Man Yakuza 3 was odd but also heartbreaking, I still miss Rikkya. Its a bit confusing at times and the plot got butchered for me at the end by laying it all out simply. It still was fun the combat was... just plain boring and It was a pain. I really just don't want to wait every few minutes to get some hits in. There were times however I had fun with it. The sidequest were nice but the hostess maker was so boring I completly skipped that.
out of all the remasters it was properly my favorite. tho i dont think all that emotion for that one death was worth the fanfare. like Shinji got less for dying and he was kiryu's friend for yrs. tho im still annoyed they got rid of Kiryu's love interest but apparently the new director didnt know how to handle romance at all.
I just finished it on Friday, and am having fun with this series son. I'm treating it almost like a book club and love what you have to say. Proud of you son.
This was my first Yakuza. I will forever remember quoting "nice snake." "it's not a snake it's a viper" "... A viper is a snake." with my friends. What a strange game. Love it.
Same! Yakuza 3 was my first. I used to pick a random game I’ve never heard of on every trip to GameStop. Yakuza was there, and $15. Best $15 game I’ve ever bought.
Idk if it’s been said yet, but with the graphical step up at the time, the bad guys get demolished by kiryu. Broken glasses, busted teeth, blood on their face, and black eyes. It may not seem crazy but it’s way more graphic then the other games imo
The only odd thing about the new damage system is the way they did blood with colored textures never looks right. You beat up people and they suddenly develop varicose veins in their neck.
I can never watch the Rikiya scene without crying. It doesn't matter how many times I see it. Kiryu's VA just pours so much emotion into his lines and the scene is just haunting.
growing up on okinawa is really moving to me. i mean, i already loved my hometown, but seeing people like kiryu and haruka there makes me happy! i know some people probably didnt like it, but seeing even parts of my home made my heart swell! plus, it really IS the most kiryu story out there. 😊 thank you for covering this series, it really is wonderful. (also! rikiya's tattoo is the spirit of okinawa, since the snake is a habu! it's native to there and adept at killing mongeese and used in special sake jars.)
One of my favorite details about taking Rikiya around Kamorocho: when you take him to dinner, he asks if you're going to pay for him. If you accept, he orders a ton of expensive food and takes it for granted. If you don't pay for him, he gets almost nothing and acts disappointed the whole time
It’s crazy that with these games we are watching a man’s life go through many changes and how strong he’s been through out it all. It’s really so beautiful when you see this stonewall of a man cry. The Yakuza series are probably the games I’ve literally cried to the most. I’m a baby when it comes to genuine emotions.
My first mainline game of the series. I feel it sets a lot of the foundation for Kiryu going forward and is his last step to becoming the Legend of Kamorucho that he is made out to be in 4 and later entries. I also like that it explores a lot of Kiryu's pathos that at times was jettisoned in favor of action in the two earlier titles. We see that although he is a man of action and capable of incredible feats he wishes for nothing more than a life of peace. Rikiya was another chance for Kiryu to right his wrongs with Nishiki IMO and that's why he breaks down so massively when that chance slips through his grasp.
Unfortunately this was the only Yakuza game I skipped. Something about trying to get a preschooler to hook up with what was basically his sister REALLY did not sit well with me
@@FeiFongWang yeah. Japan has a weird thing when it comes to incest. At least that's what I get from a lot of anime. Granted, in this case they are not blood related. But it's still strange. And it's more tame than other line crossing incest related relationships in anime
You are one of the few reviewers (that i've seen) that didnt dog shit this entry. Personally, i REALLY enjoyed this one. I just recently got into this franchise of November of 2021 with the starter being 0. I finally made my way all the way up to 7. I discovered your reviews recently, top notch material. I'm curious on your review for the 4th installment because i was very mixed on it.
I find 3 and 6 to be very similar in a good way.. I really just need a Kiwami 3 to iron out some of the gameplay kinks and it would probably become my favorite game in the series.. They could do It in unreal like ishin if the dragon engine would be to drastic of a change
I’m glad Yakuza 3 was able to show Kiryu’s more caring side. It’s cool to see the grizzled tough guy being soft around kids trope done so well and before it became the norm in storytelling. Unfortunately since many people are getting into the games more recently we get accustomed to the remakes and then suddenly going to Yakuza 3 is pretty off putting. I know I just wanted to speed run 3 and 4 because of how rough they were to play, but thankfully the stories were still great. I’m glad to have experienced these games seeing how not only this franchise but gaming as a whole evolved.
