Yakuza 5 is an action-adventure game developed by SEGA released on February 11, 2020, for PlayStation 4 in the west. This game has been released in many versions, where this version is a remastered version in English and released alongside two previous games, Yakuza 3 and Yakuza 4, in a physical edition titled “Yakuza Remastered Collection”. This game serves as the series’ fifth installment and continues the journey of Kiryu Kazuma and friends. Similar to the previous two games, Yakuza 5 Remastered also comes in 1080p and 60fps.

Five Cities, Five Main Characters

Yakuza 5 continuing its predecessor by having more than one protagonist, and now this game has five characters that player can play as; Kiryu Kazuma (voiced by Takaya Kuroda) and Haruka Sawamura (Rie Kugimiya), both are the recurring character since Yakuza 1, two newcomers who introduced in Yakuza 4, Akiyama Shun (Koichi Yamadera) and Saejima Taiga (Rikiya Koyama), and a brand new character Shinada Tatsuo (Toshiyuki Morikawa). Aside from having multiple characters, this game also has various Japanese stars taking part in the game, such as Shunsuke Daito as Baba Shigeki, Eiji Okuda as Kurosawa Tsubasa, Nana Katase as Mayumi, Mitsuru Fukikoshi as Katsuya Naoki, and Show Aikawa as Takasugi Koichi.

It‘s different than other games in the series where only features at least two explorable cities, Yakuza 5 has five cities to explore aside of Kamurocho which serves as the staple in the series (inspired by Kabukicho in Shinjuku district, Tokyo) and Sotenbori (inspired by Dotonbori, Osaka) which previously featured in Yakuza 2, Yakuza Kiwami 2, and Yakuza 0. Yakuza 5 introduces three new cities and they are Nagasugai, Tsukimino, and Kineicho, based on Nakasu in Fukuoka, Susukino in Sapporo, and Sakae in Nagoya, respectively.

Five Connected Dreams

Yakuza 5 has a central theme in the story: dream, following the original Japanese title “Yume, Kanaeshi Mono” which means “The Granter of Dreams”. The plot revolves around each character’s dream that they want to achieve; Kiryu who wants to live peacefully far from his yakuza past, Saejima who wants to protect those who dearest to him, Haruka who wants to keep her orphanage that she runs with Kiryu in Okinawa, Akiyama who helps Haruka’s dream to become an idol, and Shinada who wants to play baseball again after getting a life ban due to a scandal. 

These five characters are told to live their own lives in their respective cities until troubles revolving yakuza world drags them in; Kiryu who lives in Nagasugai and working as a taxi driver, Saejima who breaks out of prison and later trapped in Tsukimino, Haruka who works as an idol and Akiyama who opens Sky Finance branch outside Tokyo, both meet up in Sotenbori and Shinada who works as a freelance writer in Kineicho. Even though in the beginning their stories are not connected, in the end, their stories lead up to one conclusion, as implemented in Yakuza 4.

Two New Features: Dance Battle & Climax Heat

Yakuza 5 comes with its signature beat-em-up gameplay and a new mode called Dance Battle. What is Dance Battle? Dance Battle is a gameplay specially made for Haruka. Because it’s impossible for a teenage girl gaining exp by fighting random thugs, then for her to level up, Haruka can participate in rhythm game battle by challenging street performers she met in the streets of Sotenbori to prove who’s the greatest. Climax Battle is a new feature introduced in this game for male protagonists, where the bar has been filled to the max (which can be filled after using Heat Actions), then each male protagonists can unleash their deadly attacks; Kiryu who can unleash one-hit kill, Saejima who can punch the ground and creates earthquake, Akiyama who can delivers multiple kicks, and Shinada who can unleash a barrage of attacks using a weapon he wields.

Minigames & Side Stories

Aside from offering the beat 'em up gameplay, Yakuza 5 also retains its various minigames loved by fans, starting from karaoke, billiard, fishing, darts, SEGA’s classic arcade video games, and hostess date. Aside from minigames, each city also has its local games, like working as a ramen chef in Fukuoka, a stand-up comedian in Osaka, a snowball fight in Sapporo, and chicken race in Nagoya.

Each character (aside Akiyama) has Side Stories. This mode is a new feature that tells each character’s activities outside the main story; Kiryu who can participate in car race using his taxi, Saejima who can hunt animals in the snowy forest in Hokkaido, Haruka who can participate in various TV shows to increase popularity, and Shinada playing baseball.

Verdict

Yakuza 5 is a game for those who like action-adventure, beat-em-up RPG and Japan. Those five cities are real and suitable for you if you want to know those cities before going to Japan. But you have to know that a few of the cities in this game are red light districts that are not child-friendly, and don’t ever try those action moves you witnessed in the game in real life.

So that’s a short review of Yakuza 5 Remastered edition in PlayStation 4. Don’t forget to follow Dunia Games for more video game reviews. 

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