Judgment

 PlayStation 4
User Score
8.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 514 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 438 out of 514
  2. Mixed: 37 out of 514
  3. Negative: 39 out of 514
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  1. Cybercafe
    Aug 30, 2019
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Jogo bem fraco, cópia mal feita de sleeping dogs, gráficos deixam a desejar, infelizmente a Sega está no fundo do poço, já foi melhor, o jogo é bom mas não tem comparação com as obras primas da Sega dos anos 90… Expand
  2. MarcIsHere
    Jun 27, 2019
    7
    Good, but not Yakuza. I like investigating but it doesn't have that humour/violence quality the original series has. But still worth a day one purchase.
  3. Chenze
    Jul 3, 2019
    7
    Spin off of Yakuza series, so if you don't like Yakuza you may want to use some common sense and get something your'e interested in. Otherwise the story is well written and very expanded if you decide to do every side mission. Not perfect so not a 10, combat does not feel as good as Yakuza games but not bad in a specific way. It can be a little too similar sometimes, like a deja vuSpin off of Yakuza series, so if you don't like Yakuza you may want to use some common sense and get something your'e interested in. Otherwise the story is well written and very expanded if you decide to do every side mission. Not perfect so not a 10, combat does not feel as good as Yakuza games but not bad in a specific way. It can be a little too similar sometimes, like a deja vu effect if you have played previous Yakuza games, however that may not be a bad thing for most.… Expand
  4. f1o_o1f
    Jul 22, 2021
    7
    Liked the game, but there were many things that really bugged me. I never played any Yakuza game or anything from the studio, so I didn't have any expectations.

    First of all, I really liked the story. It was quite long and had serious pacing issues, but it really felt like a top-tier crime series. Overall very well written and engaging. Funnily enough, the last third of the game, which    Liked the game, but there were many things that really bugged me. I never played any Yakuza game or anything from the studio, so I didn't have any expectations.

    First of all, I really liked the story. It was quite long and had serious pacing issues, but it really felt like a top-tier crime series. Overall very well written and engaging. Funnily enough, the last third of the game, which is made up of the shortest chapters, felt extremely stretched out and wasn't particularly fun (except for the story bits).

    I really did not like the combat, though. The system itself is not necessarily bad, but it seemed very rushed. Many mandatory fights are straight up badly designed and some bosses are pretty unfair (I'm talking Bed-of-Chaos-unfair here...). It doesn't help that the game basically consists of constant fighting. For the first 15 hours it was pretty fun, but after that it just felt tedious and unnecessary.

    Some mechanics are just not good. Singled out, they do have a lot of potential, but in this game they seemed just crammed in with little effort to shake up gameplay.
    The mechanics that I disliked:

    - Tailing missions; fun for the first two times. Just annoying afterwards. Especially towards the end they seemed to have skipped any kind of testing on them.

    - Perma-damage; generally not a bad idea and definitely effective in keeping the player on their toes. The implementation was just poor. It basically just meant that long fighting sequences without any chance of accessing the open world became a risky endeavour. As soon as one was in the open again, it basically was just a waste of time and money. (The worst was one "boss" who dealt out non-dodgable perma-damage. Depending on the last save-point, this fight could become a huge problem for some players)

    - Bosses; I don't mean the bosses as characters - they usually were rather intriguing. How the fights were arranged was very bad, though. No consideration for how the combat works. The fact that I had to eat up to 30 meals during a fight just to heal up from some random non-dodgable combos is ridiculous. The worst was one passage were I had to fight one certain "boss" four or five times over. Really made the single fights seem useless and insignificant.

    - Threat Level; probably the worst thing about this game. Increased chance of random battles basically for the rest of you playtime... Seriously? Definitely one of the most annoying, unnecessary and time-consuming things they could've thought up. Clearly, this was a last-minute implementation that was not thoroughly tested.

