Watch this week's episode of Zero Punctuation covering The Sinking City at the link: www.escapistmagazine.com/v2/2019/07/17/zero-punctuation-sinking-city/
The screwed up part, is that The Ace Attorney isn't TOO inaccurate in how the justice system works in Japan. There is a reason they've got a 99% or so conviction rate.
I love the idea of applying for disability benefits and being asked "Can you pick up a park bench and beat someone over the head with it safely, repeatedly and without causing yourself pain or discomfort? No. Ok you qualify for assistance." :p
What a curious thought... but why this game in particular though? Crazy to think though that the only reason the Imp's remained such a staple in ZP was thanks to the fact that The Darkness was Yahtzee's first ZP review.
between ace attorney, persona 5, and judgement all commenting on the insane japanese legal system, i looked more into it and yeah it's pretty bad holy shit
Listen, bud, if I had one Altairian dollar for every time I heard one bit of the Universe look at another bit of the Universe and say 'That's terrible' I wouldn't be sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.
Joking aside, their conviction rate is abnormally high. Officially it is because they only prosecute "surefire" cases, but one has to wonder how true that is.
The story in judgment is actually one of its strongest points, it especially gets more tense and better towards the end. The lead up to the final boss and the boss fight itself are incredibly well done and is easily one of the best fights in the whole series. I definitely recommend finishing it, if not for the gameplay then at least for the story.
Yea he doesn’t seem to understand the series, acting like the stories are all boring and the same. I hope he sees how amazing these stories are eventually
@@DavidHosey1 I don't know, I think the stories being samey is a fair criticism. They obviously lead to different places but a lot of them tackle similar themes of manhood, fatherhood, brotherhood etc. A lot of the story beats and twists hit the same too - like *spoiler* Yahtzee gets it mostly right about Okubo, he wasn't Emi's murderer and it is a part of a much larger conspiracy, and that's telegraphed very early on once you know how a Yakuza story goes. *end spoiler* I don't think that automatically makes it a bad game, there's a reason super hero movies gross so much despite having similar stories, I just think it's fair to say that once you've played 2 or 3 of them you pretty much know what to expect from any new story you play.
@@shizuwolf sega just pulled a persona 5 royale again announcing more details on shin yakuza which turned out to be "more details on august 29th!" so definitely next year
It took me a second to realize that imp sprite during the end credits had anime eyes; with the negative color palette it reminded me of a Pac-Man ghost.
@@justina2225 0, of course. It's the prequel and honestly has most of the better content and story. Plus since they remade 1 and 2 you can follow it without burning your eyes on early PS2 graphics and not enough memory to run a pre-rendered cutscene at anything more than 25-30 fps.
@@justina2225 definitely 0, it was so perfectly designed to be before the first game that the first game now feels like a direct sequel to 0. Plus the first and second games were remade in the form of Kiwami and Kiwami 2, with the HD ports of 3-5 coming sometime in the future
@@justina2225 Totally do what the others said: Yakuza 0 and then Yakuza Kiwami 1 and Yakuza Kiwami 2... That's what I did and it's great. Thing is, I don't think Yakuza 3 is getting a Kiwami version, but they did say that they plan on releasing it on the PS4, so who knows? Maybe it doesn't need the Kiwami treatment (according to a friend of mine, it doesn't need it anyway) but at least it could be getting some graphic-makeover. Same for Yakuza 4 and 5... maybe.
You know, I was sure he had reviewed one at one point and yet i can't find anything. Searching zp and Phoenix right yields the prey 2k17 review for some reason and he doesn't even mention it in that one
While I'm pleased too, I didn't like the shot he took at Ace Attorney's legal defense system. Though I can admit that it likely just irked me since I'm a big fan of the franchise while Yahtzee is being snide =p
@@kuricosmos Well, he is right. Ace Attorney may take inspiration from the Japanese judicial system, but aside from the basic architecture and style of procession, it's nothing like it. The entire system is basically a burning heap of nonsense and maybe corruption that allows lawyers to break criminal procedure at any time for any reason. It's a miracle how it hasn't imploded yet. I love this series, btw. Guess who's my pfp?
to be fair, if I had to talk for 5 minutes every week for 10 years about a relatively narrow subject matter, and illustrate stick man gags to go with it, I think I'd strike precognition now and again too
"I'm going to assume the innocent young person we're defending for the sake of justice turns out to be a victim of a conspiracy orchestrated by a very smug old man.." *Nervous laughter* Eh,close
Nah not even close lmao, he acts like all the games are the same when each one is drastically different than the other. The two most similar ones are 1 and 2, and even they are way different. These stories are way better than he gives them credit for
One thing that I’m certain of with this game is it’s gonna do well in Japan purely on the basis of the actor portraying the main character. A similar comparison would be Keanu Reeves being in Cyberpunk 2077. I did a bit of a causal dive into the guy and apparently he’s quite the entertainment darling that can drive new trends purely by being associated with them.
the original actor was replaced after being arrested for cocaine. this model was a last minute replacement - they actually had to recall the game on its initial release
@@雌わ雄 While the cocaine incident did happen, that was Pierre Taki that was arrested. Why is this important? Because the main character is played by Takuya Kimura.
