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New to the Yakuza series: should I play Yakuza 0 or Yakuza Kiwami first?

MrA

Banned
0 is off the rails bananas,
Kiwami is just regular awesome (though majima everywhere gets pretty wild) plus 0 sets up a few things for kiwami
 
D

Deleted member 801069

Unconfirmed Member
this game is amazing

first time ever my wife has asked me not to play without her present so she can continue to follow the story

edit: I’m only about 5 hours in too
 
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Zeeed

Member
Finished Yakuza 0 last night and just started Yakuza 1 Kiwami and am very conflicted.

After playing a couple of hours of Yakuza 1 Kiwami it saddens me to see what Goro has become when Yakuza 0 made you like him so much.

I know this was their intention all along when making a prequal and it is a common thing for prequals to do(games, novels, etc.).
But I feel like if I had played the first two Kiwami and then played Yakuza 0, my mind would have been blown with Goro's back story.

Going the way I did with the order 0, 1, and 2 just made me more sad every time I see Goro instead of hating him or being scared of him. Which I think kind of ruins what the developer of the game wanted you to originally feel.
 
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Started with Kiwami then 0 then kiwami 2.
Pretty happy about my choice.
Just started 5 a couple of days ago, 2years after my first in the series I try to play at least a couple games between each episode.
Amazing series.
 

DeVeAn

Member
Hmm, well 0 like you said is chronological so that works. BUT, I played these as the came out since PS2 days. Playing 0 later is like saving one of the best for dessert.
 

Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
Beat 0, Kiwami, and Kiwami 2. Did the real estate management in 0 & am currently doing the cabaret club in 2.

Pretty great series. Don't know if I will continue with 3; Kiwami 2 ends on a pretty high note both in quality & for the characters themselves. 5 does look pretty kickass with minigames like taxi driving, the idol singing, & the different cities but I'll probably just skip over to Like A Dragon if I ever do continue.

Zero is easily the high point but Kiwami 2 has its moments. Kiwami 1 feels like a lazy asset flip lol & characters you love from Zero like Majima & Reina get treated weird.
 

KiteGr

Member
Start with 0.

It was made in such a way that it's an ideal approach for new players and a much better representation.
Kiwami assumes you have played 0 before, and also the first game was poorer in it's story and content aspects, so it works better as a dlc/expansion (that's why it had a reduced price).
Kiwami 2 is much better and the point the series really picks up.
 

GymWolf

Member
0 and don't let anyone telling you otherwise.

Kiwami 1 become a better game if played after 0 (still the weakest entry in the saga)
 

jm89

Member
Play 0 first people and accept you will never experience another yakuza game like it, cause everything goes down hill from there quite rapidly.
 
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DustQueen

Banned
The number 0 comes before the number 7, so what do you think?

Christ what a retarded thread
It only means it's a prequel. It is basically 6th main installment in the series.
So Kiwami with it's more slow burn story, old animations and being the remake that of the first game is the way to start.
 
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Aenima

Member
Start with zero. Kiwami had some cutscenes added to be a better follow up from zero story.

Also some side quests on kiwami are follow ups from some quests on zero.
 

Amory

Member
I think kiwami. 0 is a much more complete game and it'd be harder to go back to kiwami having completed 0
 

poodaddy

Gold Member
Get a PS2 emulator and play Yakuza 1.

Or just start with 0, I suppose.
To be honest this is weird advice. I love me some Yakuza, but recommending someone to start with 1 on PS2 when there's a perfectly good remake of it, and prequel, in 2021 is just such a weird recommendation. Not hating on ya for it, it just seems so odd.

Start with 0, then Kiwami, then Kiwami 2, and then 3 through 6. Just do the chronological order, and choose the most "modern" versions of the games. 3 and up haven't aged badly at all, so they're fine by today's standards honestly.
 

-pepodmc

Neo Member
Start with 0

Yakuza 0 is in my top 10 of best games off all time.

Is THAT good. Story, characters, gameplay, music,sub missions, all its great (the sub mission are very fun to play, very)

I knew the series but didnt played any game before, and when i saw 0 in 2018 , i started playing it because i like beat em ups and it looked like one in an open world. But i was not prepared for such an amazing game.

Kiwami 1 is not a bad game, but 0 is so great that it makes kiwami looks like a bad game. Plus i didnt liked the story in kiwami 1, some very forced situations that changed some characters...

In my head only yakuza 0 is cannon, and the rest of the games of the saga are "what if" games (yakuza kiwami 2 is the second best yakuza)
 
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Nico_D

Member
I think I made a mistake starting with 0. Kiwami... tbf, I have played it like 30 mins. but running around after a ring is booooring. And it takes a long time too. People are saying that a lot of missions have that same errand boy feeling.

Maybe I should just leave it at 0 and remember that fondly because it was a great game.
 

Roufianos

Member
I think I made a mistake starting with 0. Kiwami... tbf, I have played it like 30 mins. but running around after a ring is booooring. And it takes a long time too. People are saying that a lot of missions have that same errand boy feeling.

Maybe I should just leave it at 0 and remember that fondly because it was a great game.
I gave up on Kiwami too. I actually went straight to Kiwami 2 and 6, both of which are awesome and can be followed pretty easily without playing the others.
 
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