Yakuza 0 (PlayStation 4) review "When given a choice between a wild brawl or going to the arcade, I simply say 'Yes'."

After releasing several games in their Yakuza series, the Ryo Ga Gotoku studio made the decision to explore the history of main protagonist Kazuma Kiryu and his rival, Goro Majima. On one hand, making Yakuza 0 could have been considered a risk. I mean, you know those two are going to get out of the game in one piece due to how they entered the original Yakuza game as formidable combatants possessing intimidating nicknames such as "Dragon of Dojima" and "Mad Dog of the Shimano Family". On the other hand, if you can combine the sandbox play loaded with all sorts of diversions this series is known for with some great story-telling, does that really matter?

The answer: No. Let's put it this way: In the past, I've been critical of games that are very invested in telling an epic tale because that usually leads to loads of cutscenes, which usually leads to me feeling like I'm watching a movie where I'm only occasionally allowed to take control of things for brief periods of time to actually do something. While this game is fond of lengthy cutscenes, I wasn't bothered at all because I was just as invested in watching things unfold as Ryo Ga Gotoku was in telling the story.

At this stage of his organized crime career, Kiryu is a young and low-ranking member of the Tojo Clan's Dojima family, doing such scintillating jobs such as delivering emphatic beatings to hapless losers who apparently think paying debts is optional. Unfortunately for him, he quickly is accused of being a bit too good at his job when one victim is found dead in the secluded lot where he got his face rearranged. For Kiryu, there's a silver lining: the dead guy was shot and, while he's a skilled fighter, his fists don't emit bullets. Said silver lining is only perceptible to him and a few of his closest confidants, though, as the higher-ranking members of the Dojima family are more concerned about optics, feeling it'd be best if he endured a nice, long stint in jail in order to take any potential heat off them.

Or is that the reason? Kiryu's mentor, Kazama, happens to be an imprisoned captain in the family, with that status leaving an opening that Dojima's three ambitious lieutenants are looking to fill — a task that will be made easier if his young protege brings shame to his name. And the lot the corpse was found in also is key. In a place like the Kamurocho district, any available real estate has great importance and the assorted Tojo families all want control of it in order to gain great influence and perhaps even leadership of the entire clan. Just one problem: the only person who might know the identity of the lot's owner is Kazama and he's not likely to give that information to people gunning for his position.

One of those lieutenants, Kuze, offers Kiryu a deal. If he gets the name of the owner off Kazama and passes it along, Kuze becomes captain and will take Kiryu under his wing. Well, not only is Kiryu unwilling to betray the man who's been like a father to him, but Kuze's speech to him also gives him the distinct feeling that he's been set up. Displaying some quick wits, he tricks Kuze into kicking him out of the family and then humiliates him in a fight. Now, he's on the run with an entire crime syndicate looking for him —with at least one member really wanting to make him suffer. However, he does get an unexpected benefactor in Tachibana, the shady owner of a real estate agency that operates much the same as the yakuza. Tachibana also seems to have an interest in that lot, so the duo form an allegiance to get to the bottom of things.

Meanwhile, far away in the Osaka district of Sotenbori, Majima works as the manager of a successful yakuza-owned club — a life that's hell for him because he's a disgraced yakuza who'd rather return to the family than be its lapdog. One day, the yakuza serving as his keeper gives him an offer: kill a particularly vile human trafficker and he'll be allowed back. He's willing to do whatever it takes…at least until he finds out that the person known as Makoto Makimura is actually is a young woman who happens to be blind, terrified and about as intimidating as a newborn kitten.

This puts Majima in a quandary. While pulling off the hit will get him everything he wants, the thought of murdering a helpless girl in cold blood disgusts him and that helplessness instead causes him to be her protector while trying to figure out just why yakuza higher-ups would want someone like her dead. This means he'll have to pull one hell of a balancing act though, as he was basically told that he either succeeds in the hit or he'll be the one winding up dead — something which he hears more and more forcefully as time ticks away and his excuses get more flimsy.

As a huge fan of the various sorts of mafia and crime films, I ate all of this up on a nightly basis. I'd play a couple chapters with one character and then a couple with the other, alternating between watching significant aspects of the plot unfold in front of me and beating the holy hell out of various yakuza and other criminals getting in my way. Yakuza 0 told a great story that had me captivated until the end. It was almost enough to make me forget about all the diversions I could also spend my time doing.

Almost. As per the norm with these games, you won't be able to walk a block in either Kamurocho or Sotenbori without encountering some sort of optional entertainment. There are tons of side quests that often serve as light-hearted counterparts to the game's very dramatic tale. There are casinos, games such as mahjong and shogi and pastimes like bowling, pool and darts. You can fish, you can take part in slot car racing and you can venture into arcades to play classic Sega games such as OutRun or Space Harrier. Fans of rhythm-based games also can partake in karaoke and disco dancing, meaning there legitimately might be something for everyone here.

Each character also has an important sub-game they can participate in. For Kiryu, it involves buying real estate and for Majima, it's building up a small club. With both of them, you'll come into conflict with a group of rival entrepreneurs who have to be toppled one by one. While optional, doing so can be pretty crucial. Early in the game, the two protagonists will each encounter a trio of trainers willing to teach them various fighting styles. You can use all the money you amass while playing to purchase various upgrades from each style's skill tree, but the most expensive ones are initially locked. By beating your rivals in these challenges, you'll gradually access that stuff in order to purchase new moves, more health and the ability to attack with more power.

And with as much fighting as you'll be doing, you'll want to bolster your repertoire as much as possible. When not watching cutscenes and participating in diversions, it's a fair assumption that you'll be battling all sorts of foes ranging from yakuza bosses to random hooligans. While a person can gradually whittle down health bars with basic attacks, those special moves are quite handy. Build up your heat bar with punches and then, when an enemy is positioned right, blast them with a special move and you'll cause a lot of damage in a hurry — something that becomes really useful when confronted by weapon-wielding adversaries. After all, if a guy with a gun or knife can execute damaging attacks that also stun you temporarily, it's probably a good idea to take them out as quickly as possible…unless running through all your healing items in the early going of a lengthy string of battles sounds like a good idea to you.

After playing series spin-off Judgment a couple years ago, I knew that I wanted to dive into the Yakuza games and 0 went easily justified that decision. I could harp on a few issues that mainly boil down to "I had less fun doing some stuff than I did doing other stuff", but why spend a bunch of time complaining about that one mission where Kiryu had to constantly fire a gun out a car window to eliminate dozens of pursuing yakuza thugs when there is so much fun stuff I could be discussing. The great story, the wide variety of side quests ranging from touching to whimsical to utterly bizarre and all the entertaining diversions that could keep me occupied when I just wanted to enjoy the game's world without getting drawn into anything serious. This is one of those games that feels like a gift that keeps on giving and which deserves to be a part of nearly anyone's library.

Community review by overdrive (April 14, 2023) Rob Hamilton is the official drunken master of review writing for Honestgamers.