Yakuza: Like a Dragon | Yakuza Zero to Hobo Hero! | Part ICHIBAN

the bittersweet symphony/verve wordplay during the karaoke section isnt something that flew over my head
very well done

YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I finished Yakuza: LAD in preparation for this!! Lets GO snake!!

You think we''ll get Playing Yakuza Infinite wealth part 1 at least by Christmas of this year?

the segment on the game’s portrayal of hypocrisy as the biggest power fantasy really hit hard, and was genuinely appreciated. it’s so easy to fall into the trap of arguing against the surface-level aspects of those types of people, never able to reach the underlying issues they cause. it’s an alluring trap to be sure, but a trap nonetheless. wasting time and energy on technicalities is the goal, especially when considering observers. anyone outside the conflict will only see the fights over minutiae, allowing the real problems to be obfuscated and thus continually ignored by the broader public.

i know it was brief mention, but it truly spoke to me and my experience. as an advocate for social and economic justice, i have to remind myself every day not to get caught up in arguments that dodge the real topic of discussion, lest i contribute to that obfuscation. it’s natural to want those minor victories in a world where you feel like you’re always losing, but you can’t lose sight of what truly matters.

I am weird when it comes to choosing dub or sub for yakuza. It really depends on how much the classic characters are around. Like for 7 I prefer it in english because its the first time Im seeing Ichiban and I think the voice is a great fit and when kiryu showed up later sporting his same old voice actor from back in the day it genuinely brought a smile to my face. However in 8 they got a new guy who I think does his best but just isnt correctly cast for the role so I ended up playing it with a mod that makes ONLY KIRYU speak in japanese. It bothered me that much and I was already used to Ichibans crew being in english. It worked out surprisingly well all things considered.

I think the series can step out of Kiryu's shadow and we want them too. We really like Judgement and it doesn't need to use him to have that Yakuza charm *Plus Ichiban is such a loveable goof, we like Kiryu but this goof boy really makes us look up to him a hero!* _Indeed, now to watch the rest of the video then come back and bully Tehsnakerer for not talking about the combat_

I finished watching my friend complete this game, then linked him your playlist on all the different yakuza reviews you did and a few hours later you release this video too. Thanks for the great timing.

I loves these videos so much. They point out so much i missed the first time or would have never got at all.

"[Ichiban's tattoo] symbolizes change"
footage shows ichiban picking up coins

"that was NOT the combat bridge"
footage shows characters walking on a bridge to the combat sequence

god this video is an artistic masterpiece

I know this video has been in the works for a while now, and technically it’s not even close to being done, but I still feel like you got this out really fast considering I thought you only finished the script like a few weeks ago? Really good shit so far regardless.

i love the little gag with people in the background fading out during conversations

So weird I was just rewatching your Yakuza vids wondering when the next one would come out! Legend

LAD is the first and currently only Yakuza game I’ve played entirely due to your incredible videos on the series, each of which I’ve watched at least 2-3 times. And I definitely plan to check out the others in due time because LAD was a complete delight to go into with no expectations, and being the first video of yours I’m watching having played the game it speaks on only highlights how great you are at analysis. I’m just elated to hear your speak on later parts of the game!!

It was weird watching this in Japanese, 'cause I played the game in English and really enjoyed a lot of the performances; it was easier for me to immerse myself in the story without having to read subtitles (blame the neurodivergent brain meats). But it was nice to be able to appreciate this version as well. Thanks, Snake!

Hell yeah, some good goddamn games. I was deeply enchanted with Yak 7, I fucking loved it. Everything about it hit 100% for me, I felt like. Though sometimes I feel like I missed something because it feels like it hit deeper for you, emotionally, in some points.

Speaking of the dub and the voice acting, I deeply cannot wait till you get to Infinite Wealth because... reasons.

I'm very sad you didn't choose to use the English dub as it's phenomenal. Kaiji Tang kills the roll as Ichiban Kasuga. I completely understand why you did but that does not change my disappointment.

Now that you highlighted the similarities in the beginning backstories. It makes me think that Ichiban not just the opposite of Kiryu but a more flipped version of Nishiki. Or more specifically what Nishiki could have been.

MY brothers Peak have arrived

Ichiban always remind me of Shinada, but maybe that's just because they're both sort of goofy goobers.

This video came at a crazy time for me cause i just replayed like a dragon in the last week

I was hoping for a sukejan history lesson when you got to Hamako

HE SAID THE DOCK LINE! 🥳🎉

As much as I think the Yakuza games are great, I never got into their combat.
Like A Dragon was the first one I actually finished.

It helps that it came at a time where turn based RPG combat started being phased out more and more.

I hate that this video has an end :(

I don't see Ichiban wanting to emulate Arakawa while not even attempting to do so for his demeanor as a contradiction.

In their first meeting Arakawa gave up a finger for a kid he didn't know just to make sure Ichiban wouldn't get killed in a Yakuza conflict that he wasn't a part of. And while Arakawa tried to play it off as pragmatism and image, Ichiban saw right through it. Ichiban saw a man who cares a lot about people even total strangers, one who's willing to sacrifice for them. And I see that as what Ichiban is emulating in his own way.

