Product Description

One year ago, Kazuma Kiryu left it all behind… Marking the anniversary of his split from Yakuza life, Kazuma and his adopted daughter, Haruka, visit the graves of his Yakuza family. When they get a surprise visit from Terada, the Chairman who took charge of Kazuma’s old Yakuza clan, Terada makes Kazuma an offer he cannot refuse… Yakuza 2 plunges you once more into the violent Japanese underworld. In intense brutal clashes with rival gangs, the police, and the Korean mafia, you will have even more opportunities to dole out punishment with an improved fighting engine. As the heroic Kazuma Kiryu from the original Yakuza, explore Tokyo and now Osaka. Wander through the back alleys of Japan’s underworld while trying to prevent an all-out gang war in over 16 complex, cinematic chapters written by Hase Seishu, the famous Japanese author who also wrote the first Yakuza. Endless conflicts and surprise plot twists will immerse you in a dark shadowy world where only the strongest will survive.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7314 in Video Games
• Brand: Sega Of America, Inc.
• Model: 63121
• Published on: 2008-09
• Released on: 2008-09-09
• ESRB Rating: Mature
• Platform: PlayStation2
• Number of items: 1
• Dimensions: .75" h x 5.50" w x 7.50" l, .38 pounds

Features

• Authentic, cinematic sequel. The gritty, genuine portrayal of life in the Yakuza is made more realistic throughout 16 gripping chapters with a return to the original Japanese voice cast and English subtitles.
• Twice as much to explore. There is now more to see and do than ever before in the hugely expanded world of the Yakuza. Visit bowling alleys and driving ranges, as well as cabarets and bars, all licensed from actual Japanese establishments.
• Like the real Yakuza, you must ingrain yourself in the authentic, neon-lit adult playgrounds of Tokyo and Osaka and become a regular at nightclubs, hostess clubs, restaurants and stores to gain access to secret services and uncover tips.
• Brutal hand-to-hand brawling. An improved fighting engine allows you to fight numerous enemies at once with less load times and smoother camera angles. Experience points earned from brawls will help build up strength, stamina and fighting techniques.
• The intensity of battle is raised. By stringing together a combination of fighting moves, you’ll take out multiple enemies simultaneously. Objects in the environment can be used as weapons and even more context-sensitive Heat moves, will help you.

Customer Reviews

A surprisingly good improvement on the first game
When Sega's Yakuza for the PS2 finally came stateside a while back, it offered up a decently entertaining brawler at best that just didn't do too much to seperate itself from the rest of the pack. Yakuza 2 thankfully, and surprisingly, improves on much of what the first game offered in terms of gameplay, graphics, and story; and is a pretty satisfying brawler that will keep you entertained for some time. Playing once again as Kazuma, you traverse through a nicely detailed Japan, and are still looking to put an end to your days with the mob. The game looks solid for a late-in-life PS2 game, offering up some nicely detailed characters and environments, while gameplay-wise the moments of brawling are easy enough to pick up and get into, and other elements bear more in common with the gameplay of the classic Shenmue. There's a lot of secrets and extras to find and uncover as well, and as a whole, Yakuza 2 will keep you busy for a while at the very least. The game's story is also nicely crafted, and offers up some memorable moments and characters. The only real flaws with Yakuza 2 is that there isn't too much here you haven't seen done before, and while for a PS2 game it looks great, there are some noticeable graphical hiccups. Flaws aside however, Yakuza 2 is a surprisingly good improvement on the first game that ends up being an enjoyable and even more surprisingly immersive experience that PS2 owners should definitely check out.

Pretty awesome if...
...if you know certain things. This one is in Japanese, compared to the first one, which came in English. I don't mind-I'm learning Japanese, so it sits well with me. Not to mention that in pretty much every translated piece of media you come across, there will be numerous mistakes or inadequacies. The subtitles are fine, don't get me wrong. But there's always little cultural things that can't quite be translated...which wasn't a problem for me, since I'm learning the language. I actually found that part to be quite fun.

I always love the story lines of games like these. I played and loved the first one...but the cool thing is, you don't HAVE to play the first one to understand this one. The beginning has a nice, optional flashback. That way, you can see what happened in the last game without playing it. Though, I'd say you should play it anyway, cause it rocked.

The gameplay is a bit better in this one. Kazuma is faster and has more cool moves. The item system is the same, but there's a new batch to try out. And, as a cool bonus, if you have Yakuza data from the first game on your memory card(not sure if you had to beat it or not. I did several times) you get a cool bonus item!

The storyline seems pretty cool so far. I always feel so bad for Kazuma...he's always stuck helping these people. He feels obligated even though he isn't. He always gets mixed up in it! It makes me think of Die Hard...just the wrong guy, at the wrong place, at the wrong time. Yikes. So far there's no Haruka to follow you around because she goes elsewhere. So at least that's one less thing to worry about...for now. She may appear. I mean, c'mon. Where she went is no secret. Take a guess. Honestly. This plot involves other cultures, too. Korean being a major one. I think that's pretty cool, too. I dipped my toes into Korean because I was watching one of their TV dramas-it was really good! Darn good story lines...they just suck you in...

A worthy followup to a masterpiece
Any fan of the original Yakuza (PS2, 2006) will be happy with this worthy sequel. Any one who missed out on that phenomenal Shenmue-esque adventure should purchase it alongside this original while supplies last, which they won't for long. Support the games and developers you love!