Yakuza 0 Director's Cut Is a Punchy (But Pricey) Upgrade For Diehard Fans and Newcomers

It's more or less agreed that Yakuza 0 is really good--many will even say the best in the whole series. But with the Switch 2's launch lineup being somewhat sparse, Sega (and Nintendo, which has timed exclusivity on this edition) are likely hoping players want to complement their Mario Karting, Cyberpunk 2077ing, and Street Fighting with a hard-hitting open-world adventure. But is it worth it? It really depends.At $50, Yakuza 0 Director's Cut is cheaper than many of the other Switch 2 launch games, and there's a lot to do here between the lengthy, dual-protagonist narrative and the surprisingly involving minigames. You can easily get hundreds of hours of gameplay out of Yakuza 0: Director's Cut, and that's not even taking into account the new content.The first major difference is the addition of new voice and subtitle tracks. Your choice of voice actors is down to personal preference, but for me, the Japanese ones are too iconic to switch away from. Chinese and English voice tracks have been recorded for the entire game. If you're a series veteran, you'll also notice that the demo cinematic features the Japanese rock song "Bubble" by Shounan no Kaze--a song featured in the original Yakuza 0's Japanese release but excised overseas. It's back, it's rockin', and it sets the stage for a grand old time in 1988 Bubble Era Japan.Continue Reading at GameSpot

Jun 13, 2025 - 06:00

Yakuza 0 Director's Cut Is a Punchy (But Pricey) Upgrade For Diehard Fans and Newcomers

It's more or less agreed that Yakuza 0 is really good--many will even say the best in the whole series. But with the Switch 2's launch lineup being somewhat sparse, Sega (and Nintendo, which has timed exclusivity on this edition) are likely hoping players want to complement their Mario Karting, Cyberpunk 2077ing, and Street Fighting with a hard-hitting open-world adventure. But is it worth it? It really depends.

At $50, Yakuza 0 Director's Cut is cheaper than many of the other Switch 2 launch games, and there's a lot to do here between the lengthy, dual-protagonist narrative and the surprisingly involving minigames. You can easily get hundreds of hours of gameplay out of Yakuza 0: Director's Cut, and that's not even taking into account the new content.

The first major difference is the addition of new voice and subtitle tracks. Your choice of voice actors is down to personal preference, but for me, the Japanese ones are too iconic to switch away from. Chinese and English voice tracks have been recorded for the entire game. If you're a series veteran, you'll also notice that the demo cinematic features the Japanese rock song "Bubble" by Shounan no Kaze--a song featured in the original Yakuza 0's Japanese release but excised overseas. It's back, it's rockin', and it sets the stage for a grand old time in 1988 Bubble Era Japan.Continue Reading at GameSpot