If he wanted to Ichiban could have just taken the collection money he got a hand on at the start of the game, but he made the choice to instead return the money to the scammed kids and take the indebted man's wallet and nothing else. And he does that knowing it'll only piss off Sawashiro more and bring him one step closer to cutting off a finger. He's mimicing the substance of Arakawa over his superficial cool old guy persona.

WE NEED THE REST OF THIS VIDEO PLEASE, I HAVE NEVER BEEN SO INVESTED IN CHARACTERS I DO NOT KNOW BEFORE

This game could have been my favorite in the series if it wasn't for a few things that made it fall outside the podium; I'm curious to see if this video analysis will change any of it, as this channel helped me strengthened my appreciation for the series many times.

Also I'm glad the video is divided in parts. I get that the algorithm might not reward this, but I greatly prefer it this way: I always greatly anticipate these videos, so the more the merrier!

Carte Bleach was pretty good

I think the dub is neat, I usually end up using the Japanese audio though.
Except when I get to Pirate Yakuza I am absolutely going to use the English dub because I love hearing Matt Mercer

I've a few thoughts myself. Firstly, I feel that LaD was far more earnest about the game terminology that it didn't bother me much. It felt like another layer of Ichiban being so earnest even on the lamest sides of himself. So the increasing casual acceptance of it feels so incredibly fitting to that charm Ichiban fills the rest of his team with.
Similarly, something I think works as a parallel is the raid on the Seiryu HQ and the funeral at the Tojo HQ. It's one of the few times Kiryu felt on the back foot in an extended battle section, ending by barely escaping the entirety of the Tojo right at his heels. Serving as both of their first extended battle sections, it showcases when being in over their head the highly differing approach and adaptability Ichiban tends towards than Kiryu. Just another layer of similarity between them in my eyes. Which the game never truly stops paralleling them, just less frequently.

I also have to give compliments about how much Bleach Japan is such a believably frustrating group to deal with throughout the game. These people who hate anything even slightly outside of their standards of "normal". It feels like I've been fighting small pockets of Bleach Japan for the past 8 or so years constantly, and man did you hit the nail on the head about how these people don't normally give a single shit about hypocrisy. Which is something that I found surprisingly refreshing with how candid the LaD series is on sex positivity, especially in recent titles. They do not shy away from tackling both ends of the grey area sex work ends up being, and they don't shame the people in that work. Which with how America is lately, was very much appreciated while watching our own version of Bleach Japan banging their marching drums.

YAYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

i remember playing this game, i didn't even really knew it existed, i watched your videos and by the time i figured out this game you was either on yakuza 5 or 0 im unsure which, but anyway, i got it for free on the psn store it was a monthly free game, i played it, and i loved it, but i was a bit bored of the rpg elements, it wasn't anything offensive it just wasn't the hugest i got a pc that could actually run games and now here i am still having not finished it, i believe by the time i stopped playing ps4 it was when you and the lads was destroying that money printer machine or something, and finally you made a video of the game and i can finally see if i missed anything about the combat i would have liked for the game will take me into some good moments, last my memory was i felt bad for ichiban and was rooting for him but that glaive guy was so annoying, i think i fought him like 5 times and bro it absolutely killed by enthusiasm, hopefully your great analysis will bring me back

wait thats kashiwagi? i literally didn't notice, i thought it was just another guy with a scare on his face, after 3 its really easy to forget about him, and with the new glasses and hair, and i could have sworn he sounded nothing like kashiwagi, for that to be him and tehsnakerer pointing it out threw me for a loop.

I think the slyest thing they did in that intro was spoil the big twist. Ichiban looks just like his grandmother and i didn't catch it until my second playthough.

this game earnestly changed my life for the better, and I can't wait to see what you have to say about it. Yakuza 7 is my personal favorite game of all time, even if the gameplay is a bit lacking in places, because it convinced me to keep going and to keep finding hope, and that it's never too late to start.

It's one of the most beautiful and important messages I know, and it's one that saved me from an extremely dark place. Combine that with its other messaging, such as how it empathizes with the 'lows' of society, something I can connect with due to being a minority and rather poor, and it's seriously one of those games I think everyone needs to play once.

I will say that one scene in particular that is better in English imo is Ichiban's bridge standoff with the Gomijul. The Japanese is great but it doesn't beat the way the english VA goes "What are Yakuza doing stealing electricity?! That's so lame!"

The game is great, thanks again

Great video, looking forward to future parts! Safe to assume no plans to do a Judgment video at this time?

Not sure if it'll come up in the following parts but since you bring up the English dub here might as well mention this. Like A Dragon was also the first game in the series to be translated to French, Italian, German, Spanish and Russian, which is a good sign of how Sega now considers it one of its main sellers. Sadly they kinda cheaped out and those languages' translations are based on the English one and not the original Japanese, but it's still better than not having one at all.