This game is simply amazing. The fact that it does so much and manages to succeed in anyway. It has some incredible highs and the flaws i can pinpoint are nitpicks in comparison.

The story is incredibly well written, and the majority of the characters are very well realised and acted. I was gripped pretty early on, even as someone who never played a yakuza game before this, which is why i also believe this is the perfect entry point to the series.

Kiryu and Majima are both amazing characters, and insanely well acted, but Majima easily steals the show here in my opinion, not to say Kiryu's story didnt have amazing moments that even made me cry. But majima is ultimately the more interesting one, and he easily has the best fighting styles, and the best business minigame.

Combat in this game is a lot of fun, each character has three different styles to switch between plus a 4th style based on the other games in the series that needs to be unlocked from the business minigame. You can obtain skills simply by spending money on the skill tree rather than some rpg xp system which also feel like they make a difference. The combat is fun and flashy, especially as Majima as said before, and the real fun comes from the heat actions which as context sensitive special moves with a tonne of variety and great animations that do real damage.

While the main quest is played completely straight, there are tonnes of side story that can range from normal to absolutely ridiculous and hiliarious, many of which tie into the many minigames. This can range from things like racing little rc cars, disco dancing, karaoke and fishing. The big ones are the business minigames however, with each character having a different one.

Kiryu gets the more boring one unfortunately, which is a real estate minigame that does have a funny plot but is otherwise not really interesting. You basically buy up buildings in a district, assign managers to districts, collect rent, buy more then fight the rival of the district, repeat. It is a decent way to make money but requires a lot of waiting for rent and remembering to go back to the office to collect it.

Majima's one is much more fun and feels like an actual minigame. He manages a cabaret club and has to recruit and manage girls and run the place when it opens at night. You have to keep an eye on the patron and girls to make sure everything is going smoothly and jump in when you need to.

A special mention also to the music in this game absolutely slapping, especially with the boss themes. They also manage to fit the tone and elevate the fights to feel epic.

With all the various things it does it's beyond impressive how incredible the game it at everything it attempts. Amazing characters and a story I really cared for and got invested in, good combat, hilarious side stories and fun minigames. Truly one of the best games i have ever played.

Just a fantastic game that presents what feels like a natural progression of Kratos both in terms of story and gameplay. Great writing, characters, combat and an interesting world.

Love learning about this version of Norse myth, especially from Mimir who is probably my standout character of this game. My favourite thing is to see in what way they twist the myths around.

I will say the one big thing that lets this game down for me is enemy variety, and especially the bosses. fighting the same troll boss for the 10th time isnt interesting, and it feels like the devs were strapped for time in this department, but if they had to compromise anywhere this would be the least egregious in my opinion, since the enemies we do have are still fun to fight and provide a decent challenge.

This game made two big changes to the franchise, and both of them paid off, one more than the other.

First off the lesser, the change to being a turn-based rpg instead of beat 'em up. I know a lot of people would have preferred the old style but this really appeals to me in many ways.

First off, it's still fun, sure it's a bit basic but there is a wide variety of classes with great funny special attacks, effects and enemy variants that help make things feel fresh and help you feel like you need to strategize somewhat with each encounter.

The second and most major benefit to the turn based rpg change is that it introduces a party system, which rather than you being some lone badass the whole time it ends up providing the game with a very solid ensemble cast who play off each other really well, especially with the first 3 members you can recruit. This is a change that i think really helped elevate the story in a big way because of how much it got me to care about the secondary protagonists. This also has a nice side effect of making it feel like these new characters aren't as strong as the established legends, since they need a whole team where you'd just play as one person in the old games.

The other major change to the franchise, is the new protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga. To say I absolutely love this man feels like an understatement. Where Kiryu was a great stoic badass himbo, Ichiban oozes passion, positivity and a naivete that makes him super endearing. His performance is also excellent and powerful in some moments, I could really feel his emotions get through to me.

The new town is also great, and all these combined have allowed the devs to tell a story that actually feels fresh, instead of the same old Kiryu wants to live a normal life but is forced to save the tojo clan again". This story takes itself slightly less seriously that previous games but it has the same emotional depth and range, and has a high chance of keeping you grinning or tearing up.

There is a great set of new minigames here, including Mario kart style racing, trying to stay awake watching movies and a big business minigame where you run a holding company. There are also the classic ones like karaoke and baseball which remain great.

Music is top tier again with the boss themes being some of my favourite in games in general.

All in all an incredible game that moves the franchise forward in an interesting direction and I'm excited to see what's next for Ichiban and his gang.

While you could say elden ring is the best game Fromsoftware has made, personally bloodborne is easily their best.

The classic Fromsoft lore discovery from the souls series is intact here, and i think the world they have created is one of the best and most unique in gaming in general. The way it opens as a gothic horror setting with some bits of weirdness here and there before fully revealing its lovecraftian horror was really something special.

The enemies are various and dangerous but very manageable thanks to the combat system. This is very much like dark souls, with lock on, dodging and stamina to worry about. However where this majorly differs from souls and obtains its own identity is that shields are done away with (Except for the two borderline useless ones), being replaced by guns that you must use to parry an enemy right before their attacks land so they go into a vulnerable state for a visceral attack. The other main change is that weapons are known as trick weapons here, as they are able to transform into two forms. This can be more simple like a handaxe extending into a halberd and more out there like a sword turning into a large hammer or a cane turning into a bladed whip. Another element added is the rally mechanic which lets you regain health if you attack soon after getting hit yourself. All these factors combined encourage a more aggressive playstyle than in souls games, and are complemented well by the enemies who are also designed with this in mind. Rarely do deaths ever feel unfair in this game besides certain npcs (who approved the crow of cainhurst?)

The level design is immaculate, with multiple varied locations and laid out in a surprisingly interconnected way, also similar to dark souls 1, which makes exploration feel exciting and rewarding as you look for the promise of a lamp to rest at, or a shortcut to unlock.

Capping off what makes this game great and what may very well be the pinnacle of this game are its boss battles. For the most part these are very engaging tough battles, with each boss having very different movesets and quirks you may need to look out for like status effects or transforming mid fight. This is where the game also succeeds in making you feel your strongest as you must make use of the more aggressive playstyle to punish the bosses attacks with parries to deal big damage. This is topped off with an incredible soundtrack which, with the exception of a few areas and the hub, only plays during boss battles and really complements the boss and makes it feel epic.

Overall a near flawless game that has since only been matched by its own developer, i'd recommend it to anyone who likes games with a challenge.