Today, we’re reviewing the Yakuza games ranked from best to worst. The series, developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, personally hooked me with its thrilling narratives, intense action, and immersive open-world settings. The stories of the series feel like something out of a movie. The serious narrative combined with wacky side missions shouldn’t work because they are opposing in tone, but somehow, it merges them for a unique fun and experience. Let’s see how the other games stack up in the series, with Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth coming in a year. Get your suit and get ready to dive into the underworld of the Yakuza franchise!
Yakuza 0
The prequel to the series marks the peak of the mountain. It depicts the story’s beginning of the main character, Kazuma Kiryu, and portrays Gojo Majima’s descent into madness and his eventual title, the Mad Dog of Shimano. Kazuma Kiryu is wrongfully accused and framed for murder. Meanwhile, Goro Majima, a former yakuza member, runs a cabaret club. Majima, a fan favorite, starts as a composed and serious worker but eventually breaks free. However, he still yearns to return to the yakuza world.
When not engaged in the main story’s drama, you might find yourself racing RC cars, singing karaoke, managing a club, or managing real estate. These side missions and mini-games have a lot of great characters and moments. They do an excellent job of relieving tension during a tale of lies, cheating, and betrayal.
Combat in Yakuza 0 represents the new evolution of beat ’em ups from gaming’s past. Imagine games like Streets of Rage or Double Dragon made in the modern gaming world. You can unlock new abilities and finishers, which are often fun and sometimes hilarious. Finishers react to your environment; for example, if you are by a railing, Kiryu will pick up your opponent and slam his crotch on the railing. You can also grab a salt shaker and shake it in your opponent’s eyes or knock a guy down to his knees with a bat and wind up for a home run swing, cracking the guy in the head. You will feel like you are playing a kung fu and wrestling hybrid. Combat is fluid and enjoyable, and you will never tire of the new ways you can crack skulls with it.
This is a great jumping-off point for the series. This prequel was made after many games in the series, which can make some of the earlier games a bit rough. This is an excellent Yakuza game, a great game in general, and the only way to begin our list of Yakuza games ranked best to worst. If you enjoy this game, you will probably enjoy the rest of the series.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon
This game announcement had two major changes for the series. Firstly, a new protagonist, Kasuga Ichiban, is the complete opposite of Kiryu, even down to his outfit. Ichiban is a super goofy and unserious Dragon Quest superfan, and the battles take place through the scope of his imagination. He even wears a suit of armor that appears out of nowhere when in action. Secondly, the game’s combat is now turn-based. The Yakuza development team decided to fully embrace the RPG side of the series, which makes sense given the new main character. All of this helps it become one of the best Yakuza games.
Ichiban is a low-ranking member of a yakuza clan. He is so loyal that he takes the fall for a murder he did not commit to protect the clan’s honor. Doing so puts him behind bars for 18 years. When his sentence ends, he discovers that the world has changed drastically. No one comes to pick him up, and he discovers that the clan he was so loyal to betrayed him. Trying to find out why he was betrayed, Ichiban uncovers a web of conspiracies. He and his group try to discover the truth.
The game has the same structure as previous titles under the hood. It still features mini-games and wacky sidequests, NPCs offering long side quests, and combat that doesn’t feel too different, except for the absence of button-mashing. The drama and wackiness have been increased to level 11. You can begin playing this title without any prior knowledge. Although some characters from past games appear, you won’t feel like you missed out on anything. The game signals the end of the Yakuza label because authorities disbanded them in crime family crackdowns. This transition also marks the beginning of the series, now titled Like a Dragon. While you might want to start from the beginning, you can jump in here. Yakuza Like a Dragon may be one of the most impressive RPGs dropped in the last five years. However, with a spinoff and eight more titles next year, you may want to familiarize yourself with the previous games.
Yakuza 4
After the cliffhanger ending of Yakuza 3, all that is left are questions, one of which is where Kiryu is. The game has you playing through the stories of four different characters. When the patriarch of the Tojo clan disappears, it sets off a domino effect that leads to a power struggle in the city of Kamurocho.
There are four main characters, all with their own motivations and goals. Shun Akiyama, a charismatic moneylender with a mysterious past, gets caught up in a deadly conspiracy. Taiga Saejima is a former Yakuza member who was sent to jail for murdering 18 men. Saejima escapes prison with revenge on his mind. Masayoshi Tanimura, a detective, becomes torn between his duty as a cop and loyalty to his family. Lastly, Kazuma Kiryu, the legendary Dragon of Dojima, returns thinking he has left his yakuza life behind. The game features the four stories intersecting and colliding, leading to intense confrontations and the discovery of a city-wide conspiracy. Loyalty, honor, regret, and consequences of one’s actions take center stage in this great story, worthy of a movie.
Everything the Yakuza series is known for is here, like in every title before it. There is improvement in a lot of the main mechanics, as a sequel should. The four characters all fight in different styles, which helps to reduce the feeling of repetitiveness from previous titles and keeps combat, interactions, and the story interesting. How can a game be almost perfect and still be third on a ranking list? That is for you to find out. Differences are not always a bad thing, and Yakuza 4 proves it. Its difference in the four-story structure only improves upon what came before it. Yakuza 3 and 4 shake up the series in ways that make you feel like you are not repeatedly playing the same game.