How do you not know of Keanu Reeves lol. Cyberpunk had swarms of fans YEARS before Keanu Reeves went on his tangent of being in every form of media ever as of lately. I'm talking 2016ish when it was announced in its alpha-beta stages, Cyberpunk was ALWAYS going to be big because the original Turn based RTSG was popular the one its based off of, add the game publisher/developer Bethesda into the mix and you have a recipe for popularity long before Keanu showed up. A more fairer example would be The evil within, which was developed by a Japanese studio foreign and largely unknown to western audiences but blew up due to the publishing by Bethesda. As for your presumption of the shallowness of Japanese gamers I'm a little partial to agree gacha/MMO games are popular as fuck in Japan/east asia they tend to prefer fantasy settings with attractive characters over grittyness and realness just compare a JRPG protag or MMO characters/classes to western ones. But I'm not entirely sure this would extend to buying a whole game because the face model is appealing.
@@woopdedoop4811 People would have been on board with Judgement regardless of who played the main part. But the actor SEGA chose was deliberately to get new customers in Japan that were not on board in the first place. Never undercut celebrity cameos, because they usually get people who don't play games interested in trying them. And new blood is always good for long-running series. As for Keanu, sure there are better examples but that one was more recent and fresh in people's minds. Plus, if people weren't on board with Cyberpunk before, the surprise cameo of Keanu definitely pushed them over the edge.
@@MultiBoxingKid I suspect it sounds better in Japanese. For some reason Sleeping Dog's Sam "Dogeyes" Lin comes to mind (not to say it's from the same culture, but from a culture that has a lot more in common with Japan than Europe).
@@MultiBoxingKid If you actually know about the plot, you'll understand why they called it that. It's all centered around people getting their eyes gouged out.
So we've had: yakuza zombies; yakuza post-apocalyptic martial arts superheroes and now we've had yakuza Phoenix Wright. What the hell can they do next?
@@nathane5287 I think the string quartets are where it's really at, and I love how this comment thread on a Japanese video game review immediately derailed into talking about Soviet Russia's most famous composer.
Judgement's later half had one of the best stories in the series, took a while but man this one got dark. It had one of the slowest starts but it really grew on me.
I'd say more like a Yakuza game that's trying very hard to make it look like it ISNT a Yakuza game. Much like Diablo clones that try to act like they aren't Diablo clones, and so they suck, whereas blatant Diablo clones that bask in that fact are, in fact, amazing
@@THENAMEISQUICKMAN What do you mean, Yakuza 2's final confrontations made complete sense. ...And if we were having this conversation in person, I wouldn't be able to finish that previous sentence without bursting out into laughter.
So i`ve played all the main Yakuza games(1 and 2 remastered), I know Yahtz has also played some and liked them so I was surprised that he didn`t finish Judgment. Going in, I thought it was gonna be some sort of weak rehash since it uses a lot of the assets and gameplay mechanics but I ended up loving it. Yes the story is very similar to past games. Yes the map is the same. Yes the gameplay is very much the same. However the shift in perspective from a yakuza to your character does so much more for the game than Yahtz gives it credit for. Yagami is driven by very different things than Kiryu and that is reflected in the themes of the story. TLDR: If you`ve never played a Yakuza game, just play it, it`s a very well written story(even the side quests) and there is a TON of stuff to do; and if you have, it`s gonna be like you`re visiting your former appartment but there`s a hot new tenant living there now.
While I agree about Yagami, I gotta disagree with your take on the gameplay and story. Of course the map is the same, since it’s the same city. But the story and gameplay are drastically different than previous entries. The gameplay feels new since it basically is, giving possibly the best combat system to date in the series. And the stories are always drastically different from one another, with no two being all that alike. The story is actually one of the best parts of the series, possibly the best, and it honestly sucks that Yahtzee and others don’t give it enough credit for how masterfully written they usually are
I really do recommend to finish the story though. I really enjoyed how things get revealed and the plots tie together in the end. Also why the eyes were gouged out etc.
This is why the Japanese title translated to "Like A Dragon" makes a lot more sense for the Yakuza series. Kiryu hasn't been a Yakuza in forever, his friends straight up call him Ryu (Dragon), he has a dragon tattoo, and the whole reason for the name; Kiryu comes after a big event to clear it up. He is the Deus Ex Machina of the story and in old Chinese mythology (yes it is a Japanese game, but his Dragon tattoo is based on this) the Dragon comes at the end of the story to make everything right.
As a fan of yakuza, here's what I say about judgment. If you like yakuza and wanted to play another one, this is a good game to try out. Like Yahtzee said the detective stuff is meh, but the fighting is still good, side cases are still good, and if anything the story is also goof because it has a dub thats pretty good
3:14 he's nit wrong, as great as phoenix wright is they made the law in there follow different guidelines than irl, in Apollo Justice they even mention that the jury concept was and outdated system they no longer used, Im notbsure but the game is either in the future or an alt timeline where the court system changed drastically
It's mentioned in the first game that the court system changed at the turn of the century. The games are also set a little bit ahead in the future with 6 taking place in 2028.
Just finished the game, and I actually like this better than most Yakuza games (other than Zero, it is gold) Story is amazing, acting is good (play it in Japanese please) new game play stuff needs more developing, really hope a sequel comes out, give this more room to grow
An izakaya is halfway between a restaurant and a pub usually with a tatami area where you have to take your shoes off. Should they also translate the word "karaoke"?
It breaks my heart Yahtzee never experienced the last few chapters. Had me completely hooked, man. He didn't even get to the evil scientist love hotel, or have a fight all the way across kamurocho
@@TheCorrodedMan Should I be worried that I was confused as to who shahaman noodah was talking about? Because, honestly, Gabe Morton sprung to mind before Gabe Newell did
While your critique of the gameplay is accurate, you missed out on the important stuff by not finishing the game, Yahtzee. I would recommend playing it all the way through. By the way, your video on Yakuza 4, several years ago, turned me into a dies hard fan of the series. This is unrelated to the first part of my comment but I just wanted to say THANK YOU!
