Yakuza Kiwami

 PlayStation 4
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 673 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 512 out of 673
  2. Mixed: 95 out of 673
  3. Negative: 66 out of 673
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  1. OrochiamruSama
    Aug 29, 2017
    10
    As A long time yakuza fan,yakuza 0 was the best game ever for me and kiwami is the perfect sequel for it,if you want games with the best story and huge amount of content, yakuza games are for you
  2. 17_jrpg
    Aug 29, 2017
    10
    Yakuza Kiwami returns the first game of the series back to life in a way that is completely rebuilt from ground up for the PS4. This open world action-adventure game with role-playing elements follows the story of Kazuma Kiryu, the Dragon of Dojima, whose life changes because of the incident that occurred in the Dojima Family office. In Kiwami, the original story gets an extension thatYakuza Kiwami returns the first game of the series back to life in a way that is completely rebuilt from ground up for the PS4. This open world action-adventure game with role-playing elements follows the story of Kazuma Kiryu, the Dragon of Dojima, whose life changes because of the incident that occurred in the Dojima Family office. In Kiwami, the original story gets an extension that adds a new depth of story which tells us about friendship, love, respect, loyalty, sacrifice, greed, betrayal and revenge. New additions to the story further explain certain parts of the story that may have been unclear in the original.

    In Kiwami, they also improved gameplay. Battle system from the original game has been enhanced by adding the battle styles from Yakuza 0. Now you can choose one of four battle styles: Brawler (balance), Rush (speed), Beast (power) and Dragon (ultimate). Each style has its own benefits and weaknesses, so it's up to you to choose the battle style that suits you best or that you currently need in a particular fight. All four battle styles are unlocked and you can train them all to the maximum by using experiece points (EXP) earned from battles and solving side quests (substories and romance with hostesses). To power up the Dragon style you have to fight with Goro Majima everywhere in Kamurocho. They have also improved other aspects of gameplay by adding new substories, two new ladies to romance, MesuKing: Battle Bug Beuaties, and much more nightlife spots. All this gives the player to enjoy even more in Kamurocho.

    Sega has done a very good job with this remake and has demonstrated to other video game developer how to make a real remake of old game. I'm glad they decided to make a remake of the original Yakuza game which is one of my favorite games on PS2. I hope that Sega will also do a good job with Yakuza Kiwami 2, and I also hope that they will decide to make Yakuza Kiwami 3 as well because I only did not play Yakuza 3.    … Expand
  3. marshallu2018
    Sep 10, 2017
    8
    This was my first game in the Yakuza series and I now know what I've been missing. This game is a ton of fun and I'm glad I got it.

    The combat is satisfying and I like that you can switch between four different combat styles to mix it up a bit. There's the brawler style, which is a mix of fast and powerful attacks. Then there's the slow and powerful beast style. Next up is my    This was my first game in the Yakuza series and I now know what I've been missing. This game is a ton of fun and I'm glad I got it.

    The combat is satisfying and I like that you can switch between four different combat styles to mix it up a bit. There's the brawler style, which is a mix of fast and powerful attacks. Then there's the slow and powerful beast style. Next up is my personal favorite, the rush style, that is great for quick punches and still packs a powerful punch. Lastly, there's the dragon style; dragon style is similar to brawler, but it's more powerful and a little slower, but not quite as slow as beast.

    The mini games in Yakuza Kiwami are arguably its strongest (and, at times, quirkiest) feature. The mini games are a blast to play and there is a great variety, from bowling and billiards to more obscure things like pocket car racing with little kids and rock paper scissors in the form of bikini clad women dressed as bugs. No matter what you like, Yakuza Kiwami probably has a mini game that suits you.

    Great features aside, Yakuza Kiwami isn't perfect. First, there's the Majima Everywhere system; at first it's kind of fun and it's quirky enough to give the game some extra life, but after a while it gets annoying having to fight Majima, your rival, so often. Another weak point of this game is the way that most missions and sub stories end up feeling like fetch quests, where you find yourself running all over the map from point A to point B and back to point A again. The in-game city of Kamurocho isn't all that big when you compare it to other games such as Grand Theft Auto V's Los Santos, but it can take a while to get from one end of the map to the other.