So glad you’re doing this series. I never got into the Yakuza games until a few years ago, and I absolutely love them, I wish I had played them sooner.
A few points I'd have also noted 1. At one point in Kamurocho you are given the option to explore with Rikiya. While premium adventure may let you remember this section of the game retrospectively, obviously in the main story it's time limited given what happens. If you do it, you can really get an insight into the true nature of Rikiya, being immensely kind to those he knows even if he gets the rough end of the stick at times. But the best part is when you run into Kiryu's tattoo artist's home. Rikiya wants to have his own Yakuza tattoo completed but the man refuses, saying he cannot intervene on another artist's work given he doesn't know the story and meaning behind it. Rikiya is unhappy and gets really upset even surprising Kiryu, but in an encounter not long after where Rikiya protects a few people, the master relents and ,after watching how he handled the situation, agrees to finish the eyes in the Viper on his back. With his tattoo completed, Rikiya is overjoyed and has an immense sense of pride sharing ink with the man he looks up to, with Kiryu happy too. This honestly makes the later events MUCH harder to watch as you got a sense that Rikiya could have been someone that Kiryu could have seriously mentored, given it's time limited I think it's well worth doing. 2. In the Mine fight, the game uses something for the first time that would become iconic as time went on...Dynamic Intros. Up till that point the game either kept the name cards on black screens (PS2) or were just overlayed on top of the fighters preparing still apart from each other (earlier in the game) but Mine and Kiryu run at each other as Fly starts to pick up and they jump at each other, meeting in the air as the name card overlays. The dynamic intros are probably some of the most well known parts from outsiders next to the memes, especially Kuze's intro against Kiryu in the sewer in Yakuza 0. Still I like this look over of Yakuza 3, I feel like it isn't as highly exposed given that most players stop at either Kiwami or Kiwami 2 for some unknown reasons, maybe that Yakuza 3 is technologically the oldest in the series. As for the best tracks in the game? I'd go with... Fly - Main theme and Mine boss fight theme Pure Malice - Bull ring fight with Tamashiro Family theme Illtreatment - Long battle theme (Used at Tamashiro offices, love hotel etc) - It's great on it's own but t u s k is a good overlay for the Tamashiro offices honestly given the scenario Lyricism without Tears - Joji Kazama fight theme - One of the real highlights of the game, it's just so perfect and it really makes the fight of Adoptive Uncle vs Nephew amazing..
Good work yet again, Son! While it's not my favorite game in the franchise it still di a lot of things right. I know a lot of folks didn't really like how much focus there was on the orphanage stuff, but I think that was some of the best parts of 3. Heroes and legends aren't always running around doing crazy things 24/7, so I think it's always incredibly important to see what they're like when things are normal. It helps flesh them out as actual people more.
How far in advance do you start working on these videos? I can't imagine you wrote the entire script, got footage, and edited the video in the 12 days since your last video. Your upload schedule is really impressive, just don't burn yourself out making content.
2:04:56 my guy why is THAT the voice they chose for the CIA guy. Mans sounds like a bootleg Wii Fit trainer and while he's in a lot of things this wasn't the right choice how _J A R R I N G_
Son you're really churning these out, amazing work! I never knew anything about the Yakuza games, but I absolutely love your style of explaination so of course I gave them a watch!
Imagine seeing Kiryu and Kawaru running the orphanage together, giving haruka and the kids a strong mother figure to look up to and to have someone other than some random fellas you met to look after the orphanage while Kiryus on his journy... they really should have kept her 😢
I have never once even played a Yakuza game, but the way you dive into them gives me such a respect for them. Thank you for your deep dive and continued drive to do such lengthy retrospectives. Proud of you Son.
Yakuza 3 is the game that made me fall in love with Kiryu. He’s physically tough, but it would take an absolute badass to give up the top position of the Tojo to run an orphanage. He was “no nonsense”, and always stood up for those less fortunate than himself. No matter who they were. One of my favorite protagonists ever.
