GameSpy Review of Yakuza 2

Yakuza 2 presents an interesting problem. For a game that has a lot going for it, it also has quite a few elements that are technically subpar. The camera is a bear to wrestle with, combat can be tedious, and it just lacks any sort of overall polish. While none of these elements are horrendous, they certainly could have used some work. At the same time, the engrossing narrative kept us coming back for more, with a story that doesn't shy away from being as gritty as it needs to be. While some technical aspects annoy, they're weren't bad enough to keep us from enjoying the game's many positive qualities.





In Yakuza 2 you resume control of Kazuma Kiryu, a commander of one of the most powerful Yakuza organizations in Japan and also the protagonist of the original game. Picking up a year after the previous events, we find Kazuma trying to get out of the gangster life and simply live in peace. But when he witnesses the murder of one of his Yakuza brothers he's quickly called back into service. What we find from there is a cinematic and fascinating tale of a hero being sucked back into a life he's desperately trying to leave. It features themes of loyalty, love and deceit, with plenty of gang wars, blood, murder and cursing tossed in for good measure. Yakuza 2 adds to its authenticity by featuring full Japanese voiceovers, making it that much harder to turn away.





The presentation is fairly ordinary, offering approaches often used in other games. The game is broken down into several chapters, each of which will have you running around the various maps to which the story will take you. Typically you'll have to head to a given area to uncover more details on the task at hand. Throughout the game you'll be treated to some solid cut-scenes that help convey the storyline. In order to progress to the next plot point you'll have to throw your weight around and get into plenty of fights.










Combat offers a relatively deep experience, with loads of combos for those who aren't into button-mashing. As you fight, you'll gain experience points used to unlock more advanced techniques and combinations. If you just keep using the same old attacks, the experience that you'll receive will be lower, so the game actively encourages you to experiment and use your new attacks. Also available in battle is a "heat" meter, which ebbs and flows with your attacks. With every successful onslaught your heat will go up; with every hit you take, your heat will go down. If you keep dishing out the hurt and max out your heat meter you'll be able to unleash a brutal special attack which will take out foes in one blow. The animations that go with these attacks really drive home just why they're so devastating.

















Even though there are some decent fundamentals behind the fighting engine, it's not without a few issues. The controls are fairly clunky, which may lead to missed combos. Another issue is that there isn't any targeting system, so you'll often be punching air rather than smacking around a thug. The camera brings another problem: Simply put, it's horrible. The view that you're given during combat more often than not leaves you unable to see what you need to see. You can rotate it at your leisure, but it simply can't keep up with the action. It's common to see poor camera angles in games, but it's rarely this incredibly irritating.





Outside of combat you'll find that the camera is just as bad. When you're walking around the city you'll hardly ever be able to adjust the view. Rather, the camera here supplies fixed angles, so you're hardly ever able to properly see what's going on around you. On top of that, the camera also changes its viewpoint at certain points in each map, hindering your ability to control where Kazuma is going, so you'll often be wrestling with the controls to adjust for the angle change. These angle changes can be fairly disorienting, and you'll find that you may get turned around, especially when stuck in a cramped space.










For the most part the maps are fairly restrictive, which is somewhat disappointing. The fluorescent cities that you find yourself in are fairly impressive to look at but there's little to explore. You'd hope that there would be a lot to see and do in these major hubs, but sadly there's not. Sure, you can track down random bits and bobs that will help you on your way, but these things feel really tacked-on and don't add a whole lot to the game. The cities are at least nicely populated, brimming with people going about their daily business. Though you'll see a lot of similar-looking people and pop-in by the boatload, it's still a nice touch that makes these small maps feel like parts of a bustling metropolis.





Despite its technical problems, Yakuza 2's story really kept us coming back for more. It's fantastically paced, constantly dropping teasers to keep you interested in what's going to happen next. In the end, it's a very similar game to its predecessor. If you're expecting major upgrades that improve on the original formula you'll probably be disappointed. On the other hand, if you've played the original and enjoyed your time with it, Yakuza 2 should be worth a shot.

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