The Main Problem of Yakuza Games

[@magicschoolbass]

Some of the clips are taken from my oldest PS4 known to mankind, so I apologize for them looking like Yakuza 3 kids

[@emperorontheinternet6510]

25 years in the joint turned the bullets into rubber

[@magicschoolbass]

Ok, I laughed, you win

[@PsychicGirl]

It's weird playing Judgement because in those games I actually remember that the yakuza are a criminal organization. It makes me wonder why I even wanted Kiryu to save the Tojo clan.

[@magicschoolbass]

Yeah, Tojo clan feels like a circus half of the time, the only time where it is strong and scary is 0 and Judgment

[@CodyHeldreth]

I remember Kiryu saying in one of the games how he believes the Yakuza could be a force for good someday like how it was when it was formed originally (Basically a militia against foreign invaders from what I remember) and another character said that the Tojo Clan is the only proof that they've ever existed. It's their legacy, a crappy one, but the only one they've got. Of course, with what happens in 7 they might be finally moving in that direction, just under a new name.

[@kaiokenx20_]

@@CodyHeldreth Bro called Hazamaki "another character"💀

[@CodyHeldreth]

@@kaiokenx20_ I honestly thought it was Hazamaki but not 100% sure off the top of my head, I had a feeling the quote was from 4 though. And I believe the first quote from Kiryu is in 2 when he's convincing Daigo to lead the Tojo Clan.

[@BigBoss_893]

Yeah the no killing rule is the dumbest when Kiryu witnesses multiple times that not killing a villain will cause the deaths of his friends and other problems. He never learns, yet he pretends to be wise the whole series

[@magicschoolbass]

The worst one is when Someya asks to kill him and he just egotistically refuses

[@НикитаТархов-о7н]

Sorry, I have to be this guy. I heard a theory that Akiyama was taught fighting by Arai, his final boss in the fourth. He also used legs most of the time in his boss fight. But yeah, this is not the strongest theory. At least he is not fighting with the power of schizophrenia.

[@magicschoolbass]

Oh yeah, that actually makes sense, thank you

[@jackmclean4120]

I thought Akiyama mentions Arai taught him in 4.

[@ceruleanhorrors]

Yes, I do agree that the glass of whiskey ruins the whole Yakuza franchise, Sega should have removed it and the game would be playable

[@magicschoolbass]

It shouldn't be allowed to leave comments this based

[@lukecwolf]

Excuse me, alcohol gives you best heat actions and abilities (and even heat in certain games) not a real fan

[@xXRealXx]

@@lukecwolf spoiler that was revealed in a fucking trailer: *Kiryu gets fucking cancer in LAD: Infinite Wealth*

[@RedaniaKnight-Elect]

that's why judgement is the best one. guy literally can't kill cos it's against the law.

[@magicschoolbass]

Laws n' shiet

[@aamacan]

I think the one of the issues behind the writing is the way the culture at RGG heavily influences the way they write their protagonists. Its just like you stated in your video is that the writers seem allergic to idea of slightly making their characters even dip a toe in the grey zone. I remember watching something about the man that essentially spearheaded the creation of the Yakuza series (i can't remember his name I just know he retired a while back) had a big no kill policy for Kiryu. The no kill policy certainly made Kiryu interesting when he's surrounded by Yakuza, mafia, triads and other criminals that would defiantly kill, it may have certainly influenced the creation and development of other protagonists for the rest of the series. I dunno its just nickpick but it makes things a bit frustrating when one of the main characters doesn't take down the villain for good even when a SUPER OBVIOUS gun or knife is near them. I still love the Yakuza/LAD games for what they are but nothing is perfect.

[@magicschoolbass]

Can not agree more

[@diegordi1394]

With all that talk about the No Killing rule, the first thing that came to mind was Miyamoto Musashi (or Kiryu Kazumanosuke) from Kenzan, who DID kill right at the start of the game.

