I was fortunate to recently be on a business trip to Taiwan. I went ahead and booked an extension to visit Tokyo and the real-life Kabukichō, the location that Kamurocho and many of the early games are based on. Even going as far as booking a hotel right in the centre of the red-light district.
Since Yakuza 0 launched on Xbox, there have been eight additional Yakuza releases in just over 12 months, and RGG Studio aren’t finished just yet. It can be a daunting prospect. But, having already spoken in depth about why each entry is a viable entry point into the series, it is time to produce a definitive Yakuza ranking list - 'worst' to best - for those that simply want to play the standout titles in this impeccable series.
As a conclusion to Kiryu’s seven-game saga, Yakuza 6: The Song of Life on Xbox provides a very fitting end that will not leave a dry eye in the house. It is an added bonus that it is one of the best Yakuza games; a standout title in a standout series.
We've had in-clan fighting, bomb threats and more betrayals than you’ve likely had hot dinners, but now comes perhaps Kiryu’s most personal journey as Yakuza 6: The Song of Life arrives on Xbox and PC and available to subscribers through Xbox Game Pass.
Yakuza 5 is very much the magnum opus of the series; bigger, better and bolder than anything that came before it. It is immediately obvious from the get-go why it is often cited as one of the best in the entire series.
Yakuza 4 Remastered on Xbox isn’t the best game in The Yakuza Remastered Collection but it is a marked improvement on the pacing of Yakuza 3 Remastered.
There isn’t a bad Yakuza game, but Yakuza 3 Remastered on Xbox is the weakest in the series. Its lengthy introduction takes up about a third of the entire story, whilst it also lacks some of the quality of life improvements found in later versions. But it is still a solid entry, and worth playing through to see the foundations of Kiryu’s later life beginning.
With the majority of the series now available through Xbox Game Pass, there is an embarrassment of Japanese crime simulator riches to be had with Yakuza. But with all this goodness, confusion springs as to which is the best starting point. Well I - a self-confessed Yakuza addict - am here to tell you that each entry in the series is a great starting point!