Hey Yahtzee, have you ever considered a retrospective of your own games you made years ago? I remember 5 Days a Stranger and 7 Days A Skeptic from my younger days but I recently discovered that you made them! Could you give us a review or you thoughts on the "days" series?
to be fair it totally still has that grounding Kiryu character in the form of Kaito. And while i personally thought the main story's pacing was all over the place, especially if youre going out of your way to do all the side content, the ending's payoff was definitely worth it. If you're a Yakuza fan this is a must play. if you're not into Yakuza, chances are slim you'll find anything here to change that.
@@StrikeWarlock what do you mean? If you’re referencing the actor drama that’s literally just a rumor based on Sega hypotheticals on all possible situations. And even if it were real, all they have to do is not put it on pc, easy Either way, Yagami’s still going strong as hell
I think he’s probably the best, definitely ahead of Akiyama and probably ahead of Kiryu and Majima too. Way more freedom to fights, and you can actually juggle people like in DMC way more often
I can’t wait for Ubisoft to make Moscow Windfall. A game where you run around a sandbox mode killing people stealthy until you get bored and just charge them, jumping off buildings into hay bales, and liberating a ton of repetitive districts. It’s nothing like Assassins creed because you’re a Hitman trying to stop The Order.
1:16 - Yeah, his jeans look awful. I don't know how he found denim that rides so far up his asscrack, but _ouch._ I for one will pass on the Yagami jeans.
Idk what his point is about the Millennium Tower, literally only 2 games end up there. All of the others have their true final bosses on boats, hospitals, skyscrapers, Tojo hq, or an office
The thing is, in Yakuza, you were a Yakuza... And that's it. It was to the point, some mobster with a face frozen in one emotion like he got hit by a strong wind while gurning, pissing away time when he's supposed to be killing X or proving the innocence of Y. Trying to cram several occupations into one person is the same as thinking the content of your fridge combined will make something delicious. I mean, detective and lawyer? Sure. But detective, lawyer, kung fu fighting cook space cowboy? Not so much. Much like mixing milk, butter and fish fingers (shut up, I don't shop often), it's a bad idea even before you chug it and then question why you just spent the last hour blowing your lungs out your tattered arse hole.
He only has one occupation at any given time. He’s a disgraced lawyer who lost that job, now he’s a private eye. Yahtzee just blew it up for a joke. The game and characters themselves are top tier
maybe the character problem have something to do with the main character been play by one of the must popular actor/singer/model/human being in Japan and big part of Asia:木村拓哉,so they can't make him too ridiculous and fun like Kiryu
it was actually quite ridiculous how the marketing is all about a real life superstar play the main character,like in Taiwan the sign and poster all like "this new game have that guy in it!!!That guy!!! oh btw I guess is about crime and stuff" Maybe studio have more restrictions when a huge star is in the cast,can't make him do to many weird thing,can't be too over the top or something like that
Nah they’re just playing him a bit differently. He’s at the lowest point in his life canonically, so of course he’s not gonna go fully goofy. Just like Saejima in 4, where he didn’t really do anything for minigames since he just got out of jail. And just like how Saejima got goofier in 5, Yagami is getting goofier in Lost Judgment. The trailers are already showing him walking dogs, doing skate tricks, joining a dance club, and fighting with robots in the engineering club lmao
I knew instantly that i would love the game, when i saw footage of Jim Sterling chasing a guy in pink track & field gear through the streets. And of course it ended witha knuckle sandwich fight. I wouldnt want to have it any other way.
The fashion jokes make me believe this is a good old culture shock situation. I'm pretty sure they think this kind of stuff is cool in Japan, and if you dial the fashion a few years back you'll see what Indians consider cool.
It is actually spelled correctly. Judgement with an E is like colour with a U. It is still correct English spelling, but might look strange if you were taught the more modern version or vice versa.
@@RhoneM Pretty much. The interesting thing is that judgement/judgment seems to be a regional thing in the USA. In high school I was expected to spell judgement the traditional way, but I went to college in a different state and was expected to spell judgment. End result? That word always looks weird to me.
As a subtitle for these games I'd rather use Tales from Kamurocho rather than Yakuza. Never liked that title too much. I found Ryu Ga Gotoku to be more fitting.
I don't know if this is true or if it's just one of those internet rumors so I'll ask here. I seem to remember hearing about or reading about the reason behind Yahtzee's delivery wasn't about trying to be a recognizable voice of videogame criticism as much as it was due to his living in Australia and not being willing to wait 4 weeks for the keyboard he ordered to be approved by the government so he just kept using the one with a broken space bar that Escapist provided him with which they had purchased at a boot sale along with several other items to keep the rest of their "magazine" afloat, none of which actually worked, but they scored a huge boon with Mister Croshaw so they stopped trying.Please confirm.
No, it really wouldn't have. If you actually wear jeans that are appropriate for your build, they are very comfortable and also provide minor protection from various threats to your legs and sensitive areas. They've been the most popular pants in the world for the better part of the past 150 years, and not just because they're cheap.
@@alexahegao842 he said he never like Yagami compared to Ichiban and Kiryu, plus he never finished the game for his review so I doubt he'd play the sequel based off of his first impressions of it, which sucks because one of his problems that being the way the game protrays the legal system of japan is actual misguided because most people don't understand that Japan's legal system isn't like the wests or Europes and Judgement and Lost Judgement are very correct in how they show it's flaws
Watch this week's episode of Zero Punctuation covering The Sinking City at the link: www.escapistmagazine.com/v2/2019/07/17/zero-punctuation-sinking-city/
Sega has repeatedly stated the Yakuza series isnt over, but Kiryus saga is, they are already working on Yakuza 7
Hey! Spoilers!
