The thinkings/opinions of a bizarre, quiet girl: November 2022

Playthrough Status: Beat the main story on Normal, spent a ton of hours in Premium Adventure picking up remaining trophies I was willing to get
Approx. Length: 165+ hours
Language: English (Cutscenes are voiced in Japanese with English subtitles)
Played on: PS4
Also Available for: PC, Xbox One
Type of Game: Open-world Action Adventure, Mini-games, Skill-building, Tourism
Overall Impression: Experimental and messy -- but I still love it.

NOTE ON SPOILERS!!

Just like with my past reviews, I'll keep a non-spoiler section (the section you're at right now), and a "Spoiler Talk" section at the end to go into more detail on certain things and to let loose with any extra thoughts.

BUT... even though there won't be any spoilers for Yakuza 5 Remastered in this section, there could be spoilers for all the previous Yakuza games. In fact, this blog is structured as if you have already played those Yakuza games. If you haven't beaten those Yakuza games yet, I'd highly recommend you do before reading this review!!

For anybody who's missed them, below are the links to my reviews on the previous Yakuza games:

Yakuza 0
Yakuza Kiwami
Yakuza Kiwami 2
Yakuza 3 Remastered
Yakuza 4 Remastered

PRELUDE: WE ARE BACK ON TRACK!

As I mentioned in my Yakuza 3 Remastered review, before I started playing Yakuza 3 Remastered, I told myself over and over to keep my expectations realistic, as I was diving into a game made 18 years BEFORE the previous game (Yakuza 2 Kiwami).

With Yakuza 5 being the last game released before Yakuza 0, I can safely say that we are back -- on -- track! Yakuza 5 Remastered feels like a progression from Yakuza 4 Remastered, and an origin point for Yakuza 0 and onwards. Rejoice -- we've made it! :)

INTRO / BLURB

One would think that things would start getting stale in the Yakuza series at this point. Sure, many of the usual elements are retained, but many NEW elements also got added. In fact, I would venture to say that Yakuza 5 Remastered is the most varied Yakuza game I've played so far. However, variety can sometimes come at a cost. What may work for some may be off-putting to others. This is why when I think of Yakuza 5 Remastered, I think this: "It's experimental and messy -- but I still love it".

THE EXPERIMENTAL

Have you ever thought about playing a game where you are a taxi driver? And a hunter? And an idol? And a former baseball player? All the while beating up thugs and trying to thwart a criminal mastermind's plans? You have? Well, Yakuza 5 Remastered has all of that for you and then some! :)

Similar to Yakuza 4 Remastered where you play four different protagonists, Yakuza 5 Remastered has you playing five... AND almost each one is situated in a different part of Japan... AND almost each one has their own self-contained gameplay (the things I mentioned above). While that may sound great to some, it may become a barrier to others (especially if you are one who tries to complete as much as possible in game). It really comes down to each person's preference so I think this variety ends up being a hit-or-miss with long-time Yakuza fans. Thankfully, aside from the idol's portion, the other elements only need to be experienced at its bare minimum to progress the story.

For myself, I am BADDD at driving games. Any time I go behind the wheel in any game, crashing within less than a minute is a 99.9% certainty. So when I found out I'd be playing as a taxi driver, I got stressed and had a lot of anxiety.

On the flipside, I LOVE rhythm games so playing the idol portion was a blast. I also liked that it talked about some harsh aspects of the idol industry.

I do have to say: having almost all the protagonists situated in different parts of Japan was really nice. This time, along with the staple Kamurocho, I got to visit Osaka (again), Sapporo, Nagoya, and Fukuoka. Yakuza 5 Remastered is great in providing a bit of tourism for those areas. I wouldn't mind checking out Sapporo one day and spending more time in Osaka.

Some driving tips for the taxi driver portion. My anxiety level rises, hahaha. I gotta pay attention to so many things!

Life as the former baseball player. I'm not that big into baseball, but I can dig this gameplay.

How you fight as an idol -- dance battles!

THE MESSY

Offering so much variety in Yakuza 5 Remastered came at a great cost: the main story is convoluted as heck. As I am writing this review, I would be hesitant to try summarizing the main story.

