RGG Studios and Sega released Judgment in 2019 for PlayStation 4 and, in 2021, for PS5. Coming off the high of the Yakuza series’ recent success, they introduced a murder mystery into the fray. Judgment features a new protagonist, Takayuki Yagami, a Private Investigator, who solves cases. For Yakuza fans, it’s everything we know and love with a bit of mystery intrigue.
Having beaten Yakuza 0, Kiwami, Kiwami 2, and even Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise, I wanted to give this title a go. As a fan of Capcom’s Ace Attorney, I knew I would feel right at home with the investigation scenarios. Plus, with Yagami’s status as a lawyer, I felt comfortable presenting evidence and defending my clients in court.
While it offers much of the standard Yakuza gameplay built on Yakuza 6’s Dragon Engine, it does have a few ends that could have used a little more polish. Nothing inherently hurts the game but I will address a few things you might want to prepare for.
Story
The title stars Yagami, a fallen lawyer who helped a client get acquitted of murder only for his client to kill his girlfriend after his trial. Disgraced from his office, Yagami begins a private detective agency. Along with his ex-Yakuza friend, Kaito, the two solve cases from infidelity to finding cats. You’ll enjoy their banter as well as interactions with Yagami’s later allies.
As with Yakuza, it features a relatively serious tone. Judgment also features a murder mystery as the entire story revolves around Yagami trying to discover the truth behind the case from 3 years prior.
Not only do I love the generally serious writing in the game. Judgment, as with its home series, has an excellent sense of humor and some crazy outcomes. The Side Cases are just as well-written and Yagami can even befriend these people through their cases. Just like with the developer’s previous games, you won’t be let down with the story, plot twists, and resolution.
Audiovisual
As with the more recent Yakuza titles, Judgment uses the Dragon Engine. Unlike earlier Yakuza titles, this game removes loading screens when entering buildings and shops. The game’s realistic art style melds perfectly with the colorful hits, auras, and visceral combat animations.
Judgment also has its share of strong, hard-hitting sound effects and dual-audio voice acting. If you have an ear for video game music, you’ll surely enjoy the soundtrack as well. I’m quite fond of the Paradise VR theme and the chase theme for how well they bring out the game’s energy.
Gameplay
Judgment features open-world exploration within the city of Kamurocho. In combat, you’ll face enemies in 3D beat ’em up combat featuring punches, kicks, throws, and weapons. Yakuza fans will feel right at home along with the style changes returning from Yakuza 0 and Kiwami.
New features to the game include the detective elements. As Yagami is a detective, you’ll get to stalk people, fly a drone, investigate crime scenes, and pick locks. While I enjoyed these elements, I wish the tailing missions wrapped up a little faster.
In contrast, chasing people brings about highly intuitive and well-animated QTE sequences which I found much more enjoyable. Also, the skill tree is super easy and intuitive even compared to past Yakuza titles so leveling up skills is a cinch. Plus no detective game is complete without an investigation mode.
As with Yakuza, Judgment features a share of mini-games. You’ll get Sega classics like Space Harrier and Fighting Vipers. Additionally, you can find casinos and play games like Poker and Blackjack.
Perhaps the biggest new addition includes Paradise VR. It’s a virtual-reality type board game where you can collect prizes in exchange for high amounts of money. It offers a variety of scenarios, including battles and lockpicking, with bright colors and catchy music. For those looking to farm for money, this is the most ideal place to do it.
Overall, I’m a huge fan of Judgment’s side cases. You can expose cheating spouses, beat down sexual predators, and even go on dates with some of the women you meet. Side cases, thanks especially to their writing, make up one of the most enjoyable parts of the game.
Grievances
I can’t say I was a huge fan of the new mortal wounds system. If you get hit with a mortal blow or a gunshot, you temporarily lose a chunk of health that can only be healed at a doctor (20k Yen). While they tried to introduce a more realistic mechanic into battle, it feels more like healing with extra steps. It doesn’t feel like a necessary part and more of an inconvenience to deal with.
Also, if you want to complete the side cases and fight the superboss, you’ll have a bit of a hassle in front of you. It takes learning the drone mini-game, farming money in Paradise VR, farming SP for paintings and other things, and winning in various gambling games to raise your city reputation and eventually complete the game.
Just like with past Yakuza titles, if you weren’t a fan of finishing the slot cars mini-game and just wanted to beeline through everything, you’ll have plenty of work cut out for you. With that being said, don’t expect to rush through it. You’ll have several more hours of extra content to rummage through.
I’m especially incensed that learning Mahjong is one of the requirements for completion. More specifically, you have to win as the Wareme. Long story short, buy a Nine Gates Tile for 10,000 SP. You might have to do it twice. This means farming money for Hug Bomb Alpha to boost your SP, rinse and repeat. Overall, I found this to be a preposterous addition to the game since it should not be tied to side case completion.
Overall
I found Judgment to be overall enjoyable from start to finish. I had a few minor grievances with slower-paced parts of the game, like stalking enemies. I even went to Hard mode since it’s pretty easy to take out enemies on Normal.
Despite that, Judgment has its heart in the right place and executes itself well throughout. You’ll surely enjoy the writing, combat, humor, and exploration. When it’s all said and done, expect the story to take you 50 hours to clear minus the extra side content which stacks on another 15 hours. However, the side cases and mini-games are an absolute blast to play through.
If you’re into murder mysteries, detective cases, courtroom drama, and beating down thugs, Judgment will fly right up your alley. It’s another solid Yakuza title with a bit of mystery thrown in there. Overall, it’s a quality game and one I recommend for your collection.
Score: 8/10
Product Release: Judgment (US, 06/25/19)
Originally published at https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com.