I tried to finish watching this video, but since you couldn't finish the game I didn't feel the need.
The screwed up part, is that The Ace Attorney isn't TOO inaccurate in how the justice system works in Japan. There is a reason they've got a 99% or so conviction rate.
I guarantee you Yahtzee would have complained if they called it Yakuza:Judgment.
El agreed
Yakuza HURGH Judgement!
@Emperor Ssraeshza Oh no that just means he'll probably do it for Yakuza 7: Like A Dragon!
That's grammatically correct though. You can absolutely have judgement from a yakuza.
I mean, considering it was already part of an actual long running series, would h-
Yeah he would.
I love the idea of applying for disability benefits and being asked "Can you pick up a park bench and beat someone over the head with it safely, repeatedly and without causing yourself pain or discomfort? No. Ok you qualify for assistance." :p
I fuvking wish that was the standards
You can get denied fir stupid stuff like base line cooking skills
OBJECTION! Phoenix Wright is actually a fairly accurate depiction of the legal system in Japan. And yes, that is exactly as terrifying as it sounds.
When I found that out I went note to self don’t get framed for a crime if ever visiting Japan
Japan has a 99% conviction rate, IIRC. Let that sink in.
Including the part where the defense cross-examines a parrot?
Japan has a guilty until proven innocent policy.
@@RoyalSorceress Told you it was terrifying
In an alternate reality where this game was the first ZP review and Darkness came out in 2019, the classic go-to ZP enemy stand-in is Gimp-kun.
What a curious thought... but why this game in particular though?
Crazy to think though that the only reason the Imp's remained such a staple in ZP was thanks to the fact that The Darkness was Yahtzee's first ZP review.
@@lolrus5555 it's funny to think it wasn't even called ZP back then. he was doing the review under his blog's name Fullyramblomatic.
between ace attorney, persona 5, and judgement all commenting on the insane japanese legal system, i looked more into it and yeah it's pretty bad holy shit
Listen, bud, if I had one Altairian dollar for every time I heard one bit of the Universe look at another bit of the Universe and say 'That's terrible' I wouldn't be sitting here like a lemon looking for a gin.
@@tommerker8063 haha great reference !
Joking aside, their conviction rate is abnormally high. Officially it is because they only prosecute "surefire" cases, but one has to wonder how true that is.
@@MortimerZabi every case is surefire if public perception of anyone accused is that they are 100% guilty before a trial.
its strange as in the sense of "if the law 'you must give a 34 hour warning to the house your about to rob' in texas was enforced"
The story in judgment is actually one of its strongest points, it especially gets more tense and better towards the end. The lead up to the final boss and the boss fight itself are incredibly well done and is easily one of the best fights in the whole series. I definitely recommend finishing it, if not for the gameplay then at least for the story.
Yea he doesn’t seem to understand the series, acting like the stories are all boring and the same. I hope he sees how amazing these stories are eventually
I loved judgment and recently finished lost judgment they both are jus awsome
@@DavidHosey1 I don't know, I think the stories being samey is a fair criticism. They obviously lead to different places but a lot of them tackle similar themes of manhood, fatherhood, brotherhood etc. A lot of the story beats and twists hit the same too - like *spoiler* Yahtzee gets it mostly right about Okubo, he wasn't Emi's murderer and it is a part of a much larger conspiracy, and that's telegraphed very early on once you know how a Yakuza story goes. *end spoiler*
I don't think that automatically makes it a bad game, there's a reason super hero movies gross so much despite having similar stories, I just think it's fair to say that once you've played 2 or 3 of them you pretty much know what to expect from any new story you play.
"He has a million jobs."
"He's forever short on cash."
Um... what?
As someone who knows a relative that has a million jobs and no spare cash in his wallets, I can see why.
its to pay off his various college courses
He has to pay for kickstarters. No really, just finished the game.
Plot and sidequests don't mix.
Working multiple jobs and still being flat broke? Sounds about accurate for today's society.
"Yakuza series is over"? Shin Yakuza begs to differ
When does that come out?
@@shizuwolf some time next year i think......i want to say march?
@@shizuwolf sega just pulled a persona 5 royale again announcing more details on shin yakuza which turned out to be "more details on august 29th!" so definitely next year
What about the HD remasters of 3,4&5? When do those get localized?
@@shizuwolf no info
It took me a second to realize that imp sprite during the end credits had anime eyes; with the negative color palette it reminded me of a Pac-Man ghost.
I thought it was the "Awesome face" eyes.
FINALLY
The only reviewer who gets yakuza better then others, its stupid and beautiful and worth your damn time
I’m thinking of getting into the series. Which game is best to start with?
@@justina2225 0, of course. It's the prequel and honestly has most of the better content and story. Plus since they remade 1 and 2 you can follow it without burning your eyes on early PS2 graphics and not enough memory to run a pre-rendered cutscene at anything more than 25-30 fps.
@@justina2225 yakuza 0 is the "best" of the series, and its a prequel so you don't have to play the others to get whats going on
@@justina2225 definitely 0, it was so perfectly designed to be before the first game that the first game now feels like a direct sequel to 0. Plus the first and second games were remade in the form of Kiwami and Kiwami 2, with the HD ports of 3-5 coming sometime in the future
@@justina2225 Totally do what the others said: Yakuza 0 and then Yakuza Kiwami 1 and Yakuza Kiwami 2... That's what I did and it's great. Thing is, I don't think Yakuza 3 is getting a Kiwami version, but they did say that they plan on releasing it on the PS4, so who knows? Maybe it doesn't need the Kiwami treatment (according to a friend of mine, it doesn't need it anyway) but at least it could be getting some graphic-makeover. Same for Yakuza 4 and 5... maybe.
