Multiplat Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth

[dwwaino]

I usually try to get some gaming time in when I have lunch at work (work from home 95% of the time) but because this game is so story driven I didn't want to get stuck on a cutscene and then have to go back to work. So I've just mainly been going around and doing sub stories and fighting anyone I can.

I got to the last part of chapter 4 and it said my recommended level should be 13 and I'm like oh ok well my party is level 27.
Have I now made things too easy for myself? Or will it catch up quickly.

That will help with some really spongey bosses later. I'm typically around 10 levels above everything and there are still some fights that I've had some grief with. Being such a big game already you don't want to make it any longer or let it be tedious by getting bogged down in the hundreds of fights you'll be having.

 

[Cooldude]

Date's such an idiot, he called Kiryu twice while I was crossing the road and Kiryu just stands there in the middle of the road taking the call, while holding up the traffic with all the cars beeping and chatting the most serious shit

 

[Sixpence]

Spoiler: Chapter 12 Memories

Saeko fan-girling over meeting Yuki and Koyuki.

Yuki hasn't aged in the slightest since Y0!

 

[dwwaino]

Two spoilery things so I'll double post so they aren't revealed if anyone quotes

Substory 52, the final one at Revolve

Spoiler

"Bartender" says he was shot and fell off a hospital ruff. Is this some sort of Easter egg or piss take? Either it's really Richardson or just a nod. Yakuza wiki talks about them as one and the same, but surely Kiryu would have recognised him like he did Kashiwagi who is indeed who he is depicted as despite taking a chest full of lead.

 

[dwwaino]

Hanawa's identity

Spoiler

Apparently Moringa? Surely Kiryu would have recognised him. I'm not buying it but that's what aot of people are saying.

Edit: probably not a real spoiler, more just speculation since Gaiden.

 

[Sixpence]

Spoiler: Chapter 12 Boss Fight

Epic! ****ing. Epic!

Kinda wish I wasn't so over levelled for it though. Would be great to take on those 3 similar to the Saejima/Majima fight in LAD.

"We need to lose them!"
Runs two meters
"Alright, we're good"

 

[dwwaino]

Spoiler: Chapter 12 Boss Fight

Epic! *******. Epic!

Kinda wish I wasn't so over levelled for it though. Would be great to take on those 3 similar to the Saejima/Majima fight in LAD.

"We need to lose them!"
Runs two meters
"Alright, we're good"

Spoiler

I think I'm just about finished chapter 13 so a little ahead (and to be honest nothing of that sort of magnitude happens during it), but without knowing the ending yet I refuse to accept that this game will be the end of Kiryu and his gang after that part. There is absolutely no way I can see RGG just leaving those 3 to rot out in the middle of no where and they can't finish the "Yakuza" storyline without Kiryu. Daigo is quite a bit younger than the rest so there is room for another game with him and Majima is obviously the cult figure of the entire series.

There has also been way too much foreshadowing. Like Kashiwagi saying he'll talk frankly when the Dragon can reclaim his name, Kiryu promising everyone he'll do stuff with them again etc. He is also starting to use language like how he knows he can let others help him now. And have you finished the memories with Date that can be wrapped up in chapter 12? Because I also refuse to accept that Kiryu will leave certain loose ends.

The longer I drag this game on I inadvertently start to see spoilers in places I scroll. I'm going to need to finish it this week.

 

[Sixpence]

Spoiler

I think I'm just about finished chapter 13 so a little ahead (and to be honest nothing of that sort of magnitude happens during it), but without knowing the ending yet I refuse to accept that this game will be the end of Kiryu and his gang after that part. There is absolutely no way I can see RGG just leaving those 3 to rot out in the middle of no where and they can't finish the "Yakuza" storyline without Kiryu. Daigo is quite a bit younger than the rest so there is room for another game with him and Majima is obviously the cult figure of the entire series.

