yakuza 4
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In Real Life

Yakuza 4: The Very Late Kotaku Review

In 2011, I started to review Yakuza 4 for this very website. Countless hours later, but with the game unfinished, my PS3 died, taking my save game with it. So I never ended up reviewing it. Today, I make amends for this.

21 October 2013

In Real Life

The Best Cutscene This Generation Shot A Noodle Shop In The Guts

Let me tell you what I think makes a good cutscene: it’s got to be something you want to watch over and over and over. Something that stands out from the routine of general gameplay, sticks in the mind and elevates a piece of story-telling from text in a bubble to something genuinely cinematic.

5 May 2013

In Real Life

A Visual History Of Attractive Video Game Characters: The '10s

The past few years produced a huge amount of great games and a surprisingly decent amount of them have well-developed characters that are hard to forget. And, of course, some of them look really attractive.

20 March 2013

Retro

The Most Comfortable Inns, Bars And Taverns In Video Games

Earlier this month we visited taverns and bars that are noisy and dangerous.

Now it is time to look for their exact opposite: The coziest, most calm, most peaceful places to hang out. Places that focus more on the relaxed atmosphere, the music, and advancing the game’s story, rather than getting our characters in trouble.

30 August 2012

In Real Life

The Joys Of Using Games For Virtual Tourism

Like a few other writers here, I’ve been enjoying Sleeping Dogs this week. But not necessarily for its combat, or driving, or story. No, I’m enjoying it mostly because of where it’s set.

29 June 2011

In Real Life

Let's Be Sensitive About Height, M'kay?

When Sega held an event for Yakuza 4, it assembled the game’s producer Toshihiro Nagoshi and the title’s assorted cast. One of the game’s biggest stars, former Morning Musume singer Mari Yaguchi, was one of the smallest.

7 April 2011

In Real Life

From Yakuza 4 To Hardcore Pornography

Sega’s Yakuza crime games feature a bevy of young attractive women as the in-game hostesses. Some of them are college students. Some of them work in restaurants. Some are models. One was even a porn star. No, now make that two.

10 February 2011

PlayStation

Sing Like Low-Life Thugs

Never one to shy away from real world cross promotions, Japanese crime game Yakuza: Of The End lets gamers belt out tunes that feature two of the game’s characters in the cheesy sing-along music video.

4 February 2011

PlayStation

These Lovely Ladies Are Waiting For You In Yakuza 4's Hostess Clubs

Sega didn’t think North America was ready for the female-companionship-for-money mechanic of Japan’s hostess bars in Yakuza 3. They aren’t making the same mistake twice. Check out the pretty ladies in “the most controversial trailer for Yakuza 4 yet”.

3 February 2011

In Real Life

Yakuza 4 Demo On The Way

On February 22 (NA) and February 23 (EU), a Yakuza 4 demo will punch the PlayStation Network in the face then smash a bike over its head.

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