So Yahtzee has played Phoenix Wright.
Good.
I'm sure he received it once
fuck you on about, literally every game enthusiast has played phoenix wright
You know, I was sure he had reviewed one at one point and yet i can't find anything. Searching zp and Phoenix right yields the prey 2k17 review for some reason and he doesn't even mention it in that one
While I'm pleased too, I didn't like the shot he took at Ace Attorney's legal defense system. Though I can admit that it likely just irked me since I'm a big fan of the franchise while Yahtzee is being snide =p
@@kuricosmos Well, he is right. Ace Attorney may take inspiration from the Japanese judicial system, but aside from the basic architecture and style of procession, it's nothing like it. The entire system is basically a burning heap of nonsense and maybe corruption that allows lawyers to break criminal procedure at any time for any reason. It's a miracle how it hasn't imploded yet.
I love this series, btw. Guess who's my pfp?
Someone needs to make a T-shirt with the image and text at 3:34
"You're so clever Gimp Kun"
LOL 😄
Another instance of Yahtzee's unintentional future vision: depicting Tails as a private detective with a fedora (2:58)
to be fair, if I had to talk for 5 minutes every week for 10 years about a relatively narrow subject matter, and illustrate stick man gags to go with it, I think I'd strike precognition now and again too
"I'm going to assume the innocent young person we're defending for the sake of justice turns out to be a victim of a conspiracy orchestrated by a very smug old man.."
*Nervous laughter*
Eh,close
The man wasn't old! 😂
@@mjc0961 That, and the conspiracy technically didn't start until after the first murder...
Nah not even close lmao, he acts like all the games are the same when each one is drastically different than the other. The two most similar ones are 1 and 2, and even they are way different. These stories are way better than he gives them credit for
@@DavidHosey1 yeah no they're all very similar
I want to know more about Yahtzee's live-in gimp.
Is he talking about Kess? That seems a little disrespectful...
@@sarahwells4205 He probably means Jim Sterling. Jim would be up for it.
Tell me more about your live-in gimp!
I think he was referring to Gabriel Morton for his let's drown out series.
One thing that I’m certain of with this game is it’s gonna do well in Japan purely on the basis of the actor portraying the main character. A similar comparison would be Keanu Reeves being in Cyberpunk 2077.
I did a bit of a causal dive into the guy and apparently he’s quite the entertainment darling that can drive new trends purely by being associated with them.
Sooo Japanese Keanu Reeves then?
the original actor was replaced after being arrested for cocaine. this model was a last minute replacement - they actually had to recall the game on its initial release
@@雌わ雄 While the cocaine incident did happen, that was Pierre Taki that was arrested.
Why is this important? Because the main character is played by Takuya Kimura.
How do you not know of Keanu Reeves lol. Cyberpunk had swarms of fans YEARS before Keanu Reeves went on his tangent of being in every form of media ever as of lately. I'm talking 2016ish when it was announced in its alpha-beta stages, Cyberpunk was ALWAYS going to be big because the original Turn based RTSG was popular the one its based off of, add the game publisher/developer Bethesda into the mix and you have a recipe for popularity long before Keanu showed up.
A more fairer example would be The evil within, which was developed by a Japanese studio foreign and largely unknown to western audiences but blew up due to the publishing by Bethesda. As for your presumption of the shallowness of Japanese gamers I'm a little partial to agree gacha/MMO games are popular as fuck in Japan/east asia they tend to prefer fantasy settings with attractive characters over grittyness and realness just compare a JRPG protag or MMO characters/classes to western ones. But I'm not entirely sure this would extend to buying a whole game because the face model is appealing.
@@woopdedoop4811 People would have been on board with Judgement regardless of who played the main part. But the actor SEGA chose was deliberately to get new customers in Japan that were not on board in the first place. Never undercut celebrity cameos, because they usually get people who don't play games interested in trying them. And new blood is always good for long-running series.
As for Keanu, sure there are better examples but that one was more recent and fresh in people's minds. Plus, if people weren't on board with Cyberpunk before, the surprise cameo of Keanu definitely pushed them over the edge.
It's not even called Yakuza in Japanese, its called "Like a Dragon". And Judgment called "Judge Eyes".
That title is even worse, it sounds idiotic. Seriously "Judge Eyes" is the best they could come up with?
@@MultiBoxingKid I suspect it sounds better in Japanese. For some reason Sleeping Dog's Sam "Dogeyes" Lin comes to mind (not to say it's from the same culture, but from a culture that has a lot more in common with Japan than Europe).
@@MultiBoxingKid If you actually know about the plot, you'll understand why they called it that. It's all centered around people getting their eyes gouged out.
@@THENAMEISQUICKMAN Yeah, I saw a walkthrough recently and so I know the plot already. It's still a title I personally don't prefer.
The implication either that Noel Edmunds is Mr Blobby, or that Blobby is trying to fit Edmunds up for sexual harassment is killing me.
I love his description of kiryu, it's so accurate
So we've had: yakuza zombies; yakuza post-apocalyptic martial arts superheroes and now we've had yakuza Phoenix Wright. What the hell can they do next?
Yakuza Bayonetta
Yakuza Witcher
Yakuza: Battle Royal
Yakuza Forever
Don’t forget the two Yakuza samurai games set in two separate eras. I’m just waiting for Yakuza 2099.
0:16
Yakuza: Like A Dragon
"You poor, naive fool."
