Stranger Than Heaven is an upcoming prequel to the Yakuza franchise, and while many fans are incredibly excited, some recent footage has led to criticism from the fanbase. A boss fight video has hit the internet courtesy of BlueThunder on X, and the fight lasts for about two minutes, with cuts for time. It led to fans accusing the company of not doing anything original when it comes to their boss fights and combat.
We do know that there are some important changes in the combat for Stranger Than Heaven, such as the limb-based battle system, but that hasn’t stopped the fanbase for taking the game to task. In the video, Makoto Daito is doing battle with what looks like a Yakuza thug, so it’s unclear why this counts as a boss fight. It could also be mini-boss, but it’s still a bout that’s above what the rank-and-file thugs bring to the table.
The video led to several complaints from fans, including Adam W on X, who felt it was perhaps “too similar” to Yakuza:
“Looks too similar to yakuza imo. RGG incapable of making anything original now?”
Not everyone agreed, with seasoned fans remarking that it looked like a blend of Yakuza and Judgment, and that the combat is much slower than your typical Yakuza title. It wasn’t the only complaint to be had, though. Another X user, Kategaru|Dango Dog VTuber (KategaruG) pointed out quite a few things that led them to be wary:
- The clip is 2 minutes with multiple time skips.
- The player in question didn’t defeat the boss, and only got through about 50% of its health.
- The boss could one-shot him at 75% hp.
However, other fans suggested that it could be something like inexperience. The Yakuza games are not something everyone plays, after all, and Zei (That N00bsFriend) highlights that they would want to see this from the perspective of someone that’s more talented, or more experienced with the Yakuza franchise.
Other reactions to the Stranger Than Heaven boss fight called it “parry slop” and “trash” for not showing off any stab wounds after characters getting pretty brutally stabbed. While I do think some criticism is perhaps warranted, I also think a lot of the takes are either bad faith arguments, or just trolling.
Is this critique of the Stranger Than Heaven boss fight warranted?
I think that there is some fair discussion among the X fanbase about boss fights from RGG Studios, and Stranger Than Heaven is no exception. One weakness that I’ve always said the games have had, are the boss fights. While the spectacle, bombast, and cutscenes are always incredible, many of the fights feel incredibly grindy and tedious. However, there’s a lot we don’t know about this fight.
We know you have to win it (judging by the Game Over) screen, and that it’s likely an important fight of some kind. However, this might just be a mini boss, or it could also be someone who doesn’t play a lot of the RGG games. I think there’s more nuance to this than “fight bad, fight boring, fight same old” because I’ve fought a lot of Yakuza bosses in my day.
This is certainly not your average Yakuza or Judgement fight. Those fights include lots of quick movement, ridiculous combos, and over-the-top spectacle. That’s not what this is. What we see here is a brutal struggle to survive.
I do think bosses in RGG games have way too much health (and I’m led to believe that with this clip), but I don’t know if it’s as immediately cut-and-dry. Even the person who posted the boss fight posted a more glowing recommendation of Stranger Than Heaven. We also have to consider things like “How much combat time was available in this preview?” and questions like that.
They might simply not have done a lot of fighting in the Stranger Than Heaven preview, or it’s supposed to be a brutally difficult boss fight. We don’t know the circumstances surrounding the combat. All in all, I think it’s a little too early to just naysay Stranger Than Heaven, especially if this is the only negative thing I’ve seen people talk about so far.
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Edited by Jason Parker
