izigame.me

Never have I ever thought this day would come. The day, when I'm gonna post Negative Review for Like a Dragon/Yakuza title.
I'm not a newcomer to the series by any means. Just checked my game time and it's at least 950+ hours in RGG studio games.
A very humble message to Sega before we begin. Fck you, greedy cunts. Why ?
A) Intentionally locked Pre Orders for several developing/"poor" countries and THEN proceeded to sell the game at release day, thus depriving fans those silly P/O bonuses
B) The most disgusting price tag across the series in terms Price:Content (Quality + Amount; we'll talk about it later) and the absence of adequate regional pricing. Ukraine, LATAM, MENA, India; you can check and compare prices here if curious:
https://steamdb.info/app/2375550/
I've bought Y:0-6 for full price. Every game. 7 and J games with a small discount. Can't anymore, because Sega decided to raise the price 2-3 times.
C) Sega's support didnt bother to answer a single ticket regarding locked Pre Orders, just marked them as "Solved" and closed.
If RGG had a say regarding pricing and pre orders, I, honestly, wish them the same.
If you wanna know a bit about my "taste" in these games, here's my Top 3 without specific order:
- Narrative-wise: Yakuza 0, LaD (7), Judgment
- Gameplay-wise Yakuza 0, LaD (7), Lost Judgment
Frankly, whole game felt just like an advertising campaign for IW. With a price tag 50$.
What I disliked the most ?
LaD Gaiden is a big DLC rather than a separate game. A huge fan service sinkhole which appeals to nostalgy of the fans.
Game surely looks and plays like a LaD title. It has the "shell" of the series, but I didn't feel the "soul" inside that shell. I wasn't hooked on the story. Guys, I loved babysitting at Y:3, Haruka's part at Y:5, but again, this game just didnt click with me.
I also have my doubts regarding writing. It didn't feel like Yokoyama wrote this story. Made some edits - maybe. I'm aware they develop multiple games at the same time and Gaiden was meant to be a small game. It seems like this project was given to junior team/employees.
Characters were okay. Voice acting is top notch as always.
They recorded 30-ish compositions for this one, but the other half of the music - the same tracks from previous games. I wanna stop here for a moment. Music has always been a very important part of narrative in LaD games for me. It dictates the mood and sets the atmosphere for the events we participate in. And RGG always wrote a new tracks for each game with small exceptions. These are Yakuza Kiwami re-made tracks from Y:1, alterations of Kiryu's and Majima's theme Receive You and maybe several more less repetitive examples. Never bothered RGG reused assets from time to time but this title is the one big half assed repeat.
Chapter 2 (was it ?), when Kiryu arrived to the Castle was a cringe fest as well as amount of Ryuji Goda (at this point I dont even know what to call it) references. From my point of view, RGG didn't wanna put more original content in this game or I dunno. What I want to say is that for the first time I'm genuinely scared for LaD series future. This title is theirs first "new" project (Ishin is a remake) after Nagoshi left the studio.
I'm freaking out not because it's something huge. On the opposite. It's a sum of many red flags.
One guy said that nowadays big companies mostly ride on the success on some old titles and almost never develop something new. This is my exact thoughts regarding Gaiden. Too many Y:2 stuff.
Last nail in coffin was the last unlockable Coliseum fight - Minamida Grand
Prix. I guess many reckon it was cool, but combining everything said previously - I think not. You will face robots that mimic movesets of all final bosses from Yakuza 6 to 1 in reverse with their music themes. I already had a bad taste in my mouth and now just remember the emotions every previous title and corresponding battle and the character brought me, only to see a metal piece of crap in front of me - a reminder that the devs are slacking off. This one really controversial for me. On the one hand it would've been fun idea if not all previous fan service in one small game, but on the other, yeah, that and text above.
They also tried to ride on success of previous banger tracks like Pledge of Demon (0) and Theory of Beauty (6). Check tracks Hellish Octagon and Psycho's Anthem and tell me you dont hear the "resemblance".
Whats new ?
Well, 1 new Combat Style; 0.5 new mini game (It's called Hell Team rumble and since it's still in Coliseum...see for yourself) + "biggest" but idk if best addition - Akame Network. Shortly, Substories were mostly converted into requests in here plus you have a lot of mini requests and brawls across Sotenbori. Complete them, earn Cash and Akame points to upgrade your skills, buy new gear. Substories mostly bland and boring in Gaiden. Ai app was okay, Judgment crossover too. At least half of them - eliminating three gangs.
First Summer Uika's play as Akame was good. Fun fact, her surname is Dojima :D
The rest is familiar to the fans. Same mini games, same bullies on the streets, eateries, shops, lockers.
There are very few Dynamic Intros we all love, and maybe one was good.
No NG+, no Legendary difficulty. Fifty Bucks. FmL....

LaD 5, 6, Gaiden SPOILERS AHEAD !

I wanted to talk regarding specific topic, which caused a lot of confusion for me. Idk why I include this to be honest.
One of the most complex moments in LaD games is "Why Kiryu had to fake his own death ?". The answer for this question is behind the stories of LaD 3, 5, 6 and maybe even more. I must admit I've spent a good hour, trying to remember the events that led to this, plus too look at several discussions. These couple days I played Gaiden and fake death plot twist from 6 felt like unnecesarry stretch. But the orphanage, kids, Haruka's statement in 5, her kidnapping in 6 and many other events just show that sooner or later Kiryu's enemies realize they cant defeat him head on and they pressure his family and friends to get to him. And while he's dead, there's no reason for criminal scum to involve those.
But on the other hand, Daidoji's demands regarding this secret are pure evil, forcing Kiryu to accept the cards that will lead to discovery of his secret sooner or later, just to shorten the leash around his neck.
Me and I'm sure a lot of you hate Daidoji and would prefer Yakuza underworld any other day, but it's a Criminal Drama after all. We have, what we have.

Since we talked about the story, my favorite part, hands down - Kiryu watching recording on tablet in Finale. That was strong, that was good, that's what we love in LaD games. Strong emotions. But again, almost everything else - meh.

Had no issues with Performance. Rtx 2060, Ryzen 3700x, 32GB Ram. 1080p high settings, DLAA, no DLSS - 80-90 FPS.
It was the first time, when I considered viewing cutscenes on YouTube and maybe reading a bit after, instead of buying the game. And my guts told me to do so. But constant possibility of a rocket coming into my window (greetings from Ukraine) told me "You only live once and life is too short" so I bought it. Which I, honestly, regret.
If you're on the fence regarding this game - don't buy it until -75%. Not worth it. Not buying similar project in future.
Platinum is very easy.
And regarding future of LaD series and my concerns, I, honestly, hope I'm wrong and everything will be super great, in terms oа quality. Less than 3 weeks until Infinite Wealth release. Oh, and one more f u for Sega - New Game Plus in IW locked behind a paywall in a Master Vacation Bundle, available as a part of Deluxe edition. Pre Orders locked again for several countries.
Couple interesting tracks from OST:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6M1Fa1Hgsc
Wait till 0:40, trust me:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beR4JKUSykw
It's a very chaotic review, but I've tried. If you've read it all - thank you.