Developer interview: Gosh, I sure love your games!
ZP review: Kinda stopped playing.
@@nathane5287 I think the string quartets are where it's really at, and I love how this comment thread on a Japanese video game review immediately derailed into talking about Soviet Russia's most famous composer.
@@groofay Soviet Russia's, yes. But if we're talking Russia in general, Tchaikovsky is where it's at.
@@Aska2468 That is why I made that distinction, yes.
@@nathane5287 not exactly what I expected when I click view more
Should've called it Yakuza: Judgment Day😄👌
DunDun Dun DunDun!
Your waifus, give them to me, *now!*
No its a different story than yakuza
You mean "Judgment Day", right?
Hahahaha that is really funny and clever you went full big brain time
Judgement's later half had one of the best stories in the series, took a while but man this one got dark. It had one of the slowest starts but it really grew on me.
"The Yakuza series is officially over"
Ichiban, Kiryu, Majima and Saejima: Allow us to introduce ourselves.
Seeing Yahtzee reference "according to keikaku" in the credits is just awesome.
So it's effectively a Yakuza game that doesn't officially want to be a Yakuza game. Should we just call this Yakuza Divide By 0 then?
I'd say more like a Yakuza game that's trying very hard to make it look like it ISNT a Yakuza game.
Much like Diablo clones that try to act like they aren't Diablo clones, and so they suck, whereas blatant Diablo clones that bask in that fact are, in fact, amazing
Yakuza Divide By 0 is genius. That'll confuse all the people who bought it under the pretense that it was a grimdark Kingdom Hearts spin-off.
It's a Yakuza game with a story that DOESN'T make you go "WAIT, HOW THE FUCK DOES /THAT/ MAKE SENSE?" every time there's a plot twist.
@@THENAMEISQUICKMAN What do you mean, Yakuza 2's final confrontations made complete sense.
...And if we were having this conversation in person, I wouldn't be able to finish that previous sentence without bursting out into laughter.
It's "Yakuza, but not really."
TL Note: Keikaku means plan.
So i`ve played all the main Yakuza games(1 and 2 remastered), I know Yahtz has also played some and liked them so I was surprised that he didn`t finish Judgment. Going in, I thought it was gonna be some sort of weak rehash since it uses a lot of the assets and gameplay mechanics but I ended up loving it. Yes the story is very similar to past games. Yes the map is the same. Yes the gameplay is very much the same. However the shift in perspective from a yakuza to your character does so much more for the game than Yahtz gives it credit for. Yagami is driven by very different things than Kiryu and that is reflected in the themes of the story.
TLDR: If you`ve never played a Yakuza game, just play it, it`s a very well written story(even the side quests) and there is a TON of stuff to do; and if you have, it`s gonna be like you`re visiting your former appartment but there`s a hot new tenant living there now.
While I agree about Yagami, I gotta disagree with your take on the gameplay and story. Of course the map is the same, since it’s the same city. But the story and gameplay are drastically different than previous entries. The gameplay feels new since it basically is, giving possibly the best combat system to date in the series. And the stories are always drastically different from one another, with no two being all that alike. The story is actually one of the best parts of the series, possibly the best, and it honestly sucks that Yahtzee and others don’t give it enough credit for how masterfully written they usually are
3:59 he predicted lost judgement
I really do recommend to finish the story though. I really enjoyed how things get revealed and the plots tie together in the end.
Also why the eyes were gouged out etc.
@@juanfranciscovillarroelthu6876 Wrong game, bud
This is why the Japanese title translated to "Like A Dragon" makes a lot more sense for the Yakuza series.
Kiryu hasn't been a Yakuza in forever, his friends straight up call him Ryu (Dragon), he has a dragon tattoo, and the whole reason for the name; Kiryu comes after a big event to clear it up. He is the Deus Ex Machina of the story and in old Chinese mythology (yes it is a Japanese game, but his Dragon tattoo is based on this) the Dragon comes at the end of the story to make everything right.
Thanks!
That closing line about the middle aged dad had me laughing.
Am I going to use the image at 3:34 as a sarcastic retort?
Yes... yes, I am
I am a clever gimp-kun
As a fan of yakuza, here's what I say about judgment.
If you like yakuza and wanted to play another one, this is a good game to try out. Like Yahtzee said the detective stuff is meh, but the fighting is still good, side cases are still good, and if anything the story is also goof because it has a dub thats pretty good
As opposed to the dub of the Original Yakuza which felt really awkward. To the point that not even Mark Hamill could make it work properly.
Huge fan, been watching since 2009. This is one of the funniest and deepest videos I've seen.
All I'm going to say about this (and the story) is: finish the game.
@@DazraelArianos Cuz it's an excellent game :)
For real, idk how he can review a story based game without finishing the story lmao
But how does the kokoro compare between the games, Yahtz? THE KOKORO.
Yakuza doesn't need Kiryu lmao. Ichiban and Yagami prove that lol
3:14 he's nit wrong, as great as phoenix wright is they made the law in there follow different guidelines than irl, in Apollo Justice they even mention that the jury concept was and outdated system they no longer used, Im notbsure but the game is either in the future or an alt timeline where the court system changed drastically
It's mentioned in the first game that the court system changed at the turn of the century. The games are also set a little bit ahead in the future with 6 taking place in 2028.
Just finished the game, and I actually like this better than most Yakuza games (other than Zero, it is gold)
Story is amazing, acting is good (play it in Japanese please) new game play stuff needs more developing, really hope a sequel comes out, give this more room to grow
Today I realised they didn't spell it as judgement and spelt it as judgment
0:44 It’s always spelled without an ‘e’ within the legal systems of most (if not all) English-speaking countries.
