Yakuza series

Yeah, Majima's just like that. But man, Saejima. I actually love that big fuckin lorry as much as I love Akiyama. I figured either Saejima would either be a grumpy fuck or the archetypical Gentle Giant but he's so much more. He regrets killing (or thinking he was killing) 18 guys but he's not above using it as a threat in one substory to let the bad guy know not to take him lightly. He's imperfect, he's a bit antisocial and its clear he doesn't look on the bright side. In 4 near the end, Kiryu tells him that the evidence they have can exonerate him for real but Saejima outright doesn't care, because he's still bogged down by all the shit that's just happened (his sister dying first and foremost) that he just can't really bring himself to care. I'm guessing seeing how Kiryu, Akiyama and Tanimura were all determined to see their bigass affair through to the end despite everything brightened him up a bit. He's not exactly a super nice gentle bear you can hug and woulnd't hurt a bab fly, but that doesn't mean he's a big unshaved bear that hates people (or shaved in 5 onward.) But the Essense of Bell Ringing would outright kill people in realife, as would Essence of Bounding (I love that move BTW. Clothesline From Hell into a Diamond Cutter? FUCK YEAH BABY)

Since they're dead set on his 5 appearance, I've added it to Iconic Outfit too.

Saejima also has the best Baka Mitai (Even more so then Kiryu, Don't @ Me):

I think they had Koyama go all out on that to make up for how Saejima wouldn't go into most other side activities in 4. Sadly this means in 5 he ends up in Hostess Bullshit but much like in 4 I'm happy to say that Hostess Bullshit does not seem to be a requirement for the Amons. I love 5 even more than I already did, and it already holds a big place in my heart

Also hell yeah its almost a match for Akiyama going all power ballad on that song.

Why did Saejima go back to prison in 5 anyway?

In his part's prologue in 5 he tells Majima its sort of a way for him to send a message to the Tojo soldiers, for a promotion in the clan and to pay a debt he still feels he owes (remember, he still intended murder back in '85, rubber bullets be fucked.)

Remember, the last death sentence he had was null and void after Munakata and Katsuragi's tomfuckery was made public and Saejima was largely exonerated. In 5 its basically a bullshit charge for assault, its only a three year sentence and he gets sent to an ordinary prison in Sapporo where he's allowed to mingle with roommates and share a cell with them (Baba, Himura and Oshima) unlike in 4 where it wasan off the books Okinawan prison shithole that looked more American in design if anything.

EDIT: I think my memory is going. What Saejima actually implied was mostly to strengthen both himself and the Tojo clan as a whole since its current numbers were nothing but lilly-livered uppity punks rather than hardened soldiers of honour like him, Majima or Kiryu or even outsiders like Akiyama. that's what the "tripe" metaphor was about. Burnt tripe looks like shit but tastes good. Prison would "burn" Saejima and the Tojo in teh same way and make it shine, make it a proper force to be reckoned with, inspire others to put themselves through fire and make it so the Omi can't just sit on the Tojo (Not that Watase would want to, he wants a good hard fight so I think he and Saejima would get on just fine.) Not sure how a regular prison would achieve that but hey.

Edited by MightyKombat on Jul 10th 2020 at 7:44:11 PM

I guess that makes sense. I thought he went back for his regular sentence but that never made sense to me so I thought I missed something.

Nah, if Saejima went back to prison to serve out his old 4 sentence, he would not be coming back out at all. Death row, remember? His parole is mentioned a lot in his prologue in 5, which never comes up in 4. Besides, Kiryu and gang got him exonerated of that (not that he gave a shit.)

Basically yeah, Saejima took the 3 year assault charge as a way to buff both himself and the Tojo Clan. People see him coming out of prison a harder, tougher man but a man of honour still, they would see example in that and the Tojo would benefit from stronger, better men. Granted though buffness and hitting hard alone won't truly make the Tojo invincible or super strong but hey, we had guys like Mine for a reason.

