• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

YAKUZA 5 LOCALIZED FOR PS3

HIR0

Member
Again, managed expectations for a Yakuza game would be a few hundred. There is very big doubt it would sell well. As pointed out in an earlier thread this is a series that can't even beat The Wonderful 101.

Obviously goes without saying but supporting the digital titles will be paramount to any chance of Zero. I'll probably buy Yakuza 4 digital even though I have it physical. Call it a backup copy and an excuse to support the series.

Numbers?
 

AHindD

Member
I think yakuza 4 will get a ps plus release eventually now.

Would love to play dead souls before 5 releases - any good?

Dead Souls is... different. I wasn't a massive fan of the gunplay, and prefer the brawling aspect of the mainline Yakuza's waaaay more. With that said, its alot of fun and still has that Yakuza quirkiness to it.

Have you played Yakuza 3/4 before? If not, then play these first (I wouldn't bet on them being on PS+ btw. Way too niche). Dead Souls feels more like a Yakuza fan game with guns, but there's nothing wrong with that.
 

Usobuko

Banned

Sakujou

Banned
US Numbers w/ sources, others beat me to it though:

Yakuza 1: 56K, Yakuza 2: 24K (first five months)
Yakuza 3 did 52k, 4 26k and DS 6k
Worse than TW101

It really can't be overstated how niche this series is, and how lucky we were to get any of them. Pick a God - any God - and pray to them for the Yakuza 5 we are about to receive.

i cant believe this. on the other hand, arent there a lot of other games who have been released but sold less than all the mentioned titles above???
 

Necrovex

Member
Lol I stopped believing for some time now, but they actually did it, well done Gio and thanks!

I guess that will be the absolute last Yakuza title we'll ever see in the West: PS3 and sommer 2015, that won't end well sales wise...
 

Palculator

Unconfirmed Member
i cant believe this. on the other hand, arent there a lot of other games who have been released but sold less than all the mentioned titles above???

Pretty sure the cost of localization is an important factor here as well. These games have a huge amount of text/speech to translate and a story that would suffer a lot from poor translation. Also, I'm not sure how much of an issue this is, but Yakuza has a shitton of product placement. Most of them by japanese products so it's not that noticeable to us, but I bet a bunch of those products are distributed in the west as well so I'd expect some legal shenanigans required just to actually sell the games here, or modification of the game to remove those products they couldn't get the rights for.
 
the product placement hasn't been much of an issue in the past, and Akiba's Trip is a pretty good example of just how many Japanese businesses and products don't mind being in games. If anything, Yakuza games are modest in their product placement by comparison, and the series sells like gangbusters in Japan.

Although I wouldn't be surprised if the Pepsi products are renamed for the localization.
 
Lol I stopped believing for some time now, but they actually did it, well done Gio and thanks!

I guess that will be the absolute last Yakuza title we'll ever see in the West: PS3 and sommer 2015, that won't end well sales wise...

Hi, gaiz.

So I'm looking at this PR contact list Sony gave out on its press site for third-party assets.

And under Sega, it says:

1HBclmg.jpg


(I've blacked out the names and e-mails.)

Not trying to get everyone's hopes up, but I'm contacting Sega now and will report back.

He did get a generic PR email back but that this might not be the last Yakuza game we will see.
 

ZeroX03

Banned
i cant believe this. on the other hand, arent there a lot of other games who have been released but sold less than all the mentioned titles above???

Some games sure, but those are still pretty bottom of the barrel numbers. Especially considering the install base of the systems. Not to mention this good point;

Pretty sure the cost of localization is an important factor here as well. These games have a huge amount of text/speech to translate and a story that would suffer a lot from poor translation. Also, I'm not sure how much of an issue this is, but Yakuza has a shitton of product placement. Most of them by japanese products so it's not that noticeable to us, but I bet a bunch of those products are distributed in the west as well so I'd expect some legal shenanigans required just to actually sell the games here, or modification of the game to remove those products they couldn't get the rights for.

Also VA and likeness rights.

Again: it's a miracle this series still lives. It's a testament to how loud and passionate the tiny fan base is (and Tales, seeing as we got Hearts R) when it's topping Sony's list of games on Twitter to port.
 
I'd be curious to know what the cost of localization is vs. ~20k digital sales.

Actually I wouldn't be too surprised if this outsells 4, I never saw a single copy of that out in the wild, and bought mine online. Being available on PSN seems like it would hit a wider audience.
 
He did get a generic PR email back but that this might not be the last Yakuza game we will see.

Oh god, please be true, sooo good! Yakuza going West was THE Megaton for me, fing love this franchise, but playing a game like that with a PDF walkthrough is just not an option, so I'm really happy about Y5 on PS3, the more the merrier!
 

Audioboxer

Member
People not buying Yakuza games are people going to their grave not having lived a life.

edit: I'm rebuying 4 digitally, and supporting Dead Souls for the first time.
 

