An old fashioned button masher with a twist. An actual enjoyable storyline.
Upon first loading it and going through the first cutscenes I knew that I was in store for an exceptional story.
I'll start off with the negatives about Yakuza, or at least the ones that irritated me the most. First off is the camera control, or I should say the lack thereof. The entire story takes place inside a large section of an urban area inside Japan. The screen does not move with you so expect a few seconds when you go to the end of one street before the next part loads up. The camera seems to have little rhyme or reason. Another thing that will quickly get on your nerves are the endless random encounters while you play. NPC's will jump you because you "look suspicious as hell" and nothing else. The random fights are a good way to earn money for the numerous side quests and shops.
Another negative aspect about Yakuza is the fact that you cannot customize the main character, Kazuma Kiryu. So you will get used to seeing his powder blue leisure suit nonstop. I also felt that the game was a bit short, though that could be due to the fact that I plowed through it in a matter of days. Now for the positives about this game. The combat system is simple enough for anyone to grasp within five minutes of playing the game, but it gets complicated enough by the end that you still need to be on your toes. You can find multiple masters throughout the city that can teach you new and devasting skills. There are a ton of side quests to divert your attention from the main story. The game is for more mature players due to the fact there are several adult themed businesses in the city and your character will actually spend some time in some of these places romancing the ladies. The greatest thing about Yakuza is by far and away, the sprawling story. From the word go, it sucked me into it though the ending will most likely leave you wanting more. There are several actors and actresses who you have seen on tv or movies that make small voiceovers for the game(Michael Rosenbaum from Smallville and Eliza Dushku from Tru Calling and Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
This is the swan song time for the PS2. With the PS3's looming release in the future, there will be less and less games being released for the PS2 and many of them will be complete garbage. Yakuza is not one of those games, I would recommend this game to anyone who has an interest in a beautifully told story that has the time to devote to this game.