Judgment has one of the most compelling stories in the Yakuza franchise. This is saying something, since they all have interesting hooks. The story focuses on a giant mystery with a detective as the star via Takayuki Yagami. It grows even more intriguing as each new piece of evidence is slowly dished out.
It’s a pretty tight story, without much to fault in the grand scheme. However, a lot of tiny things are left unanswered or may feel like plot holes. Even though this game is two years old, new players on PS5 should take note that spoilers follow below.
10 Convenient Merchandise
If a player needs to go to the store and buy something for a quest, that item will usually be there. When Yagami blows out that Yakuza heater, he is able to buy the one work uniform the store has for a disguise.
There’s also a side quest where he has to buy a pair of underwear to catch a thief — and it’s the only pair in the store. The point is, it's all a little too convenient.
9 Yagami’s Second Wind
There’s a point early onwhere Captain Hamura stops beating around the bush, and tries to get his gang to kill Yagami. They absolutely pulverize him, and he can barely crawl away to escape. Then, all of a sudden, he gets a second wind.
Not only does he not only fight back and win, but is able to do some sweet skateboarding tricks. It doesn’t matter how good at fighting this guy is, Yagami should have been hospitalized for weeks, if not months.
8 No Disguise For Shono
In chapter nine, Yagami and Sugiura head to the ADDC to try and confront Shono again. After the last time, Yagami knows he isn’t welcome. However, why doesn’t he think to wear a disguise?
Eventually, they both get guard uniforms because that’s the right move. It just seems like a messy setup for the plot to get here.
7 Money Inconsistencies
The beginning of the game sees both Yagami and Kaito down on their luck. They can barely keep their business afloat. It’s even hard to get money from street thugs. After a few hours, eventually Genda Law will knock side cases that pay out a lot of money for very easy tasks.
Players will be practically rolling in it in no time. So, when a story beat brings up money and Yagami responds with something like “I don’t have money”, it doesn’t make sense. The game apparently always assumes the player doesn't take these cases on.
6 Okubo’s Sentence
Why is he kept alive for three years? The game never definitively tells the player why. It’s not like Okubo had any other lawyers looking to appeal his case. The player doesn't even visit him until the end of the game, when his death sentence is about to be carried out.
Putting it off for a year is one thing. However, three years seems like a miracle that is too convenient for Yagami.
5 What Happened To Seiya?
Seiya is the male host that is the witness in the Hamura case. In other words, his testimony is essential to saving Captain Hamura. After that, the player never sees him in the main plot again.
One would think a rival Yakuza gang may have offed him for revenge. It seems odd that a minor character like Uzawa gets to come back, but not a somewhat more important character like Seiya.
4 Higashi’s Arcade
Hamura knows that Higashi hasn’t killed Yagami yet. He also seems to suspect he is aiding him. If that’s the case, then why isn’t Higashi’s arcade being watched? It becomes the meeting spot for more than one important meeting for Yagami and crew.
Many issues could be resolved if people just followed others around, or kept better tabs. On a lighter note, it’s at least a funny bit as Higashi outspokenly hates these meetings.
3 Saori Is A Lawyer, Right?
The story implies that Saori passed the bar exam and is thus a lawyer. However, she seems to be nothing more than a receptionist in the office. On top of that, she is used for cliche exploitative missions involving seducing men.
She’s a great character, but a lawyer deserves more respect than what she gets. Unfortunately, t’s a trope of the Yakuza series as well as Japanese games as a whole.
2 The ADDC Finale
There are too many questions leading up to the finale at the ADDC, along with the building itself. Why didn’t Kuroiwa just shoot Sugiura and Yagami instead of blowing up the bridge? How is Yagami’s concussion suddenly healed for a big fight?
Why do the cops suddenly come back with Kaito and Higashi on their side, and shoot seemingly their boss? For such a well thought-out game, it all sort of falls apart at this point.
1 Are There Ghosts?
This question can be asked of the entire Yakuza series. There seems to be at least one instance, if not more, involving what could described as ghosts. In this game, Yagami hears Shintani at the ADDC, and players see him behind Yagami. However, some explain this as a clever way to frame a memory.
The bigger question is in the finale at the ADDC. Not only does the concussed Yagami hear and sees Emi, but Sugiura hears her too. This leads up to the big series question: When will there be a ghost busting spinoff? There was one for zombies, after all.