Yakuza 0 The Standard Edition - PlayStation 4

Yakuza 0 is a mix of a Grand Theft Auto type world (albeit quite a bit smaller) with Sleeping Dogs type fighting (albeit a little more arcade-like). This description can tie to pretty much any Yakuza game released since Yakuza 3. However, having played both Yakuza 3 and 4, the fighting system has been fleshed out a bit more with different types of fighting styles that you can skill up. If you've never played a Yakuza game, fair warning, this game can get pretty graphic with the blood and gore (though Sega has now included an option for you to turn the bloodshed to only a mild amount) but if you can get passed that, you'll feel really gratified when you get out on to the streets and start to unleash some really devastating looking combos. The story of the Yakuza games have always been stellar and this one is no different. Yakuza 0 is a prequel to the rest of the Yakuza games so this is a good place to start if you're new to the series as it'll flesh out the life of two of the main characters in the rest of the Yakuza games. As with all Yakuza games, expect A LOT of cut scenes and dialogue (think Final Fantasy). If cut scenes aren't for you, this isn't the game for you. The game also starts out a little bit slow but if you stick with it passed the tutorials and get an hour or so into the game, you won't be disappointed as it starts to speed up. You'll be enamored in the story and will soon find yourself staying up to play this game so that you can find out about the next part of the story! I've been keeping up with the last few Yakuza games as they've come out in the United States and continually hoped for more Yakuza games to be localized as I loved both Yakuza 3 and 4 (PS3). To be honest, there wasn't much hype for Yakuza 0 out here in the States and I did not realize they were releasing a Yakuza game until about 2 months ago and I had it pre-ordered since I knew it was coming. I'm definitely not disappointed, it's a great buy for newbies to the Yakuza series and I'd say a must buy to diehard Sega Yakuza fans (though I probably shouldn't have to tell you to buy it if you're a diehard!).

The game is every bit of amazing and it always get better with each game in the series. I been a supporter of Yakuza since PS2 and this game is the pinnacle the series have been reaching for. The side quest are funny and interesting with each incounter. The combat is downright fun to play to me, its like Shenmue meets Streets of Rage with sprinkled with Final Fantasy on top. -Want to meet a dominatrix and help her become better at it? It's here. -Want to meet a "Steven Spielberg and Michael Jackson?" Its here. -Want to spend terrifying nights running away from a overpowered man who is 8 feet tall? Yep that's here. -Want to spend all your time at an old VHS adult shop? -Do you like drinking Mountain Dew and beating up people to get a kid's video game back? -What about simply just enjoying the food, liquor, entertainment of 80's Tokyo? But all of this...ALL OF THIS is good fun! There haven't been a shortage of side quest that wasn't hilarious / strange / or shocking and this is what videos games should do. Finally Yakuaza is getting the recognition it deserves after all these years. HOPEFULLY SEGA WILL LISTEN AND PUT MORE YAKUZA GAMES OUT FASTER IN THE WEST NOW (AND PHANTASY STAR ONLINE 2.)

I don't know how I missed checking out the Yakuza series, especially since I love SEGA games. I'm actually pretty glad I checked out the series right as Yakuza 0 came out. This game is the perfect entrance to the series. Playing as two different characters was a great addition to this game, compared to only being able to play as Kiryu in the rest of them, except Yakuza 3. The game engine is smooth, controlling your character is very easy. I played almost every day for 2 weeks and I was barely halfway done with the main story. There's endless hours of mini-games in Yakuza 0; including a cabaret club simulator, real estate simulator, karaoke, darts, pool, bowling, dancing, and you can play the full versions of SEGA arcade classics Outrun and Space Harrier. Even with all that, there's tons of sub-stories that will have you laughing. The main storyline is very dramatic, brutal, mind-bending, and full of badassery. You'll love every character and their individual personalities. The music is also amazing. It'll keep you engaged. I definitely recommend Yakuza 0 to anyone who wants to play a well-polished free roaming action adventure game and would like to start playing the rest of the series. Now that Yakuza 6 is about to release, you'll have 6 games in between, not including the zombie spinoff, to keep you occupied and entertained for hours.

This is a great addition to the yakuza series, having played the previous games on the playstation 2 and 3 this was a game i had to buy. The good points about this game is that gameplay is fun, i love minigame/sidequests which this has a lot of, graphics is great(started playing by streaming from ps4 to my pc and was amazed when finally seeing it on my TV direct), shows a backstory of how the characters came to be in the previous games. there was a lot of fun and actually educational info in the game(now i know what whiskey to try in japan, lol) , fighting level doesnt get to a point where you get invincible and requires some skill to defeat some bosses. also there is many things to explore to get a 100% complete(which is actually good and bad since repetitiveness can get boring) , which brings me to What i didnt like, sidequests can get repetitve and somewhat frustrating.The sidequests where you have to play retro games and beat a certain score can be some times frustrating, the dancing mini game, . also, since it is a linear story the ending is predictable, it would have been great to have alternate endings.. Overall I liked the game and felt it was worth the price and a good addition to the Yakuza series, and a good introduction to the series for those that have not played the previous games, hopefully the next installment can improve on this one(not kiwami or #6) and continue the series with #7, #6 hopefully will be released sooner than early 2018, i have played the japan version and can't understand why its taking so long for a english one, hopefully they are fixing some glitches. They should at least make HD remakes of the previous ones. come on Sega!!