It worked in Yakuza 4 Remastered where all the protagonists were in Kamurocho so each one could run into the same characters, making for a more contained story. With Yakuza 5 Remastered, it almost seemed like a task to try connecting all the different characters from each region into an overall story. It's just not as strong.

With all that said, there are still good smaller stories in Yakuza 5 Remastered. Each region has one (except Kamurocho), and most of them are more memorable and emotional.

Also, just to touch on the theme. There's an overall theme in Yakuza 5 Remastered, and it gets mentioned so often that I have my own theory about it. I'll share my theory in the "Spoilers" section.

THE "BACK ON TRACK"

Here are a few things that show Yakuza 5 Remastered is back on track in terms of progression, evolving from Yakuza 4 Remastered and being an origin point for Yakuza 0 and onwards.

Graphics: We are back with graphics feeling like they did in Yakuza 0. Aesthetics rarely affect my opinion of a game, but this is nice. It feels... like home. :)

A shot of Kamurocho in Yakuza 4 Remastered.

A shot of Kamurocho in Yakuza 5 Remastered. Beautiful. <3

The birth of Mr. Shakedown: When you run about in Kamurocho, sometimes a huge mysterious man approaches you and starts a fight. Seeing him for the first time made me giggle, knowing how he would appear later in Yakuza 0 as Mr. Shakedown. After beating him the first time, I would run away whenever he would see me, 'cuz the guy never stops wanting to get in a fight!

In a way, this could have birthed the Majima Everywhere system in Yakuza 1 Kiwami. o.o!

The origin of Mr. Shakedown in Yakuza 0!

He even chases you when you have a special accessory equipped that makes it so that you don't run into random battles. Get away from me!

Pocketing weapons found in battles: I loved this feature in Yakuza Kiwami 2, so I was super happy to see it here.

Akiyama being super smooth with his weapon-snatching heat move.

One thing that took a slight step back in my opinion was the stat-building system. It's back to how it was in Yakuza 3 Remastered: simple but less flexible.

THE USUAL COMFORTS

Despite all the new elements in Yakuza 5 Remastered, many old staples were still around.

Substories: Every Yakuza game needs its substories. And the substories in Yakuza 5 Remastered are quite good -- and hilarious.

Minigames: I won't list them all, but they are there. Almost every mini game in the previous Yakuza games and then some. The most important ones (to me) are karaoke and the UFO catcher game.

Some new minigames include the Taiko drum master game (a rhythm game that I'm horrible at, hahaha), chicken racing, serving noodles, a snowball match. Table tennis got changed to air hockey. Golf got simplified (thank goodness!).

Hostess clubs: I've griped and groaned about the hostess clubs for the past couple games. This time, I think Yakuza 5 Remastered struck a balance. There weren't as many hostesses to woo (thank goodness!), and the conversation segments felt a bit more in-depth and complex. I cannot recall if the conversation segments were fully voiced in Yakuza 3 or 4, but they were voiced here, adding a level of immersion to it.

Other staples include weapon modding, Revelations, IF8R, dining at various food places and restaurants (and drooling over the food pics).

My favourite hostess. I like how carefree she is.

My least favourite hostess. Get off your darn phone!

One of the funny substories. It's making a reference to another Yakuza game (Dead Souls).

I like the options here. Which one do you think is the right option? :)

Ooo, Hatsune Miku is in this UFO catcher game!

And I get her! XD This type of UFO catcher game is such a pain. It took me many tries.

Now this is golf I can get behind, hahaha. Granted I had no idea what to do at first, but I got the general gist pretty quickly.

I always love doing karaoke. Here is Akiyama singing "Baka Mitai".

A fluky shot for Pool. Completely unintentional but I'll take it! XD

STANDALONE-FRIENDLY?

A resounding "no". Let's move on.

THE DISCLAIMERS (IF ANY)

This is where I list any things that could make you think twice about trying the game out with family or friends (depends on what they are okay with, I guess). They're not exactly bad per se, but more for your own awareness of it (and so you don't blame me for not saying anything!).

