Nikoras
2019
One of the stronger entries for sure! The addition of new protagonists contrasts well with Kiryu's personality, and while the story gets convoluted it makes me care about the new people we meet.
Early impressions on chapter 5: This game is far stronger narratively than any of the previous yakuza entries. I love my hobo family.
This review contains spoilers
As with the other games in the franchise it has high highs and low lows but a lovable cast of characters that make up for the weaknesses in plot and gameplay.
On the gameplay end this one is dragon engine again which I like significantly better than the alternative used in the rest of the series sans kiwami 2.
Story wise, it starts out strong with the introduction of some lovable new characters, but falters towards the end when it tries to redeem a domestic abuser, and then Kiryu seems to learn none of the lessons the game seems to be trying to teach him.
On the gameplay end this one is dragon engine again which I like significantly better than the alternative used in the rest of the series sans kiwami 2.
Story wise, it starts out strong with the introduction of some lovable new characters, but falters towards the end when it tries to redeem a domestic abuser, and then Kiryu seems to learn none of the lessons the game seems to be trying to teach him.
2019
This has to be my least favorite of the series so far. While the combat is slightly improved from 4 the story is just WAY too drawn out in just about every way. It totally lost it's sense of pacing and suffers for that.
2010
One of my favorites in the series. The first half is amazing but the second half takes a bit of a nose-dive. Akiyama and Saejima are great additions at least. The combat is still a bit rough coming down from Zero and both Kiwamis
2017
Some hits and some misses. What is up with that music? It's actually hilarious, and I don't think that's what they were going for.
2016
similar to 0 but with notably worse story-telling. Majima really saves this game. I think being a remake of the original constrains them to the same plot. RGG has improved in its story-telling with time but doesn't get to bring it to Kiwami. This has me a little nervous for how I will enjoy Kiwami 2.
2015
Great story, good music, a few rough edges and combat didn't particularly grab me. The story caried it enough to be a 4/5
2015
An extremely good CRPG. The first one to really grab me and make me want to learn more about its lore.
Serious narrative problems. Not only was the story too stretched out but the writing was...just bad..especially with some of the changes made.
The combat system was good and some of the encounters were nice.
The combat system was good and some of the encounters were nice.
2023
Taking a DNF here. It's too boring and buggy to continue to justify plating when the rest of my backlog is filled with good stuff.
2023
Unbelievable game. One of the best RPGs ever made.
2021
Beautiful audio/visuals. Good snappy combat. Story is surprisingly good and the characters aren't the standard video-game ones.
It's weakest part is that runs are too long and have you feeling bad after a failure. This doesn't give you the "One more run" feeling that all the greats like Hades and Dead Cells give you.
It's weakest part is that runs are too long and have you feeling bad after a failure. This doesn't give you the "One more run" feeling that all the greats like Hades and Dead Cells give you.
One of the best video games I have ever played. Constantly amazed that this was able to be made. The major strength is the game giving the player a flexible toolset to approach problems creatively. This game empowers the player more than any other I can think of and gives you room to play how you want.
2022
A solid retro JRPG but got a little bored and DNFed the game. Not a fault of the game but with me.