Judgment Reviews
Judgment swerves Yakuza's circuitous criminal conspiracies a few degrees off course before turning up at familiar intersections of violence, eccentricity, and drama. Novelties surrounding its private detective facade, however, breakdown into tests of patience instead of pragmatism. Judgment may be an honest amendment to Yakuza's doctrine but its most refined and exciting practices are also its most routine.
Judgment is without a doubt the best playing Yakuza game to date. It has all of the quality of life improvements of the Dragon Engine alongside a host of new welcome features. The combat and minigames are the best they've ever been. The narrative is interesting overall, but can feel misguided and aimless at certain points.
Judgment brings new levels of narrative and mechanical intricacies to the familiar setting of Kamurocho in Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio's latest title.
A solid spin-off that capitalizes on the studio's strengths, but ultimately relies on its formula too much. Add in half-baked detective mechanics and Judgment doesn't realize its concept's potential.
With its much-welcomed next-gen improvements in framerate, resolution, and load times plus the inclusion of all previously released DLC, the next-gen remaster of Judgment is hands-down the definitive version to own.
By and large, if you already have Judgment on the PS4, its remaster is hard to recommend. There isn't much that's new here, after all, and spending additional money on a nearly identical experience doesn't make much sense. That said, if you've never played Judgment before, this is an extremely easy recommendation. It tells an excellent story, offers a ton of varied and enjoyable content, and delivers an extremely polished take on the classic Yakuza formula.
There's an argument to be made that Judgment does at points let the familiar get the best of itself — confusing the mere sake of additional features and mechanics for those that genuinely feel like fresh changes.
Lengthy, and full of twists and turns, Judgment might offer up mostly basic detective sequences but there’s plenty to love about the world depicted. Twisted Trio included.
If you like previous Yakuza games, Judgment is right up your alley. A spin off that holds its own in the fictional Kamurocho, Judgment is a worthy entry in the world of Ryu ga Gotoku's Yakuza world. And while I found the story to be sluggish and in its own way at times, it's excellent combat and unique detective mechanics kept me engaged in my more than 20+ hour playthrough. Judgment is outrageous fun at times, relaxing at others and above all else tells a great story. It's definitely one I'll be coming back to over the next few months, uncovering more of Kamurocho's secrets with its favorite detective.
Judgment is the best Yakuza game ever...expect for the fact that, formally, it is not a Yakuza game. Still, there are enough new gameplay elements to lure new players in, and enough old references for returning fans. Don't miss it.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Detective gameplay mixed in with Yakuza DNA wrapped up in an engaging crime thriller story with superb voice acting and memorable characters.
Simultaneously fresh and familiar, Judgment is an excellent first step forward for the Yakuza universe after the conclusion of Kazuma Kiryu's story.
Judgment may be linked to Yakuza's legacy, but it still provides a great reason to explore Kamurocho once again.
Although I did not get to play through the original version of the game, I took the time to compare it to its original release. The developers have definitely taken the time to enhance the graphics, sounds, and gameplay. Going through, Judgment on the Xbox Series X felt like a truly polished enhancement of its original predecessor; the rerelease made me thankful that I waited rather than playing the game at launch because I was able to experience the game how the developers intended. If you have yet to try Judgment, it is worth picking it up on the Xbox Series X. If you have but it’s been a while and you are considering playing through Lost Judgment then it is something to consider picking up as well.
This development team is arguably the best that Sega has. There seems to be a consistency here that many studios lack. Judgment is a great starting point for newcomers to this style of game and one that could surprise many Yakuza players.
Fantastic story paired with relatively simplistic game-play makes judgment a great starting point to beginners of the genre, but the lack of depth in the action elements makes me confident now that Yakuza series (there are 11 games including spinoffs on PS4) would be a far more entertaining and involving game series to partake in on my PlayStation 4.
Judgment has its faults that are hard to ignore, but its deep story, intense combat, and a wide variety of side activities kept me glued to it for days on end. Judgment is a great game that is well worth the attention to Yakuza fans and newcomers alike.
Judgment is by far one of the better entries in the Yakuza franchise. It is a gritty detective story, with a killer in it that is legitimately scary, thanks to the performances. The Dragon Engine getting a boost from the new generation of consoles shows how Judgment was meant to be played, with extremely short load times and buttery smooth 60 frames per second that is unwavering. Judgment may be second to Yakuza: Like a Dragon, but being second to the best is a great place to be.
The definitive version of Judgment is here! It is an almost perfect blend of incredible details and mechanics reinforced by a huge technical upgrade. A long and impressive title that takes the Ryu Ga Gotoku game design and maxes it out for a new side story while their main game goes in another direction. Heartily recommended!
Judgment and Lost Judgment collection is finally also on PC. Whether the first or the second game ends up being your favorite, the fact is that both are worth playing, and it might even get you hooked on the Yakuza series that came before them.
Review in Slovak | Read full review