Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio (Yakuza, Judgment, Binary Domain + more!) Discussion Thread

[quixotic]

I liked the hunting.

Same, it was barebones but relaxing.
The only thing I didn’t like about it was when animals spawned right behind me a handful of times, nearly shit my pants when it happened.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

I liked the hunting.

Same, it was barebones but relaxing.
The only thing I didn’t like about it was when animals spawned right behind me a handful of times, nearly shit my pants when it happened.

Try three bears at once. Rifle butted them to death because I got mad.

 

[Abu Antar]

I am now no. 1 in the management mini-game. Gunning for the 10 billion yen trophy, but it's grindy. I'm making around 200 million yen per business day. This will take some time.

 

[Rean]

Nope. Showbiz

Ah, right, sorry. I didn't really have a problem with it. Thought it made for a nice change of pace and new challenges. It was obvious it was also going to connect to the main story somehow, so I was fine with putting up with all the frustrating characters, too.

The hunting was the worst part for the platinum trophy. When I was done I was glad it was over.

I agree, it was long-winded and being unable to save for the first 2-3 hours made it quite annoying. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the chapter, though.

 

[TheImplodingVoice]

Nope. Showbiz

Ah, right, sorry. I didn't really have a problem with it. Thought it made for a nice change of pace and new challenges. It was obvious it was also going to connect to the main story somehow, so I was fine with putting up with all the frustrating characters, too.

The hunting was the worst part for the platinum trophy. When I was done I was glad it was over.

I agree, it was long-winded and being unable to save for the first 2-3 hours made it quite annoying. I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the chapter, though.

I also liked the little snowy mountain village. Especially how quiet it is. But going for the platinum not once but twice(PS3 and PS4) was such a slog. But the 60FPS made it a bit easier in some instances on PS4. Where with Yakuza 3 and 4 then 60FPS made some things for the platinums more difficult. I wish Dead Souls got a remaster as well. Recently played through it again on PS3 and it's bat shit crazy over the top fun

 

[Rean]

Bros {drunken thoughts}, I'm having a lot of fun with Like a Dragon (aside from having to go through the whole Sotenbori arena to level up enough to beat my favorite character).
I just wanted to relay how good playing the game feels. Whoever is responsible for directing this game has done a really good job, better than all the games before it, even. It's not just the extravagance of it all, love to attention oozes out of every pore of the game. I expected something bad, glad to see I was wrong. I'm just sad about things plot-wise past chapter 12, but eager to see where it all ends up. Definitely don't want an end to our favorite criminal organization.

 

[cruel]

Finished Like a Dragon few days ago. Fun game, everybody who likes JRPG should play it, very interesting take on JRPG in modern city and quite unique experience. Still, I can't stop feeling that the game could have been so much better with some different design decisions. 8/10 overall.

My main complaint: combat, while fun, gets boring pretty quickly. It is missing 'something', and it's hard for me to define this something. Clearly enemy variety is a problem, as the mobs don't differ that much between each other, and at some point it becomes just 'oh man, another yakuza to beat'. Second, the game never really surprises you (with regards to combat), after the initial hours. Maybe some kind of weakness system would help, more randomness, maybe enemies being able to attack from behind, more ambushes, more deadly status effects, etc. At some point I found myself just avoiding encounters, because had enough of them.

Second complaint - difficulty. Come on. It took me 80h to beat the game, playing slowly, and there were only 3 cases when any difficulty was present:
- wandering to high-level area early on (Hamakita Park)
- boss in chapter 12 (although much easier than I expected)
- final boss
That's it. And this is not something budget-related, could be fixed easily bo some kind of 'bonfire aesthetic' equivalent (harder enemies for more exp / rewards). Or just some creative / hard optional fights. If you dip your characters into other classes, and make sure that highest-agility character has 'shield blast' from enforcer class, 90%+ of random encounters are finished in 30s or so.