[@magicschoolbass]

Ryoma did the same in Ishin and it was cool

[@serverus5697]

Deep story understanding never be my strongest part. I accepted rubber bullets and other conventions. Overall I fell in love with this franchise. "dame da ne guy" from my screen just says "play the game". I love its gameplay, love mini - games and of course I love all of this characters. All of this helps to don't care about some bad stuff

[@magicschoolbass]

Respectable

[@grumpcarmine4811]

I think that business with Someya is my most hated example of the “no killing” thing, the other times you can at least portray it as selfless and merciful but in that instance he would have to kill him to save someone he apparently cares about, Someya is begging him to do it and save Kiyomi and he just…stands there. It starts to make it more self serving at that point, to the point where he would’ve just let his friend die for no reason. Plus he would’ve caused Someya to die for no reason if not for Koshimizu disobeying his boss.

[@magicschoolbass]

I agree 100%, it was really selfish of him and felt really dumb. Really felt like writers were rubbing it in

[@kuroinekonya]

I agree, this is why I like to imagine in my head that some of these enemies get killed by our protagonists. It just makes more sense.

[@magicschoolbass]

I my head, he fucking killed the dollar store Kuze by the end of 6

[@gsifdgsgs]

I really wholeheartedly agree that stupid cliche twists of the games like oh my god bad guy have a second weapon? kind of moments a bit ruin the endings of the games. But also characterization of almost all of the characters are so good that, it makes you go, damn I wish I had meet that guy in real life and have a small chit chat with him/her. Also I don't think there is nothing wrong with pure good characters, the problem is yakuza stories most of the time refuses to show the darkest parts of the yakuza itself, so problem is this rather than having a good character as a main character. in my opinion Lastly I don't agree with Haruka sucks, I mean at least partially. Her point is to show us players that Kiryu have a soft side as well. But Yakuza 5 makes a stupid decision and seperate her from Kiryu and not just that, also makes her a cute idol thingy, even tho she lived with a yakuza legend almost 15 years to that point and because of the yakuza 5's decision also makes her downfall of her character as well

[@magicschoolbass]

The thing is, Haruka was kinda whiny, but still mostly cool at first. I really though he could become something like that detective lady from 2. Badass, but still kinda soft. Instead we got an egoistical idol something something. Also annoying

[@gsifdgsgs]

@@magicschoolbass yeah that's what I meant when I said, cute idol thingy, it could maybe work with correct characterization, but when it harms haruka's character rather than improve, then I can unfortunately say it's a big mishandling case

[@gsifdgsgs]

For example rather than Akiyama coming to save the day for her, What if she solved everything by herself? Then it would really make her character more interesting

[@magicschoolbass]

@@gsifdgsgs I mean, she is pretty fit and her father is Kiryu. Can she at least kick the guy in the balls and call him a pathetic scum? Now that would be cool

[@gsifdgsgs]

@@magicschoolbass yeah exactly ✔️

[@mijofalco6355]

Okay okay, I've explained it before, I'll explain it again. Why did Haruka leave in yakuza 6 and then went and got a child out of nowhere. Here's the thing, Haruka was a big idol and in Japan, the idol industry is taken extremely seriously. If an idol gets any dirt on them, they will be harassed until the end of days. It is that bad. She didn't leave just because of a few mean comments or a bad tabloid, she left because she knew how bad things could have gotten for her and the orphanage now that everyone knows that a legendary yakuza owns it. All she wanted was to protect her family. Now I do feel like yakuza 6 should have done a better job at showing the consequences of all that and built it up more, but still, we get the idea. Now also, why did she go and have a random kid. Look, let's not sugarcoat it. Teenagers can be stupid. Sometimes you get caught up in the mood and things happen. Is it irresponsible? Yes. Is it dumb? Yes. Did she know better? Yes. But it happens. We know it does. It happens every day.

