What the Yakuza Series Has Taught Me

 As most of you already know, I am a HUGE fan of the Yakuza series. After having finished 3 of the games in the series in no particular order and currently playing 3 other games in the series (Yakuza 3, Yakuza 5, and the PSP spin-off, Kurohyou) and having delved deep into the games' dramatic storyline and its funny and sometimes wholesome side stories, I realized that Yakuza isn't only for entertaining us with its awesome gameplay and its perplexing storyline. It can also teach us some life lessons along the way. Here are the things I learned from playing Yakuza. 

Keep in mind that this will contain spoilers, so please read at your own discretion.

1. Trust not only in yourself, but also in your friends and family.

When playing through Yakuza's main plot, you'll notice that all the protagonists are somehow helped by their allies, despite how tough their situation is.

 Take Kazuma Kiryu in Yakuza 6, for example. When Haruka and Haruto were taken by the Yomei Alliance, he and his newfound allies from the Hirose Family work together to save them. Not only that, but Yakuza: Like a Dragon's gameplay and storyline takes advantage of this lesson by having the game's protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga, meet and team up with people he meet along his journey.

And if there's one thing for certain, it's that true friends look out for each other and will never let the each other down, just like Kiryu and Nishiki throughout Yakuza 0 and Majima and Saejima throughout the series.

2. When you've hit rock-bottom, there's always a way back up.

For the people who are struggling out there, never give up! There's always a way back up to the top and the opportunities are endless.

A good example of this is one of the series' protagonists, Shun Akiyama. During the events of the first Yakuza game and its remake, Yakuza Kiwami, Akiyama was fired from his job as a banker after he was framed for money laundering by his superiors. This eventually led him to spending all his life savings into proving he was innocent until he was homeless. Then, at the climax of Yakuza, when Nishiki blew himself up inside Millennium Tower's hidden bank vault, money started raining down on the street and Akiyama collected enough money to invest in and earn his way back up.

3. Life is a mess; but that's okay!

Yakuza portrays the meaning of life very well through its immense gameplay. One moment, you're out painting the town red; singing karaoke, eating at restaurants, and going to clubs. And then the next, you're caught up in another one of the Tojo Clan's affairs.

And somehow, the protagonists are fine with it. Because as you all know, life is a mess. And somehow, we just gotta roll with it and make the most of what we have. Because like the great Tatsuo Shinada said, we gotta chase our dreams and the dreams of other people.

4. You're the writer of your own story.

No matter what beliefs you believe in or what kind of people you trust in, it doesn't matter. You're the maker of your own story. You can do whatever your heart tells you to do, but only if its for your own good and the good of other people.

Anyway, that's all for now! What life lessons have you learned from playing Yakuza? -JJ