Yakuza 0 on PS4 - Gaming Review
Posted on: 2017-01-24
Our rating:
It is a fantastic game with a great narrative coupled with fun and brutal hand to hand combat with its gameplay. Let’s talk about it in more detail...
Yakuza is a series that I got into back in early 2015 when I picked up Yakuza 4 on the PS3, I was hooked so I went back and played the others on PS2 and PS3 and they are great crime thrillers about the Japanese criminal underworld. Yakuza 0 has been out in Japan since 2015 on PS3 and PS4 which has finally graced its presence in the west on the PS4 exclusively.
Yakuza 0 is a prequel to the entire series taking place in the late 1980’s where you see the origins of two of the major characters in the series, Goro Majima the one eyed psychotic who has recently left the Yakuza and is now a nightclub owner and Kazuma Kiryu who is a young recruit in the Dojima Family who gets framed for murder by one of the lieutenants. The game switches between the two protagonists throughout the campaign and the story has some really tense moments which will have you biting your nails with beautifully directed scenes coupled with the stellar performances from the Japanese cast.
The story can also get very emotional and dark in places due to the subject matters it tackles from murder to human trafficking. It’s not always serious as it can switch the sad mask out for a laughing one which disarms you for those moments similar to what Metal Gear Solid does with its story telling.
The gameplay is interesting it’s similar to games like Final Fantasy; I know you’re sceptical when I say this but hear me out. You have an open world hub where you take quests from strangers, get distracted by mini games and get into random encounters with rival Yakuza families. You can choose to engage or run away from them but when they catch you you’re locked in a fight and this is where the fun begins.
The combat has fighting game controls where you string combos together for some devastating attacks; the game is extremely brutal and violent with the fights with blood flying everywhere coupled with the bone crunching sound design. Both characters have three distinct fighting styles and these can range from fast and light attacks to slow and powerful attacks, you have to assess the situation and figure out what fighting style suits it.
When you’re fighting money will fly out of enemies and this is how you upgrade your character’s abilities and these range from the standard increase of maximum health to learning new moves to combat different situations. Believe me you’ll need to upgrade your characters as this game gets really challenging in the final chapters with stronger enemies and more of them attacking you at the same time.
The game looks fantastic they nailed the look of the busy streets of Tokyo with lots of people walking around and the neon lights that resonate through the streets when the sunsets. The character models look great for the most part; however there are few that slip through where you can tell that this game was released on the PS3 as well. Overall the presentation is fantastic coupled with the bone crunching sound design during combat where you feel every blow you land.
Yakuza 0 is a fantastic game and is a great way to start 2017 with gaming, with its compelling narrative with tense and emotional moments to the brutal and satisfying hand to hand combat. This game is a must buy for any PS4 owner who is familiar to the series or a new comer as it is a prequel, go out and buy this game.
5/5
Article by:
Sam has lived in Bristol all his life. A keen cyclist he speeds around the city but video games are his bread and butter. Whether the old Nes and Snes games or the XBox One and Playstation releases he loves them all. Sam runs his own gaming blog called Bristolian Gamer where he had been reviewing indie games, doing retro reviews and venting his anger at the industry when it does wrong since 2010. Sam joined the 365Bristol team in December 2014.