[@magicschoolbass]

Oh, I agree, it just annoys me lmao But since everyone already knows that she is in the orphanage, how the fact that she left it would change that? Wouldn't it make it worse? Since she kinda just disappeared people and fans would try to find her and they would always try to start their search in her last known location. The popular idol living in the oprhanage is news, but an idol DISSAPEARING, now that's big news. Although I do agree, teenagers are dumb, I was a teenager, I would know

[@mijofalco6355]

@MagicSchoolBass Yes perhaps that should have been shown in a better way if they really wanted to explore the repercussions of being an idol. They could have shown a lot of bad things happen to Haruka and the orphanage. But, maybe that would have been to dark. Especially since the orphanage was already destroyed in 3.

[@magicschoolbass]

@@mijofalco6355 Yeah, you are right, these kids had enough bad stuff happening to them already

[@xXRealXx]

Oh comon. Is Haruka really that dumb? Guess what? I was a teenager too and even I would know that I should put on the rubber. Also, why would anything get better after Kiryu *spoilers ahead!* "died"? Wouldn't the media still not let Haruka live in peace? This whole kid thing was just used as some plot device, and I don't think it was done well.

[@mijofalco6355]

@xXRealXx yeah okay, dude. Sure.

[@zennr_]

The fish is cooking heat again. Edit: After watching the video and reading the comments there are alot of valid points. But what always comes to my mind is what Max0r said about the yakuza games: "The games care more about good gameplay and story than making sense, and its quite refreshing." This is what makes the games so unique and appealing regardless of rubber bullets or fucking mirror man. Theres always something extremely good and/or fun in every game.

[@magicschoolbass]

Yeah, that is why I really like these games, they are not afraid to be videogames they know what is fun and go for it, but since the game tends to emphasoze and in some parts overemphasize on the story it is really worth to analyze in my opinion. Although I then contemplate why did I spend hours analyzing a videogame about middleaged men hitting each other

[@zennr_]

@@magicschoolbass you have a point but does it really matter in the end? Like who cares where Akiyama learned his combat style, hes so fucking cool and fun to play as and also the only character in Yakuza who acknowledges smoking as bad for your health and cardio lol.

[@magicschoolbass]

@@zennr_ You don't gotta tell me that, he is my 2nd favorite guy in the series and you are right, sometimes some things are better left without explanation (looking at you Star Wars)

[@zennr_]

@@magicschoolbass Disneys kind of at fault for dismissing Legends lore. Alot of explanations and stuff just poof gone because of that. All my countless hours scourging the wikis and shit for cool lore rendered meaningless :(. Fordo will forever be canon in my heart and my favourite clone. Im also so fucking upset they completely retconned the clone rebellion during the empires rising.

[@troglodyte4206]

Came for the mahjong gameplay stayed for the haruka slander

[@magicschoolbass]

I only made the video to show off my baiman

[@clairelili873]

"Lets make every protagonist a living saint for no reason whatsoever" the series I honestly dont get WHY they didnt let majima kill on 0. I know, he isnt the mad dog yet, but seeing how they were doing that the mad dog was always there, majima just suppressed it... It would be cool to see he finally letting it loose, and doing what he does best. At least, for now, they kinda didnt do that with ichiban as well, in his game he almost unalives someone that wasnt even that important, and he needed to be stopped by someone else. It helped that they also ditched the villain being knocked out and then killing someone because the good guys started to talk RIGHT THERE cliche.

[@magicschoolbass]

Yeah, the scene with Kiryu stopping Ichiban was really cool and refreshing

[@CidGuerreiro1234]

4 has the worst story by far IMO. It's all over the place, and centered around characters that are just impossible to give a fuck about, namely Arai and Kido. The infamous rubber bullets twist also makes ZERO sense even for Yakuza standards, as none of those guys would've been knocked unconscious by rubber bullets. They'd be writhing in pain, probably with several ribs broken. Edit: as for Haruka... RGG can't write women. They just can't... Or couldn't? Yakuza LAD/7 was a massive improvement in that regard, but the women are still love interests and/or damsels to be saved by the hero. Judgment and LJ did it too with Saori (but dropped the ball with Mafuyu, who barely exists in LJ).