5 star to everything except the combat and camera. This is by far the worst combat I've never seen in a melee-combat based game. The following two points made the combat system completely not acceptable. 1. Hold R1 to lock on You have to hold R1 ALL THE TIME to lock on to an enemy. This makes boss fight extremely difficult and hand breaking. Not to mention the lock on isn't even reliable and for most of the time because of the lock on, the character would block your vision on the enemy. So... I assume this game doesn't have lock on at all. 2. PS2 era camera The camera can't keep its pace with right analog stick, which makes this game feel very PS2-ish. Also, when rotating camera isn't possible due to wall or other items would block the vision, the game simply gives up on rotating the camera. Well, combined with the non-working lock on mechanism, good luck on fighting boss in a room. I guess I will just change difficulty to pass the first boss fight, cause I didn't realize the combat can be soooo bad and I didn't buy any recovery item before starting the mission. I didn't need those before the boss fight and I'm pretty stuck right now. I was never stuck like this even in Nioh... In Nioh at least everytime I died I realized that was my fault and I could make some improvement. Yakuza 0? I simply don't know how I can improve myself to make the camera and combat system work. Still recommend this game because of its other aspects. Play on easy difficulty though, to actually enjoy it.

I played Yakuza 1 on the PS2 during the team it released and it was quite an unusual game for me. It differs a lot from your stereotypical Anime influenced Japanese games and followed a realistic art direction. It was enjoyable, fun and then story was quite interesting. I never played any of the other Yakuza games that followed despite hearing great things about them. Releasing almost always on the west at least a year after their Japanese release, the games followed the familiar but successful formula. The series has a big cult following and once you try the game, you will understand the reasons. The series offers a small Japanese open world, brawling fighting mechanics, and quite the mixture of side quests that ranges from helping, tracking down and engaging NPCs in interesting conversations. Yakuza 0 is a prequel to the first game and more than any other prequel out there, it does THE BEST to get you into the world of the story and establishes the characters in a very interesting way. The story is deep and interesting and is told in a very very well paced settings. The game's score is nothing short of superb. Relying if rock and Japanese instruments, the game has a set of very interesting scores that keeps getting better. I was pleased with the game, it took me a week to finish it and I never ever came close to the 100% completion mark, due to work, I couldn't spend more time. SEGA does really produce the best outta Japan.

4.5 stars: I've only played enough Yakuza in the past on PlayStation 2 to know that I'd enjoy the concept of this game. It's a unique one; a sandbox-style game that takes place in a number of highly-detailed cities, that's part beat-em-up, part minigame collection, part cinematic crime drama. At times, it feels like a jack of all trades but a master at none. For example, some of the minigame activities are rather plain, and fighting can feel a little janky at times. Inventory management is kind of antiquated, too, but any complaint I have (listed or not) is a minor one. It's a very enjoyable game with tons of good content. Has a wonderfully wacky way of transitioning between serious gangster turmoil and... going on a fake date with a girl you just met to convince her father she has a boyfriend... to beating up a gang of yakuza in a dim, dirty back alley, to... providing backup karaoke singing for a girl you met via a telephone singles chat line... you get the idea. Great starting point for newcomers, as this is a true prequel to all of the other Yakuza games. Graphics are middle ground for a new PS4 title (it came out in Japan back in 2015) but as a tradeoff, the game runs at 60 FPS in most scenarios. Voice acting gets an honorable mention for being a clear cut above the rest, but Japanese is the only option, with English subtitles! You've been warned!

This is the prequel that kicks off the Yakuza story line. It has descent graphics, very fun game play, and best of all all the fun mini games. the basics: This story revolves around two chars (Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima). It sets them up for future storylines and fleshes out their personality. Basically the story is a very macho/gangster/honorable theme going on and feels like a 90s HK action movie. What i loved about this game - those mini games are excellent and fun - virtual tour of japan in the 80s. the environment really sells the game. - the fighting is very fun with 6 different style of fighting. in addition to using every day items as weapons. nothing is as awesome and grabbing a store sign and putting thugs in their place. - the voice acting is really good. the bad - the graphics while is good is not eye popping. certain chars looks less fleshed out than others (note they are minor chars or street NPCS) - certain parts of the game gets dragged down and the pacing needs some work Overall though, i really enjoyed the game and it is a very good addition to the Yakuza series. more info! if you liked this game, then play Yakuza 1 (or wait for the remake), then Yakuza 4 and 5. (ps3 games) TLDR: this game is for beating people up, have playing mini games and walking around 80s japan. if this doesnt appeal to you skip this game.