    Overall, I highly recommend this game. While it isn't perfect, it brings some charm to the table and has an interesting story that's rifled with betrayal and plot twists. The mini games can keep you busy for hours if you get interested in them and they offer a fun, light hearted escape from the serious story.    … Expand
  4. tomvs123
    Mar 30, 2018
    7
    Make no doubt about it, this is a good game for lovers of good stories, which have been rare from Japanese video games recently. If you're like crime dramas, then you'll probably like this game more than me.

    I don't like crime dramas at all, but I got some good enjoyment out of this one, primarily because of the Yakuza/Japanese setting, which is very different than what you get from the    Make no doubt about it, this is a good game for lovers of good stories, which have been rare from Japanese video games recently. If you're like crime dramas, then you'll probably like this game more than me.

    I don't like crime dramas at all, but I got some good enjoyment out of this one, primarily because of the Yakuza/Japanese setting, which is very different than what you get from the typical American crime drama.

    Your primary goal in the game is to find out what happened to your almost-girlfriend, who you lost touch with since you've been in jail for the past 10 years (partially because of said girlfriend). Along with that, you've working to protect a young girl from various Yakuza factions while trying to find out why they want to kill/kidnap her.

    There's no major issues with the characters or story, although there's a moderate amount of cliche-following going on. The story is no masterpiece, but it's mostly believable and entertaining. The biggest plot hole is the protagonist's fighting abilities. He's able to punch his way through hordes of armed attackers with no issue and that's the primary thing that moves the story forward: you just beat up people who get in your way.

    Also, I'm always annoyed by this, so I must mention that the bad guy reveals his master plan right before the final battle, which sort of took me out of the otherwise serious main story.

    The main story is dead serious and there are some major character deaths happening. But almost all of the side-story content is silly, so there's some good contrasting gong on. A great part of the experience is watching your serious protagonist deal with the silly side-missions, with a few of them (particularly the mini games) resulting in him acting quite child-like. With his old looks and deep voice, it's quite hilarious.

    Also, since I've also been annoyed by many recent Japanese games having walls of meaningless (filler) dialogue, I must mention that this game is mostly free of that. There's just a little of that going on, and it seems more related to the genre (crime drama) rather than this being Japanese.

    I don't care about gameplay or combat much (I'm a story guy). The combat is good enough, but the number of mini games and side content must be mentioned. For someone who normally skips all side-content, they managed to capture my attention and I ended up completing most of the mini games and side-missions. They were interesting and unique enough to keep me engaged and coming back for more.

    So overall, for being my first Yakuza game, this was a great 40-hour experience. Here's hoping that the story only gets better in future Yakuza games.    … Expand
  5. Kenmei
    Apr 18, 2018
    8
    A remake that took a number of things that were already used in Yakuza 0, like models and even sidequests, to remake the original 1st game in the series. The game does ok in that regards, however the battle system was just straight up ripped from 0 to this game and the issues with that are still obvious here. The side quests aren't as varied as 0 and the inability to play as Majima, who IA remake that took a number of things that were already used in Yakuza 0, like models and even sidequests, to remake the original 1st game in the series. The game does ok in that regards, however the battle system was just straight up ripped from 0 to this game and the issues with that are still obvious here. The side quests aren't as varied as 0 and the inability to play as Majima, who I personally liked more than Kiryu in 0, really hurt this game for me personally. The addition of multiple fetch quests to move the main story along too does nothing to help what I already thought a story that shows its age in today's video game world. However, at only 30 bucks full price, it's hard to argue the value you're getting here in the whole package. This is essentially Kiryu's part of Yakuza 0, minus the massive real estate side quest. It feels like it would been better suited as an expansion rather then a full fledged title but its hard to argue against it's value. I'd personally recommend people play Yakuza 0 if they've never touched one of these games before. That's what feels like the true, new starting point for the series, then moving onto this one. And with Yakuza 6 coming out later this week, it was nice to see the origins of one of the most recognizable video game faces in the Japanese scene. As someone relatively new to the series though, this obviously felt more in line with what a large expansion would do instead of a brand new game. But it's a good refresher for the series for people who are about to get 6 this week, and Kiwami 2 later this summer. Just definitely go with Yakuza 0 before playing this is what I'd recommend.… Expand
  6. jelikey
    Aug 26, 2018
    8
    This was my first game in the Yakuza series and I now know what I've been missing. This game is a ton of fun and I'm glad I got it.