[@magicschoolbass]

Nah, women are alright, it's just that they have way too many desparate women doing things out of their desperation. They are not dumb, just acting on emotions, a lot of people tend to that when it seems like the world is ending. Park was well written, but no wonder you forgot her, he has like 2 minutes of screen time

[@CidGuerreiro1234]

@@magicschoolbass I haven't forgotten Park, and I agree that she was a good character. But she got killed off-screen, which is honestly the biggest form of disrespect a character can get from the writers.

[@magicschoolbass]

@@CidGuerreiro1234 True

[@Goldieleaf]

The way all the characters are saints is a double edge sword for me. In a way I do love how characters like Kiryu, saejima, have dark backstory’s and occasionally do bad things, yet they have good hearts, it just makes them more goofy yet lovable to me. At the same time it does kinda piss me off at times how we see villains like Iwami just live on instead of dying. It also makes the gameplay just questionable too, since majima will brutally stab and snap peoples necks only for them to be “oh we’re not dead im just going to walk home with several life changing injuries.” The situations in Yakuza 5 and 6 with killing were some good attempts but I feel like the series is already too deep in the characters backstory and riddled with story flaws to do a good job at adding self aware detail like that without changing or devaluing any major plot points that happened in the past, which is why I think it didn’t work as well as it tried to in 5 and 6. Also parks from Yakuza 5, never felt any sympathy for her death, she was honestly just a major asshole to me and she was mostly only nice to haruka and like no one else from the story, honestly really glad they got rid of her, she’s probably the only “good guy” character I never liked in the series.

[@magicschoolbass]

I agree with you, although what bad things did Saejima and Kiryu do? I don't remember them doing anything bad, besides damaging public property for the righteous cause

[@Goldieleaf]

@@magicschoolbass I should of worded what I said better, but bad in the sense the actions they took at the time were bad or if they have any personal regrets etc the 18 men saejima “killed” and how it comes back to haunts him when he fights in the arena, and then for Kiryu he went aginst akiyama and ended beating up his own friend, or just in general his experience being involved in the Tojo clan and still being forced to deal with it every game later causing him eternal unrest and he can’t escape it, even when he fakes his death.

[@magicschoolbass]

@@Goldieleaf Yeah, that's true

[@mettatonneoex]

The Haruka is Kiwami 1 and 2 I was expecting to grow up to something Miss Tatsu would fear. Like are we going to have to wait for a Kiwami remaster of the REST OF THE SERIES TO MAKE HER GOOD CHARACTER AGAIN

[@magicschoolbass]

Yeah, as someone pointed in the comments she WAS street smart, why they made her a dumb naive generic girl is beyond me

[@satyamSaha]

@@magicschoolbass its probably because Yakuza 3 got new writers and those writers had different visions for the characters.

[@magicschoolbass]

@@satyamSaha She's ok in 3 and 4, 5 and 6 are the parts when stuff becomes really dumb

[@lyricsghost2547]