There has also been way too much foreshadowing. Like Kashiwagi saying he'll talk frankly when the Dragon can reclaim his name, Kiryu promising everyone he'll do stuff with them again etc. He is also starting to use language like how he knows he can let others help him now. And have you finished the memories with Date that can be wrapped up in chapter 12? Because I also refuse to accept that Kiryu will leave certain loose ends.

The longer I drag this game on I inadvertently start to see spoilers in places I scroll. I'm going to need to finish it this week.

Spoiler

I've just got to Chapter 13 and tick over 100 hours. I reckon I'll naturally finish it this week. I've done just about everything. Might spend a bit of time grinding the dungeons as I want to get Level 7 weapons for my party and need a lot of shark fins to do it! Will also probably need to do it to hit level 70.

Surely those 3 make an appearance at the end.

Yeh, did the memories. I agree, it needs tying off still. I thought there might be something at the end, but just realized with that being a side quest, they can't really add anything else.

Other than that, I feel like they've done a great job for Kiryu's final hurrah, if it is that.

 

[Cooldude]

Spoiler: Chapter 12 Boss Fight

Epic! *******. Epic!

Kinda wish I wasn't so over levelled for it though. Would be great to take on those 3 similar to the Saejima/Majima fight in LAD.

"We need to lose them!"
Runs two meters
"Alright, we're good"

Music of the fight was top tier

These life links and memoirs are killing me, it's like walking through a Kiryu museum and seeing closure for everything he has ever done. RGG've always been really good at emotional writing but these may be some of their best work yet

 

[dwwaino]

I've bought level boosters from Crazy Eats, the recycling chick on the beach and the Sujimon arena. Apparently can quest, Shogi dude, batting and golf all have level boosters to. I understand Shogi (it's just chess with more steps) but suck at it and can't win a single game, but with the 5 I got from my edition of IW and the 3 I already have plus hopefully the other 3 in Ijincho once I get back there if they really stock them, then I should only need to get to level 59 then boost Ichi to 70 for the trophy. No need for premium adventure or NG+. I currently have him at 54 so it shouldn't take toooooo long if I want to do it before finishing the story with pirate boots, ankle weights and XP buffs from food.

 

[Sixpence]

I got one from golf, but I suck at that so it took a while. Probably only a fraction of the time it'd take from grinding the dungeon mind you. I already used a couple of the 5 I originally had, will try get a few more from the minigames.

 

[Sixpence]

Looks like you could get one every 5 run throughs of Hard Sicko Snap. That's probably the easiest.

Edit: Looks like there's a limit of 2 from each game. Bugger!

 

[Sixpence]

Boom! Got the rainbow trophy. Thought that was going to be a pain.

 

[dwwaino]

Oh sicko snap! Yes I got one booster from there and maybe I didn't from somewhere else. I know I've got a few. Apparently leveling from 60 is a huge pain so luckily I kept mine. I figured I'd hold onto them in case of a sudden difficulty spike like LAD7 but I have always been well levelled so it never happened. Then I read about the XP requirements after 60 so I just decided to keep them.

 

[Sixpence]

Just spent like 30-40 mins running around pawn shops, checking my item bin, reloading saves trying to find what the **** happened to my Hero's Bat so I could upgrade it to the Legendary one only to find out I had upgraded it already but never equipped it.

 

[dwwaino]

The part in the morning at the end of the huge intro to the final chapter

Spoiler

When Kiryu pushes his hair back and puts on his OG outfit. **** yeah

 

[dwwaino]

Reached the point of no return. I don't want to rush the ending as I'm sure that will be quite lengthy. I think I'll spend the rest of the week just dungeon and level grinding and finishing off some a few small side things. What an amazing ride this has been.

I also just got 200 Aloha buddies. No, it wasn't worth it.

Edit: maybe will have to finish the story tomorrow night as I thought I'd be able to travel between locations . I'm locked out of crafting some weapons and the other team for now so I will have to wait until I unlock premium adventure.