Yakuza 3 is probably my favorite in the series. I don’t necessarily think it’s the objectively “best” yakuza game, but the game has a charm to it that makes it feel so different from the rest. Also, this story is one of my favorites since its not so convoluted that it becomes laughable, but it has plenty of twists that add layers to the plot instead of completely shifting it multiple times (ahem…yakuza 4). I would say that Yakuza 1, 3, & 6, are the most simple in terms of story, because the other three… idek (Y2: 3 secret villians all revealed in the final chapter, Y4: rubber bullets the game, Y5: “Y U M E”). Yakuza 3 really fleshes out its characters; by adding depth to existing ones (i.e. Kiryu, Diago, Majima), and creating new characters that are very memorable (i.e. Kanda, Mine, Rikiya). Even with the graphics and character models feeling outdated, I still was impressed with how RGG were able to use the tools at their disposal. Imo, the camera work throughout the cutscenes is the best in the series, and the OST in this game is great. There are mechanics that I wish were a bit more fine tuned, but I actually enjoy the combat a lot; the early game is a slog but with tech upgrades and Komaki moves it opens up and lets you have so much control over combat imo. (Your take on the combat is probably the best way I would explain Yakuza 3)
This was the first Yakuza game I played. I kept hearing about the series but only in magazines at the time and it wasn't easy to get the first two where I live. When this version popped up in Official Playstation Magazine and was being released fully localised I was immediately transfixed. I had been crying out for a game like this since I played Shenmue on the Dreamcast. Such a fantastic experience.
Hey Son. I have been watching your videos on release since I discovered the channel with Devil May Cry retrospective. But I have to take a break. I started my first yakuza game few years back with Yakuza 0. Story and gameplay blew me away. It's got to be one of the craziest prequels, up there with Devil May Cry 3. Then I tried Yakuza 1 Kiwami. Even though it wasn't bad, story felt slower and smaller, and combat was a stepdown after 0. But your halfway through the Yakuza 2 video, I was sold. Faster story with direct rivalries, and a new combat system reignited me. Now I am having a blast with Yakuza 2 Kiwami, so I will be taking a break with your series until I am through. Take care :)
I gotta say son, i really did love playing through Kiryu's adventures at the Morning Glory orphanage, when these games have so much action and intense moments of crime drama it feels so relaxing and heartwarming to see Kiryu live a normal, mostly happy life with little suffering, raising kids of his own, and i really wanted to see it play out for as long as i could before the suffering began. I can understand why people don't like it but it feels heartless to say this part of the game or these kids don't matter.
3 was the fourth Yakuza game I played. I was introduced to the series in 0, and played through both Kiwami versions, so needless to say the jump backwards in production was rather nerve-wracking going into it. I was surprised by just how much I ended up enjoying it. Not my favorite game in the series, but going from 2 Kiwami to 3 remastered was a lot more tolerable than I expected. Hell, I'd even say I prefer 3's combat over 2 Kiwami's by just a bit
People call this game blockuza. But from what I heard, this is because of a porting issue. Apparently they changed something in the code that makes enemies block way more than they did in the original release. This is something that forever changes the game's original version perception
i dont care about how silly or over the top or stupid the writing gets in these games they still know how to do powerful and spectacular moments incredibly well, and I will always love the series for it.
This game is an absolute must play and is honestly in my own opinion better than kiwami 1 and maybe even 2. It has the most character development for kiryu from that point and has some of the most heart renching moments in the entire series
My controversial opinion is that I prefer Yakuza 3 to 4. A lot of the mechanics are improved from 4 to 3, and 4 gave us both Saejima and Akiyama, but the story is what drops it below 3. The scenes in 3 with Kiryu just being a dad are all so charming, and I've only appreciated them more as the I played through more of the series. Rikiya is one of my favorite characters in the franchise, he's so noble and has such a good heart, he's such a highlight of the game. I felt like they kinda tried to recreate his dynamic in 6 with Nagumo, but it just wasn't the same. The mechanics may be clunky, but the game has so much charm that I can't help but like it.
@@vvvv4341 im sorry to tell ya as someone who played 1-6 in the span of a yr and no other games in between. 5 will make ya wanna hate yakuza and never play another one again. however take a break then do 6 and remember to just laugh at the story cuz after 3 the stories are all outlandish and terribly written. its a soap opera story with a great fighting game.
@TuTíoJefferson 5 is so, so "large". Was it too much for you? It kept me playing for hundreds of hours but I don't think I enjoyed it more than my 60hrs with Y3.