I can experience these elements in a video game and get through more or less unscathed, but your mileage may vary, so I figure I should mention them.

Another note is that I did not thoroughly check out every heat action, so I may have missed some questionable ones, if any.

-Just like in all the previous Yakuza games, the fights can be pretty violent and bloody. There was no option to turn down the blood level (I checked this time).

-The air hockey minigame has an option to "power up" some special action by ogling the other player's chest area (the other player would be female and she would be clothed)... that is not subtle at all, hahahaha. Playing the minigame is completely OPTIONAL.

-There is a hot spring you can visit to recover your health. If you invite a hostess to go with you, there is a mini-segment where your character is imagining the hostess nude (her hands are covering her breasts) and saying alluring things. This is completely OPTIONAL. There was also a hot spring in Yakuza 4 Remastered... I wonder if this segment was also there (I forgot to invite a hostess when I visited the hot springs in Yakuza 4 Remastered)...

MY RATING

I'm going to give Yakuza 5 Remastered the same score as Yakuza 4 Remastered. Yakuza 5 progressed from 4 but suffered in the main story. While I was more or less fine with the new elements (except for being a taxi driver), I know it really comes down to preference for each person. If you are one who is open to or enjoys varied gameplay, Yakuza 5 Remastered will offer variety. If not, then it could end up being a slog.

If you are one who has played the previous Yakuza games, get on this experimental mess. We're more than halfway through to the end :)

ALSO -- for those who will start playing Yakuza 5 Remastered: when you play Premium Adventure, there is NO WAY to create a new clear save data in Premium Adventure... this means if you want all your progress to be saved in a clear save data to be used in New Game+, you have to do it all before beating the game.

Rating: 86 / 100

Thanks for reading!

If you have any questions / comments about anything, leave a comment or send via the Contact Form. :)

I can't believe the next game will be Yakuza 6... I'm almost caught up!! It makes me excited and sad at the same time. I want the Yakuza games to keep going forever. <3

So I'll do the scrolly thing and the "Spoiler Talk" section will appear after that. Then I'll add some more scrolly things after the "Spoiler Talk" section in case anybody wants to comment, but not see the spoilers.

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SPOILER TALK

So this will be a little different from the "Spoilers" section in my other review blogs. I kinda want this section to be a place where I can unload any extra thoughts I had about Yakuza 5 Remastered, even if I didn't mention it at all in the non-spoiler section. I may have already talked about some of these in the non-spoiler section but I'll go into more detail here.

MY DREAM THEME THEORY

The theme of going after your dreams is always a nice thought. But with the way Yakuza 5 Remastered handled it, hammering it over and over again in our faces, it made me think there was an alternate meaning to it. I think quite highly of the Yakuza writers -- there is no way they weren't aware that bombarding players with the dream theme would start getting hokey and overdone. So... I came up with this thought: the theme of going after your dream was just a buildup to the REAL story. The clash between the different clans, trying to find the mastermind -- that's not the real story.

I think the REAL story in Yakuza 5 Remastered was the struggle between Kiryu and Haruka. How Kiryu valued Haruka's dream of being an idol and forced himself to stay away from her and the orphanage (essentially losing his family again...). How Haruka pursued her dream but at the same time struggled if it was what she really wanted (if it meant cutting ties with Kiryu). The dream theme built us up to think that Haruka chasing her dream was the "right" thing -- that no matter the cost, it'd be worth it. How much more impact and meaning does it carry when Haruka says no to that dream in the end?

Please correct me if I'm wrong... but I don't think there was any climax in the battle between clans. There was a climax when Haruka said that Kiryu is her family and that she will quit being an idol.

I could be wrong about all this -- it's just a theory after all :)

GORO MAJIMA

Majima... *hug* Again, he was placed in ambiguous situations, making us wonder whose side he was on... but I held strong. I had faith in his actions and intentions. But... we probably saw Majima at his lowest -- being captured and then threatened to be a puppet or else Haruka would get shot. It's really sweet that Majima cares so much about Kiryu.

