fleinn's Yakuza 3 review

No feedback from me yet, but the pictures aren't loading. Is anyone else having this problem? I really want to see the comparison...

I see
Above: Kamurocho in Yakuza 3

I do not see
Below: Kabukicho in Tokyo

[Edit: I see both]

Are you looking at it right? I was confused at first but I think both shots are above the caption.

You are right Janus. Both shots are displayed in the same image.

hehe. I think it was very late when I did that edit :D

..wish I had a capture card of some sort, though..

edit: btw, I would love to hear some feedback on the writing, or just on how the review came across to you :)

Obviously, you put forth a lot of time and effort into this review. I appreciate how you give the reader enough detail so he/she knows what to expect when he/she pops in the game.

However, the review at times feels a bit herky-jerky. You start off by discussing non-gameplay elements such as story and translation. Then you talk about the actual gameplay and mechanics, yet you keep coming back to more story and translation.

It looks like you clearly worked out what details needed to be included in the review, but it's like you couldn't figure out a good way to organize all the info. I know that's tough to do, but I feel the review could be a bit tighter. Irregardless, I did enjoy reading and I certainly appreciate you delving into all the aspects in great detail. I come away from this review well educated, which is what a review should do.

I really like that you give us a completion time. I'm going to start doing that in my reviews. In this day of fast paced gaming, it's nice to know.

I don't really like that picture, Fleinn! It's really hard to see where the two separate and I'm not sure exactly what it's meant to illustrate, as it comes in the middle of the review and doesn't show off the graphics all that much. Not like a shot of two people might. Facial textures are much more telling in a game than billboards.

I like a lot of the writing, though, and while the picture isn't clear, the writing is pretty spot on as to what you're trying to tell us.

:) Thanks for the feedback. Appreciate it a lot.

It's a bit like the segueway about the fighting never happens, and I forget about the gameplay details towards the end, maybe... I.. think that's how I felt about the game when I played it as well..

It's.. not easy to explain. :p You'll spend the most time running or fighting in the streets (chase-scenes that are part of the story, and battles). But you do that while you're going to see someone, or before the story moves on. And that's the way I was tricked into enjoying the game a whole bunch, I think. That the two cities with all the sub-stories and context does change when you go through the story, and you get the impression that there's a lot of stuff going on, even if that's not really the case..

I also didn't mention the optional pedestrian yakuza business in Okinawa. You can take on a few side-quests there that are.. just excuses to play minigames, and walking around town. But they do tell a story, instead of just being random sidequests.

For example. A guy at the fishmarket makes a mistake. He sells a rare fish a customer had ordered to a new customer that promised to pay more. But then the first customer shows up, and starts to complain. So you can take the quest, if you want to. And then you can solve the quest in a few ways. But the point with it is that you could help the fishmonger save face, but let him pay for the mistake. Or you could let him pay you for saving his honor. Or you could let him have to deal with it. Or you could just take the money he gives you and spend it elsewhere.

There's a lot of that kind of thing going on.

..anyway, I'll try and look at the "back to translation business" part, and do something about the picture :)