In essence, Kiwami is a remake of the original Yakuza, released for PS2 in 2005. Rather than porting, Sega has pushed the story into the new engine, giving the feel of the newer games but retaining most of the narrative from the original. For those who have not played Yakuza before, this means you take on the role of Kazuma Kiryu, a member of the Tojo Clan who spends far less time being a yakuza than you would think in a game with the word in its title.
Rather than the first season where Episode 2 dropped the quality down, this just keeps holding the quality and adds some. In a surprise twist, I’m giving this chapter an 8, and a pat on the back for keeping me engrossed.
Vostok Inc. juggles a lot of styles, and manages to pull them all off well just above average. The sum is not always greater than its parts but in this case the sum is much greater. If you find some spare coin, and want a game about making coin back then Vostok Inc. is for you.
As much as it kills me, I’m hooked on The Pillars of the Earth’s story. There are two more episodes and if they build a story as well and fill it full of great characters I’ll definitely play it, as much as it tests my patience.
It might be better to consider ICY as more of a Visual Novel with RPG elements rather than a story-driven RPG. While I enjoy the story despite the lengthy text boxes the RPG fighting and collection appeals to me. Execution is marred by out-of-place textures and fonts as well as an overall lack of final polish.
This is very much Marmite: Those who enjoyed Season 1 and want more will happily eat this up. Those who did not enjoy Season 1 will not enjoy this new addition. Episode 1 adds nothing to the formula and for some that will be fine.