Yeah, it's mostly in 5 and 6. From 1- 4 is actually a really good character, who ultimately cares about Kiryu. Fuck, she could bitchslap Mine and roast Hamazaki and get over with it. She tried to save Kiryu from a bullet shot by her actual biological father when she was just a kid. And when Kiryu started doubting whether he was actually a good guardian for her or not due to his yakuza issues, Haruka just told him to stfu, because he is her family and she loves him, so no matter how many sacrifices she need to do, she'd be always by his side. Pretty badass of her, I gotta say. In 5 she starts dumb as fuck, but at the very least her reason was that she wanted to help the orphanage. After being manipulated by Park she started with the idol yume simulator when Kiryu was in real trouble, which it's not so much her. But at the very least, in the end she understood that Kiryu was more important than the idol shit and chose to sacrifice her Park-inducted dream for him, searching for him before he bleed to death. Saying his step-father was a yakuza is... well... definitely not the brightest idea, but I kinda get the point. It stills follows the line of not running away, that she's proud of where she truly belongs. Dumb, really dumb. But wholesome. But then we have 6. I don't mind that she's got pregnant, that stuff happens and she's a teenager. But I don't buy why she couldn't be at the orphanage and Kiryu had to fake his death. By this point it is absolutely obvious that the orphanage is run by the yakuza. Idk... It has some weird guests. The Ryudo family, ex- yakuza prisoners that came ashore, the current chairman of Kanto most powerful yakuza clan... Definitely not sus. "She would be harassed as and idol if she's related to yakuza due to social pressure in Japan". Her lover was yakuza too, y'know. Not only that, he brings up additional triad issues for being who he is. And, well. Let's suppose she stays and she is harassed. The game before, some of the most influent - powerful yakuza and non yakuza characters allied to protect her. Try to harm her, good luck on that. And you know what? It this was really for the purpose of giving a proper sendoff to Kiryu, I'd understand. After all, the game does have some goat fights and characters, like Someya and Joon-Gi Han. The ending had me in tears and it's beautiful... until Kiryu shows again in 7. And again in Gaiden. And again in 8. I think that 6 was never the game to give a sendoff to Kiryu, but to Haruka. Because the writers don't know what to do with her. And I would be ok with that, but it could've been executed better. My least favorite of the franchise, but an amazing game nonetheless.

[@daruinosui7782]

whenever there is a gun in the cutscene, all the protagonists IQ goes to 3. if Daigo is in the cutscene the probability becomes 50:50 on who becomes the stupid dumdum

[@Янра-я1ъ]

I haven't played Kurohyou yet but as i know Tatsuya is not as saint as others.

[@magicschoolbass]

Well, now you got me excited to try it

[@loristhomas1629]

@@magicschoolbass I'm pretty sure that Tatsuya is the only Yakuza character that has killed someone (accidentally, but still), and the whole story revolve around him having to pay back the yakuza family of the guy to stay alive

[@knocked_for_six]

@@loristhomas1629 Not really staying alive, more like getting his ass sent to jail, since the Family in question offered for him to fight, or he gets handed over to the Police since they figured out he's on probation.

[@RAIN_2001]

dispide all the gripes i still love this series and can t wait for next games

[@magicschoolbass]

Same

[@DarKKnight6290]

That mahjong rng though

[@magicschoolbass]

It was pretty wacky

[@ihavenoson3384]

9:00 - Oh yeahs, the Haruka slap clip. :) 11:26 - The Nishikiyama mini-fight, eh? That dude was barely in the game. Oh yeah, that epic fight of Kiryu bashing his head with sofas for a short while. :D Also everyone in the game treats him like biatch.

[@maxwellpaynewell5305]