Third - plot is a mess. I didn't really like the plot development starting in chapter 6, some of the stuff was just stupid, not believable. Examples in spoilers:

Spoiler

- chapter 6: a mysterious / secretive organization just INVITES a bunch of random people to share all their secrets, which are the fundament of city financial stability Come on.
- Nanba actions after chapter 6: he is not dumb and knew what the consequences may be, not believable looking at his character
- chapter 13 (coin locker surprise): two babies put in a coin locker in same place, on same night. Yeah right.
- Arakawa going alone in the middle of the night, right after he made the decision that clearly made a lot of people pissed at him
- Ryo Aoki: were they really not able to find dirt on him (his past) earlier?

But, so many thins were done right (characters, uniqueness, humor, sidequests, etc.), that I had enough fun to enjoy the experience. Probably will buy a sequel day 1, hoping they will fix some of the issues.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

I dunno bros

Spoiler

The bit where a chicken can successfully negotiate with shareholders hits too close to home.

 

[Rean]

I'm on the final chapter. It's gone too fast

 

[Reinhardt]

I'm having deja vu here...

Spoiler

.

 

[Nirvash]

Well, gonna play 7 after i finish TROUBLESHOOTER and dq11

In the meantime...




Duck started kiwami 2

 

[Rean]

New week, new drink, time to finish Like a Dragon for me.

Just met the (tranny ) mama from Earth Angel again, that's a throwback.
Also realized how much I prefer Ijincho over Kamurocho!!!

 

[Abu Antar]

I'm now at chapter 12. No spoilers, please. 70 hours played. I would probably be done now, if it wasn't for all the side stuff that I have been doing. Good times. I still intend to do more side stuff. I haven't even touched golf or the batting center. 120 hours is what I expect to spend on the game.

After this, I will probably do Yakuza 6, in backlog since day one. After that, FotNs, and then the two Judgment games, but first a break.

 

[Nirvash]

Well, is over, all the dignity of yakuza is soon to be lost.

Nenechi started kiwami.




See, majima is best girl.

Who is nenechi?



My god... haruka.

 

[Deuce Traveler]

I'm now at chapter 12. No spoilers, please. 70 hours played. I would probably be done now, if it wasn't for all the side stuff that I have been doing. Good times. I still intend to do more side stuff. I haven't even touched golf or the batting center. 120 hours is what I expect to spend on the game.

After this, I will probably do Yakuza 6, in backlog since day one. After that, FotNs, and then the two Judgment games, but first a break.

The end of Chapter 12 is my favorite part of the game. The song 'Comeback' is the best. I'm not sure if Comeback is the official name of the song, but it's part of the chorus and put a smile on my face. You are in for a treat.

 

[karoliner]

https://www.gematsu.com/2022/01/net...ed-by-yakuza-series-creator-toshihiro-nagoshi

NetEase Games establishes Nagoshi Studio, led by Yakuza series creator Toshihiro Nagoshi
Daisuke Sato and other former Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio staff make up the studio's founding members.

NetEase Games has announced the establishment of Nagoshi Studio, a new game development studio headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo and led by Yakuza series creator Toshihiro Nagoshi as its president and CEO. The studio will focus on developing high-quality console titles that will be released worldwide.

Nagoshi left Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and SEGA back in October 2021 with right-hand man Daisuke Sato, who is also a founding member of Nagoshi Studio.

Here is a message from Nagoshi on the studio’s establishment:

The sea of change that began in the entertainment industry in the late 20th century has brought even greater change to the industry in the 21st century.

Changes to entertainment content, how it’s made and the business model driven by technology and infrastructure advances have sparked a paradigm shift, and these changes are continuing to unfold with greater and greater speed.

What only yesterday had been considered the height of cool now suddenly becomes outdated before you know it.

For creators, this makes working in the industry today incredibly challenging.

But no matter how the times change, I believe that what people essentially want from entertainment has not changed one bit.

People see their dreams in entertainment.

People look to entertainment to give them hope in life, to soothe them in times of difficulty, and to add excitement in happy times. People look to entertainment to provide the spark for all kinds of events.

The appetite for entertainment is the same today as it was in the past.

There are obviously differences between the past and the present in how entertainment is consumed, its volume and velocity, but its essence remains the same.

The only way to deliver this essence to the world is if all creators approach the works they create with seriousness and clarity while grinding away to get closer to reaching the ideal.

One of my goals at this studio is to create an open atmosphere.

This may sound like an overly simplistic goal.

