3/5 ★ – TheTheoLogan's review of Yakuza Kiwami 2.

Do you remember how the popular Showtime series, Dexter, had 4 really good seasons? Then we got the 5th season that had a lot of the same trappings the show is known for but something felt off? And the characters didn’t make sense? And they change enough to still be entertaining but also be super disappointing? That’s Yakuza Kiwami 2. A game that, despite looking visually striking, is a clunky, convoluted mess with an ending that is truly awful. One of the things you will notice right away in coming to this game from 0 and Kiwami is the major change in combat. Gone are the different styles and, in its stead, is an odd singular style that has some of the moves from the other styles that just never really gel well together. Not only that but the lock on, which was already unreliable from the past two games, is completely unusable in this game. Add to the fact the jarring rebound effect your attacks have on enemies guarding and what you have is one of the least fun combat systems of any game I have played. Sure, you can unlock new moves via an upgrade system. But that’s different here too… and it isn’t good. While the new upgrade system made eating at restaurants actually worthwhile this time around, doling out the 5-6 types of exp the game now has… for some reason. But navigating the menus in an attempt to unlock things is confusing. You’ll eventually get used to it but by then, you’ll likely forget it’s even there and just carry on. But hey, the developers at least let you sort between what you’ve learned and what you can actually upgrade. And while the story introduces a cool new antagonist in Ryuji Goda, the story really gets convoluted with the introduction of the Chinese mafia which leads to multiple twists where you get to play “is this character in the Chinese mafia?”. I really think this whole part of the plot should have been scrapped so we could focus on Ryuji taking over the Omi Alliance and seeking to tear apart the Tojo Clan and Kamurocho. Because not only is Ryuji a total pushover at the end but he’s sidelined for the majority of the game and is completely wasted. Kaoru’s chemistry with Kiryu made no sense to me. Not once did it ever feel like these two had actual chemistry. I was hoping Kaoru would be a cool character but, honestly? She’s kind of pathetic. And the ending… what in the actual word was that? Spoilers ahead so you’ve been warned. Ready? Seriously. I’m going to spoil parts of the end. Terada shows back up and he’s part of the Chinese mafia! But wait! Kiryu suddenly remembers that he saw Terada 26 years ago when Kazama and the Dojima family raid an apartment building! But, wait, why doesn’t Kiryu remember Terada when he shows up in the last game? Your guess is as good as mine! But Terada has a bomb that’s going to go off. So Ryuji and Kiryu, after being shot by the other Omi Alliance guy with the glasses, decide they’re going to have one last fight. Afterwards, Kaoru says goodbye to her brother (oh yeah, her and Ryuji have the same mom) and makes out with Kiryu, who is okay with dying. EVEN THOUGH SUDO, DATE, AND HAKARU SHOW UP IN A HELICOPTER TO SAVE THEM BUT THEN FLIES AWAY! Oh, but it’s okay, says Kiryu. Hakaru is a smart girl. She’ll understand. OH BUT WAIT! Terada didn’t trust the glasses guy so he didn’t bother to put the fuse for the bomb in the bomb and it never goes off. Gee, Hakaru… awkward, right? I’m sorry… but the ending of this game is just the cherry on top of the cobbled together mess that is Kiwami 2. Even the mini-games weren’t fun this time around. Some of the substories were great. We even see some recurring characters from the previous games. Yay, continuity! But where was Pocket Circuit? And why did Majima’s mini-game suck? And speaking of Majima, why did he get such little screen time? All in all, Yakuza Kiwami 2 was a frustrating 20 hour experience that just left me pining for Yakuza 0 and Kiwami 1. I’ll continue the series but I really hope 3 is better.