I wasn't a fan of Y3 combat wise I put it on easy and just blasted through the story. FInished in about 15 hours and did maybe 1 side quest. I think this game also needed a Kiwami remake
I gotta agree. Story wise it is absolutely fantastic. Everything else is pretty bad in a way that 4 and 5 are not. They refined the block heavy combat and fixed some of the uncanny valley jank present in 3. So I think 3 deserves the Kiwami treatment to fix it up. Would be easy to do since going forward they want to stagger releases. Like 1 rpg then 1 beat em up. And the beat em up (Judgement) is kinda in limbo due to garbage talent agency nonsense.
@@FluffyWuffy17 no not necessary imo in OG yakuza 3 enemies wasn't block often in the orignal anyway the rematered increase the framerate lead to enemies react much more faster lead to broken combat though
@@ghostspartan81 K1 I can sort of see, but I still disagree. K2 is remade in the beautiful and completely different Dragon game engine, how can they recycle what doesn't exist yet? Seeing Ryuji Goda in such high detail, his signature moments recreated for a 4k-friendly viewing experience is brilliant and you're an idiot if you look at any of those cutscenes and think they're half-assed - Yakuza 3-4-5 is more recycling than any other game and that's not a bad thing, it's time-saving. Instead of a Kiwami remake, we got a "remaster" for 3 - it's definitely half-assed to hire some Polish company to port your older PS3 game to PC with no changes, which is what Y3 got and you're praising it over brand-new texture and model work for some of the most iconic series characters but... OK.
@@nhan27. I don't think the framerate increases the rate at which enemies block, nor does it boost their direct reaction time. If it does, there are settings to cap the framerate. There are lots of issues across these games playing them at 60fps and higher, but making the enemies more intelligent at fighting is not one I have experienced!
Hey Son would you ever do a complete history and retrospective on the dishonored series after this? Its only 3 games so it'd be a short and sweet series to do (don't think anyone's done one yet)
Just finished the game. I actually found the combat easier and better balanced than both Zero and Kiwami. The only time I felt a little overwhelmed by combat was during a substory where I had to fight three tanky dudes who would constantly jump towards Kiryu while screaming, but then I realized the repeating screams were annoying me even more so than the spam itself. I despised the chase sequences, to me they didn't feel like a good addition to the game because of the way the mechanic was implemented, but I think it's cool that they tried to bring something new to the table. Overall, though, the game felt short (I didn't do many distractions during my playthrough aside from a bunch of substories) but that's a good thing, too. Thanks for the video, Son. I must have watched it five times by now (I don't mind spoilers so I've been binge watching your Yakuza series and this video is a favorite of mine).
Not my favorite of the series to play but I just love the emotional rollercoaster of this storyline. Rikiya’s death scene is probably the closest I’ve come to being brought to tears by a video game.
Yeah, I get what you're saying about the characters. I didn't feel like it back in the day, but now they definitely have a bit of that Elder Scrolls/Oblivion look to them. Also (having literally just finished it again) I would argue that 2 is less Kiryu learning to not punch his problems and more Kiryu learning how to deal with problems that can't be punched.
1:24:00 "Kiryu has to be conservative and fight wisely." You say, as Kiryu headbutts an enemy. I found myself chuckling a bit. It would've been perfect if you said. "has to be conservative and fight using his head".
On my 100% quest of all the yakuza games I’m at 84% in yakuza 0s completion list and I’ve started yakuza 3,4, and 1 but damn I only struggle with mahjong
I'm at best a fairweather fan of Yakuza - only played Kiwami, 5 and 6 and didn't care enough to check out the others - but I'm still enjoying these hour+ retrospectives.
If the only ones you've played are Kiwami, 5 and 6, I highly recommend you pick up Yakuza 0. It has the same engine as Kiwami, but it's significantly more fleshed out.
I like yakuza 3 i think that It gets to much hate cause a lot of people come from newer games like 0 or the remakes, that doesn't mean that the Game is flawless Also the original 3 IS better than the remastered version as far as combat goes cause the fps changed the way dodging IS for you and the enemies also i think that andre Richardson IS unironically a cool villain and his Boss fights alongside mide and joji are the best ones
honestly it was jarrying as fuck coming from the kawami but still fun and i enjoyed the richardson fights tho i made wesker jokes the entire time. 5 is the only one that deserves the hate it gets i feel. i enjoyed the haruka sections but the story was terrible even compared to 6.
