#(though her/nishiki's/kazama's deaths all kind of get lumped together since they happened in such quick succession) | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

memorys-skyscraper · 22 days

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yknow going through the whole yakuza/LAD series as quickly as i did made it really interesting to see how the series as a whole and some characters in specific evolved over time in response to changing audience interests, specifically a growing desire for pathos in their video games

if you'd told someone who'd just played 1 & 2 on the ps2 back in 2006 that by 2024, several of the most recent entries in the series would end with the protagonist having an absolute sobbing meltdown and/or begging the main antagonist to give up in lieu of just punching them into complete submission, there's a 0% chance they would've believed you

#rambles #yakuza #like a dragon #yakuza liveblogging #like it was fine for majima to just be a ~crazy guy~ in 2006 but by 0's release in 2016 that wasnt enough anymore #so he gets a tragic backstory with a love interest #nishiki gets fleshed out a ton in 0/kiwami 1 for the same reason #kiryu is sad about yumi's death in 1 but not so sad it stops him from starting a fling with sayama in 2 #but later games retroactively cast yumi as the one and only love of kiryu's life #and her death as probably the singular most traumatic event he's ever experienced #(though her/nishiki's/kazama's deaths all kind of get lumped together since they happened in such quick succession)#6 is the misadventures of grandpa kiryu bc dad kiryu is a much more compelling character vs. plain ol 'dude who punch real good' kiryu #hell kasuga in his entirety would not have worked in this series in the 00s except as a joke/side character #a dude who relentlessly believes in the inherent good of mankind and their ability to start over and change their ways no matter what?#in *yakuza*? nah take that shit back to kingdom hearts #anyway. its good! probably a necessary evolution for the series to stay relevant but good nonetheless #'dude who punch real good and cries sometimes' >>>>> 'dude who punch real good'

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