, villains as a whole were not as complex as they usually are but what it lacked in depth it more than made up for quantity, consistency and balance. There are many antagonists, all of which are good but not as mind boggling as someone like Kuwana from LJ or bad like Iwami from Yakuza 6. Dwight was just one of these cool ass characters that are there just for to get your blood pumping and Danny Trejo definetly contributed to that.
The main MAIN antagonists
Bryce felt like he was there to serve as a plot device and nothing more than a simple disposable tool, just your run of the mill power hungry villain. Bryce had one thing going on for him and it was his mysterious and scary aura he had the entire time. Most yakuza villains are all lovable despite them being well, a villain but Bryce is one of those villains that you are meant to hate.
Ebina is way more compelling as a character and was way better writing wise but I've seen some better villains. Sure his motives were sort of basic with the revenge and all that but he still had I can't say he didn't put up a good show and most importantly he definitely felt like a Yakuza villain (unlike Bryce).
The plot itself was just crazy and I love it. It takes a while until the shit hits the fan but once it does...
The opposing force to the main cast is just monstrous and is a on a bigger scale than any other instance in the rest of the series. A lot of politics really There are so many emotionally impactful and powerful moments so this the type of game that impacts you and stick with you to your grave.
LaD IW with out a shadow of a doubt has the best cast the game has seen. From recurring characters to new ones, everyone is great and they all had their own role for sure. Friendship is one of the main themes of LaD that were carried on to LaD IW and god did they emphasize on it even more. This game offers the best portrayal of the friendship trope I have seen in Media. Every character has their own set of problems but they always solve it together and just so lovely. Chitose and Tomi is a welcome change from the usual Middle-aged men, the gang leaders etc (which I do love) but those two are the closest thing we got to normal people and it can't hurt to have one those. Yamai is just one of those characters you can never hate, he has great writing and he is one cold bastard (pun intended). His presence on the screen makes you lock in immediately. I could ramble for days about every character but I am only mentioning the newcomers.
Kiryu and Ichiban
When it comes to main cast not much can be said because Kiryu and Ichiban have both been taken to another level when it comes to their writing. God I love them so much. If LaD wasn't enough to show you that Ichiban can take Kiryu's place then this will make you reconsider that thought. Ichiban is still the most lovable on earth and everyone should strive to be like him.
Kiryu is still my favorite protagonist in gaming but Ichiban is not so far off. I felt satisfied with the way they ended Kiryu's story but I haven't quite processed that part yet.
Graphics and artstyle
Graphics and artstyle of this game is also great. RGG is known to shift between artstyle and color palettes from game to game and they did a great job here. The lightning is beautiful and especially with the addition of Hawaii. It has the colorful LaD aesthetic with a hint of the Yakuza 6 grim-ish lighting.
Cutscenes and graphics are at their best as expected.
OST
Soundtrack is great, surprisingly. After Lad Gaiden I left disappointed after realizing there is only like 5 good songs in the game (hot take) but the soundtrack is way better than i expected. The battle themes are all bangers and the boss themes are just stellar however long battle themes were kind of lackluster they were not dynamic like LaD long battle themes were. End of Denial was so good I genuinely teared up.
Side content
In every game RGG just keeps adding more and more side quests and mini games like they are trying to beat their previous record of the amount of side content available. Not only is their and endless amount of side content but it's also the best side content in any yakuza game. The bucket list alone should be more than enough for it to be deemed as that. I couldn't have asked for a better way to wrap up Kiryu's story. The amount of fanservice is just unreal. Even on ichiban's end it was also good, he has the entirety of Hawaii to explore after all.
All in all the most flawless Yakuza game in the series. I finished the game an hour ago so I am slightly biased and not too critical. I'm mostly just comparing it to other Yakuza games and mostly Yakuza Like A Dragon. I'm just writing my quick thoughts so don't take my words for granted but I can guarantee you that this game is special and It's the most amount passion RGG has poured into a game aside from Lost Judgment. My words can't do this game justice so better try it out yourself. It is a love letter both the fans and the Yakuza series, it marks the beginning of a new era for the franchise so for all Yakuza fans this is a no brainer even if you are not a fan of a the turn-based combat.
I do NOT recommend this game if you haven't played all of the other games.
10/10
Gameplay
To start of Gameplay in this game is phenomenal and a huge improvement from Yakuza: LaD in every single way. As a loyal Lost Judgment fan, I'm not a big fan of Turn-based combat and I'm not experienced with it but the combat flows so well in this game I don't mind at all, infact every single second was fun and never found it tedious unlike LaD where it did get boring after a while. To be honest most things that were added in LaD IW should have been in LaD like being able to move freely and wallbounces from knockback hits etc but oh boy does it make a difference. Kiryu's combat is just perfect. The incorporation of the three styles from previous games and the classic brawler extreme heat mode to top it all of?! too based for turn-based. Quick time events felt weird at times with the excessive and unnecessary camera shakes and the out of place sound of effects combined with the lack of responsiveness when hitting the prompt. Ichiban suffered from this problem the most while Kiryu's qte's were better.
There are so many possible combinations and builds and especially with the skill inheritance feature. You will surely find something to your liking. Almost all jobs are worth taking a look at and the skill sets are all fun.