    The combat is satisfying and I like that you can switch between four different combat styles to mix it up a bit. There's the brawler style, which is a mix of fast and powerful attacks. Then there's the slow and powerful beast style.
  7. 613th
    Oct 28, 2019
    5
    It was my first game on PS4 and i have finished it just because of it, in other situation i will not play this one.
    The game is very specific, i'd say - for asian market only.
  8. VashloveNpeace
    Jul 24, 2020
    8
    Yakuza Kiwami is basically a remake of the Yakuza 1 game, It is using the new Dragon Game Engine and the visual is stunning for the series. If you play Yakuza 1 then you know this game is gonna be awesome.
  9. Jollyolfun
    Nov 18, 2022
    6
    Rebuild of the original Yakuza, not bad whatsoever, very slow though, and the combat isn't quite there compared to other Yakuza games.
  10. Gandalf44
    Sep 8, 2017
    10
    This game is incredible. The Value is excellent. If you love a good story, lots of drama, turns, twists, and plots that rival game of thrones, then you might love this game. Im a developer, and i really, really appreciate what Sega has done with this series. I hope they take this game style and gameplay, and bring it to other genres and themes. If the developer is reading this, you'veThis game is incredible. The Value is excellent. If you love a good story, lots of drama, turns, twists, and plots that rival game of thrones, then you might love this game. Im a developer, and i really, really appreciate what Sega has done with this series. I hope they take this game style and gameplay, and bring it to other genres and themes. If the developer is reading this, you've earned a fan for life!… Expand
  11. badgerryan19
    Aug 31, 2017
    9
    Yakuza Kiwami returns as the first game in the series worked from the ground up and oh boy is it a blast. Along side Yakuza 0 this is starting to pick up some big momentum towards Yakuza 6. Heck there could be two Yakuza games in my top 10 games of the year so far. Great game. I do feel like 0 is just a tad better though, but besides the point the game has great characters, writing, storyYakuza Kiwami returns as the first game in the series worked from the ground up and oh boy is it a blast. Along side Yakuza 0 this is starting to pick up some big momentum towards Yakuza 6. Heck there could be two Yakuza games in my top 10 games of the year so far. Great game. I do feel like 0 is just a tad better though, but besides the point the game has great characters, writing, story ridiculous fun action. Do yourself a favor and get this and Yakuza 0 if you haven't.… Expand
  12. hasan_oddeyes77
    Sep 12, 2017
    10
    omg this game is so good i liked the story-characters -music very much and i am so excited to play yakuza 0 thank you Sega for this masterpiece wooooooooow
  13. ultimatesoll
    Aug 31, 2017
    10
    Latest Yakuza game finally came to the west after it’s localization thanks to Sega. This game is remake of original Yakuza (“Ryu Ga Gotoku” in Japan) game which released in 2005.

    The very first Yakuza game was badass, fun to play and had awesome scenario. But 2017 version offering much more than that. Highly detailed next-gen graphics, new camera view, enhanced framerate which is    Latest Yakuza game finally came to the west after it’s localization thanks to Sega. This game is remake of original Yakuza (“Ryu Ga Gotoku” in Japan) game which released in 2005.

    The very first Yakuza game was badass, fun to play and had awesome scenario. But 2017 version offering much more than that.

    Highly detailed next-gen graphics, new camera view, enhanced framerate which is perfectly run at 60fps and re-mastered Kamurocho area will bring your memories from past as well as great experience.

