Yakuza 4 Review (PS3)
Video Review
Written Review
I can’t help but feel a little sorry for the residents of the Kamurocho district. Every year like clockwork the place gets throw into some sort of absurdly convoluted crisis followed by a sudden unexplained surge of street violence, and It’s gotten to the point where even some of the NPCs are beginning to notice this roughly annual spectacle is oddly familiar. Much in the same way, people often like to point out how (almost) all the Yakuza games are pretty damm similar, to the point where those who aren’t “in the know” would probably struggle to tell them apart at all. Yakuza 4 is no exception, you’re still exploring the same city, going to the same places, fighting dudes in the street, playing lots of minigames and smashing bicycles over peoples heads. So if they’re all so similar why do people still play these games then? Well I’d say the narrative is a safe bet on that one.
Like its predecessorss it spins an epic tale of murder, betrayal, intrigue, betrayal and……..well……more betrayal in the seedy world of Japan’s enigmatic yakuza crime families. It’s absolutely packed with characters, each of whom posses complex intertwining personal narratives so vast that I couldn’t even begin to summarise them here. Seriously, If you though the Metal Gear games were dense then you’ve seen nothing yet.
Although I can’t speak the language I can still appreciate the raw emotion that the superb Japanese voice actors put into their performances. Just be weary that, even to the untrained ear, it’s very obvious that a fair bit of artistic licence has been taken with the subtitles.
Of course in true Japanese tradition most of the story is delivered through a ton of exceptionally long cut scenes, many of which can consist of relatively mundane conversations on topics such as intricacies of yakuza politics or just idle chit chat about how tasty watermelons are. For some this style of storytelling adds incredibly deep levels of characterisation to the mix, but for others it’s going to be mind numbingly boring. You have been warned! That said, despite it’s complexity it’s probably the most accessible Yakuza game yet.
The game does a really good job of keeping you up to date with the current state of the Yakuza-verse via a character bio screen that’s updated after literally every story event no matter how minor. But more importantly, for the first time in the series you play from the perspective of 4 different characters, 3 of which are completely new to the series and thus have their backstory built from the ground up. So there’s no obligation to have played the previous games if you want to grasp the overall story, although you will miss out on a few nice references here and there. Unfortunately while having multiple playable characters works well from a storyline angle, it’s not been very well implemented gameplay wise.
The “reminisce” mode that lets you re-watch old cutscenes is useful if you blinked and ended up missing something important the first time around (or are trying to get screenshots for a review without making a bazillion saves).
You have no control over when the perspective shifts over to the next guy, and and all of them are completely isolated from one another for most of the game. So when the change over happens you’re going to lose access to any money, experience points or collectibles items that you’ve picked up with with the previous character. I suppose that makes sense in context, but that didn’t stop me from being really annoyed when I was sent back to square one for the fourth time after playing for about 35 hours.
Yakuza 4’s not all just story though; eventually you’re going to have to get your hands dirty with some good old fashioned street justice. Combat is very simple: two attack buttons for building combos, one for grabs, one for blocking, one for taunts, fairly standard stuff really. However once you’ve landed enough hits to built up your HEAT gauge, that’s when the real fun begins. By expending the HEAT you can unleash some incredibly brutal special moves which vary from “slightly ridiculous” to “Street Fighter 4 Ultra Combos” in terms of extravagance. There’s quite a few to unlock through either leveling up or doing crazy side quests, however some of the moves have absurdly specific requirements to activate so you’re unlikely to see them all unless you go pretty far out of your way to do so.
You’ll spend most of the actual gameplay time fighting with your fists or with whatever junk you can find lying around on the street. But you also have the option of keeping a small armory of traditional weapons provided you’re willing to cash it takes to construct and maintain them.
Graphically Yakuza 4 is a bit of a mixed bag, main characters look fantastic but minor NPCs can look extremely rough round the edges. Individual static props don’t look quite so hot either, but there’s so damm many of them that I can’t help but still be impressed at the gameworld as a whole. Sure it might not be the biggest sandbox by any standards, but it’s unrivaled in terms of sheer density. You can barely look in any one direction without you senses being bombarded with the lights and sounds of Kamurocho’s meticulously crafted storefronts or the innumerable pedestrians just wandering about their daily business. It’s about as lifelike a city as I’ve ever seen in a video game by a long shot, and the sense of immersion it provides just gives the already captivating story all the more impact.