Yakuza Kiwami 2
Kiryu finally leaves his Yakuza life behind, only to be brought back into the fold after the murder of the Fifth Chairman of the Tojo clan. Kiryu must find a replacement for the Tojo clan’s Chairman to prevent a large-scale war between the Tojo and Omi Alliance. The story is full of unpredictable twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
This game features one of the best antagonists in the series: Ryuji Goda, dubbed the Dragon of Kansai, who believes there’s only room for one true dragon. Epic clashes between Ryuji and Kiryu ensue, even though they are similar. The Ryuji and Kiryu relationship reminds me of The Punisher telling Daredevil he was one bad day from being him.
All the staples of the Yakuza series are included, with slight combat tweaks that make fights feel a little different than in the previous title. Ryuji Goda really steals the show here, as his raw power makes you wonder how you can stop him. Ryuji deserves recognition as a top-tier villain.
Yakuza 6
This was the swan song for our lovable stoic Kiryu, the conclusion of his story arc. Although he is returning, this was a great fake send-off for the franchise. The game begins with many main characters being in jail or released, and Kiryu is released after serving a three-year sentence. Upon his return to his life, he finds that his adopted daughter Haruka is missing. He sets out to discover the truth and find his daughter.
There were significant graphical improvements, and the new engine flexed with no loading times. It feels like a reboot and a finale, with fights that can move from the streets into buildings. Although there were some letdowns, such as the lack of returning cast and smaller maps, the game avoided the trap of fan service. Instead, you get a compelling story with all the beloved elements packed into a beautiful-looking game that focuses on the story.
Yakuza 5
Yakuza 5 follows the same style of storytelling as the fourth game. In this entry, you play as five main characters, three of which are returning from Yakuza 4: Kazuma Kiryu, Shun Akiyama, and Taiga Saejima. Two new playable characters are introduced: Kiryu’s adopted daughter, Haruka, and Tatsuo Shinada, new to the series.
The game features five maps, and the truce between the Tojo clan and the Omi Alliance starts to deteriorate, with the Seventh Chairman of the Omi Alliance falling terminally ill. With him fading, the bad blood between the clans begins to rise to the surface. Haruka introduces a new play style on her journey to becoming an idol, with her sections focusing on rhythm sequences.
This game has a great story full of mystery and betrayal. The combat sequences are some of the best in the series. The combat is one of the better iterations in the series, second only to Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami 2. Taiga still has some problems with his fighting, as he did in the fourth game. He doesn’t have as tight of control as you would like. The side quests and mini-games are still present, once again making a great game that breaks up the repetitiveness that some of the earlier games suffered from.
Yakuza Kiwami
Kiwami is not a bad game in the series, but it doesn’t reach the heights of the others. That’s why it’s on the lower end on our list of Yakuza games ranked.
An awesome remake of the game that started it all, in which Kazuma Kiryu takes the blame for a murder committed by his sworn brother. The game begins with Kiryu going to prison for ten years, an exciting start to the series. The world he knows is flipped upside down as war erupts between the Yakuza clans and the Triad. Kiryu’s sworn brother, Akira Nishikiyama, becomes a power-hungry and unstable menace. Kiryu tries to figure out what happened to his brother and childhood friend, Yumi. Kiryu sets out to find out why Yumi has gone missing.
The remake has lots of improvements in its story, graphics, side stories, mini-games, and combat. Additional content was added to resolve some confusing points and add story bits to connect to Yakuza 0. The game added a mechanic called Majima Everywhere. Goro Majima makes sure you are never safe. He could be hiding in plain sight in costumes, manholes, and even giant traffic cones. Majima can’t stand that stoic Kiryu refuses to fight him, so he resorts to all these tactics to force Kiryu into fighting him. He becomes obsessed with defeating Kiryu throughout the series.
The story, although straightforward, is captivating. Like most Yakuza games, this story, with cinematic cutscenes, feels like a movie. The cutscenes can be as long as Metal Gear sometimes, but their story is deep and dark.
Yakuza 3
We wrap up our list of Yakuza games ranked with the third entry in the series. Kiryu achieves his dream by leaving the yakuza lifestyle behind and running an orphanage, but the government and criminal underworld attempt to steal the land. He investigates the mysterious reappearance of his dead adopted father and fights to keep the orphanage. One side desires to construct a luxury resort, while the government wants to build a military base.
The biggest flaw with this game is that it is a remastered PS3 game. This game feels rough after playing Yakuza 0, Kiwami, and Kiwami 2. The combat is the weakest in the series, as opponents mainly block, forcing players to either spam a block-breaking move or attempt to dodge behind opponents with attacks that track too well. However, everything you love about the series is present, including a unique storyline and a new region to explore.
It really isn’t a bad game, but some people might skip it by just watching cutscenes like a movie. This game is the weakest in the series but still decent. If it were to receive a remake and quality-of-life improvements like the earlier titles, I could see people enjoying it much more.