    Kiwami has offering new gameplay for our main hero: Kazuma Kiryu. Like in “Yakuza 0”, the character has 4 main gameplay set which you can upgrade throughout the game.

    The in-game sound is awesome, all stage tunes are good and supporting the action. All VAs had great job on this remaster.

    Boss battles, fighting locations, secret locations, secret missions, upgrades, fun parts, cut-scenes, main characters, side characters..they all great. Yakuza 1 is clearly my favourite Yakuza game in entire series in terms of story telling and ending.

    Finding secret “side-missions”, Nishiki’s (who is Kiryu’s old friend) campaigns (which is not included in old version but added to this version), cage matches and lots of action surely make you happy during your walkthrough.

    Literally Sega is making one Yakuza game each year and localize them after a period. Yakuza Kiwami released in Japan long ago but glad we have this game on our market now. Not to mention Yakuza 2 Remake (Ryu Ga Gotoku 2 Kiwami) will be on stores in Japan at the end of the year.

    Brawls in Kamurocho streets will never end!

    Have fun and play on.    … Expand
  14. Shincy
    Sep 6, 2017
    10
    As many players gave comment how good the main story is, I would like to highlight sub-stories are very entertaining, as funny/weird/bizarre as it sound, many of them are realistic situation in Japan.
    It is of the few games that I really enjoy to read those conversation, and the voice/conversation/test of the game is what really gave soul to characters and the game.
  15. ShadowPeter
    Sep 5, 2017
    9
    Ryu ga Gotoku Kiwami (in Japan), better known as Yakuza Kiwami in the West, is a remake of the first Yakuza. It is a game of action and adventure and that has as protagonist the monstrous, invincible, fighting against evil person's and always with the good people, Kazuma Kiryu.

    As in all other titles of the Yakuza series, Kamurocho, based in the royal city of Kabukicho, Japan, is always    Ryu ga Gotoku Kiwami (in Japan), better known as Yakuza Kiwami in the West, is a remake of the first Yakuza. It is a game of action and adventure and that has as protagonist the monstrous, invincible, fighting against evil person's and always with the good people, Kazuma Kiryu.

    As in all other titles of the Yakuza series, Kamurocho, based in the royal city of Kabukicho, Japan, is always present. How could it not be, the story is told by long cutscenes, with the Japanese voices (which I say right away, listen to the voice of Takaya Kuroda, aka the one who gives voice to Kazuma Kiryu ... it is impossible to remain indifferent) and with Subtitles in English, which are very well planned and with dramatic touches, which in most moments leave us curious and eager to progress the story.

    For those who come from Yakuza 0, the gameplay is identical, taking the fact that in this Kiwami there is one more fighting style and a few more heat moves. During the heat of the fighting, Kiryu has 4 types of fighting style: Brawler (balanced); Rush (fast movements and mobility); Beast (Slow but powerful) and the Dragon (similar to the Brawler, but with some different movements).

    Continuing to talk about the fighting, under the Kiryu energy bar there is something (blue) called the Heat Gauge, if the main bar is filled up (do not forget that if we take blows from the enemy, the bar will empty), gets on fire and means that we can perform "Heat moves", which are powerful and rewarding strokes, so to speak. And the blows are very varied and it's cool (even better if it's against Goro Majima, but later I'll talk about this funny guy), step on the face of the enemy, remove the nail or the tooth from our opponent with pliers etc etc etc...

    As we defeat our opponents, we gain experience points, which can be used to purchase upgrades. Upgrades are divided into four categories: Soul (improve Heat Gauge, add Climax Heat Moves that are slightly stronger moves than heat moves, etc.), Tech (add new hits, quicksteps, quich evasions, Healt bar, boosting the attack, etc.) and Dragon (with this, Kiryu can relearn the techniques of the Dragon of Dojima). But to acquire certain abilities, we have to look at the requirements and fight (and defeat) against (believe it you will fight against him so many times...) the Goro Majima or complete the challenges of Sotaro Komaki.