"Yakuza is over"
Well Yes, but actually no.
Well no, but actually no lmao
The protagonist in the game is an actual actor and is basically the Japanese Brad Pitt.
More of a Marky Mark imo considering he got his start in a boy band.
An izakaya is halfway between a restaurant and a pub usually with a tatami area where you have to take your shoes off. Should they also translate the word "karaoke"?
Don't think I didn't catch that Clockwork Orange reference, Yahtzee.
Kinda wish he would have covered Lost Judgment in 2021. It does improve on many of Yahtzee's criticisms
It breaks my heart Yahtzee never experienced the last few chapters. Had me completely hooked, man.
He didn't even get to the evil scientist love hotel, or have a fight all the way across kamurocho
“-my live-in gimp-“
Let Gabe go Yahtz, he’s gotta go home some time.
Not until he makes a real game or updates tf2.
shahaman noodah Wrong Gabe, but I’m sure he’s got that one somewhere.
@@TheCorrodedMan Should I be worried that I was confused as to who shahaman noodah was talking about? Because, honestly, Gabe Morton sprung to mind before Gabe Newell did
2:06 Papyrus?! loved that reference XD
By the way have you considered reviewing the banner saga trilogy? I'd love to hear your take on it
Oh man I didn't catch that at first
Nyeh
And somewhere before there's Malcom Mcdowell
This game sold VERY well..we might even get a sequel
Just about a month away, let’s gooo
Kiryu is Japanese King of the Hill. Who WILL kick your ass. And doesn't sell Propane. But does deal in Pain.
While your critique of the gameplay is accurate, you missed out on the important stuff by not finishing the game, Yahtzee. I would recommend playing it all the way through. By the way, your video on Yakuza 4, several years ago, turned me into a dies hard fan of the series. This is unrelated to the first part of my comment but I just wanted to say THANK YOU!
Hey Yahtzee, have you ever considered a retrospective of your own games you made years ago?
I remember 5 Days a Stranger and 7 Days A Skeptic from my younger days but I recently discovered that you made them! Could you give us a review or you thoughts on the "days" series?
He has done let's plays of them, as well as his other games, on his personal channel. If you look up The Ego Review you'll find it.
to be fair it totally still has that grounding Kiryu character in the form of Kaito. And while i personally thought the main story's pacing was all over the place, especially if youre going out of your way to do all the side content, the ending's payoff was definitely worth it. If you're a Yakuza fan this is a must play. if you're not into Yakuza, chances are slim you'll find anything here to change that.
As much as I love Judgment, I agree about Yahtzee's statement about Kiryu
I always felt like Kiryu was the monument to manliness.
True, but the series needs new protags for lead roles. I’m glad Ichi and Yagami are that right now
@@DavidHosey1 not for long for Yagami.
@@StrikeWarlock what do you mean? If you’re referencing the actor drama that’s literally just a rumor based on Sega hypotheticals on all possible situations. And even if it were real, all they have to do is not put it on pc, easy
Either way, Yagami’s still going strong as hell
One fucking sight gag and now all I can imagine is how good a clockwork orange game could be.
Finished this game yesterday. My goty so far.
Funnily enough Ace Attorney was based on an (Obviously extreme) version of Japan's legal system at the time
Knowing that Yahtzee will one day review *HuniePop*
it fills me with determination!
I need to see that so much
He already did. Together with NekoPara, Sakura Beach, and Dream Daddy.
I've never played yakuza before, so I'll be going into this with a fresh pair of eyes.
Lucky you
Start with 0
5 minutes video, but more content than many half an hour videos out there
Tak is the 4th best character combat wise, after Majima, Kiryu, and Akiyama. Best combat on the Dragon Engine, at the very least.
I'd say Kenshiro was a breath of fresh air for Dragon Engine combat. You really feel like you're playing as the 64th successor of Hokuto Shinken.
@@lolrus5555 Fist of the North Star actually didn't use the Dragon Engine, a big reason I think it was more enjoyable than Yakuza 6.
I think he’s probably the best, definitely ahead of Akiyama and probably ahead of Kiryu and Majima too. Way more freedom to fights, and you can actually juggle people like in DMC way more often
I can’t wait for Ubisoft to make Moscow Windfall. A game where you run around a sandbox mode killing people stealthy until you get bored and just charge them, jumping off buildings into hay bales, and liberating a ton of repetitive districts.
It’s nothing like Assassins creed because you’re a Hitman trying to stop The Order.
I like the end credits bits
1:16 - Yeah, his jeans look awful. I don't know how he found denim that rides so far up his asscrack, but _ouch._ I for one will pass on the Yagami jeans.
I have been waiting for this 💝
Yes we must see a story about Gimp-kun!
When are we getting another Differently Morphous book?!
Spoiler on that end...
The final battle doesn't involve the Millennium Tower, and the final boss, the Mole, keeps his cloak on.
Technically he somehow changed into it when Yagami was pursuing him.
Idk what his point is about the Millennium Tower, literally only 2 games end up there. All of the others have their true final bosses on boats, hospitals, skyscrapers, Tojo hq, or an office
The thing is, in Yakuza, you were a Yakuza... And that's it. It was to the point, some mobster with a face frozen in one emotion like he got hit by a strong wind while gurning, pissing away time when he's supposed to be killing X or proving the innocence of Y. Trying to cram several occupations into one person is the same as thinking the content of your fridge combined will make something delicious. I mean, detective and lawyer? Sure. But detective, lawyer, kung fu fighting cook space cowboy? Not so much. Much like mixing milk, butter and fish fingers (shut up, I don't shop often), it's a bad idea even before you chug it and then question why you just spent the last hour blowing your lungs out your tattered arse hole.
