Yakuza 4 Remastered - Review

 

I'm a pretty big fan of the Yakuza series, especially since it was remastered with the release of Yakuza 0. Each year around Christmas time I end up playing one of them, this year it is Yakuza 4 (will likely play Yakuza 5 as well). While I try not to read about the plot or gameplay before I play a Yakuza game I knew going in this time there would be four playable characters. I previously enjoyed playing Kiryu and Majima, but would be four a little too much?

I like many things about Japanese culture and like to try and embrace it when I get the chance. When myself and Nollsy visited London a few years ago went to a Benihana which was an awesome experience. Tried a selection of sake which was really nice. A couple of months ago I saw these awesome sake glasses and had to have them. My better half got me two bottles, tried both and I have to say I did not like them. I asked myself was it just a lower quality than I had tried or was I simply swept up in my time in London and anything would have taste good. Playing Yakuza 4 I found myself asking was this a lower tasting quality or was I just not into it?

Story

There are four playable characters in the game; Kiryu Kazuma, retired legendary Yakuza now running the Morning Glory orphanage, Masayoshi Tanimura, a police detective who has a problem with authority and playing by the rules, Taiga Saejima, in prison for the last 25 years after a hit gone wrong, and Shun Akiyama, a very unique loan shark who doesn't believe in his clients paying any interest on their loans. What connects all these characters together, a mystery woman who everyone seems to want to find.

The game is split into four parts (one for each character), set over four chapters each. The stories independently are interesting and in the final chapters all the stories converge revealing something much bigger going on.

As always with Yakuza it has sub stories for each character to play, the only downside is that while there were some zany missions it felt a bit more serious than normal.

Overall the story is pretty good and while having extra characters was interesting at times it was a bit too much of a distraction from the main narrative. I did feel once Kiryu became playable the story did heat up quite a bit and was more interesting.

Visuals

The visuals are pretty good in the game, and with the addition of new areas like the rooftop, hidden ally town, underground, car parks you get to enjoy another level of Kamarucho never seen before. At night the game seems more moody than in previous, a large part of this I feel are due to the lighting effects. One of my favorite parts visually was running around when it was raining, the effects look so good.

When playing as Taiga Saejima you get to explore a prison which was a bit different and very reminiscent of A Way Out (due to just having played it). The other characters tread familiar ground but as Kamarucho has been upgraded even more it never gets dull to look at.

Overall some great visuals, and see a game remastered after ten years really does breath new life into Kamarucho.

Music

The soundtrack has that classic Yakuza feel, with some extra guitars and a blend of both smooth jazz that on occasions gets pretty intense and gave me a feeling of being pulled down. The soundtrack is created by Yakuza series veteran Hidenori Shoji who also worked on Judgement and Fighting Vipers.

The soundtrack provides over three hours worth of music and around seventy tracks. My favorite tracks include: 'Roarless Dragon', 'Glee', 'Funny', 'Whiskey and Rhapsody', 'Spicy Brass Squid', 'Speed Star', 'Material Delights', and 'So Hot Ping Pong'.

Overall a pretty classic Yakuza soundtrack with a little extra added on top to keep it fresh.

Gameplay

The four playable characters have very different playstyles; Akiyama is pretty agile and his punch and kicks do a decent amount damage, Tanimura has a play style very close to that of Yagami in Judgment and Lost Judgement, very fast and has a great counter block technique. Then there is Saejima, who hands down is the worst (combat wise), he is painfully slow, his moves when they connect are strong but even his defense is not great. The first boss you take on as him nearly broke me as I felt like I wasn't fighting more dodging a lot and then occasionally making contact. Kiryu is hands down the best fighter by far and incorporates the best elements of the others.

Each character can level up and get orbs, these are used to increase skills, it does not take a lot to level up as long as you don't avoid battles and engage in other activities.

Weapons feel like they have more focus on them this time, there a lot of weapons to be made, upgraded and broken. It was fun to try but still like using my body to do my fighting. 

Like with the other Yakuza games there are slew of sub stories, some are fun but other feel like a bit more of a chore especially the hostess missions which every character has and is quite costly. I really do wish they would bring back the hostess club game where you could manage the whole thing.

