Yakuza 3 Review

19 Apr 2010 at 17:55:30 by Tim McDonald
Systems used to review this title: (PS3)

Sad but true: Yakuza never really made it big in the west. Reasons vary depending on who you listen to. Some say that they were “too Japanese,” others decry the lack of marketing, and yet more considered it a step back from the western Grand Theft Auto 3. Despite this, the series managed to pick up a rabid fanbase – a rabid fanbase that was none too pleased when it learned that Yakuza 3 wasn't coming to the west. When it saw the number of people demanding the game's release, Sega finally relented and gave us a translated version of Kazuma Kiryu's latest adventures.

Following the traumatic events of Yakuza 2, ageing ex-Yakuza Kazuma has retired to Okinawa to run an orphanage while wearing a hilariously incongruous Hawaiian shirt. Naturally, his hopes for an idyllic life don't quite go according to plan as it's not long before politics and organised crime conspire to once more get him back in his suit and back on the streets of fictional Tokyo district Kamurocho.

If you're not sure what the traumatic events of Yakuza 2 are, fear not, as Yakuza 3 tries to be welcoming to the newcomer. Both the main menu and the start of the game give you the option to watch the story of the first two games unfold via the medium of abridged cutscenes and voiceovers, and the in-game menu has a helpful chart showing every major character and their relations to every other major character, with further detail available on request. Considering the Byzantine web of relationships and betrayals, this is a remarkably useful little tool.

That's not to say you won't be confused from time to time, though. If you've yet to experience something full of Japanese names, prepare to be bewildered as you try to remember who Daigo Dojima is, whether he has any relation to Tsuyoshi Kanda, and which – if either – have anything to do with the Hakuho Clan. While there's the relationship chart if you get particularly stumped, it may not be accessible enough. It's a hard thing to introduce the third in a story-heavy series to newcomers, and while Yakuza 3 makes all the efforts possible, it'll still require effort to get to grips with the labyrinthine backstory. Yes, you can sit down and watch the highlights of the first two games, but the chances of you remembering everything pertinent after that half hour is over are fairly slim.

Other than the crime thriller aspect, in which you'll be dealing with all of these decidedly murky characters and trying to work out whodunnit, why they did it, and, in fact, what they actually did, you'll be spending your time wandering the streets of either Okinawa or Kamurocho. You'll have a goal pretty much all of the time, whether it's something big like going to have words with a Yakuza clan leader or something small like buying groceries for the orphanage, but unless something particularly time-sensitive is happening then you can go and explore to your heart's content. This is rewarded within the game – there are plenty of subquests in each district, as well as locker keys to find, hitmen to hunt down, and more. These subquests, fittingly titled substories, honestly deserve more time than they're going to get here, but each one delves into the world of Yakuza in some way, shape, or form, and generally expands on Kazuma's character. It doesn't matter whether you're finding water for an old lady or rescuing kidnap victims – you'll find out quickly that Kazuma takes no shit and, despite a rough exterior and a rough past, he's a guy with a good heart.

Of course, with Kazuma being the violence magnet that he is, you can't walk down a street without being accosted by a lowlife with thirst for blood and an amusingly thin pretext. At this stage, combat begins, and it works much the same way it always has: the crowds disperse into a ring around you and your opponents, effectively acting as the arena walls, and you kick the living crap out of your foes.

You've got your standard light attacks and heavy attacks, both of which can be comboed, in addition to the wonderful Streets of Rage-style ability to pick up pretty much any object nearby and savage your opponent with it. Brutalising opponents without taking much in the way of damage builds up Kazuma's Heat gauge, which allow him to access some spectacularly brutal special moves.

All ...

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