He only has one occupation at any given time. He’s a disgraced lawyer who lost that job, now he’s a private eye. Yahtzee just blew it up for a joke. The game and characters themselves are top tier
Yakuza had a spin off game for the psp the only problem is that it never got translated
maybe the character problem have something to do with the main character been play by one of the must popular actor/singer/model/human being in Japan and big part of Asia:木村拓哉,so they can't make him too ridiculous and fun like Kiryu
I think we needed way more Kaito. Kaito was ridiculous in all the best ways.
it was actually quite ridiculous how the marketing is all about a real life superstar play the main character,like in Taiwan the sign and poster all like "this new game have that guy in it!!!That guy!!! oh btw I guess is about crime and stuff"
Maybe studio have more restrictions when a huge star is in the cast,can't make him do to many weird thing,can't be too over the top or something like that
Nah they’re just playing him a bit differently. He’s at the lowest point in his life canonically, so of course he’s not gonna go fully goofy. Just like Saejima in 4, where he didn’t really do anything for minigames since he just got out of jail. And just like how Saejima got goofier in 5, Yagami is getting goofier in Lost Judgment. The trailers are already showing him walking dogs, doing skate tricks, joining a dance club, and fighting with robots in the engineering club lmao
Jc denton. 3 years old. No knowledge. No judgement. No imagination.
2:34 Tails has passed Yakuza Judgment Zone act 0.
Wait what, I have to search 2 times for this video because they actually make a typo in the game title?
This blew my mind as my brain filled in the missing "e" and neither it or my eyes even noticed the letter was gone. 😆
That word can be spelled “Judgment” or “Judgement,” both are correct
I loved the 'kid's production of Grease' and 'front of a Securicor van' comments :-D
I knew instantly that i would love the game, when i saw footage of Jim Sterling chasing a guy in pink track & field gear through the streets. And of course it ended witha knuckle sandwich fight. I wouldnt want to have it any other way.
Wait till you find ( GIANT IMPACT) ;)
I think that guy was named Ass Catchem and was one of Four Great Perverts of that game.
Sounds like a Yakuza game translated post-0, alright.
@@sofija1996 that was the name of him thanks.
playing the side cases and the last chapter are the best things to do in the game and some poker
5:20 *Keikaku means Plan.
Yahtzee is the Yakuza of game reviews
-Escapist- Yahtkuza
(Keikaku means plan)
Translators note: Keikaku means plan.
The fashion jokes make me believe this is a good old culture shock situation. I'm pretty sure they think this kind of stuff is cool in Japan, and if you dial the fashion a few years back you'll see what Indians consider cool.
Yagami's thigh-gap is a thing to behold.
i mean i know you threw it in as a joke at 0:49 but i literally did not know that it was the new yakuza title until i watched this video
If he mentions the summer game drought in the first minute, take a shot.
Noel Edmonds will never age.
Yakuza HYEUGH Judgement
i'm just confused as to why judgement isn't spelled correctly.
Muricans.
The Japanese title is Judge Eyes and the localization team is based in USA. I guess they went with *their* spelling of the word.
It is actually spelled correctly. Judgement with an E is like colour with a U. It is still correct English spelling, but might look strange if you were taught the more modern version or vice versa.
@@reiakari so it's Americans trying to be different from dear old dad.
@@RhoneM Pretty much. The interesting thing is that judgement/judgment seems to be a regional thing in the USA. In high school I was expected to spell judgement the traditional way, but I went to college in a different state and was expected to spell judgment. End result? That word always looks weird to me.
As a subtitle for these games I'd rather use Tales from Kamurocho rather than Yakuza. Never liked that title too much. I found Ryu Ga Gotoku to be more fitting.
you know, the japanese title of Yakuza series is Ryuu ga gotoku which means "like a dragon"
5:17
I mean Yahtzee's right.
Just call it what it is.
What the fuck are you on about?
I don't know what stellar bodies have today aligned to bring us Gimp-kun. All I know is they had better make it a regular stunt.
I don't know if this is true or if it's just one of those internet rumors so I'll ask here.
I seem to remember hearing about or reading about the reason behind Yahtzee's delivery wasn't about trying to be a recognizable voice of videogame criticism as much as it was due to his living in Australia and not being willing to wait 4 weeks for the keyboard he ordered to be approved by the government so he just kept using the one with a broken space bar that Escapist provided him with which they had purchased at a boot sale along with several other items to keep the rest of their "magazine" afloat, none of which actually worked, but they scored a huge boon with Mister Croshaw so they stopped trying.Please confirm.
"He wears the world's most uncomfortable jeans"
You could say "He wears jeans" and it would have meant precisely as much.
No, it really wouldn't have. If you actually wear jeans that are appropriate for your build, they are very comfortable and also provide minor protection from various threats to your legs and sensitive areas. They've been the most popular pants in the world for the better part of the past 150 years, and not just because they're cheap.
Turn down the ending music please, it blasted my headphones away
Can't wait for the lost judgement review. Wonder if he'll bring up the development stuff and why the series won't come out on PC
asked and he said never so yeah, damn shame
why? It’s not that bad of a game
@@alexahegao842 he said he never like Yagami compared to Ichiban and Kiryu, plus he never finished the game for his review so I doubt he'd play the sequel based off of his first impressions of it, which sucks because one of his problems that being the way the game protrays the legal system of japan is actual misguided because most people don't understand that Japan's legal system isn't like the wests or Europes and Judgement and Lost Judgement are very correct in how they show it's flaws