Whoa, okay. So guess what? It’s happening again, folks. Another Yakuza game sneaks its way onto a Nintendo system. Yeah, remember how the Wii U had one? And then, boom, the Switch got Yakuza Kiwami. Now, Yakuza 0 is strutting onto the Nintendo Switch 2 as it rolls out. Can’t believe I got to mess around with it a bit.
Alright, so Yakuza 0 is hitting a big milestone — 10 years old in Japan. Originally on PlayStation 3 and 4, right? Now it’s on Switch 2, calling itself a director’s cut. Funny thing is, the original director left SEGA — go figure. They’ve added English voices, extra scenes, and some kinda Red Light Raid mode.
So there I was, fiddling with the game for like, 45 minutes, docked on Switch 2. It ran like butter. Got some direct feed footage, and it looked like it kept a steady 60 frames per second. No idea if it’s native 4K though, probably 1440p? Asked this SEGA guy about HDR, and nope, nada.
If you’re new to the Yakuza saga, Yakuza 0 is a solid way to get started. It’s single-player mode has it all. Story’s both cheeky and heartfelt, with heaps of mini-games like karaoke and racket sports. And, hello, exploring 1980s Japan feels like stepping into a time machine. Can’t wait to dive back into the story mode. First played it on PS4, by the way.
Now, the Red Light Raid mode… I dunno. Not a Yakuza combat pro, and this mode is like a survival bash-a-thon. Waves of bad guys and boss battles — classic stuff. Tried it out solo, but you can team up with pals, offline or online. You get to pick from a quirky bunch of characters. My first pick? Ginger Chapman. Imagine Chucky but… less doll-like. His knife skills were meh, amusing but sorta dull after a while.
Felt way more entertained with Kazuma Kiryu, the main dude in a special variant. Annoyingly, you gotta stick with one fighting style. This mode earns you cash, for upgrades or maybe snatching up new characters. Fun for a quick round, but I bet it rocks more with buddies.
For the Switch 2 launch, Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut is topping my list. Played it before, true, but the English dub’s got me curious. And oh, you can still play it in Japanese. As for Red Light Raid, not totally convinced yet, but gonna give it another whirl when it drops next month. Cool? Cool.
