Yakuza 0

This game is one of the best games ever made and an excellent intro into the world of Yakuza.

Women are dumb things

This was my the first game in the Yakuza series. I didn't know anything about it, just saw snippets from Yakuza 3 trailers back in the mid-2000s, and that's it.

I thought this would be just a regular Japanese gangster game. But my goodness, this game changed my perception so quickly when I went to the karaoke with kyodai Nishiki. I instantly sang along to "Judgment" with them, and that is where I fell in love with this game. I don't think a game has ever hooked me like this before. I don't think I've ever loved characters as much as Kiryu, Majima, and even Kuze. All of the characters are lovable. Those who played Cabaret and didn't spend hours dressing hostesses while singing along with the makeover song aren't real yakuza. Most importantly, this game did Majima, the best character after Kiryu, justice. We saw how he finally turned into the Majima we know today and his storyline was better than Kiryu's. When it comes to sub-stories, I have never enjoyed the side quests of any game as much as I have enjoyed the Yakuza side quests. They are the best; I laughed so hard at some of them and felt deeply moved when the melancholic sub-story theme played at the end of certain sub-stories. The soundtrack is also exceptional; each track is memorable, with my favorite being Kuze's Pledge of Demon theme. I still get goosebumps listening to it, and it makes the fights adrenaline-inducing.

Overall, this game was magical. It made me laugh, cry, and smile with tears of joy. This game was perfect for me, and therefore, it is the best video game I have ever played. My only regret is that I didn't play this game after 6 because this was the peak and it starts going downwards with some ups as the series progresses.

I played it a bit ago from when I'm actually writing this but I can tell you one thing that I remember as clear as day.
I-
was-
ecstatic-! XD even things that I found annoying, I loved XD I decided ON THE SPOT that it was gunna be one of my top game franchises even though I hadn't even fully accomplished a single one of the games at that time. From the stupid 'Mr Shakedowns', to the endless list of recurring characters of sidequests. From the comedy, to the serious, deep and meaningful tones that seem to engulf you at a seconds notice. From the fighting styles to the minigames XD theres no ennnnnd. It's a tad bit addictive where you wanna finish everything but sometimes you go long enough and say-.... I refuse to torture myself in even attempting to fight the final ultimate shakedown 💀 I'm no masochist.

Overall? I'm obsessed XD I'm about to start Yakuza proper (the one after 0) so I'll catch y'all later and letcha know my thoughts XD

I LOVE WOMEN, and apparently I love pimping them out – uhh, I mean, hiring them for my legitimate business to provide exceptional customer service – because I got really addicted to cabaret club management.
It seems simple at first, but there is a surprising amount of depth. You have to be mindful to not overwork your girls, to save your best girls for the rich customers, to learn the different hand signals the girls make when asking for help, and know when to use your special ability to win the boss fights. There are so many different girls you can recruit by buying them gifts or finishing their quests, and you can unlock new outfits to customise them and alter their stats. This might seem like a lot but I found the whole process very relaxing.

The conversations Majima has with his staff are well-written and succeed at making you care for each of these unique characters. Majima’s relationship with each of them is fascinating; he is clearly attracted to them, but he is also very professional so he avoids dating them because he is their boss and he also considers himself to be a father figure to these girls even though he is the same age as them, which is only one of Majima's many strange behaviours that would make him a therapist's worst nightmare. I became hooked on this weird story of assembling a harem to outperform the other corrupt harems in the area and becoming the most popular cabaret club in the city…

Oh yeah, the rest of the game is alright too, I guess.

Masterpiece of a game, awesome story Gameplay and substories. Its story is really well written and interesting, substories are fun and comical at the same time. Top place in the franchise but also very good the rest of the games so I'd suggest to play this one first as is the prequel set in the 1988 with a 20 years old Kazuma Kiryu, than Kiwami 1, Kiwami 2, yakuza 3,4,5, 6 the song of life and like a dragon.