However you do have to keep your wits about you when exploring; some of the pedestrians are aggressive street punks who are more than happy to engage in a bout of fisticuffs if you get too close. They’re are basically Yakuza’s equivalent of RPG style random battles, but just not nearly annoying as that sounds. Once you have a good idea what all the trouble makers look like, it’s easy enough to avoid combat if you’re getting a little fed up with it, and odds are you WILL get fed up with it.
Most fights are short brawls that take place in an enclosed area, but on rare occasions you’ll get these one-off continuous battles set in a much lager environment. I really wish there had been more of these, but I've been saying that since the original Yakuza.
Yes each character plays differently has their own exclusive moves sets, but in the end it makes very little difference to how most battles are going to play out: mash the two attack buttons over and over until you have enough HEAT, then just do the most convenient HEAT move available, rinse and repeat until you win. Unfortunately most of the games huge number of side quests are revolved in a similar way, the only difference being that you have to wade through few pages of un-voiced dialogue before you get to start cracking skulls. I suppose the shear spectacle of the combat is probably enough to keep it interesting for a good while, but considering the game length clocks in at well over 15 hours the lack of variate is going to hit you pretty hard sooner or later.
That is, if you can stop yourself from hitting your PS3 pretty hard first. Some aspects of the combat system are exceptionally frustrating for totally absurd reasons: frequent stun-locks, AI that cheats like crazy, awkward contextual commands, everything about it is just downright clunky and dated. These sort of issues were barely justifiable in the first game way back in 2005, but 5 years and 4 games later the fact that they’re still there is an absolute disgrace to an otherwise well polished game.
It can often feel like luck rather than skill is governing the outcome of a battle when the AI can instantly counter your every move at a whim.
Sadly combat isn’t the only aspect of Yakuza that’s failed to evolve over the years. I’ve got no doubt that the consistent usage of Kamurocho as a setting is a key part of the Yakuza franchise’s appeal, and in Yakuza 4 it’s as visually striking a as ever. But that’s still no excuse for the truly laughable lack of new explorable locations. The few that they have added are extremely spartan, with little reason for you to ever to give them a second look unless a side quest requires it.
But at least there’s a small collection well crafted mini games to help alleviate some of the inevitable pent up frustration and boredom. And by a “small collection” I mean: Shogi, Mahjong, Koi-koi, Baccarat, Chasing, Blackjack, Roulette, Pachinko, Pool, Hostesses flirting, Cee-lo, Mixed Martial arts coaching, Ho-han, Massages parlors (?), Oicho Kabu, Table tennis, Hostess training, Toba, UFO Catchers, Karaoke, Batting cages, Bowling, Golf, Fishing, Darts, and even a side scrolling shooter. Hell, If you let them draw you in you could easily end up spending more time with all those than you do with the actual story missions.
But you know what? For better or worse that’s just how Yakuza rolls, and Yakuza 4 is essentially just MORE Yakuza pure and simple. It’s more of what makes the series so interesting and unique, but in turn it’s also more of what makes it really fricking annoying. I’d say the good parts defiantly still outweigh the bad parts, and that this is easily the best Yakuza game yet, however that doesn’t stop some of the more archaic mechanics requiring truly saintly levels of patients to endure. But so long as you can get past that, then you’re in for an interactive gangster movie epic like no other. Well ok, maybe like a few others….
[starreviewmulti id=3 tpl=20]
The Good
- Dense engrossing storyline.
- Huge number of minigames and side quests.
- Very long.
- City feels lifelike.
- Brutal special attacks.
The Bad
- Very few new explorable locations.
- Combat feels clunky and dated.
- Isolation between the playable characters until late game.
Recommended similar games
Shenmue 1 (Dreamcast) & 2 (dreamcast/xbox)
Way of the samurai 1, 2 (PSP/PS2) & 3(PS3/Xbox360)
Kenka Bancho: Badass Rumble (PSP)
GodHand (PS2)