Would it be right to say that one of the running narrative themes of Yakuza as a series is that the "ideal" Yakuza dream is stone dead? Like yes, Kiryu and Majima can use their power and influence for something positive, but the Tojo will always be set upon by vultures and maybe it's just not worth it anymore to protect a criminal organization.

Pretty much, yeah. And if its not the devil outside the Tojo its the devil within the Tojo. That clan is fucking cursed.

This quote from the third Godfather movie might as well be the slogan that the games go by: "Just when I thought I was out... they pull me back in."

The games are very clear that there's no such thing as Friendly Neighborhood Gangster. The Tojo Clan is full of scumbags in Yakuza 1.

No such thing as a good gangsta, thats just a delusion or lie.

They are all scum.

Its even more pronounced in the council meeting in Yakuza 3 where the only guys in that room that aren't scumbags are Kashiwagi and maybe Majima.

I was rolling in plates in Yakuza 0 so I sold them all and am sweeping through the Kings territory.

This game is so much better than Yakuza 5.

Oooh, just wait til you discover the Mr Shakedown exploit.

I just beat him up when I see him. What's the exploit?

I assume it's where, as Kiryu, you grab Mr. Shakedown's Deep Pockets from the CP shrine, which multiplies the money Mr. Shakedown drops by 1.5. Then (presumably starting with a decent amount of money) lose to him on purpose, find him again, and beat him up for a profit. Then lose to him again, then beat him up again. Rinse and repeat for big bucks.

How do you get the item to pinpoint him on the map?

Kiryu can only get it by choosing the black box in the Miracle in Maharaja substory.

You know maybe I read the scene wrong or something but I actually love that the reason Kiryu idolized yakuza lifestyle was that Kazama had power, wealth and respect and he wanted that too.

It's, I dunno, human? I just like it.

Edit: I got the Encounter Finder and now Miracle Johnson joined my real estate team.

What the hell is this series.

Edited by RodimusMinor on Jul 11th 2020 at 1:40:32 AM

I forget if Majima can get the Encounter Finder too but he doesn't really need it. The gains he gets from trying the Shakedown exploit himself are considerable, just not as mad as Kiryu's gains. Mad gains bruh

But yeah Yakuza 0 is like the perfect jumpin gon point. You get a good taste of how crazy this series can get.

Also whatever happened to the Ryudo family after 3?

I beat the shit out of Mr. Shakedown after losing once and made a 100 million yen profit, which was pretty tidy. Then I lost it all because Miracle Johnson costs a lot to use and I didn't notice.

Yeah, Miracle's real good at boosting business levels, which explains the big price tag. So...hold off on him til your wallet's more bloated.

EDIT: Looked up Kenzan and Ishin. Now I want them localized too, there's a lot of fun in swordfighting there and I can tell there's a great plot I'd like some more professional translators to take a stab at. The translation of Kenzan we got on Youtube is servicable if dry as heck, but the one for Ishin (and Y7)...not to be rude but it needs work badly.

Also, dicey as fuck subject I know but PS 3 emulation's made big strides allowing others to sorta play Yakuzas 3, 4 and 5 on PC. Anyone tried that?

Edited by MightyKombat on Jul 12th 2020 at 1:12:57 PM

Outrun sucks and I hate it.

Edit: Thank god, you don't have to win at Outrun to sweep Electronics King.

Anyway, I dunno, I used to... I didn't hate Yakuza 0 but I was thoroughly unimpressed when I played it. Now that I'm engaging with most of the subsystems and minigames and getting the balance of wacky sidequests and gritty masculine crime drama, it's really all coming together.

I'll probably change my mind when I get to Cabaret Club though. That's just painful.

Edited by RodimusMinor on Jul 12th 2020 at 8:31:13 AM

To be fair it was a bold move to attach a gritty yakuza sidequest to a cabaret club game.

Edited by Memers on Jul 13th 2020 at 5:37:46 AM