But even the most talented creators cannot fully unleash their abilities in isolation.

I believe that the first step to creating high-quality titles and delivering the essence of entertainment with strong motivation starts with creating an open atmosphere in the studio.

This means having open-ended discussions that ignore seniority and hierarchy.

This means not fearing mistakes while also not being afraid to correct them, and treating failures as assets. This means not giving up on reaching the ideal, and fighting to get closer to it.

This may seem so simple, but the simplest things can unexpectedly be the hardest to do, and at the same time the most important.

Nagoshi Studio is committed to creating content for the world to enjoy from this atmosphere.

The following eight staff make up the additional founding members of the new studio:

Daisuke Sato (producer)

• Profile: Joined Capcom Co., Ltd. in 1992 after graduating from university. Joined SEGA Enterprises, Inc. (currently SEGA Corporation) in 1994 and worked in the AM#2 department. Also worked in the consumer business, where he was the director and producer of the Yakuza series, and later became head of the development studio business. Appointed Director at Nagoshi Studio Inc. in January 2022.
• Message: “Nagoshi Studio Inc. is a brand-new company. Led by Toshihiro Nagoshi, our team of creators aims to produce high-end console titles that will become famous around the world. We are just beginning to build our culture as a new company, which will focus on delivering products of the highest quality. One thing that I intend to do as Director of the company is to make sure that we reward our creators for their work when we get the results we seek. I want our studio to be a place where we feel great satisfaction from the products we make as well as the work we do. We are currently hiring development staff. Come on board if you’re interested in sharing your passion and succeeding as a creator with us!”

Kazuki Hosokawa (artist)

• Profile: Joined SEGA Enterprises, Inc. (currently SEGA Corporation) in 1995, and was involved as a designer in series such as Panzer Dragoon and Jet Set Radio. He later became art director and director of the Yakuza series and producer of the Judgment series. Joined Nagoshi Studio in January 2022.
• Message: “I want to make games that people can’t resist. It has always been my goal to make beautiful, fun and expansive games that people won’t want to put down. I’ve had my good days and bad days while creating games, but one thing I’ve learned is that you always have to challenge yourself if you want to achieve your goals and make something great. Our new studio is full of people who have great ambition, and it is the perfect place to challenge yourself to make games that people become obsessed with. We don’t set boundaries on our creativity or the possibilities, because we believe there are no limits. We are looking for creators who will join us in our creative challenges. Please reach out if you want to experience the joy, the pain and the great satisfaction of creating at Nagoshi Studio. We look forward to working with passionate people!”

Koji Tokieda (programmer)

• Profile: Joined Amusement Vision, Ltd. (currently SEGA Corporation) as a programmer in 2001. After working in program development for the Super Monkey Ball series and F-ZERO AX/GX, he was involved in the Yakuza series, and was the main programmer for Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Joined Nagoshi Studio, Inc. in January 2022.
• Message: “I have been making games with Toshihiro Nagoshi for the past 20 years. And now I look forward to soon delivering games that people will love from the new Nagoshi Studio! I believe that it is a game programmer’s mission to make games interesting. The main job of programmers at Nagoshi Studio Inc. is to develop games using programming language. However, we are also looking for people who can contribute ideas to new endeavors and elevate the quality of our games, regardless of their role in the organization. If you are a creator who wants to make fun games and new titles for high-end console games, this is your chance to join us at our studio. Let’s create the future together!”

Masao Shirosaki (game designer)

• Profile: Joined SEGA Corporation as a planner in 2007. He was involved in the development for the Yakuza series, Kurohyo series, and Sakatsuku series, and was a producer for the Super Monkey Ball series. Has a wealth of experience in game development for various platforms, including development and operations for online mobile games. Joined Nagoshi Studio Inc. in January 2022.
• Message: “Hello everyone! I’m Shirosaki. Thank you for checking out our website. It had always been my dream to become a game creator. I want to create the excitement that so many great titles have given to me, so that I can share this with others and in some small way make people feel good. I look forward to working alongside Toshihiro Nagoshi to create games like this at Nagoshi Studio. We are going to make great games you’ll have fun playing, so stay tuned! We’re also looking for people to help us make games that light up the world. If you have this passion, aspiration and ambition, reach out and contact us!”

