LogFAQs > #961816466

It is insane how I used to think Yakuza was a bad Shenmue/GTA wannabe hybrid when I first played the original on the PS2.

Fast forward to 2017, played Yakuza 0 (the first one I touched after the original PS2 game) and it blew me away. Thought it was a flash in the pan for the series. Didn't play another game in the series until late 2020, then played the entire series from Kiwami 1 to Yakuza: Like a Dragon and now it is one of favorite video game series of all time.

Whereas Shenmue as a series has become a completely flattened tyre because its latest entry (that took nearly two decades and literal money from its fans to even be made) Shenmue III was such a mediocre experience. The fact that it advanced the overall plot by like 5% (the game is literally 90% filler) did the series and its fans no favors. It certainly has soured my take on the series and I'm sure a lot of the fans feel the same.