    The crazy Goro Majima decided on his own to help Kiryu to relearn some techniques of the Dragon of Dojima, most often walks the streets of Kamurocho to call (with a touch loving and wailing lol) Kiryu, or walks in certain bars, clubs, etc. And as such... as soon as we come face to face with him, we have to defeat him in a fight or a mini-game. After we defeat it, the bar of the ranking (initially we will stay in rank F) will gradually increase and when the bar is filled, we have to do a special event, that to the terms success, we go up rank (E, D, C, B , A, S, SS and SSS) and ... as obvious, in doing so, the difficulty (in fights) increases. The only complaint I point out at this Majima Everywhere is ... listening to Goro's "Kiryu-chan" call for Kazuma over and over, either after we've left the pause menu or in some store, it becomes a bit annoying. But don't worry, fortunately doesn't spoil the experience that we are having in the game.

    Yakuza Kiwami is also a kind of semi-open world, always on the go and no cars to drive. We can take some taxi to get to some distant street, as well as go to discos, restaurants, bars, hostess clubs, Club Sega's, karaokes, etc. In the streets of Kamurocho, we find people who are in trouble with henchmen, Yakuza's, etc. And we have the power to decide whether we should intervene or not. If we choose to help, we will have to offer punches and leave these useless with bruises. If we succeed, the victim will give us any reward. Just as we can find on the streets those useless individuals who persecute us and who want to give us annoyances, and if we get caught, we are forced to fight and give them some beautiful blows. Sometimes Yakuza's, punk's and gang's bump our way (especially in narrow places) to the destination we want to go, and in Yakuza 3, 4 and 5 we just kept the R1 button (slow steps) to go unnoticed by them. In this Kiwami this no longer happens, and as soon as they come, we have to run to get away from them. Let's say it's a frustrating rather than a negative point.

    And as it could not fail to have, the game has a Coliseum in which we can fight against the best fighters. Don't forget the huge amount of mini-games. In technical terms, what do you think of this game with 1080p with 60 FPS's without having a single framerate break?? Beautiful, right?? Even though it is not as spectacular as Yakuza 4 and 5, the kiwami soundtrack is good. In short, whoever liked the rest of the Yakuza, will like this Kiwami and when you have the game, have this spirit of Kazuma Kiryu to the enemies: "If you want to die, come at me!!".    … Expand
  16. scruffy_77
    Dec 7, 2017
    10
    Just brilliant... the story of these games are brilliant, the game is brilliant and perhaps I should mention it is brilliant. I am just sad I have to wait until March for Yakuza 6. A masterpiece!
  17. monokuma888
    Oct 3, 2017
    10
    This game is great, and I reached this conclusion after a few hours of playing. I've had the game for a few weeks now and I've periodically picked it up here and there. For me, that is how I have gotten the most out of Yakuza Kiwami. I play for a few hours, set it down for a few days, and finally come back to it again. This is my first Yakuza experience and after having gotten more thanThis game is great, and I reached this conclusion after a few hours of playing. I've had the game for a few weeks now and I've periodically picked it up here and there. For me, that is how I have gotten the most out of Yakuza Kiwami. I play for a few hours, set it down for a few days, and finally come back to it again. This is my first Yakuza experience and after having gotten more than half way through it, I was prompted to buy Zero because this franchise is amazing. Just an amazing brawler that is extremely underrated. It's ridiculous that it took me this long to get into the series, but now that I am, it is a pleasure to play.… Expand
  18. shiftyman
    Aug 29, 2017
    9
    Yakuza games are the best, not only do they have great engrossing main stories, main characters you can really get involved with, plus all the crazy side quests and mini games, Yakuza Kiwami is no exception.
  19. GamingNinja
    Sep 23, 2017
    9
    A solid game priced the right way.
    Feels like an expansion for Yakuza Zero.
    My only problem is that it feels like a downgrade from Yakuza Zero,
    Which came out before Kiwami.
    Bring those Yakuza games to the rest of the world quickly now.. having the rest wait years only damages the product.
    Looking forward to Yakuza 6 and Kiwami 2.
  20. HTGamer
    Nov 22, 2017
    9
    Yakuza Kiwami is a great remaster of a great PS2-era Sega game, made for PS4.