Super lengthy comment ahead, but I see your sentiments being expressed a lot, and I feel that they are at least partially rooted in a common misconception. Kiryu killed Ryuji Goda. Kiryu killed those helicopter dudes in 6. Kiryu definitely killed everyone in the car chase segments in 1 and 0. The series itself isn't great at explaining this, and the fact that fans latched on to one dev comment about their headcanon of Kiryu never killing anyone doesn't help either, but one of the main throughlines that comes up in every game is the difference between killing justifiably and murdering unjustifiably. What the games intend to say (to my understanding) is that none of the main characters are such bad people that they go out of their way to murder their opponents or anyone else, if a more peaceful solution can be reached. It's a part of the villains' villainy that they often deny burying the hatchet and keep fighting even after they've formally lost, i.e. had their entire worldview delegitimized because a dude punched them a lot. Mine is an example of a villain that takes the loss and learns from it, he could easily have gotten back up for another round, but instead he accepted that losing on Kiryu's terms means he shouldn't kill Daigo or something. This sort of storytelling is incredibly stupid, but as you said in the video, Yakuza as a series is incredibly stupid. The sincerity with which it accepts and embraces its stupidity is a part of why it's so loved by its fans (a sentiment expressed by Ryuji Goda, clearly one of the team's and fanbase's most beloved characters considering how often he comes back in some form or another). So, do Kiryu, and likely the other protagonists, kill people? Undoubtedly. Majima especially was shown in 1 and Dead Souls to be willing to kill his own family members at the drop of a hat, Kiwami mischaracterization notwithstanding. The main problem is that as the series went on, this "no murdering" mentality became more and more glorified to the point where the original intent was almost completely lost. Yakuza 5 comments on this, but then Yakuza 0 plays into it so hard that 5 may as well have shown no self-awareness in the first place. Then 6 rolls around and acts like its the first game where Kiryu would seriously contemplate murdering an enemy, when not only had they done this in 0, the enemies are all too happy to kill themselves anyway, which invalidates the sentiment for those who have already had enough of the "Batman mentality" you and many others take issue with. Kiryu has killed numerous times before, and has likely felt murderous intent plenty more times. His ability to overcome those urges and minimize his body count is why he is a legend, among other things. It isn't the most important part of his legend, but the games oversell its importance so hard that it seems like the games themselves see it as the most important part of his legend. In conclusion, you have to have a very high IQ to understand the Yakuza series.

[@magicschoolbass]

Thank for taking your time to write this, this was really interesting to read. And I agree, it does seem like Kiryu kills people, but it feels like when it is out of cutscene it doesn't count. For some reason. And I can not agree more about portraying him as a saint in 6, what they could've done instead is to just. Not do that. The fanbase is clever enough to understand that not everything is black and white, Kiryu does spare a lot of people, but sometimes it's unavoidable.

[@loristhomas1629]

@@magicschoolbass I think there are a few instances when he do kill in cutscenes, like in (Kiwami)2, when he shoot the guy that shoot Terada

[@psycho-ld9cx]

Another banger by magicschoolbass 😎

[@TheREALHugo4]

And soon maybe, his next game will be re4 remake.

[@Fantasy-cf6tu]

I have played almost every Yakuza game besides 6 and Gaiden so far. Besides the no-killing, the issue with the plot is the devs had to rush them or didn't know what to do with the story. In Yakuza 3 - 5, the devs admitted to 4 and 5 being rushed, and they had no idea what to do with Sayama. Hell, it is hinted in the original Yakuza 3 that Sayama is cucking Kiryu. At 4:49, I watched a KZbinr say that Rikiya should have survived and become a playable character in 4. I agree with that idea, but I doubt they saw that far ahead. I hate the entire trend of killing or just never using characters again. It is funny how the only Yakuza 3 characters to show up again are the dead ones. At 2:38, I loved Tanimura because I liked his substories and gameplay. I think Tanimura was supposed to have more depth, but they rushed his game section. My theory is that his Little Asia substories were supposed to be required, but they didn't have the time. I don't know if Yakuza 3 was rushed, but I feel the same about Rikiya's substories. Edit: I meant to say Sayama, not Park.

[@borisradojkov7051]

The reason why they are all saints is directly the reason why Kiryu leaves the Tojo Clan. Japan hates the Yakuza and crime in General almost as much as they hate poor people, when rl Yakuza play the games the only characters they resonated with were the bosses and grunts while Kiryu looked as the dumbest yakuza ever.(from his style and personality and tattoos.)

[@magicschoolbass]

Then why are all best characters in Tojo Clan? Explain this scientists

[@funnyvampp]

Ukyo Tatsuya: Am I a joke to you?

[@magicschoolbass]

I am only talking about the main like of games, but I might do a follow up video when I finish all the spinoffs

[@potater8034]

Wasn't the no killing rule a mistranslation? I thought kiryu only didn't kill in cold blood

[@magicschoolbass]

I seriously doubt it, he says it like EVERY SINGLE GAME, except for 5

[@JuliusCaesar103]

Have only played 0 so the stuff anout everyone never killing hasn't annoyed me as much as they have you. What I did find lacking though is Kiryu being bland and always doing the right thing, which was such a contrast to Majima being kinda unhinged as a character. Also for me personally the story being so serious and the side quests being so goofy kinda took me out of the experience.