Speaking of moveset, another thing that LaD IW does better is the moveset of bosses. Yamai and Ebina were my favorite.
Story
The narrative is as always a treat in Yakuza games and this is no exception however no Yakuza game is perfect. This is ofcourse subjective but it had a few short comings with villains. When it comes to characters, villains as a whole were not as complex as they usually are but what it lacked in depth it more than made up for quantity, consistency and balance. There are many antagonists, all of which are good but not as mind boggling as someone like Kuwana from LJ or bad like Iwami from Yakuza 6. Dwight was just one of these cool ass characters that are there just for to get your blood pumping and Danny Trejo definetly contributed to that.
The main MAIN antagonists
Bryce felt like he was there to serve as a plot device and nothing more than a simple disposable tool, just your run of the mill power hungry villain. Bryce had one thing going on for him and it was his mysterious and scary aura he had the entire time. Most yakuza villains are all lovable despite them being well, a villain but Bryce is one of those villains that you are meant to hate.
Ebina is way more compelling as a character and was way better writing wise but I've seen some better villains. Sure his motives were sort of basic with the revenge and all that but he still had I can't say he didn't put up a good show and most importantly he definitely felt like a Yakuza villain (unlike Bryce).
The plot itself was just crazy and I love it. It takes a while until the shit hits the fan but once it does...
The opposing force to the main cast is just monstrous and is a on a bigger scale than any other instance in the rest of the series. A lot of politics really There are so many emotionally impactful and powerful moments so this the type of game that impacts you and stick with you to your grave.
LaD IW with out a shadow of a doubt has the best cast the game has seen. From recurring characters to new ones, everyone is great and they all had their own role for sure. Friendship is one of the main themes of LaD that were carried on to LaD IW and god did they emphasize on it even more. This game offers the best portrayal of the friendship trope I have seen in Media. Every character has their own set of problems but they always solve it together and just so lovely. Chitose and Tomi is a welcome change from the usual Middle-aged men, the gang leaders etc (which I do love) but those two are the closest thing we got to normal people and it can't hurt to have one those. Yamai is just one of those characters you can never hate, he has great writing and he is one cold bastard (pun intended). His presence on the screen makes you lock in immediately. I could ramble for days about every character but I am only mentioning the newcomers.
Kiryu and Ichiban
When it comes to main cast not much can be said because Kiryu and Ichiban have both been taken to another level when it comes to their writing. God I love them so much. If LaD wasn't enough to show you that Ichiban can take Kiryu's place then this will make you reconsider that thought. Ichiban is still the most lovable on earth and everyone should strive to be like him.
Kiryu is still my favorite protagonist in gaming but Ichiban is not so far off. I felt satisfied with the way they ended Kiryu's story but I haven't quite processed that part yet.
Graphics and artstyle
Graphics and artstyle of this game is also great. RGG is known to shift between artstyle and color palettes from game to game and they did a great job here. The lightning is beautiful and especially with the addition of Hawaii. It has the colorful LaD aesthetic with a hint of the Yakuza 6 grim-ish lighting.
Cutscenes and graphics are at their best as expected.
OST
Soundtrack is great, surprisingly. After Lad Gaiden I left disappointed after realizing there is only like 5 good songs in the game (hot take) but the soundtrack is way better than i expected. The battle themes are all bangers and the boss themes are just stellar however long battle themes were kind of lackluster they were not dynamic like LaD long battle themes were. End of Denial was so good I genuinely teared up.
Side content
In every game RGG just keeps adding more and more side quests and mini games like they are trying to beat their previous record of the amount of side content available. Not only is their and endless amount of side content but it's also the best side content in any yakuza game. The bucket list alone should be more than enough for it to be deemed as that. I couldn't have asked for a better way to wrap up Kiryu's story. The amount of fanservice is just unreal. Even on ichiban's end it was also good, he has the entirety of Hawaii to explore after all.
All in all the most flawless Yakuza game in the series. I finished the game an hour ago so I am slightly biased and not too critical. I'm mostly just comparing it to other Yakuza games and mostly Yakuza Like A Dragon. I'm just writing my quick thoughts so don't take my words for granted but I can guarantee you that this game is special and It's the most amount passion RGG has poured into a game aside from Lost Judgment. My words can't do this game justice so better try it out yourself. It is a love letter both the fans and the Yakuza series, it marks the beginning of a new era for the franchise so for all Yakuza fans this is a no brainer even if you are not a fan of a the turn-based combat.
I do NOT recommend this game if you haven't played all of the other games.
10/10
Such a blast from start to finish. SO much content that is all filled with the traditionally fantastic quality the yakuza series is known for. It was so good that I just completely no lifed the entire game in like 2-3 days and burnt myself out. Story got a little weird towards the final chapters but thats whatever. Really fixed up all of the gameplay issues I had with 7.
One of the best Yakuza game following up Yakuza 7. Everything gameplay wise is a big update, I loved the " 2 teams " at diff place doing diff things for the story. Ending is kinda underwhelming tho. I enjoyed a lot this game. Also Kiryu got the best gameplay from the franchise in this game. I'm looking foward the next turned based Yakuza game :)
best jrpg ever conceived