I replayed the "...To butt his stupid fucking head into the mix," part so many times. I just found that so funny the way you casually, yet so aggressively said that
i dont mind the fuma name change, as i often did confused thinking kiryu just took his last name or something being a part of his "family" i only have the ps3 version its the only version ive played, crazy to see so much was changed, great vid!
The black sheep of the series, always though it should've been remade like 1 and 2, and not just remastered. Japan had a *really* hard time adapting to HD. Anyway, another stellar review, my son!
The biggest reason I can see why they didn’t give 3 the Kiwami treatment was that the first two games were originally on PS2, while 3 had a comparatively more modern look and approach to it. I still wish we got a Kiwami 3 though. I love the game for the story and characters, but the combat really holds it back for me, especially coming hot off of Kiwami 1 and 2.
How to play Yakuza 3, Find Gambling Hall . Play Koi-Koi sell entire inventories of Platinum Plates,. Find weapon merchant, buy 15 revolvers . Use them. Then Parry everyone else. You can reload them at Kaniyama Merchant .
Probably my favorite in the series after zero so far (I've barely started 4). The story had a few issues, but overall good. The blocking enemies was a welcomed change in my opinion, last game was way too easy. Not that the difficulty difference was huge, but noticeable for sure. The Okinawa town was very fun, it was nice to see the more colorful tropical environment. The hostess game just.. sucks pretty much, but I finished the quest nonetheless. A good game that seems to be too hated.
I wouldnt say it takes a different approach, side stepping to get hits in and such, this game just had ridiculous amounts of guarding, its the only game where breaking guards felt incredibly rare and i even had moments where i'd do an attack that hit twice and had the first hit break their guard just for them to guard the second hit before their guard break animation was even over, and thats just ridiculous
They not only did Kaoru dirty by pushing her out of the picture, but they did her character model dirty by making her look like a generic NPC. She looks absolutely nothing like the Kaoru from Yakuza 2. I mean, I understand that she was no longer a major character, and thus they couldn't be bothered to give her model the 7th treatment, but damn, she and Kiryu developed a relationship so meaningful that they were willing to die in each other's arms atop an exploding building; you'd think she deserved some respect in the overall lore. Kiwami 2's model for Kaoru looks MUCH more like her original PS2 appearance, so if you played the remakes/HD remasters in sequential order like I did, Kaoru's massive visual downgrade was pretty jarring.
i got the remastered set in 2019 without much knowledge on the yakuza series except the memes and when i first played yakuza 3 for some reason i just couldnt get into it. suddenly a month ago i decided to try to finish it and i became completely hooked. today i finally beat the game and im so excited to play the other sames in the series!!!
We’re three videos in and you haven’t talked about any of the final boss themes. “A Scattered, Eternal Moment,” (Kiwami 2,) is one of the greatest tracks in all of video games.
I know Yakuza 3 has its detractors, but straight up- if old man Nakahara being able to fight off 4 bulls with the power of love for his adopted daughter isn't the most representative thing about this series and it's themes, then I don't know what is. Mine was really special too.
I just bought all of the main yakuza games on the steam summer sale. Gonna be my first time with the series and I'm enjoying 0 as my first entry so far
I swear these fucking onion keep being cut in my presense because listening to this and remembering watching these scenes just break my heart all over again!
Unfortunately this was the only Yakuza game I skipped. Something about trying to get a preschooler to hook up with what was basically his sister REALLY did not sit well with me
Hearing you mention Danganronpa in the last segment REALLY makes me want to hear you talk about Danganronpa now. I've played all the games, but even so!
I played through 3 in about a week, the fastest I've ever beaten a yakuza game. I did install a couple of mods to fix some of the issues I had heard about the pc port and combat which was honestly worth it as the game was really enjoyable. For how much hate this game gets it seems that most of the issues can be quite easily fixed...
Just recently found your channel when looking for some silent hill content and have been loving everything else. Just wanna say, would you consider doing one of these vids on Dishonored? I think there is some potential right there
My problem with y3 isn’t the blocking as it’s super easy to work around. It’s the damage, heat actions do no damage and it’s harder to keep heat, plus your regular attacks are piss poor.