Even though he was a critical plot point (Kiryu went back to Kamurocho 'cuz he thought Majima was dead), Majima's actual appearance was brief. I would have loved to see more of him.

BUT -- we did learn a bit more about him. The fact he was engaged to Park tells me this: Majima can be gotten! (I have a chance! Kyaaa~) <3

May the next Yakuza game treat you with the class that you deserve. o7

Majima -- what are you doing? Don't get up. Please don't fight Saejima! D:

KIRYU

Seeing Kiryu's story was painful. I'll admit it was interesting (I never would have thought he'd become a taxi driver -- he probably never saw it coming either), but Kiryu's reason for being there -- it hurt... with no real direction except away from his home and the ones he loves... would Life even mean anything after that?...

Here's a hug for you, too, Kiryu. *Hug*

Stress, lol. I have less than a minute to get this passenger to their destination!

Run, Kiryu. Your cover's blown (that NPC should only know Kiryu as Suzuki)!

SAEJIMA

I'm happy we got to play more of Saejima. His blunt and snappy observations about the current world are always a treat. And his loyalty and faith in Majima... <3 It's interesting that in Yakuza 5 Remastered, he is canonically stronger than Kiryu, being able to pick up motorcycles and other heavy objects.

I fairly enjoyed doing his hunter portion. I don't express it much, but I tend to enjoy survival games (only in video games -- not in real life). I know the hunter portion isn't exactly survival but the element of hunting and gathering resources in a limited amount of time (your health bar) makes it close enough.

Also, I just gotta say: Saejima's singing chops are great. I was sad when he wouldn't do karaoke in Yakuza 4 Remastered. I get why he wouldn't, but I was still down about it.

Saejima still has his sharp observation skills.

Saejima is so sweet! <3

I completely forgot until post-game that Saejima could pick up really heavy objects.

HARUKA

When we first met Haruka, she was a really young girl who needed her hand held everywhere she went. Now she's grown up. And we get to play as her. How awesome is that?! XD

I did my best to dawdle when playing as Haruka, 'cuz I wanted to play her portion for as long as possible. I like that you don't encounter any random enemies -- that the battles are right there and you can choose if you want to go into battle.

One of my favourite scenes was when she told T-Set about Okinawa. T-Set was baiting Haruka to bite back, but she chose a diplomatic route. This doesn't mean she's a doormat. When it comes to defending those she cares about, she will fight. Haruka's got fire. And I like that a lot. Like father, like daughter :)

Her gigs as an idol sometimes felt a bit repetitive but I enjoyed them. The handshake minigame is easy and amusing.

My favourite song from her is So Much More!

Haruka doing a handshake event.

Below are a few screenshots of either Haruka not entering an establishment ('cuz she feels she shouldn't) or being turned away because she is too young. I do like that the developers programmed these responses just for her.

Haruka stopping herself from going into an infomen (a place to ask about hostesses and hostess clubs).

So blunt, hahaha.

I like how polite this employee is.

AKIYAMA

I have to say: I think Akiyama was severely under-utilized in Yakuza 5 Remastered! He was mainly there to link up Haruka's story to the main story. He didn't have his own side thing like the others. His story was in fact the most like a Yakuza game out of the other portions. He did have one nice character-driven substory and some ridiculous ones. But that's it.

I love that Akiyama gets a couple substories where he can dance XD
I made use of his heat moves as often as I could.

SHINADA

It took a lonnnng while for me to warm up to Shinada. His occupation plus that he was in major debt were big turn offs for me, hahahaha. Once I got to learn about his story, I was a bit more understanding.

I found it interesting that even though Shinada is good at handling weapons, he would never use a baseball bat. If he ever sees one on the ground and you have him pick it up, he'd pick it up, look at it for a bit, then put it back on the ground.

How much money Shinada has when you start his section.

This was the first time in a Yakuza game I actually felt strapped for cash.

What a hilarious line, when read out-of-context, hahahaha.

I like that Shinada reacts when the hostess gets close to him. None of the other characters really react.

I WILL NEVER FORGET YOU...

