Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut Review – Still a Gold Prequel to the Series

Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut (PS5) Review

Yakuza/ Like a Dragon is one of my favorite video game series of all time. The original two Yakuza games were released for the PS2, and the series remained fairly niche until the sixth mainline game, Yakuza 0, came out on the PS4. In 2025, Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut was released as a Switch 2 exclusive. Yakuza Kiwami 3 was also announced for early 2026. To capitalize on the success of these latest releases, Sega has brought Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut out on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. If you own the base version of Yakuza 0, it can be upgraded for $20.

If you already own the Switch 2 version of Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut, there’s no new content for this current-gen release. There are minor performance upgrades because of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S hardware being stronger than the Switch 2 or PS4. This review will give an overview of what newcomers can expect from the Yakuza games. It will discuss the additions to Yakuza 0: The Director’s Cut from the vanilla version. And I will recommend where series newcomers should start, if they want to get into this daunting franchise.

A Prequel Tale

Yakuza 0 takes place before the events of Kiwami 1, in the 80s, when Kiryu and Nishiki were young Yakuza. The story explores their relationship and adds tons of weight and dread to the events of the first game. Goro Majima, who is a villain in Yakuza Kiwami 1, and an eventual ally of Kiryu, is also a playable character in Yakuza 0. The game shows his origins as a nightclub manager, and gives lots of insight into how Majima became the maniac we all know and love.

The Yakuza games all have incredibly cinematic narratives. There are lots of cutscenes in every story chapter, and they are incredibly well-directed. I would seriously put them alongside any great film or series. One of the main draws of these games is getting to experience such well-told stories. There are some sections of Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut that use still images. The game tries to dress these up as a stylistic choice, but they’re too obviously that way for budgetary reasons. I was hoping the Director’s Cut might fix these jarring scenes, but it does not.

Rich Environments

Although there are loads of cutscenes to watch in every chapter of each game, the core gameplay is an open-world third-person action game. The majority of Yakuza 0 takes place in a fictional Japanese red-light district called Kamurochō, which is modelled (in great detail) after Kabukichō, a real-life red-light district of Shinjuku. The sandbox is so accurate and vibrant that the series has become known as a virtual Japanese vacation sim. It’s become a popular tourist activity to visit the real-life counterparts of areas in the Yakuza games.

As Kiryu and Majima roam the streets they get into fights. A lot of Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut’s gameplay involves third-person battles. Kiryu has multiple attack buttons, and unlocks more abilities as the games progress. Battles often involve grabbing environmental weapons and performing cinematic QuickTime attacks. As the series goes on, the games develop more RPG elements. Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut is lighter on RPG progression than later games in the series. The side content doesn’t add to Kiryu or Majima’s character progression. They’re just fun for fun’s sake.

Lots More Side Content

A huge part of Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut’s appeal is the incredible amount of stuff to do in the sandbox. Kiryu can walk into lots of buildings. Every street corner involves a potential new sidequest or minigame to play. There are multiple casinos and gambling parlors, with lots of different games. Arcades have full versions of classic Sega games. The side quests get weird and can involve strange scenarios, like rooms of grown men in diapers asking for assistance. They’re a wacky contrast to the very serious crime drama that takes place in the main narrative.

Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut features several new additions to the original game, on top of the improved framerate and graphical fidelity. The most welcome change for longtime fans is that there’s some restored music. Licensed music was cut from the North American release of Yakuza 0, and it’s now here in the Director’s Cut. There’s also an excellent brand new English dub. A brand new online multiplayer mode called Red Light Raid has been added. It’s kind of like a Yakuza Musou mode, which has lots of first-time playable series characters. There are also 20 minutes of new cutscenes. Some of them retcon deaths of characters, though, and are not necessarily welcome new changes.

Series Timeline

The Kiryu saga consists of the games Yakuza, Yakuza 2, Yakuza 3, Yakuza 4, Yakuza 5, Yakuza 0, and Yakuza 6: The Song of Life, in that order. Yakuza Kiwami released after Yakuza 0, and Kiwami 2 released after Yakuza 6. The 7^th and 8^th games in the series are Yakuza: Like a Dragon, and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, but they follow a different protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga.

There are a few spin-offs as well. Yakuza: Dead Souls is a “what if” zombie shooter that came out after Yakuza 4. Like a Dragon: Kenzan, and Like a Dragon: Ishin take place in feudal Japan (Kenzan hasn’t ever been released in North America, though). Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise is unrelated to the Yakuza games, but is made by the same developer, and has similar gameplay. Judgment and Lost Judgment are Kamurochō detective stories with a different protagonist, but they’re among the very best games in the franchise. Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is a side story that takes place between Yakuza 6 and Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Finally, Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is a Majima side story that takes place after Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

Play Kiwami 1 Before 0

A lot of people recommend starting with Yakuza 0, but I disagree. It’s a valid way to start the Yakuza series, but it’s not the best way. I think a lot of people started with 0, and think that their path was the best one. The best way to start is with Yakuza for the PS2, and go in chronological release order. I know a lot of people won’t go back and play the PS2 versions, so I usually recommend people start with Kiwami 1, and go in chronological release order. Playing 0 before Kiwami 1 gives away a lot of the events in the first game. And knowledge of Kiwami 1 makes 0 more rich. Even if you really want to get to 0 because of its reputation, I would at least play Kiwami 1, then 0, then do the rest in order.

One of the cool aspects of playing all the Yakuza games is seeing how they evolve. It’s fascinating to see how the mechanics of the original versions of each game build as each new entry comes out. Starting with 0 means that the first five games will mechanically feel like backwards steps, but their stories are essential. Yakuza 0 isn’t even objectively superior. Games 4 and 5 have way crazier amounts of side quests. Yakuza 1 and 2 have my favorite plots. And Yakuza 6 has the integration of RPG elements, and is my favorite game overall. Other excellent/ valid franchise starting points are Judgement, and Yakuza: Like a Dragon.

An All-Time Great

The Yakuza/ Like a Dragon series has become one of the most beloved video game franchises on the planet. They’re a combination of cinematic crime drama, fun third-person brawl combat, deep open world exploration, and insanely wacky sidequests and minigames. Yakuza 0: Director’s Cut is the best version of the game that brought the series into the mainstream. There are some changes that aren’t for the better, but overall, this is an excellent version of an all-time great video game.

***PS5 code provided by the publisher***