    Overall everything related to combat simply felt lazy in terms of design. It doesn't help that apart from fighting, there is very little in terms of gameplay if you concentrate on the Main Story.    … Expand
  5. Juggajuggaoneli
    Apr 8, 2021
    7
    This is one of the better games out recently. Its amazing its not a AAA title like most of the overhyped ones Sony is stuff doing throats through PR stunts which ultimately fail due to too much hype and very little attention to detail when it comes to fixing bugs. Probably the best Yakuza game from Sega in fact that there is no driving activities but still the whole approach of doingThis is one of the better games out recently. Its amazing its not a AAA title like most of the overhyped ones Sony is stuff doing throats through PR stunts which ultimately fail due to too much hype and very little attention to detail when it comes to fixing bugs. Probably the best Yakuza game from Sega in fact that there is no driving activities but still the whole approach of doing tasks to kill item just for the sake of doing so can get tiresome. The developer adds some puzzle solving skills to break the monotony. I found the girlfriend side quests also to be a waste of time in that its essentially sterlized for courtesties in japanese culture even with some of the mature themes involved. As with any Yakuza game, the fighting leaves something to be desired and is a mash of buttons as the main character can be overpowering rather easily with early ability upgrades attained easily. Another annoying thing, is the random battles that pop up constantly even during down times. Its fortunate the player's character is again overpowering to simply outrun enemies and avoid these endless battles.… Expand
  6. Toxic_Boy
    Jul 13, 2019
    6
    This game is a warning sign. Sega have now reused the same assets and mechanics on all the Yakuza remakes, and now have used them on a "new" franchise. Judgment is little more than just more of the same except the only difference is the "detective" aspect of the game involves dull, tedious mechanics. Tailing enemies is reminiscent of a long forgotten past time we associate with Assassin'sThis game is a warning sign. Sega have now reused the same assets and mechanics on all the Yakuza remakes, and now have used them on a "new" franchise. Judgment is little more than just more of the same except the only difference is the "detective" aspect of the game involves dull, tedious mechanics. Tailing enemies is reminiscent of a long forgotten past time we associate with Assassin's Creeds older games. Crime scene investigations I volve little more than clicking on obvious clues. Deductions are laughably easy and just serve to fill in time. How much longer until Sega delivers a fresh take on their formula. Or will fans be happy to eat up more of the same?… Expand
  7. Parik
    Aug 7, 2020
    6
    Judment - is a game for players who didn't play Yakuza series, but want to get familiar with it. That's not my words, but many Yakuza fans seem to agree with this statement.
    The main story of Judgment doesn't hav any common characters or background with Yakuza series, but the action takes place in the same location called Kamurocho. And, as I can understand, gameplay and mini-games are    Judment - is a game for players who didn't play Yakuza series, but want to get familiar with it. That's not my words, but many Yakuza fans seem to agree with this statement.
    The main story of Judgment doesn't hav any common characters or background with Yakuza series, but the action takes place in the same location called Kamurocho. And, as I can understand, gameplay and mini-games are quite similar to Yakuza.
    The game has immerse story and few very funny side quests. But lots of gamedesiner's mistakes (or lack of ideas) generate lots of annoying situations. There aren't many mechanics besides fighting, so you'll be bored after another tailing or chase. Even if you like fighting gameplay of Judgment, I think that they have to reduce enemy spawn rate. For example, once when I was on my way to main quest point I had 6 fights with street thugs and route of 500 meters long took about 5-6 minutes, 'cos after a few fights you have to go to the shop to restock.
    Conclusion. The game isn't bad. Story line will thrilled you. Main characters have their own temper, dialogue and cut scenes are perfect; you will meet many funny persons with weird requests and it will dilute serious tone of the main case. But, still... almost 40 hours, I think they should have cut it half.    … Expand
  8. Xenonexe2558
    Apr 30, 2021
    5
    Take Yakuza, remove the charming and crazy characters, then add tail and detective mechanics with no challenge and you pretty much have Judgement. Yes the Dragon engine GFX are pretty, but the sole driver is now the tension of resolving a mystery with one long grind to get there. Missions, pacing, side quests just seem to lack the humour and shine. Many just seem to be running across theTake Yakuza, remove the charming and crazy characters, then add tail and detective mechanics with no challenge and you pretty much have Judgement. Yes the Dragon engine GFX are pretty, but the sole driver is now the tension of resolving a mystery with one long grind to get there. Missions, pacing, side quests just seem to lack the humour and shine. Many just seem to be running across the map. And now that the signature quirkiness has been dialled back, oddities like the dating mechanic just seem creepy. I’m catching up with the Yakuza 4 remaster and even with the dated GFX I’m enjoying it more after 30 mins than 12 hours of Judgment, which is a shame, because I really wanted to like it.… Expand
  9. Bollywongaloid
    Oct 1, 2021
    5
    Okay I guess. Main story is somewhat compelling but in terms of gameplay you’re basically being pointed from A to B and just follow a linear path with no real deduction involved. Some mini games and side quests can be fun but the detective mechanics may as well not be there they’re so irrelevant. Found myself getting bored a lot. O and the combat is terrible. This game tries to doOkay I guess. Main story is somewhat compelling but in terms of gameplay you’re basically being pointed from A to B and just follow a linear path with no real deduction involved. Some mini games and side quests can be fun but the detective mechanics may as well not be there they’re so irrelevant. Found myself getting bored a lot. O and the combat is terrible. This game tries to do everything and graphically speaking is well polished with nice menus but found myself tuning out from the game far too often.… Expand
  10. MakeEmSweat
    Jul 19, 2019
    5
    Worst climax ever, i really hope there is no more judgment in the future, the story line is great but the detective mechanics are terrible, fighting is boring and the minigames...no karaoke neither hostess?really??This game doesn´t look like a Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio game
  11. robogeisha
    Aug 18, 2019
    4
    Hey, I've got an idea... what if we made a game which took all of Yakuza's problems but stripped out all the fun and goofiness that make the games so enjoyable, replacing them with a set of tedious "detective" mechanics which you can't possibly fail but which consume lots of time?