There are a ton of mini games, my favorite being table tennis, there is also; batting cage, mahjong, shogi, karaoke, arcade machines, fishing, UFO grabber and more. There is more than enough to fill your time whether you just want the experience points, looking for trophies or just want a break from the main story.

Overall the gameplay is pretty good, the only thing that lets it down really is a certain characters fighting style, and some sub stories not having the fun quality Yakuza fans are used to seeing from the series.

Final Thoughts

So after close to thirty hours how did  I feel? Not bad. The story is pretty good but as they sometimes to many chefs spoil the broth and while the inclusion of new characters was interesting four felt like too many playable characters especially for a game which traditionally has had just one. The remastering real brought the visuals up another level, and added to an extra layer to Kamarucho. The soundtrack is what we have come to expect from the series but Shoji has got lazy and added some new elements. The gameplay is pretty solid but again the extra characters do slightly water things down especially Saejima or maybe his enemies were just not as well balanced. Overall the game wasn't bad but can only give this one 3 out of 5

Punchline - Review

 

The PlayStation Vita for me is probably the best handheld console, it has a huge array of games, the console looks good and feels good. I sometimes forget about it for a while but always find myself coming back to it. One game I have been curious to play for a while is Punchline a game based on an Anime, although I had not watched the series my interest had been peaked by the few trailers for the game I had watched. With a little help from my friend Ivan he helped me get a hold of a copy.

While I first came to Ireland there were two things I really enjoyed eating Kimberly Biscuits and drinking Red Lemonade. Within a year I had got bored of these due to overeating and overdrinking. About a decade ago I tried a Chocolate Kimberly, they were amazing, but before I got to fully try more they were gone, if only there had been more left. Playing Punchline I found myself asking had I got into the game too late? And unlike Chocolate Kimberly's I could not just go out and buy more.

Story 

The game has you take on role of Yuta, who already suffering with difficulties of being a teenage boy finds his soul pushed out of his body. As if that was not already enough you are some how connected with an asteroid on a course to destroy the planet. On top of this you have restricted movement and are stuck in Korai House with a punch of girls, who if you see their panties brings about the destruction of the world. Luckily you have Chiranosuke, the spirit of a dead cat.

The story has some odd pacing, the first ten-twelve episodes have a calm well paced approached, the final eight or nine have so much packed in them it can be a lot to process. It feel likes a different writer took over part way through, or they felt the game needed to be shorter and rushed the remaining episodes.

Overall the story is pretty good, and while it has some obvious sexual innuendo there is a lot more on offer besides it. If you look passed some of the unusual pacing and are into anime this one is worth look.

Visuals

I really love the combination of anime sequences combined with some great visual set pieces. Almost the whole game is set around the house, there a multiple rooms, each with personality as big as their occupants. Korai House is like a quaint guest house, if you ignore all the crazy goings on. I can't really decide my favorite aspect visually as while each room and character are all different it all feels like one strange happy family.

The Vita does a great job of representing the game visually and comparing it to the PlayStation 4 version there is very little different. Overall some great vibrant visuals which made the game more like watching an Anime series rather than playing one.

Music

The soundtrack is light-hearted, wacky, fun and has a sweetness to it you only get from Anime. The soundtrack was created by talented Japanese composer Tetsuya Komuro, who also did the music for Persona 4 Dancing All Night, and Gaball Screen. He also has large back catalog of music.

The soundtrack runs well over and hour and features almost fifty tracks. Some of my favorite tracks included:

'Strange Juice (Action)'

'Nervous'

'State of Tension'

'Sacred Thing'

'Invisible Fear'

'Comical (Up)'

'The Cheeromancy Song'

'Justice Punch, Here We Go'

Overall a fun soundtrack that really suited the game!

Gameplay

The gameplay is interesting a different from others games I have played before. Yuta is a spirit and by scaring people in the house he can become a stronger spirit. Essentially you need to find clues, set up tricks of a sort and then get them to play out. Put things in the wrong order, game over, look at panties for too long game over. The latter is easier to take, the former not so much. Chiranosuke, will tell you vaguely what you need to do, as expected the earlier tricks are easy to pull off and get a lot harder. While this is only natural I was left scratching my head from time to time as I could not see how something would work out so ended up setting things up incorrectly.

