Ok, this is a hot take, but I'll be out with it. I honestly believe Gaiden is somewhat of an underrated installment of the Yakuza series. A spin-off for a side story being tied to both Yakuza Like A Dragon, and Infinite Wealth. Feels like this one should have come out way earlier.
One of the most improved aspect of the game are the visuals. Yeah, this is using the same Dragon Engine since Y6. It's been 7 years since that one came out. Yet, one of the most annoying aspects of the game is the anemic nature of its photomode. Basically all Kiryu has to do is take his phone out, and get pictures from it, including selfies. It's very basic as hell, with little features.
Funny thing is, for a game this short, it takes place in all 3 districts; Ijincho, Kamurocho, and Sotenbori. I have a feeling they'll come back for a part II to this, expanding on content, as well as areas for the next story content. And you'll find me taking photos there as well.
No HDR uploads, I couldn't get to that because the camera didn't allow me to hide the UI. But here's a shot from Bishamon Bridge, a bunch of tugs ahead but nothing that is stopping me going ahead.
The river bed between Sotenbori Foothpath. I seriously can't tell if this looks the same as the prior games. I mean by that is this bed looks nothing dissimilar to the ones in Yakuza 0. Sure the lighting and bloom is different, and with HDR on, looks more highly defined in HDR.
Ah yes, my favorite corner. Where the cabaret club, and restaurants are close. So are the thug fights.
A bro asks me to play Darts with him, unfortunately he underestimated my Dart game proficiency. Another box ticked for Akame's task, all in a moment's work, but there's still lot to be done.
This woman lost a hot that belonged to her late father, but it got blown off to the air and she's been looking for it since. I walked around the footpath to find it, thinking I might have to even fish it out. But no, it was on top of a tree, which my handy grappling hook managed to snag.
There's nothing much going on here, most of the time I spent doing errands for Akame, stuff like helping working class find Bentos they couldn't find anywhere else. But also picking fights with gangs harassing bystanders and being last-minute protection calls as well.
But a good reason for all this would be that I'm saving up to fight back in the arena again. I needed the upgrades, so some good deeds do really pay off. Yeah, instead of earning Dragon points from leveling up, Gaiden basically just says "nah, just put more money in it", you know, like they did it in Y0. Seriously, now am getting so many 0 vibes here and there.
Nothing, just a 'Flying Takoyaki' statue on top of a Takoyami joint. A nice lady in a bar was looking for one.
Why yes, I do have time to sing karaoke, I am willing to risk having blisters on my thumbs from rapid button pressing. Not like I'm going to do such a terrible job. Also, next time duet with Akame after my match.
A close up shot of a thug group. Here's another silly tidbit, they don't recognize Kiryu till he stops taking photos. That is strange, but after taking the phone down, soon my cover got blown.
And being ahead of the curve, this is the last shot I managed to get. Annoyingly though, it takes 5 seconds after taking a photo to put it down. Something about the snap being processed and filed in my PC.
As I finally reach The Castle, I wasn't allowed to use the phone this time. So I did the next best thing, I turned off the UI, and took direct SS of the place. And of Kiryu's new clothing line. Please do appreciate the look, cost me quite the in-game bucks.
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