Yakuza Kiwami 2 Reviews

Yakuza Kiwami feels right at home on the Nintendo Switch 2, spinning a compelling tale of backstabbing and brotherhood that you can now take on the go with you.

Yakuza Kiwami comes to Nintendo Switch with good, solid port that faithfully brings the lights and sounds of Kamurocho onto a handheld. Despite some flaws in performance, Yakuza Kiwami on Switch retains its smooth and fun combat system, rich and compelling story, and all the content of existing console and PC versions.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a fantastic sequel and expands the game in various different aspects, and on Steam Deck, it will continue being an enjoyable experience.

Republished on Wednesday, 10th August, 2022: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of August's PS Plus Extra, Premium lineup. The original text follows.

Admittedly, I'm not very familiar with Yakuza Kiwami 2's predecessors, but I was extremely excited to pick up this gorgeous action-adventure to plant my feet in Kamurocho for the first time. Just how was it?

As a gamer who has always owned both the Xbox and PlayStation consoles, I have felt bad for Xbox-only players for many years in one big respect: they couldn’t play the amazing Yakuza series of games. But now, it’s the opposite – I envy them. With Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami and now Yakuza Kiwami 2 all releasing on Xbox One just in the last 6 months, they’ve now got the chance to experience this legendary series for the first time, with fresh eyes. And oh, what wonders await them.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a contender for the best game in this consistently excellent series. Its crime drama story of family, love, revenge, and pride will have you hooked. Combat has never felt as smooth or involved before, outside of certain moments. This is a gorgeous, fun, heartwarming, and extreme remake of one of the franchise’s most beloved entries.

Yes, Yakuza Kiwami 2 is the third Yakuza game for Xbox One this year, but on the strength of this, SEGA can keep them coming as far as I'm concerned. If you've played Yakuza Kiwami and Yakuza 0 (and even if you haven't) you need Yakuza Kiwami 2 in your life. You need Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima in your life. Now let's have Yakuza 3, 4, 5, and 6 on Xbox, please.

That’s the decider. If you’ve had your fill of fighting and walking the same city streets, and don’t really care for these tattooed agony uncles anymore, then off you go (pfft, good riddance). But if you don’t mind button bashing through some brawls, just to see more of these good fellas solving bad problems with their strong fists and stern words, Yakuza Kiwami 2 is ready, once again, to get ridiculous.

Overall, this is a game that is a high-quality remake based on the Japanese Yakuza. It is entirely in Japanese with English subtitles, and for this type of game that is fine. It makes it feel more authentic to the area we are playing in. The game comes in at $29.99USD on steam and launched today. This is a very good port to PC, and I have been pretty happy with it so far.

A return to form for the singular crime series.

The way you can tell a critic liked a game is whether or not they’ll go back to it on their own accord when their review is finished. That is exactly what I’m doing with Yakuza Kiwami 2. It fixes some of the most glaring problems the first Kiwami had and that gives us one of the best Yakuza games on PC. There’s plenty of games to play, dudes to fight and people to help, and it almost never feels wasteful. If you crave an honest-to-god open world without the obnoxious filler of similar g...

May it be the likes of Shadow of the Colossus or Metal Gear Solid, if it’s quite there but not enough to push the boundaries, it’s still an awesome game.

For those who were worried that they might get an underwhelming revamp in Kiwami 2, I can safely say that their fears can be eased for this solid re-entry in the franchise. The plot is fun and engaging, the multitude of distractions are a step up from its release predecessor, and Kazuma Kiryu’s steel resolve and Steve Rodgers-esque disposition makes for yet another fun romp through the seedy underworld we’ve come to know and love yet again.

So far on PS4, we've seen a prequel, a sequel, and a remake and now, we have yet another remake. Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a complete reimagining of the second game in the series so let's see how much ass Kiryu kicks this time around.

The city of Kamurocho is packed with interesting characters, fun activities and a number of excellent diversions, all backed up by a solid narrative that throws up as many surprises as it does heartwarming moments.

Let’s raise a glass of Yamazaki whisky to the new world.

The Yakuza series stands as a unique marriage of brutal, gritty realism and off-the-wall, insane absurdity. Packed between the opening title and end credits of Yakuza Kiwami 2 is an absolute smorgasbord of experiences that, from the outside, shouldn’t work together as well as they do. The game defies expectations and somehow makes the eclectic range of themes in Yakuza Kiwami 2 work together beautifully.

There and back again, a Kazuma Kiryu tale.