Decided to have a section just to honor those who passed... :(

Mirei Park -- She could be cold and brutal, but I really liked and respected her. She was hard on Haruka but also kind and honest. she will be missed (at least by me).

If any other major character died -- I'm so sorry... I don't remember. There were so many characters in Yakuza 5 Remastered and I spaced out my time playing over many months that I lost track >_<''

MISCELLANEOUS

Here are some miscellaneous thoughts that didn't fit into any of the above topics, and some more screenshots and videos I wanted to share.

-So -- my reason for taking so darn long to finish Yakuza 5 Remastered. It was not because the game was getting boring and I had to push myself to get it done. It's because I know I'm getting to the end of the series... and I want to enjoy playing Yakuza for as long as possible. So I slowed down and took multiple breaks. Of course, now with Like a Dragon: Ishin, Gaiden, and Like a Dragon 8 being announced, I'll get back on course! There are more games waiting for me :) <3

-In my opinion, the strongest scene was the final scene where Haruka reunites with Kiryu and he asks if he's dreaming. The emotion in that scene and what it means for Haruka to be there and what it means for Kiryu to call it a dream... *family hug* (>'.')>

-I really like Katsuya and Watase. They both carry their own brand of morals that lean slightly more to the righteous, honourable side. I can respect that!

-I am so appreciative that when you play air hockey as Kiryu against Haruka, the ogling and heat move features are disabled. I never even thought of that scenario until Haruka said she wanted to play air hockey in Premium Adventure mode. Kudos to the developers.

-When competing in the Princess League, there's an option to do a costume transformation in the 2nd half of the performance to get an edge over T-Set. I didn't like any of the costumes Haruka transformed into. To me, they looked less "innocent".

-When it was revealed that Aizawa was the final boss, I got pissed and thought: 'Okay, finish talking so I can Tiger Drop your a**'. And Tiger Drop it I did :)

-Just like in my previous Yakuza reviews, here a couple Yakuza-related threads from the yakuzagames subreddit. The below meme looks legit.
https://www.reddit.com/r/yakuzagames/comments/jp5ox5/finished_yakuza_5_last_night_konnan_is_so_fcking/

-For anybody still confused about the main story, this discussion goes over the general gist.

https://www.reddit.com/r/yakuzagames/comments/y2659j/why_is_this_guy_final_boss/

And here are the screenshots and videos!

This lady is not forgetful, hahaha...

I often karaoked solo (before COVID happened).

One of the most hilarious options in a substory.

I like Shinada's brutal honesty.

I am also often busy doing the things this NPC mentions.

I wonder if this Frozen Banana is referencing some anime... with a microwave time machine...

I recognize this character!

I wonder if any of these autographs are real.

It's nice to see Kazuki and Yuuya still at it.

I recognized him as soon as he spoke.

I can't believe Shinada has a costume like this, hahahaha.

My final stats when I beat Yakuza 5 Remastered. I took my sweet time getting to the end -- and I still had things to do after beating the main story!

A fail moment for me, hahaha.

Proof that I won a shogi match.

Even Haruka is not immune to ogling in air hockey.

A heat move that I like but don't use enough of.

Another neat heat move. Once you take the weapon out, there's a chance you might not be able to pocket it away again, so be careful.

The pains of trying to get stronger. The Komakis are so cheap.

I bought the most expensive drink at a hostess club. This was totally not worth 1 million yen... and definitely not for that hostess. At least all that money went into Akiyama's club.

Here's some father-daughter time! Kiryu singing "Baka Mitai" while Haruka provides backup.

Haruka singing "So Much More!" while Kiryu dances in the background.

Haruka singing "Loneliness Loop" while Akiyama dances in the background. It's too bad that Akiyama can't invite Haruka to karaoke.

If you read this section, thank for reading! Now to finish with more scrolly things. Feel free to comment if you wish :D

The thinkings/opinions of a bizarre, quiet girl

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Sunday, 27 November 2022

BLOG -- Recap of November

Sunday, 13 November 2022

REVIEW/THOUGHTS [VIDEO GAME] -- Yakuza 5 Remastered