    If that sounds like a great idea then I have some good news: Judgment is that game. If it sounds like a    Hey, I've got an idea... what if we made a game which took all of Yakuza's problems but stripped out all the fun and goofiness that make the games so enjoyable, replacing them with a set of tedious "detective" mechanics which you can't possibly fail but which consume lots of time?

    If that sounds like a great idea then I have some good news: Judgment is that game. If it sounds like a terrible idea then I've got some bad news...

    Judgment takes us back to the same few blocks of Kamurocho that we know and love from Yakuza, now looking nicely shiny and HD but otherwise basically unchanged. It gives us a new player character, Ex-Yakuza, ex-lawyer private detective Tak ... great hair but zero charisma. Before long we're given a case to work, collecting evidence for the defence team in a murder trial. This mostly involves running across the city collecting clues, which the game leads you to and then pieces together for you. This is no puzzle game.

    Every so often you get into a fight where much like Yakuza you're fighting the camera and the finicky controls as much as the NPCs. In Hard difficulty these are either so easy they're tedious (e.g. any street encounter) or so difficult the only way to get through them is repeatedly hitting pause to eat sushi (e.g. first proper boss fight).

    I've only played about 6 hours of the game, so maybe it gets better, but since I haven't cracked a smile once in those 6 hours, or found any reason to care what happens, I can't see any good reason to keep playing on the off-chance it's going to improve.    … Expand
  12. shiftyman
    Dec 6, 2019
    3
    Absolute b grade trash, clunky, boring, horrible sound and graphics, it’s more talk then anything, and so much off it ripped out from the yakuza games, from the fighting animations to the whole map. Just trying to cash in from yakuza success.
  13. SpiffyStan
    Sep 28, 2019
    3
    Great story until you figure it out before the characters do, and when you're supplied with choices the most obvious and correct ones are omitted, which leaves your detective character feeling a bit slow and dumb waiting for someone else to figure it out and explain it to you. The combat is super clunky like the rest of the Yakuza games.
  14. Zeydlitz
    Jun 21, 2019
    1
    And again some poor choices for this series -- now they made minigames unavoidable again. Well, some of them o'k, but others (most Club Sega ones) are lame and SHOULD BE REMOVED.
  15. grom51
    Sep 22, 2021
    0
    The are no Russian subtitles. The bestial attitude of developers.
    Lost Judgment get the same rating.
  16. gagames_br
    Jul 11, 2019
    0
    The minigames are horrible, the graphics do not make me happy, does not have HDR and in the sound part does not have Dolby Atmos. The game is very repetitive and annoying.
  17. Baldinor
    Sep 4, 2019
    0
    Aburrido y lento, muy poca acción en este título, esperaba mucho más de él.
  18. AceAscendus
    Aug 21, 2019
    0
    Boring garbage. It would have been better to spend the resources wasted on this piece of garbage game on making proper Kiwami remakes of Yakuza 3, 4 and 5. Dumb developers don't even know what their fanbase wants. Yakuza is popular because of the characters and humor, you can't take that out and want to replace it with a boring detective drama with this tryhard character, absolute failure.
  19. drodriguezch99
    Oct 23, 2022
    0
    The game has a great combat system, Kamurocho looks amazing and the story its pretty good, with an important extension that reaches the 40 hours+ which makes it kind of heavy on the gaming sessions and a little difficult to keep up with the pace with details and immersion. The side cases are one of the best plus of this game with a lot more of content keeping the quality on each one.
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Awards & Rankings

66
#66 Best PS4 Game of 2019
36
#36 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2019
23
#23 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 83 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 70 out of 83
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 83
  3. Negative: 0 out of 83
  1. Game World Navigator Magazine
    Aug 2, 2019
    70
    It’s obvious the team didn’t have the budget of Yakuza 6 for this game. But that gives the game its own charm, like those criminal dramas on TV that you would never watch on purpose, but if you stumble upon one, you’re going to see it to the end. [Issue#239, p.52]
  2. Critical Hit
    Jul 31, 2019
    85
    Whether you’re a long-time Yakuza fan or just coming to this series, Judgment is well worth the investment. Boasting a cracking story, oodles of content and a fantastic fighting system, this spin-off can keep you glued for days… possibly months.
    Read full review
  3. Vgames
    Jul 25, 2019
    70
    Judgment is too afraid to let go of its defining "Yakuza" features, pushing detective gameplay to the side to let the combat mechanics shine. Its story is gripping and very enjoyable, running alongside the extra side content which is full of heart and entertainment. Give Judgment a shot, whether you're a die-hard Yakuza fan, or a newbie to the franchise.
    Read full review
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