Ryû ga gotoku Zero: Chikai no basho

Yakuza 0 is an action-adventure game that is the sixth main entry in the franchise and serves as prequel to the original game. The game takes places between December 1988 and January 1989 in Kamurocho, Tokyo and Sotenbori, Osaka. Players can control charismatic protagonist Kiryu Kazuma and eccentric Majima Goro. The story revolves around an empty lot in Kamurocho that is owned by a young woman living in Osaka who suffers from psychogenic blindness and is mercilessly hunted down by criminal organizations.

This game convinces on numerous levels. The game play is very addictive as players can incarnate the franchise's two most skilled fighters in this game which makes for extraordinary and unique fight sequences. These characters also have a more humane touch this time around since they are much younger than in the other games and trying to help a helpless innocent woman you can't help but rooting for.

The story is also intriguing as it comes around with several conspiracies, turns and twists that will keep players on the edges of their seats. The number of characters here is more impressive than in many television series featuring multiple seasons.

This game also helps us understand how the two lead characters became the people they are in the other releases of the franchise. Regular players will discover sides of these characters that they would have never expected to witness.

It also oozes with atmosphere and brings Japan in the late eighties to life in authentic fashion with less modern suburbs, elegant discotheques and tons of addictive arcade games. The accompanying soundtrack completes the authentic immersion.

This game once again offers value for money, with the main story taking more than thirty hours to be completed while finishing the numerous different side stories might take far over one hundred hours.

While not being the franchise's most memorable game, it serves its purpose as a prequel exploring the main characters' origins extremely well. This is why this game should certainly please regular fans of the franchise. However, it would also serve as excellent starting point for new fans who could then continue their discovery of this extraordinary game series chronologically.

S tier, 10/10. Such a brilliantly over the top game. The story goes in so many different directions and is just a joy to watch. The combat is satisfying, I loved Majima's set the best and the baseball bat the most. Kiru's beast mode was great too. The open world was perfectly condensed with interesting side missions and plenty of things to do.

The infamous kareoke songs are brilliant, the race car game was exceptional, my favorite was however the dancing, just perfect. It did definitely drag at the end and felt a bit repetitive with the combat but there are so many great story moments and things to keep you playing. The last mission is so great and is such a brilliant set piece ending.

The customisation of your character however is very limited and pretty much non existent. The side missions are great but it is very easy to miss them as you have to explore in so many different areas. This is both good and bad as it forces you to explore but is just very time consuming and fustrating for me personally. I did go back to complete the side missions I missed in free roam mode but it just felt really repetitive and tedious to wander around the streets, exploring every inch of this place just to find a questline. Majima's story goes a bit all over the place after the incredible introduction. Over time it definitely got better but was weaker compared to Kiru's.

I haven't played the later games but several characters such as Kiru's best friend who felt like a major character didn't have much of a role. I'm sure that he is more important in the later games but i am very hesitant to play them, as I feel this style of combat and exploration could really get old after a while. I was interested in the story but I just looked up a video online, which definitely made me want to check out some of the games, I probably will but at a later date.

I did get this game because of Dunkey's review and am glad to say I enjoyed it allot more than him. I do agree with most of his points but the story is definitely better than he made it out to be. I'm not angry or anything I just wish he enjoyed it as much as I did.

In all a game I really enjoyed and just wanted to keep on playing and playing till the end. Definitely one of the most fun games I have played.

This is honestly a top 5 game for me at worst, I finished it recently due to a friend recommending it as a starting point and this was perfect for that

The game is all over the place and messy in the perfect way, one moment I'm laughing at something stupid, the next I'm angry at a character in the game and wanna beat them with the wrath of god, then I'm emotional devastated over something because let me say this games ending hurts

The story is paced well and constantly has my investment each chapter, plus the characters were all brilliantly written, with my favourite of the bunch being Goro Majima, this is all further complimented by the simple yet satisfying melee combat system which can make you feel like an absolute badass at certain points

Either way I'd 100% recommend this game as a start to Yakuza as it really shows you the bond between two characters Kiryu and Nishiki before Kiwami, which makes that games story even more impactful, as well as making Majima more than just a funny guy used for comic relief

"This truly was our Yakuza 0" - Goro Majima.

A great prequel story for some of the main stays. The story grabbed me and the characters intrigued me. Everything just fell into place.

The story is freaking awesome. It catches you early on and you are hooked until the very end. The mini-games in this game would count as full length games in other games.

For example, bowling is great, pool is awesome, karaoke is fun, darts are fun too, you can dance, and do all sorts of stuff. You can also manage clubs, buy property, hire people to manage your business, and a few more things.

Also you can find soft-porn cards that unlock softcore movies, and so much more man.

The only issue I have is that you engage in too many fights, it becomes repetitive after a while. There are times where people on the streets will just start fight with you every few seconds, and it gets too much sometimes.

Anyways,9/10.