[@magicschoolbass]

That's the point though. The game knows it's a video game, which means it has to be fun. The side stories are just fun and goofy stuff for you to enjoy, which is just amazing. In my opinion one of few games that makes side content enjoyable and not just bring me the sword from the cave and get 500 gold. Kiryu though is supposed to do the right thing, because it IS in his character he is a very rough, righteous person that knows the value of honor and how to be a real man

[@JuliusCaesar103]

@@magicschoolbass Kiryu being like that makes it boring imo, his voice acting is still top tier which is why makes him so compelling. And for sure the side stories can be super entertaining, I just don't think they fit in a story that is as dark and full of high stakes as 0 is imo. I still like the game and plan on giving 1 and 2 a shot but I just don't think they're as flawless as the fanbase makes them out to be.

[@magicschoolbass]

@@JuliusCaesar103 The are not flawless by any means, but they are still top tier. And Kiryu is kinda boring in 0, but he gets really good in 5 and 6. As for the substories it's a preference thing, I really like the lighthearted tone of them

[@JuliusCaesar103]

@@magicschoolbass agree with Yakuza 0 still being a great game. The rest is preference and both are fine.

[@davitnozadze7291]

While i can agree with most of what you said i do disagree with Haruka being the worst character and never having an arc ( but yeah she is also a damsel ) in 1 she goes from working with kiryu because she has to too putting herself in harms way when Jingu tries to shoot kiryu and in 4 she goes from hating Hamazaki to giving him a chance to redeem himself in 5 she realises that reaching your dreams may not be actually worth it and it may be worth more to just have a place to belong to instead of fufilling your grand ambitions and while 6 had a few Problems with her i wouldn't go as far as to say she is she worst character when there is characters Like Yasuko from 4 who where far worse

[@magicschoolbass]

What's wrong with Yasuko? She is perfectly fine. I can not call that a character arc at all though, because due to writers being switched it really shows that they had not idea wtf to do with her. In 1-2 she is a street smart kid that is somewhat egoistical for which she got slapped. In 3 and 4 we barely see her, but she is mostly alright, being a big sister and the whole Hamazaki thing which was kill. In 5 and 6 she goes fuck it we ballin' and goes completely nuts. OH MAH GAH, I want to be an idol. JK, I wanna go home. JK wanna leave. JK wanna fuck a random guy a get pregnant, JK time to trust a random nobody and get hit by a car. She does not evolve as a character she just jumps into another one.

[@davitnozadze7291]

@@magicschoolbass the thing with Yasuko is that she is mostly a plot device she literally went on a murder spree just to see Saejima ( killing kidos Patriarch etc ) and when Kiryu told her to stay at serena to not get in trouble guess what she gets in trouble just so she can die to develop Saejima as a plot device and as for 6 man she just got screwed over by being in a coma and the whole baby thing not even calling Kiryu father at the end despite him deserving the right to be called that

[@magicschoolbass]

@@davitnozadze7291 I always regarded Yasuko as a very compulsive woman acting on emotions. It actually makes sence, she is alone and the only thing she wants is to just see her brother. I might have done the same, she doesn't even know Kiryu that well, why should she trust him

[@davitnozadze7291]

@@magicschoolbass fair i guess

[@emreyaman4916]

Yakuza indeed tends to make you just say "Oh how bullshit" *cough* rubber boolit *cough* but then I just think it is their idea, since different cultural cliche could be something new to them. Does that mean I enjoy them? Eh, I would fish for better but it isn't as bad as forspoken so you win some you lose some. Still, it was an enjoyable video!

