Yakuza Kiwami 2

Need I say more?

That’s old school SEGA advertising right there! I love it!

Oh shit! I need to check my mailbox!

Played a couple hours of this tonight and had a blast. I thought Yakuza fatigue had set in, but I guess not. It’s gorgeous and plays really well. Yakuza 2 was the first Yakuza game I played, though it came out here when PS2 was on its last legs and I never ended up finishing it. Its 10 year anniversary for the US release in on 9/9 and it’s great so far revisiting it.

Put in a bunch of hours yesterday. This is my first outing with the new engine - I held off on Yakuza 6 since the remakes were coming out so soon-ish.

It looks gorgeous, and I really appreciate being able to walk around in first person, but I’m not completely sold on the changes to the fighting. Having the camera be more pulled out gives you more situational awareness, but also makes it feel less impactful, and really miss the style switching. Also, it seems like I have way less opportunities for heat actions.

But it’s still early days, and I haven’t a lot of skills yet. I’m into the story so far, and Kiryu is still the best, nicest boy around.

Ten chapters later, and I’m still not entirely sold on fighting in the dragon engine. It’s gotten better as I’ve unlocked more skills, but it’s still too ragdoll-y. The Dragon of Dojima tumbling five meters just because some punk kicked him is just wrong. Conversely, not being able to stomp a dude’s face in because your kick landed them far enough away that they’re back on their feet by the time you get to them is frustrating as hell.

On the other hand, I did punch a tiger in its stupid face today, so the game’s still awesome.

I’m playing Kiwami 1. I’m not particularly good at fighting games, but seem to be particularly bad at this game. I think one of the problems is I’m constantly facing the wrong direction. Is there anyway to lock on to a particular opponent and make sure you’re facing him?

Should be the R1\RB button on the default control scheme, if I remember rightly. Just remember to hold down the button to lock on to an enemy, otherwise it will go back to being unlocked.

Thanks @Malkael. I thought I saw it on one of the hints, I think the problem was I assumed it was a toggle, not something that had to be constantly held down. Will try that.

Ugh, forgot how much I hate Yakuza boss fights. Can’t even beat Ryuji on easy. Guess I need to grind a bit to unlock some more abilities, which presumably means going through that whole HQ sequence again.

You’re going into them with a full inventory of health boosts, right? Most of the time a player can grind the bosses out with enough refills. Well, at least I did.

I wasn’t, no, because I wasn’t really expecting a proper boss so early. I’d barely done anything at that point, and had next to no inventory. It’s all a bit irrelevant anyway, as I quit out last night and on coming back today the autosave was back in Sotenbori. So I will have to do the whole thing again, but this time I will be prepared.

Is the combat any different from Kiwami 1? Or is that just how it is for the entire series? I got super frustrated with an early battle in 1 (the guy guarding the bar) and ended up wasting an hour on it and only winning by running around him and waiting for him to try to charge me so I could punch him in the back of the head a few times.

Also, not for nothing, but it sure is nice to be able to try these things out for free with xbox game pass.

What chapter does the management stuff open up in?

Construction management opens once you have Majima on your side, maybe chapter 3? I think it and the cabaret club are both better once you’ve gotten more substories completed for additional helpers. Perhaps power through the story and then see what’s opened up around chapter 8?

I’ve been playing the Yakuza series for the first time, starting with 0 last month. I like them far beyond any expectation I had going in. I don’t know how to describe their gameplay to friends. It’s so personal on what hooks me. I might have more hours playing crane games than anything except managing the cabaret club. Now is the cliff decision: do I fall over the side for whatever enjoyment the remastered 3-5 might bring, fulling expecting a nasty impact with the ground quite soon, or stay at the edge until Like a Dragon releases?