    The Yakuza series (known in Japan as "Ryū ga Gotoku") are story-based brawler games, with a variety of mini-games to spice things up. Sadly the series isn't well known outside of Japan because of its focus on japanese culture, but in recent years Sega have been making a serious effort to promote these games to    Yakuza Kiwami is a great remaster of a great PS2-era Sega game, made for PS4.

    The Yakuza series (known in Japan as "Ryū ga Gotoku") are story-based brawler games, with a variety of mini-games to spice things up. Sadly the series isn't well known outside of Japan because of its focus on japanese culture, but in recent years Sega have been making a serious effort to promote these games to the West. They even remake some older games such as the original game, which has been re-launched as Yakuza Kiwami ("remaster") for the PS4 (there is also a PS3 version).

    Yakuza Kiwami is a brawler game set in an open map (not open world, mind you) for you to walk through and do all sorts of yakuza things, from fighting punks in the street to eat burgers in restaurants and undertake missions (both main and side ones). The story may be serious but there is always a subtle comical side to this game.

    The combat system is quite complex at first because it includes 4 different fighting styles and features many upgrades, but you 'll get used to it after a bit. You can mash buttons against typical goons but you won't succeed against bosses, you have to take advantage of combos and special moves to beat them. Thankfully the game is super smooth thanks to its 60 fps frame rate, and even when fighting against many opponents at once there are no drops to frame rate.

    This game's strongest characteristic is its storytelling. Most characters are great and memorable, including the protagonist Kazuma Kiryu. The plot centers around Yakuza/Mafia things and I won't spoil it. But Majima steals the show due to his frequent out-of-nowhere attacks against Kiryu, with bizarre motives. But that's fun, he's not attacking you randomly every 5 minutes to be a nuisance. He attacks you after completing a mission, and you are rewarded with a new upgrade for defeating him.

    I have complaints about the existence of a few invisible walls here and there (come on Sega, really?), plus the camera inside closed rooms is problematic. Also, on Hard Difficulty some boss fights are very cheap, so prepare to be frustrated.

    Yakuza Kiwami is my first experience of this series and I instantly loved it. I picked up the Steelbook Edition at a very low price and I don't regret it. I can't wait to play more Yakuza games, like Yakuza 0 and the upcoming Yakuza 6!    … Expand
  21. Jvbcdtm3
    Nov 4, 2018
    8
    Story:7.3
    Gameplay:8
    Mechanics:10
    Sounds:8
    Characters :9
    Details: 8
    Animations:8
  22. hazartas
    Jan 7, 2018
    10
    Do yourself a favor and just buy this game right now. It's a great remake of the original Yakuza on PS2. It's the sequel of Yakuza 0 which is GOTY of 2017. You will love this game!
  23. sufflaminandus
    Jul 7, 2019
    8
    Beautiful, witty, unexpectedly complex and diverse, Yakuza Kiwami, my first Yakuza game, definitely goes to my favorites. Story is of a solid action-movie quality with tons of gorgeously animated cutscenes, awesome voice-acting and memorable characters. It *is* naive, cliche-ish and very Japanese with their never ending preaching of diligence, duty and virtuousness but still it featuresBeautiful, witty, unexpectedly complex and diverse, Yakuza Kiwami, my first Yakuza game, definitely goes to my favorites. Story is of a solid action-movie quality with tons of gorgeously animated cutscenes, awesome voice-acting and memorable characters. It *is* naive, cliche-ish and very Japanese with their never ending preaching of diligence, duty and virtuousness but still it features numerous intricate turns and twists and delivers positive emotions. Combat is dynamic, fun and engaging with surprisingly extensive skill trees and small but pleasant equipment system. In particularly, this RPG-like character development elevates Yakuza Kiwami above many other similar games because what can be more addictive than leveling up or gearing your hero? Finally, the greatest department of Yakuza Kiwami: open-world...emm, district. Knowing that “Japanese” is basically a synonym of “generic”, I expected Yakuza Kiwami open-worldness to be comprised of marker-chase tasks, all in good western traditions of AC, Far Cry and etc. Imagine my surprise when Yakuza Kiwamy did not ask me to collect 6 coins or complete 5 races but instead provided me with unique substories (Yakuza official term) which are sometimes so original, or funny, or grand that I would not be embarrassed to call them fully fledged “quests”. Plus, these quest gives you huge amounts of experience, can you believe this? JRPG are renown for complete absence of sensible sidequests and boom: action-adventure game (!) has RPG elements that are more sophisticated and thorough then of so called RPGs, both western or eastern. But aside from encountering strangers, the entertainment of Kamurocho includes numerous minigames. When I hear the word ‘minigame’ I usually spit in contempt. It is not the case in Yakuza Kiwami. Here, most minigames are actually worth a try and some of them are virtually blow the mind with their ingenuity like hostess clubs, MesuKing or Pocket Circuit Racing. And Majima-everywhere? The game deserves its bucks simply thanks to this guy.