 

[Cooldude]

Having played til Ch 13, the moral of this game is that influencers suck

 

[Sixpence]

The part in the morning at the end of the huge intro to the final chapter

Spoiler

When Kiryu pushes his hair back and puts on his OG outfit. * yeah

That shit gave me goosebumps!

 

[dwwaino]

Woo I now have a total of 11 level boosters so I'll only need to get Kasuga to 59. Finished off my final drink links and memoirs. Also did the first half of the ending. I'll summarise my thoughts once I completely finish tomorrow night.

Then I only need to finish the two EX dungeons and get to 70 for platinum. It will be my 50th platinum so I think it's a great way to bring up the milestone.

I also totally forgot that I have the Big Swell thing from DLC that's attached to NG+. I'm not sure when I'll attack that but I definitely will this year. I'll probably grind Kasuga to 59 in premium adventure then boost him to 70, then hopefully be over levelled enough for the EX dungeons. There are some other games I want to move on to as well like Persona 3 and be a total weeb. Speaking of weebs, this game had named otaku enemies to beat up, there should have been some weebs in Hawaii. I guess that's what that Nathan character was for.

 

[Sixpence]

I'm so close now. Just have Kiryu's section of the last chapter, level 70 grind and the two EX dungeons left.

Kinda crazy that after playing for nearly a month, I'm at the exact same point as dwwaino! (I compared trophies, we have the exact same ones)

I have 8 Level boosts, don't think I can get any more from mini-games. I saw on PSN store you can get 5 for like 4 bucks. I really hate that kind of shit, but I'll think I'll grab it this time as I really can't be ****ed with Shadow of War-esque grind at the end just for one trophy. 4 bucks is worth it to keep some of my sanity. That means I only need to get to level 57, which I'm not too far off.

 

[dwwaino]

I'm so close now. Just have Kiryu's section of the last chapter, level 70 grind and the two EX dungeons left.

Kinda crazy that after playing for nearly a month, I'm at the exact same point as dwwaino! (I compared trophies, we have the exact same ones)

I have 8 Level boosts, don't think I can get any more from mini-games. I saw on PSN store you can get 5 for like 4 bucks. I really hate that kind of s**t, but I'll think I'll grab it this time as I really can't be ****ed with Shadow of War-esque grind at the end just for one trophy. 4 bucks is worth it to keep some of my sanity. That means I only need to get to level 57, which I'm not too far off.

We are Yakuza kyodai

 

[dwwaino]

Just finished. I still have a few trophies to wrap up but what an amazing ride.

Firstly a few comments the game itself (as I have loaded premium adventure and listening to my in game song playlist while I digest the last month). I'll start with some negatives as they're small and to get them out of the way.

Substories, not enough of them. Only 52, they were all available early and many were a continuation from a previous one. For a game this large it felt like there should have been double that. Then again this game was loaded with content any way.

Dondoko island was a really awesome concept. It's super addictive upgrading your park. However once it's finally maxed out and you can fill it with S and A guests there isn't anything else too do and it takes too long. The reward payout just isn't worth it. I would get about $25k give or take but I read if you min/max your attraction placements you can get about $30k. The business game in LAD7 would get you ¥300k. I think when the developers designed the island this value was intentional because in this game USD to Yen trades at 1:100 so it works out the same. However the costs for things in this game are so much more and you make most of your money from dungeons, street fights and the story line that it makes the island less worthwhile.

Sujimon battles is cool but I think I ruined it by using DLC Sujimon. I stomped everyone. To any one starting the game with DLC Sujimon I strongly recommend not using them.

For the positives I can't remember the last time I would find excuses to keep playing. The last time I think was Witcher 3. Often in big games I'd do as much as I could until I hit a wall and would decide it's time to move on and wrap things up. Maybe because I've been so invested in this series I feel attached to the characters and the world that it feels like I'm hanging out. There were times I just jumped on to do rounds games like card games, mahjong, shitloads of karaoke etc.