ZeroX03

Banned
I'd be curious to know what the cost of localization is vs. ~20k digital sales.

Actually I wouldn't be too surprised if this outsells 4, I never saw a single copy of that out in the wild, and bought mine online. Being available on PSN seems like it would hit a wider audience.

As long as they don't try and go full $60 with it they might be able to carve out a presence in the store now that PS3 titles have wound down.

Yakuza Dead Souls was hugely over shipped here. I still see 2-3 copies in bargain bins at most stores. Digital will help them avoid a huge loss like that again.
 

Palculator

Unconfirmed Member
Really nice but I hope there's going to be a retail release. Some day, some how... please Sega...

Just get a ~32GB HDD for the PS3, download Yakuza 5 to it and then put it in a blu-ray case and print a cover. You could even store your saves alongside so arguably this is the superior solution.
 

hamchan

Member
Really nice but I hope there's going to be a retail release. Some day, some how... please Sega...

As much as we all want to have a physical version.... just look at those sales numbers up top and just be happy that we're getting it at all. I know I am!
 
I'd be curious to know what the cost of localization is vs. ~20k digital sales.

Actually I wouldn't be too surprised if this outsells 4, I never saw a single copy of that out in the wild, and bought mine online. Being available on PSN seems like it would hit a wider audience.

Yip also i expect it to not be full price when it launches so that could earn them a few more sales.
 

OmegaDL50

Member
Never played a Yakuza game.

But I'm guessing it's like Japanese GTA? but more closer to a Shenmue like experience?

What would some consider to be the best game in the series? From the the little that I've read all of the games in the series also are connected by plot in some way?
 
Never played a Yakuza game.

But I'm guessing it's like Japanese GTA? but more closer to a Shenmue like experience?

What would some consider to be the best game in the series? From the the little that I've read all of the games in the series also are connected by plot in some way?
All connected, but Yakuza 3 and 4 has a video on the main menu to explain everything that happened with the series since Yakuza 1.

Its easy to catch up.
 

TronLight

Everybody is Mikkelsexual
Just get a ~32GB HDD for the PS3, download Yakuza 5 to it and then put it in a blu-ray case and print a cover. You could even store your saves alongside so arguably this is the superior solution.

Except the game is still tied to the account that bought it and you have to reformat the HDD everytime you plug it into the PS3.
 
I wasn't around when all this happened, but this announcement has made me so happy. I had given up all hope because I decided it was never happening. I'll take it digital only, I don't even care, I'm just happy I can play it.
I might have a problem when it comes out because I have no HDD space, but I'll worry about that then.
 

Ravage

Member
I've seen those numbers before so I'm not shocked but this really drives home the fact that getting Y5 localized is nothing short of a miracle.

Personally, I'm gonna double dip for all of them.
 

Saladinoo

Member
Daaamn - having not played any of the Yakuza games before, could I jump straight into 5 or is it pretty essential to play any of the others first?
 

Tizoc

Member
Daaamn - having not played any of the Yakuza games before, could I jump straight into 5 or is it pretty essential to play any of the others first?

I think in this case playing Y3 and 4 is a good idea. BEsides we're months away from Y5's release, so now is a good time to start ;)
Y5 takes place some years after events of Y3 and Y4 (which both took place 1 year apart IIRC).
 

Tizoc

Member
Never played a Yakuza game.

But I'm guessing it's like Japanese GTA? but more closer to a Shenmue like experience?

What would some consider to be the best game in the series? From the the little that I've read all of the games in the series also are connected by plot in some way?

They share NOTHING in common with GTA.
The Yakuza series' gameplay is beat'em-up with RPG elements, hell just look at all the cool shit you can do in this game
www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nx9jS4-jwI
Can you do THAT in GTA?

Start with yakuza 3, which was my first entry into the series, it has a recap mode for the events of Y1+2, but going in blind is still gonna be OK.
 

Parakeetman

No one wants a throne you've been sitting on!
Daaamn - having not played any of the Yakuza games before, could I jump straight into 5 or is it pretty essential to play any of the others first?

Truthfully even with the recap stuff you still wouldnt have all that great of an idea of what the fuck is going on. Not to mention be as attached to the various characters in the game, as its a series where all of the games are connected with the characters.

At least play from 3. Would not really suggest going blind into 5 personally.
 
Daaamn - having not played any of the Yakuza games before, could I jump straight into 5 or is it pretty essential to play any of the others first?
I would recommend play Yakuza 4, I had it on disk, there's a menu option for a video that shows everything that happened since Yakuza 1 on PS2.

It's great for catching up, and we don't know yet if there will be a video on Yakuza 5, with Yakuza 4 flashback included.

Guess I'll buy Y4 on PSN now and get Y5 when it comes out.

Thanks.
opc22Lf.gif
 

cj_iwakura

Member
Would anyone here like to contribute banners to a Yakuza community thread? Figure I'd ask the fans before checking some usual avenues.
 
Top Bottom