    Unfortunately I have finish on negative note. I loved literally every aspect of the game except one: exploration is limited to one small district. I personally regard diversity of scenery as a crucial element in the long games but in Yakuza Kiwami you will trudge the very same streets for thirty hours straight. Kamurocho is beautiful and interesting but it was barely enough for its length. The scariest thought for me is that *all* Yakuza games takes place in this one small town, over and over again.

    In the end, I strongly recommend Yakuza Kiwami to anyone who does not mind Japanese yakuza setting. Gameplay of this game is as solid as a rock. But play Yakuza 0 first, do not repeat my mistake.    … Expand
  24. DrSiko
    Dec 22, 2017
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Gameplay gets so repetitive it's so boring. Go to point A, fight goons, go to point B, fight Yakuza gang, go to point C, fight more goons.

    I didn't have the chance to play it on PS2 so it's my first time living the story. The story didn't get climax until the end and I was quite disappointed at the ending which is cheesy and uncalled for. Yakuza 0 was far more refined. I felt every scene there like it's the final one. So much climax and deep feelings. This one is plain and even ridiculous.

    it's weird too how Yakuza peeps who are notorious for money laundry, drug and sex trafficking are burning 10Bil to prevent a gang leader to do so lol.    … Expand
  25. JERupp
    Dec 10, 2018
    1
    This is by far one of the most overrated games I have ever had the displeasure of pushing myself to grind through. The only redeemable part of this game is the story, and it's really just a somehow white-washed, weeabu attempt at being a Japanese interpretation of the Count of Monte Cristo.

    The side games are all extremely heavy on re-showing the same animations, the graphics are barely    This is by far one of the most overrated games I have ever had the displeasure of pushing myself to grind through. The only redeemable part of this game is the story, and it's really just a somehow white-washed, weeabu attempt at being a Japanese interpretation of the Count of Monte Cristo.

    The side games are all extremely heavy on re-showing the same animations, the graphics are barely passable for a game made in this decade, and the fighting is really just an orgy of men slapping each other until the main character stands on top after drinking about a dozen energy drinks. Everything about this game is inflated "game hours" with grindy, endlessly boring and unrewarding RPG aspects that somehow overstay their welcome before you even start learning how to unlock the "Dragon of Dojima" skills--a feat that is absolutely useless as you basically need to be endgame before you can finish learning said fighting style (and rush is the best fighting style by far).

