Archive for category Y

The first video shows the free roaming side of Yakuza 3:

There’s also a 2nd video showing the combat which looks superb. Yakuza 3 is going to be awesome!

Yakuza 3 Exploration Gameplay and Combat Videos

You may know that Yakuza 3 is set in the Edo Period Kyoto, around 1605. You may also know that legendary Samurai Miyamoto Musashi features in the game. Well now we know exactly what type of role Musashi-san fills in Yakuza3:

The story begins when main character Kazumanosuke Kiryu, a bodyguard who will take on any job if the price is right, is approached by a young girl named Haruka. She asks Kiryu to kill Musashi Miyamoto. Musashi Miyamoto is actually Kiryu’s past self, and the name he goes by when outside of Gion. This, incidentally, is the same historical Musashi Miyamoto who’s regarded as one of the finest swordsmen.

Oh man, that’s awesome! Going by the time period the game is supposed to be set in, you will play the role of a 21 year old Miyamoto Musashi, who was supposedly born in 1584, although there are some conflicting theories as to the exact date that Musashi-san was born.

Regardless of the rumoured birth date, Musashi was already an accomplished and undefeated swordsman by the age of 21, so you should already be skilled in the four styles available to you in Yakuza 3.

It seems the game’s story will focus on Musashi’s ‘feud’ with the Yoshioka ryu (school). Looking at some of the cast of characters and the actors listed to play them, seems to confirm this:

Kojiro Sasaki (voiced by Shouta Matsuda)
Nagayoshi Marume (Naoto Takenaka)
Itou, the bodyguard (Susumu Terajima)
The mysterious monk (Hiroki Matsukata)
Seijyurou Yoshioka (Masaya Kato)
Toji Gion (Takeshi Tsukamoto)

The Book of Five Rings is my favourite book and I also have Hiroshi Inagaki’s Samurai Trilogy on DVD (Musashi Miyamoto, Duel at Ichijoji Temple and Duel at Ganryu Island) based on Miyamoto Musashi’s life with Toshiro Mifune playing the role of Musashi.

Pretty exciting stuff but I just hope this gets a Western release. Please make it so SEGA!

Yakuza 3 Story Details

Hardly a surprise. Most of us expected this, but it’s nice to see it formally announced: Yakuza 3 is coming to the PS3! So far it’s a full exclusive (Yakuza 1+2 are PS2 only). Currently, it’s only announced for a Japan release in early 2008. A North America and Europe release wasn’t mentioned; I suspect that that will happen but it’s not guaranteed.

Yakuza 1 was released in North America in late 2006 (around launch of PS3). It got wildly mixed reviews (1UP: 85, IGN: 81, Metacritic overall: 75). This is considered a spiritual successor to the Shenmue series and it definitely has a cult following. Yakuza 2 was released in Japan, but never came to North America.

I played the Yakuza 1 demo on PS2: it looked really good and had definite promise. It seemed like a narrative-heavy brawler with some RPG elements and an organized crime setting. However, I suspect that this title hit the wrong console at the wrong time. When this came to North America, the media and the hardcore USA audience wanted PS3/360 titles, and PS2 titles were largely ignored.

Anyone a fan of the Yakuza or Shenmue series?

Edit by Gary: Some more bits of info:

It’s set in the Edo period around 1605 and may feature legendary Samurai and author of The Book of Five Rings; Miyamoto Musashi. (Awesome if true!! ).

There will be four fighting styles, rumoured to be empty hand, single sword, two swords and long sword. Musashi-san ended up using a wooden sword (if I remember correctly) after he became too skilled with the sword, so hopefully they will add in a wooden sword stlye.

This had better go the same way as Yakuza 1, not 2, and get a Western release!