[@magicschoolbass]

Yeah, they are just weak elements of the story, considering that only the main storyline is 7 games long it is really impressive that there are not that many of those weak plotpoints

[@emreyaman4916]

​yeah, when I think about it Them being saints also kind of works in a way that when you think about it, being a Saint sometimes brings more pain than taking a life which is also a small quirk I tend to like. But then again **MURDER** always tickles that murican side and would make them more of characters that could exist.

[@emreyaman4916]

Except for Akiyama, He is just a cool dude on fight crack

[@magicschoolbass]

@@emreyaman4916 True, it works really well with Sera by the end of 0, when he says that the assassin will suffer the same way that Majima did, which is kinda neat. But sometimes it feels not really satysfying, like in the end of 6. I wanted to rip the dollar store Kuze head off so bad, but he just went to jail instead

[@emreyaman4916]

​Yeah, Either they get sent to jail or die by someone else instead of you as im having that right now with ishin, which after watching the video made me realize that better. I do hope one day we will see a main character that is not a saint once. P.S. The Blacksmith is holding me hostage to make all the weapons, send help.

[@ladisloved]

If you play Yakuza -- you love men.

[@NoForksGiven]

You answered your own question. Yes, a lot of plot points wouldnt have happened if the characters just killed the bad guy. We also wouldn't have a game. Video games need to walk the line of being able to stretch out the story for multiple hours, dozens even, while also having a compelling reason to do so. Yakuza's solution to this is to have our heroes never kill the villians, so the villians can keep rising up, getting away or taking one last shot before dying to someone else. I'm not saying this is a perfect answer, I don't think any video game has ever justified the length of its story without some filler bullshit or contrived nonsense but it's just how the medium is. You try making a 30 hour long story, even with Yakuza's slow ass cutscenes

[@magicschoolbass]

You are wrong though. We would have the game. All of the to kill or not to kill moments happen in the last 20 minutes of the game, what stretching are you talking about?

[@sakitorihd]

i like your accent is it German ?

[@magicschoolbass]

No, I did study it though. I am from the Balkans, although don't really sound like it or so I am told

[@GrumpyCat97]

for me the yakuza series ended in yakuza 3, after it the series is getting stupid and not necessary

[@magicschoolbass]

You sure are grumpy

[@GrumpyCat97]

@@magicschoolbass i mean the rubber bullet and characters not killing, ruined yakuza 4. yakuza 5 is forgettable. yakuza 6 wont happen if haruka stayed. lad gaiden is a stupid fan service. so yea, yakuza 3 concluded the series

[@magicschoolbass]

@@GrumpyCat97 I can agree 4 is meh, but 5 is forgettable? Also I can clearly see you did not play 7, there is not much fanservice there at all, if you said Gaiden instead, I could have maybe believed that

[@GrumpyCat97]

@@magicschoolbass i didn't played 7 cuz i don't like turn base combat. i don't remember much about plot in yakuza 5, except haruka's dance battle and investigate mirei park's death, oh also saejima escaping prison again and fighting bear with bare hands

[@PeachiPrism]

Idk what you mean by "Why is Akiyama a god", gameplay has never matched lore outside of boss fights. For a vid focused on lore its weird you forgot Kiryu beat the shit out of Tanimura and Akiyama showing how he is so much more powerful than them.

[@magicschoolbass]

No, Kiryu is unbeatable, there is no denying that, Akiyama still did a 1v100 in that construction base in Yakuza 5, don't think a normal business owner can do that

[@colegeary502]

Rubber bullets dont make him a saint because he didn't know that and was trying to actually kill them.

[@magicschoolbass]

It does because the writers intended it him to not be a killer. He did not WANT to kill them, he HAD to kill them, so if he fails due to bullets being rubber, he is still a good guy

[@davidruth1902]

I guess sayama is wrong. Thinks are just black and white.

[@wannadie3718]

That baiman though, hot damn, I have never seen one before

[@magicschoolbass]

It was my first as well, was really happy