4/5 ★ – JetDusk's review of Yakuza 5 Remastered.

NOTE: This is still a spectacular game overall, but since I had played the other entries before I started writing reviews here, I wanted to recommend some other titles in the series before I properly review this one. Overall, I would recommend you either begin with Yakuza 0 or Yakuza Kiwami. Zero is a prequel, and Kiwami is a remake of the original Yakuza, as well as the first I played. Judgement is a stand alone entry, but I have not played it or it’s sequel as of now, but I’ve heard good things (Edit 08/09/2022, Judgement is also a pretty good starting point since it’s doing it’s own thing, but I still recommend 0 or Kiwami 1 first). Now the actual review. Yakuza 5 is impressive in many regards. With 5 playable characters as well as 5 unique over-worlds to explore along with the wealth of satisfying sub stories and content, 4 of the 5 main characters each have a larger side story to tackle with their own gameplay mechanics, from Taxi Driving to Hunting. That alone makes this game worth the time and experience. The combat is still addictively fun and brutal, with returning characters still being great. Shinada is interesting, but I still miss Tanimura by comparison. The story is decent, but this may be the most confusing/unsatisfying one yet. Some twists work, some don’t, and I personally found the finale to be great with a disappointing final boss. It’s very hard to put into words with such a long game and story, but I do feel 4 did a better job with its complexity overall. The tropes of Yakuza storytelling especially bleed through here, I noted many moments that would happen as I expected just from playing previous entries. Completing this game feels like the biggest pain in the ass the series has had for me. I’ve gotten the majority of the games trophies, and most of them border on tedious and boring with the things you have to do for max efficiency. This is almost the weakest entry for me, but I would still highly recommend playing it if your a Yakuza fan, it’s still a fantastic game despite my misgivings. In terms of ranking, I would say: Yakuza 0 Yakuza Kiwami Yakuza 4 (Judgement, 08/09/2022) Yakuza 3 Yakuza 5 Yakuza Kiwami 2 (Sorry, I know it’s blasphemy, I really just didn’t like the combat that much after getting used to styles. The plot wasn’t as exciting for me as people built it up beforehand, but it was still okay.)