For the first half of the game each episode is set into two phases, scare people in the house to get your spirit level up, and then set up a trick and execute it correctly. That is until after episode twelve where some require you to answer questions or simply watch the story. It was interesting but like with the story is jarring as the gameplay is consistent and then changes abruptly.

There are are multiple endings but only decisions made in the second part of the story, and even those seem a little odd the way they play out. 

Overall the gameplay is okay but rather than switch gears part way through you have a hand break pulled at 90MPH.

Final Thoughts

So, after fifteen hours plus how did I feel?  Not bad, there were ups and downs for sure. The story can be good but could use some better pacing to not feel as rushed in places. The visuals and music I liked a lot and felt like I was playing and watching an anime at times. The gameplay and story share a similar problem in that the pacing feels a little off at times. All in all not a bad experience but a few different editing choices could have made this game much better, this one gets 3 out of 5

A Way Out - Review

 

I have been considering playing A Way Out by Swedish studio Hazelight for a long while, what put me off originally from playing it was there being no choice but to play the game in Co-Op. While I like a little Co-Op I also like the freedom to choose. Recently saw it on sale in the PlayStation Store and my partner in crime Nollsy said she would love to give it a go, and give it a go we did.

Anyone that knows me knows I like a bit of spice, a bit heat if you will. One day someone suggested Wasabi Coated Peanuts and I thought yeah sounds good. They were not. There is heat there but is so intense it feels like battery acid was running down the back of my throat. I like heat, I really do, but this no. Playing A Way Out I found myself asking was this just simply not to my taste or was it truly something that burns the back my throat?

Story

The game starts with Leo and Vincent in prison, not exactly friends and not exactly enemies. They are working together to try and break out of prison and take revenge on the man who wronged them both. The story is split into bite size chapters, and the whole game can be finished in one decent sitting. Throughout the game you will be able to make choices as to whether to do things Leo's way (direct and often aggressive) or Vincent's (diplomatic, stealthy). 

While I enjoyed (for the most part) my journey of getting to know and Leo and Vincent the end section was a bit of deal breaker. There was a kid when I going to school who decided swallowing a holly leaf was a good idea (spoiler alert it wasn't) and it stuck in the back of throat. The discomfort level must have been extreme. My feeling towards the ending left me feel in discomfort.

Visuals

The art style used in the game is quite unique providing some both a detailed and simplistic look. The characters are the simplistic element, as you can see in the image above the are details to both characters but look like they are missing a bit of polish. The back drops and many of the objects are a lot more detailed. The look and feel of the prison was one of my favorite areas it felt like an old prison, the kind the brought back memories of Escape From Alcatraz staring Clint Eastwood.

Overall the visuals are one of the strong elements of the game and would be interested to see more games in this art style.

Music

There is certainly a moody and reflective sound conjured mostly by guitars and banjos and suits the game exceptionally well. The composer behind the soundtrack are; Gustaf Grefberg (The Darkness, Wolfenstein: New Order, Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons) and Sam Hulick (Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition, Mass Effect 1-3).

The soundtrack run at around thirty minutes and while that may not sound like a lot, sometimes that is all the time needed. There is no wasted second and with a soundtrack like this all tracks are my favorite. Overall the soundtrack is short but very sweet.

Gameplay

It's all about teamwork, there is no lone wolfing it, Vincent and Leo (Barry and Nolls) need each other every step of the way. The gameplay is pretty linear, but that's okay. There are so many great examples of teamwork throughout the game: one that occurs earlier on is you are both trying to escape your cells, one of you stands guard while the others tries to unscrew and remove the toilet in their cell and then vice versa - it is tense, really tense but great, there will be many moments like this throughout the game.

The only real let down gameplay wise is when shooting, the weapons don't feel great, aim is sloppy and a headshot is not as effective as it should be.

Overall the gameplay for at least 70%-80% is pretty good but some poor shooting mechanics drag it down a bit.

Final Thoughts

So, after just over six hours how did I/we feel? So, so. The story has some great parts to it but the ending really lets it down, offering only two ending, one as bad as the other. The visuals are interesting and would like to see other games with the same art style. Music was solid as a rock and could not have been any better. The gameplay for a large portion of the game but unfortunately, like the story it really lets itself down. Overall this one gets a 3 out of 5