    If this is what the series is all about, I'll be taking a hard pass on the future iterations.    … Expand
  26. jackjackson4206
    Apr 5, 2020
    0
    At first glance Yakuza Kiwami looks like a great game. Decent story, as far as video games go, and a big city to explore. Unfortunately it is soon apparent that all the minigames used to pad the game are all poorly designed, with sluggish menus, unskippable dialogue which you must sit through everytime you wish to retry a challenge, and no retry option. Furthermore, roaming the city toAt first glance Yakuza Kiwami looks like a great game. Decent story, as far as video games go, and a big city to explore. Unfortunately it is soon apparent that all the minigames used to pad the game are all poorly designed, with sluggish menus, unskippable dialogue which you must sit through everytime you wish to retry a challenge, and no retry option. Furthermore, roaming the city to knock out the challenges will be constantly interrupted by the unavoidable, easy but long Majima fights. Clearly this is a game aimed at people with no jobs or life outside of the game, because even the simplest tasks require crazy amounts of time. This kind of game design would not be acceptable in a PS2 game, let alone a PS4 game. I can only hope that the flaws in this series are seen and addressed, because it has a lot of potential, but constantly suffers from poor design choices.… Expand
  27. AfroThundah
    Oct 3, 2017
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Everyone says it's been rebuilt from the ground up but, well, it still plays like a PS2/3 era game, with the same stupid camera and all, don't get me wrong, swinging a reception lounge chair (yes, a 3 seater chair) is stupid and hilarious, but the camera does nothing to help you in fights (I'm dwelling on the terrible camera). And those climax battles, that **** can just leave, seriously. The story is the only reason this doesn't get a 0, it looks a little bit prettier than the original but not enough was done to modernise this to make it a "remake", it has to be remade, not given another lick of paint.

    **** stupid seamed to be the word of the day I started playing..........and it owes me a new controller and headset (Shimano you cheap ass sack of **** and button mashing X can **** off back to 2005)    … Expand
  28. DUKEofNY
    Jan 10, 2019
    0
    This is just cut scene's, this game (if you can call this a game) is why sega has gone down in flames. Boring, janky controls, feels like your playing ps2. If you want a story, watch a movie
  29. Zeydlitz
    Sep 8, 2017
    5
    This game could be almost perfect Yakuza game, but one piece of crap made it pretty mediocre -- it's Climax battles. This stuff SHOULD be removed from games .
  30. SOLIDSNAKEN64
    Nov 13, 2019
    8
    I enjoyed kiwami story more then 0. The game graphics looks exactly the same as 0 and looks like they just reused the same city with same assets. The goofy side quest and serious main story kept me interested the entire time. The battle system is still fun and improved slightly since 0 for the better. I wish they would put in english dubs, I would enjoy these games more instead ofI enjoyed kiwami story more then 0. The game graphics looks exactly the same as 0 and looks like they just reused the same city with same assets. The goofy side quest and serious main story kept me interested the entire time. The battle system is still fun and improved slightly since 0 for the better. I wish they would put in english dubs, I would enjoy these games more instead of having to read the captions during cutscenes.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

59
#59 Best PS4 Game of 2017
42
#42 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2017
84
#84 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2017

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
80

Generally favorable reviews - based on 70 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 59 out of 70
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 70
  3. Negative: 0 out of 70
  1. PLAY! Zine
    Apr 27, 2018
    85
    Yakuza Kiwami is a fine example of how a remaster should be done. Graphical changes and fixing some story plot holes are pretty well done. Majima everywhere is sometimes a nuisance, but all in all, it's a solid addition for an already great game.
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  2. GameCritics
    Nov 17, 2017
    65
    Overall, Yakuza Kiwami isn’t a bad game despite several issues that drag it down. No, its real problem is that Yakuza Zero is a significantly superior product in every way that matters. Fans of the original release will likely dig the modernization, but for any newcomers thinking of jumping in, I’d recommend starting with the infinitely better prequel.
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  3. CD-Action
    Nov 16, 2017
    75
    Yakuza Kiwami is so much more than just a remake of the first game in the series. Sega rebuilt the original from scratch using a much more powerful engine, with the help of completely new artists, and enriched the script with tons of references to subsequent Yakuza releases. It’s not a perfect game but it does a great job at tying up loose ends from Yakuza Zero. [11/2017, p.50]
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