Being such a long series Kasuga was meant to be a bit of a fresh start and an entry point for new fans. But man, this game was 100% fan service. I feel sorry for anyone who hasn't played every game and will not understand or appreciate the sheer amount of references to the previous games.

I might put my thoughts on the story and ending in a subsequent post as this is longer than I thought it would be.

 

[dwwaino]

Ending thoughts

Spoiler

I knew it. Our man will live on. He's sick as a dog and obviously has a battle, they made him look so frail at the end there. There was way too much foreshadowing though. Kashiwagi said it, he'll speak frankly when the Dragon reclaims his name. He himself told Ebina he has to live. Kiryu admitted himself to hospital as Kiryu Kazuma as a **** you to the Daidoji. Also who told Haruka he'd be there? The story of Kiryu isn't just about to whimper out as a sick old man hiding from society. He's the ****ing Dragon of Dojima. Kiryu made so many promises to people from his past. RGG will end Kiryu's story on his own terms.

Kiryu said to Kasuga in Ijincho before the end "I'll handle the Yakuza in the past, you are the future" or something like that. Like Kiryu, Daigo, Majima and Saejima aren't about to just fade away. There is more to go. I'm getting the impression Kiryu wants to recreate the Tojo clan to bring all the Yakuza back and reform them.

For the ending itself it probably wasn't as epic as some previous games. Bry-su wasn't prominent enough to be a scary Bond villain and the Ebina stuff including the plot twist that he is Kasuga's half brother wasn't really utilised enough for me to really feel anything for him. The stuff with Eiji, Chitose and Tomi was really well fleshed out but it's like the book ends of the game were thin.

Also, Yamai. I loved this character. Even when he was our enemy early on I still thought he was such a cool bad guy and a throw back to the baddy Yakuza we haven't seen in a few games. The way he came to Kasuga's side was so cool.

I'm only freshly finished so I'm sure I'll come up with much more once I digest it over the next few days.

 

[Sixpence]

Aaannd I'm done too. What a ****ing awesome game!

Bit under 120 hours, but need to finish the EX dungeons and Level up to 70.

Spoiler

Where to start? That was great from start to finish. It has it's usual well written story. The way they used Ichiban and Kiryu together was really well done and how they contrast the two character types, ie. Kiryu is typically the lone wolf and reserved, while Ichi wears his heart on his sleave and draws others to him. And Ichi influencing Kiryu to the point you have Kiryu going full Ichi on Ebina at the end.

Kinda torn about Kiryu's fate, it's awesome that he survived, but at the same time they set it up perfectly for him to go out.

Agree with dwwaino that they needed to delve more into the Ichi/Ebina brother arc more. It kinda counted as much as Jon Snow being a Targaryen. You just had Kiryu mention it to Ichi and Ichi being like "Oh really? So, anyway ...". Probably could have given some more definitive scenes on Sawashiro's fate other than some weird fan girl line after the fight too.

Had a ton of fan service, but fan service done well and not just shoe-horned in (for the most part at least). Fighting against and with Daigo, Majima and Saejima, Haruka and Haruto at the end, all the Memories and Life Links.

Biggest gripe was probably Dondoko Island. Was such a great concept and definitely worth doing, but could have been done a lot better. The building/placing was pretty clunky and the existing paths made it hard to really fit the buildings in. Given it was such a small island, I wish the building options were all one-story, rather than having to build a cluttered city. Items couldn't overlap, so you couldn't put a table inside a U-Shaped lounge, for example. The house was completely pointless, it was just two massive empty rooms with no way of creating smaller rooms to organise furniture. It really needed a separate system to the island. Having a tour run for 3 days and have to sit around for it was quite tedious, needed to be quicker or to be able to speed things up or have it run while you're in Honolulu.

Updated rankings:



Don't have them ordered within the tiers, but this is clear number 1!