Mitsunori Fujimoto (engineer)

• Profile: Joined SEGA Enterprises, Inc. (currently SEGA Corporation) in 1991 after working at an overseas computer manufacturer. Primarily worked in IT roles (development environments and online games), and was engaged in a companywide development support business. Joined Nagoshi Studio Inc. in January 2022.
• Message: “You probably have high expectations for games that come with the Nagoshi Studio name. We created this company to make games that live up to these expectations for scale and quality. We make games that are deep, epic and filled with a commitment to please our fans. My role isn’t in game development per se, but is to provide whatever is necessary so that game developers can focus on their work. We’ve basically started from scratch without the infrastructure, pipeline or systems needed to develop deep, epic games. There is a lot of freedom, but it is also a major undertaking. We hope to hear from you if you think this adventure is right for you.”

Naoki Someya (artist)

• Profile: Joined Amusement Vision, Ltd. (currently SEGA Corporation) in 2002 as a designer, and was involved in developing arcade games and console games. Served as the background designer for the Yakuza series and art director for the Judgment series. Joined Nagoshi Studio Inc. in January 2022.
• Message: “There is no greater pleasure as a game designer than to know that people get immersed in the visuals of a game and have fun in the world they create. There are a few things I would like to accomplish at the new Nagoshi Studio Inc. They include creating the greatest art the industry has ever seen, and creating titles that are loved by users. Our biggest goal, however, is to create as many titles as we can that wow the world. We’re intent on making these goals a reality, so stay tuned! We’re also looking for creators that want to take this journey with us. If you want to test your abilities and set goals to achieve, then Nagoshi Studio is the place for you. Let’s work together and create great things!”

Taichi Ushioda (director)

• Profile: Has worked at NHN Japan Corp., Square Enix Co., Ltd., LEVEL-5 Inc. and SEGA Corporation. Has served as director, producer and development general manager for a wide range of projects including major MMORPG titles and mobile games before joining Nagoshi Studio Inc.
• Message: “As someone who grew up in the era of games, I want to give back to the gaming industry and fans. I think this is best done by delivering games that people truly enjoy. But for people working in the game industry, do you find that other factors come into play that get in the way of achieving this simple goal? At Nagoshi Studio, we not only have staff with great passion and experience, but we also have the foundation that allows us to make games of the highest quality that hold up over time and across world markets. We have everything we need to focus single-mindedly on doing our best work to put smiles on the faces of game fans. We hope that game fans are excited for what’s to come from Nagoshi Studio. We intend to live up to your expectations with games that make you smile. To the game creators out there seeking a new challenge—why not come and fuel your passions with us?”

Toshihiro Ando (artist)

• Profile: Joined SEGA Enterprises, Inc. (currently SEGA Corporation) in 1996 and mainly worked on character designs at AC/CS. After working on development for Power Smash and Sakatsuku, he worked as lead character designer on the Judgment series. Joined Nagoshi Studio in January 2022.
• Message: “My childhood dream was to become a manga artist or a rakugo storyteller. In high school, I wanted to be an artist or graphic designer. But I fell in love with “Virtua Racing” while at university, and before I knew it I was working at a game company. Working in this field may have been a natural progression for me, as I have always had a love for the arts and entertainment. The passion I feel burns just as bright today, and I hope to make great games that people love to play at this new company. Creating a worker-friendly environment where we can all enjoy creating is a key piece of this. Now that I am a designer at a brand-new company that is full of potential, I aim to create visual expression that is mind-blowing, beautiful and maximizes the excitement of the games we create. I want my designs to help give everyone who plays our games highly satisfying, memorable game experiences.”

Visit the studio’s official website here.

 

[Abu Antar]

They poached quite a few people.

My guess is that their game will have online functionality of some sort. Maybe it will even be online focused. We'll see.

