REVIEW : Yakuza 0 (PS4/ PS4 Pro)

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Yakuza 0 Review
Yakuza 0 Review

Yakuza 0 Review | Game Review

Yakuza 0 Review :- It must be hard going on the in the streets of Kamurocho district in Tokyo and Osaka, Japan, if Yakuza 0 correctly depicts these cities in the game. Literally, anything can happen, you may get thrashed down by the local thugs, or some stranger may come up to you to ask for solutions related to any of his life problems. The game seems to get unpredictable at various stages.

Yakuza 0 Review
Yakuza 0 Review

The place, Kamurocho, is not a huge one. In fact, the protagonist Kazuma Kiryu can reach one side from other in a matter of minutes. But it is densely populated and cluttered with clubs, shops, bars, arcades, anything and everything, sectioned and distributed by alleyway cut-through and straight pathways. And as you can imagine with this kind of setup, you may start doing a trade in one part of the area and end up in the other part after having several fights.

Yakuza 0 is full of such unpredictable moments. It’s like having short breaks to play a mobile game while being at work. You may expect a character to go fighting and making it a tough time for the other guy but he may just go on apologising on and on. It is this unpredictability that will keep you hooked to the game. And this theme of the game will make you feel just like reality.

Yakuza 0
Yakuza 0

There are two main stories that are going on in this game. One is of Kazuma Kiryu who is being framed for a murder he didn’t do and other is of an ex-Yakuza Goro Majima who is now a cabaret manager. But weaved between these stories the stuff you will see is weird, whacky and fun. You can be at one moment involved in a plot which involves a woman who has become blind because of the post-traumatic stress and can be found shouting at the person who is singing at a Karaoke the very next moment.

Those who have played Yakuza earlier may well be used to such shifts in tone of the game while those who are just being introduced to the game will be refreshed by such sudden changes. Yakuza 0 is the prequel of other games in the series and so is the perfect for being introduced to the game as a newcomer. The game is setup in the year 1988 where both the leading characters of the game are gangsters who believe in their own set of values and never waver from them.

Yakuza 0
Yakuza 0

Majima and Kazuma can tackle and take on massive groups of enemies at the same time and are equally good at it. They both have different styles and have their own specialities and upgrade trees. Kazuma has brawler style where he can tackle the enemies with counters and can even pick up objects from the environment and use them as weapons. My personal favourite is when he uses the bicycle to bash in his opponents head.

One style of Kazuma, Rush, is a composition of punches, kicks, weaving and dodging with a considerable effort put in for the steady steps. His beast style is also amazing and very much useful for large groups. In this, he can pick up objects while performing a combo and throw them around on his opponents. The attacks may be basic but the possibilities make them interesting.

Yakuza 0
Yakuza 0

On the other hand, Majima has a Thug style which is similar to Kazuma’s Brawler style but has completely different animations. He also has a Slugger style in which he uses a metallic baseball bat to attack his opponents. He also uses capoeira which is a Brazilian fighting style that looks like breakdancing and makes it completely unpredictable, known as the Breaker style. Both of these characters can also use a weapon which can be won from a minigame, found in certain locations or can be purchased.

You can switch between all these four styles by using the D-pad of your controller and can mix the moves as the battle goes on. The fighting style you choose also depends on the environment you are currently in. For Example, when taking on a bunch of opponents you can use Kazuma’s Beast style or can even activate the Heat action in which he swings his opponent and uses him to bash the others. When the heat action gets activated, it is actually fun to watch.

Yakuza 0
Yakuza 0

Most of the times, in the game, when you are not fighting you will be mixing up with people wandering the streets and it is really amazing how good a job Sega has done. You can run your business, help others with their life problems or entertain yourself with various mini games. There are various things on the to-do list which you may find questionable but that is merely the cultural difference you encounter in various countries.

You can even find places in the game where you can watch softcore videos where Japanese women are rubbing their bodies with bubbles. Oh, of course, they are wearing a bikini, didn’t I say softcore. Some may find these videos cringing while others may, let’s just say, enjoy themselves. Although these activities are optional you will get reminded of them every time you come across the collectable cards of these women.

Yakuza 0
Yakuza 0

You can also chat with women over a phone, fortunately, the interaction, in this case, is two way. There are places filled with Space Harrier Cabinets and Playable Claw machines. You can do karaoke or go disco dancing, play shogi or bet on underground women wrestling leagues, or may simply play darts or pool in a pub. Yakuza 0 is filled with such mini games where you are sure to get distracted and get lost.

Truthfully, the combat in this game is pretty basic, flashy, but basic. But, for the Yakuza 0 Review, I would say that the game is no less than amazing. It will keep you hooked for all the right reasons. The plot doesn’t go boring, you get attached to the characters, the mini-games are interesting and it can make you laugh and cry and go mad at the same time. I will go with 4.5 out of 5 for this game.

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