For my money, it is the best way to experience this particular story and improves enough of the game to make for a great time sink. Maybe certain aspects could have been tweaked to be more faithful to the source material, but the worst thing that could happen is you end up wanting to play the original to see the changes firsthand. That isn’t such a terrible outcome.

Yakuza kiwami 2 shows exactly what happens when a good story meets good gameplay… Perfection. You’ll spend hours of your life playing the main game, then another half of your life just doing the exciting and awesome side missions and distraction events. Any game that makes taking a piss into an action filled experience deserves the highest of praise.

Sega shatters expectations once again by making Yakuza Kiwami 2 the best in the franchise once again with this nearly perfect handling of this classic game.

What better way to remake one of the earliest games in a series than by smashing its various pieces together with those of the newest entry? The Yakuza franchise truly is the gift that keeps on giving.

The first Yakuza Kiwami was a stellar remake of a PS2 classic, enhancing the original game in so many ways while adding on a number of new features, story elements, and mechanics. Yakuza 2 is one of the best stories in the entire series, but I didn’t think there’d be a way that Yakuza Kiwami 2 could be an even better remake than the first. Well, I was wrong.

Poor Kazuma Kiryu. Everybody’s favorite Japanese gangster with a heart of gold just can’t catch a break. A year after the explosive and tragic events of the previous game, this second entry finds him and his adopted daughter Haruka spending their days in melancholy peace. A violent clan dispute brings a retired Kiryu back into the fold to help settle things between the crime families in Kamurocho. However, events rapidly spiral out of control and our hero must confront a massive, looming threat the only way he knows how: with his fists. Kiwami 2, a remake of Yakuza 2, utilizes the standout elements of its predecessors while cutting away most of the flaws to create one of the best Yakuza games yet.

Kazuma Kiryu and Kamurocho continue to be two of the biggest names in Japanese RPGs that remain exclusive to the Sony PlayStation (with PC releases gradually hitting the market). With over a dozen years of the Dragon of Dojima's adventures, some of his earlier moments in the neon city haven't aged all too well. To bring Kiryu's adventures to a new generation, SEGA has continued its run of remakes of the PS2 days that bring Kamurocho into the modern age. Yakuza Kiwami 2 marks the return of Kiryu's second story on PlayStation 2, and with it, a whole second city to explore.

Honestly, Yakuza Kiwami 2 is the best Yakuza game to date. Its story is gripping and has a brilliant pace, its combat is tighter and more engaging, and there’s such a varied range of sub-stories and side activities to absorb yourself in that it offers great longevity. Yakuza Kiwami 2 has the Yakuza formula perfected, making it an absolute must for fans of the series, and a jolly good ride for those who haven’t even tangoed with the charming Kazuma Kiryu before. If this truly is the last Yakuza game starring Kiryu to be on the receiving end of the remake treatment, at least he’s going out with a mighty bang.

Of the four Yakuza releases in the last year and a half, Kiwami 2 truly stands as the best of them all, and is great enough for every fan of the series to experience. If you are one of said fans, the good news is, you are in for a treat.

An assuredly robust and spectacular remake of the PS2 original, Yakuza Kiwami 2 learns from the lessons of Yakuza 6 to create one of the best entries in the franchise to date.

Kiwami 2’s settings are absolutely gorgeous. Kamurocho and Sotenbori feel distinct and different from one another, despite both being brightly-lit city districts. While characters look fine for the most part, I found some cutscenes to have some awkward facial animations, which made the characters look creepy and over expressive. Strangely, it isn’t an issue that’s present throughout the entire game, but you’ll certainly find some cutscenes look better than others. Kiwami 2 also features an exciting and memorable soundtrack, which leans more into energetic jazz than previous entries.

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Despite the fact that the made-for-PlayStation 4 Yakuza 6 was only released a few short months ago, Yakuza Kiwami 2 is the best and most fully formed Yakuza game of 2018 even though it’s a remake of a game that’s now two console generations old. Its storyline is gripping, its weapons-heavy fighting system accommodates no shortage of spectacle, and it serves up plenty of enjoyable side activities – both mini and macro – to divert to or return for after the story wraps. Yakuza 0 may still be the high watermark for the series on the PS4, but Yakuza Kiwami 2 isn’t too far behind.

As a remake of a sequel, it's no surprise that Yakuza Kiwami 2 has a lot more on offer than the first title. However, the choice to stick with Yakuza 6's convoluted stats system is an unfortunate blip in what could have been an ideal remake.