 

[aweigh]

About to begin my Kiwami 2 playthrough for the first time (only did the intro just to verify the game runs acceptably), and something Modron said got me thinking: he was commenting that the combat in Kiwami 2 was a big step down from 0 and Kiwami 1, and that he was forced to use the same tactics/moves over and over again, ad nauseum, just to be able to get through encounters, and I ended up finding this:

The video isn't about the game's performance or "cinematic feel" at all, the reason he says 30fps is better for Kiwami 2 is because apparently the game's combat is completely broken at 60fps. Enemy AI functions twice as fast as intended so stun duration is halved or more, AI blocks twice as fast and twice as often, skips actions or goes through them too fast, and most importantly... the input queue buffer/input leniency is halved (or more) and makes combo'ing impossible or almost impossible.

Some comments from Kiwami 2 players:

Emily Lefebvre
6 months ago
This is a similar problem Yakuza 3 and 4 have with the remastered collection. The AI is for some reason reacting faster at 60 FPS, though at least in Kiwami 2 it seems switching the framerate also switches the tick rate.

PaRappa Rapper
6 months ago (edited)
I'm so glad you made this lol. I thought enemies combo breaking you was the norm. Looking forward to your next video!

Lol Legend
6 months ago
The series are really interesting. I had a bad impression of YK2 because of the fighting (enemies block most attacks, no heat action with sofa guy, etc.) Maybe after your videos I'll come back fully prepared and complete it once, because story is pretty good.

And this comment mirrors what I heard from others:

wishe
6 months ago
great video! I was wondering why I was having such a hard time doing the combos I saw on youtube. I'd be stuck with just holding both square and triangle charges, doing the charge punch to break the guard, then knocking them away with a charge kick since that was really the only option. would be awesome if this issue could be fixed with a mod

Well, this explains my biggest grievance with the game (well, and how shallow the combat system felt to the original Y2), have to remember it next time. I was so annoyed that no matter how great your combo would be, they could block at virtually any time. Like, you'd hit them into a knock back, they'd be in a vulnerable position, but then block your next attack...literally skipping an entire action necessary to get in that position. On top of just not feeling as rich, it basically broken combo fluidity.

Oh, also the mini-games are broken on 60fps as well. There is a patch that fixes the mini-games for 60fps but it doesn't fix the combat/A.I. issues.

 

[Abu Antar]

I just lost a certain battle against two bros in chapter 12 (Like A Dragon). I forgot that it's game over when Kasuga gets KO'd. Restarting cost me 17 million yen.

Other than that, so far chapter 12...

 

[karoliner]

I actually suggest to skip Kiwami 2. It's not just that the combat is a downgrade but the story just isn't as interesting. And it was like this in the original PS2 game too.

 

[Rean]

I just lost a certain battle against two bros in chapter 12 (Like A Dragon). I forgot that it's game over when Kasuga gets KO'd. Restarting cost me 17 million yen.

Other than that, so far chapter 12...

Yes, there are a few specific boss bottles in the game that are nigh unbeatable if you're underleveled. Other than those, the game is piss easy battle-wise, but the series has always had balance problems.
For that specific one you mention, you're supposed to beat the nearby arena to get some levels at minimum. Took me about an hour to do so I believe? It's worth it, you get to fight some interesting enemies.

 

[Rean]

I actually suggest to skip Kiwami 2. It's not just that the combat is a downgrade but the story just isn't as interesting. And it was like this in the original PS2 game too.

Disagree. There aren't enough decent games to play if you game often. Even the worst entries in the Yakuza series are still much better than anything released in the west, so 2 is still worth playing. Fuck it, I'd rather play the minigames in Yakuza than modern western vomit.

 

[Modron]

No reason to skip 2 anyways not like the series increases in quality with each entry. I enjoyed them all mind you but Yakuza 5 in particular was a slog (especially the Saejima segment) and of course they then over corrected with the sixth one as a full completionist run can be finished in under 50-60 hours.

 

[Rean]

No reason to skip 2 anyways not like the series increases in quality with each entry. I enjoyed them all mind you but Yakuza 5 in particular was a slog (especially the Saejima segment) and of course they then over corrected with the sixth one as a full completionist run can be finished in under 50-60 hours.

 

[Modron]

Don't act like Saejima segment wasn't half Yakuza 5's length, first you run around Kamurucho, then fart around prison, then mountain snow village replete with boring hunting minigame, then whatever that northern city was called, and this isn't even counting later chapters playing as him.