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I consider myself a plugged in gamer.  I take it as a matter of professional pride to keep tabs on all manner of games, even if I’m not personally interested in them.  So imagine my surprise to learn that I’ve spent the last twelve years thinking the Yakuza series was just a low budget version of Grand Theft Auto, only to find out it’s actually a super deep roleplaying game.  This was a pleasant surprise as I worked my way through Yakuza Kiwami 2, my first true foray into the franchise.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a remake of the sequel that originally came out on the PlayStation 2 back in 2008.  Thankfully, even though I didn’t know much about the storyline or events that happened in the first game, the intro to Kiwami 2 does an excellent job bringing you up to speed thanks to a lengthy, but optional recap of the first game’s events.  At its core, this is a hardboiled look into the Japanese underworld through the eyes of that ex-Yakuza with a heart of gold, Kazuma Kiryu.  He’s a self-serious and stoic protagonist that stays consistent throughout the adventure even when things take a turn for the absurd,  and I found myself bonding with his sullen but kind demeanor.

Even though this is a remake of a ten-year-old game, you could easily pass this off as a brand-new entry in the series.  While there’s no way this title can hang with modern PS4 entries like Horizon: Zero Dawn or God of War, the character models are eerily realistic and seem as if they were taken from motion capture of actual Yakuza mob bosses.  The locations of Kamurocho and Sotenbori are chock-full of true to life details, making both areas feel lived in and natural.  This is key, because both districts are on the small side with little room for exploration, and yet they succeed in keeping the environments feel fresh and interesting during the 20-hour story.

The bulk of Kiryu’s adventure revolves around combat, and this was one of the few sticking points for me.  Not necessarily because the combat isn’t rewarding or fun to pull off, but because the game does little in the way of teaching you how it wants to be played.  Yakuza rewards methodical, thought out attacks as opposed to simply mashing the buttons.  Sadly, nothing in the tutorials or the moves you pick up along the way teach this to you.  This carries over into moves Kiryu learns during his quest.  For example, I spent hours trying to activate the Extreme Heat Mode after learning it from an NPC, only to realize that I still had to purchase the move which was buried deep in the abilities menu.  It’s little rough edges like that which detracted ever so slightly from the combat of the game.

That shouldn’t suggest Yakuza isn’t a blast to play.  Since this game is running on the game engine that brought us Yakuza 6, it benefits from improvements which have happened to the series that have happened over the last twelve years.  Fights can spill out across the street into other buildings, the environments are replete with weapons to pick up and use, and the ever-present Heat Actions never failed to put a smile on my face as I took out some smug street thugs or foolish Yakuza that thought they could step to Kiryu.  The fighting animation is fluid, and the game isn’t as rigid when it comes to attacking multiple enemies as I expect from Japanese-developed action/RPGs.  There’s a lot of depth to Yakuza for those that want to find it, but I rarely felt the need to bring out all my moves due to the game’s easy difficulty.

That ease of combat doesn’t translate to the boss fights however.  If I had one major bone to pick with Yakuza Kiwami 2, it would be the tedious boss encounters.  Most of these fights take place in an arena that doesn’t have a ton of weapons lying around, forcing you to rely on your fists and your wits.  That may be fine for some players, but I really came to enjoy utilizing weapons during my time with the game.  Most bosses are also way more defensive than any other enemies in the game, easily dodging your best moves.  Adding to the frustration is the fact that they have ridiculously long life bars, which ended up feeling like a war of attrition most of the time.  There were very few boss fights where I felt like I had a challenging fight that required me to use my best moves. Instead, I simply made use of items to keep my health and stamina up, so I could spam as many Heat Actions as needed to win.

This is a bit of a shame, because the boss encounters are where Yakuza gets the craziest.  When I was having the most fun with this game was when things would just become ridiculous in all the best ways.  The core plot of Kiwami 2 wants to keep things gritty and realistic, but there are moments when things go “Full Anime”, and I wanted more of these sections. Much more.   From side quests that involve modeling for a speedo-wearing beefcake to doing voice acting for a “Boy’s Love” video game to punching a tiger in the face, Kiwami 2 has some of the most memorable gaming moments of the year.  While I enjoyed the serious nature of the overall story, it was the times when Yakuza shrugged off the realism that I enjoyed it the most.

The places where that silliness shines the most is absolutely in the side content.  Even though I was rushing to finish this game in time for the deadline, I couldn’t help but take time out to do a lot of the side quests and events because they were some of the best parts of the game.  The translation is excellent and genuinely funny when it needs to be, even if it sneaks in some current slang which is out of place in the 2006 setting.  In addition to the great sidequests are all those amazing distractions like karaoke, hitting up the arcade to play some classic Sega games, and the two large mini-games of running the cabaret and the construction site.  Even though I was able to power through the game in a little over 20 hours, I can easily see myself doubling that time by finishing off the things I left open.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 made me a fan of the series.  Even though it’s the first game in the franchise I’ve finished, I feel a deep compulsion to go back and play everything the series has to offer.  From its solid character to its engrossing story and deep combat, I can easily see myself coming back for more.  Even if you are new to the series, like I am, this is a great place to start. I’ll definitely be going back to finish Yakuza 0 and the first Yakuza Kiwami, and if you’re already a fan, well, you already know what a treat you’re in for.