Red Steel is a first-person shooter video game published by Ubisoft for Nintendo's Wii console. It was developed by the Ubisoft Paris studio. Red Steel was released in November 2006 in North America, with releases in other regions arriving the following month, and was a Wii launch title in all regions.
103-534: Red Steel received generally mixed reviews from critics who praised the game's graphics and soundtrack, while the controls and sword-fighting sections were criticised. Nevertheless, it was a commercial success, selling over one million copies worldwide. A stand-alone sequel, Red Steel 2 , was released in 2010. The game takes advantage of the Wii's motion-sensitive controller, along with the Nunchuk attachment, to control
206-651: A katana and a firearm. The on-screen gun hand points the gun in the same direction the Wii Remote is pointing. Players can push objects to use them as cover by pushing the controller forward. Shaking the Nunchuk attachment or pressing "right" on the D-Pad reloads the gun. The player can also throw grenades underhand or overhand by moving the Nunchuk as though it were the actual grenade. The AI characters can "care for themselves" according to project leader Roman Campos Oriola; enemies are aggressive, moving around objects and
309-467: A waste processing plant off the coast of Tokyo , where Ryuichi delivers Miyu to Tokai, the true antagonist of the game. Ryuichi duels Scott again, but is defeated. Scott spares him, but Ryuichi is murdered by a sniper while giving information to Scott. Tokai is revealed to have taken over the major franchises of Tokyo - financing , gaming, Geisha houses, and docks - bringing down the Sanro Kai,
412-432: A combo. New techniques involve inputting a series of attacks that can significantly damage, stun or launch enemies into the air, and every time one is purchased, the player must go to a training area in the current safe house to practice it. Another source of money is a separate challenge mode that allows players to revisit previously cleared story chapters. Red Steel 2 is the first game besides Wii Sports Resort to use
515-403: A defining artistic style rather than photorealism. Red Steel received wildly mixed reviews. While IGN referred to it as "the only Wii launch game whose controls seem to occasionally glitch out for no obvious reason" and commented that "the process of turning is disappointingly slow and clunky", reviewers for both GameSpot and IGN found no problem whatsoever with the controls outside of
618-617: A front to ship weapons. Ryuichi confronts Scott at an airport and bests him in combat, but spares him, as he escapes to Japan with Miyu. The yakuza will only hand Miyu over if the Katana Giri, a katana once used to execute dishonorable godfathers, is given as ransom. Sato gives Scott the Giri, before dying of his injuries. At Tokyo , Scott makes contact with Otori, a former samurai , and Harry Tanner, an American nightclub owner who assists him in tracking down Ryuichi. Harry leads Scott to
721-551: A large portion of their members hold criminal records. After the Act on Prevention of Unjust Acts by Organized Crime Group Members was enacted, many yakuza syndicates made efforts to restructure to appear more professional and legitimate. As of 2023, Under the Act on Prevention of Unjust Acts by Organized Crime Group Members, the Prefectural Public Safety Commissions have registered 25 syndicates as
824-630: A man named Shinjiro. The Hero travels to the Lower City, encountering another rival clan called the Katakara. He finds Shinjiro in the city's Kusagari Temple and the two swordsmen fight. After a fierce battle, the Hero breaks Shinjiro's katana and pushes him to the edge of the Temple's roof. However, before the Hero can strike his foe down, a mysterious ninja saves Shinjiro. Jian then tells the Hero that
927-404: A passageway leading to one of Songan's casinos and a pulley-raised bridge to Shinjiro's hideout, Tiger's Nest. Just as the Hero is about to ask Songan about how to get into Tiger's Nest, he then betrays the Hero and his allies, Tamiko, Judd, and Jian, are captured, but Songan nevertheless helps him lower the bridge. At Tiger's Nest, Shinjiro demands the Hero's katana in exchange for his friends. As
1030-485: A peak of 184,100. However, this number has drastically dropped, a decline attributed to changing market opportunities and several legal and social developments in Japan that discourage the growth of yakuza membership. In 1991, it had 63,800 members and 27,200 quasi-members, but by 2023 it had only 10,400 members and 10,000 quasi-members. The yakuza are aging because young people do not readily join, and their average age at
1133-598: A reputation for being a large source of yakuza members, including many renowned bosses in the Yamaguchi-gumi . Isokichi Yoshida (1867–1936) from the Kitakyushu area was considered by some scholars and political watchers as one of the first renowned modern yakuza. Recently Shinobu Tsukasa and Kunio Inoue, the bosses of the two most powerful clans in the Yamaguchi-gumi, originate from Kyushu. Fukuoka ,
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#17327761969101236-517: A stab, before vanishing in a cloud of dust upon defeat. Creative director Jason Vandenberghe justified the removal of graphic violence because he felt that bloodshed would make the Hero appear less heroic and cited how stories about iconic action folk heroes like Robin Hood and Zorro , who influenced and inspired the Hero's concept and creation, would become distasteful if their dispatching of foes were told in more graphic detail. An early version of
1339-457: A stall assignment and protection during the fair. The tekiya were a highly structured and hierarchical group with the oyabun (boss) at the top and kobun (gang members) at the bottom. This hierarchy resembles a structure similar to the family – in traditional Japanese culture , the oyabun was often regarded as a surrogate father, and the kobun as surrogate children. During the Edo period,
1442-475: A unique form of Japanese extortion known as sōkaiya . In essence, this is a specialized form of protection racket . Instead of harassing small businesses, the Yakuza harass a stockholders' meeting of a larger corporation. Yakuza operatives obtain the right to attend by making a small purchase of stock, and then at the meeting physically intimidate other stockholders. The number of sōkaiya has decreased over
1545-573: A vast gang of thugs, murderers and thieves – steals the Hero's katana. While running from the Jackals with only his trusty .357 Longarm through the city of Caldera, the Hero rescues his old swordsmaster Jian who was to soon be executed by the Jackals. After the rescue, Jian allows the Hero to borrow his sword until the Hero can recover his own from Payne. The Hero meets up with Tamiko, a member of his clan's research division, as well as Caldera's sheriff and Tamiko's father, Judd. They provide information for
1648-477: Is split-screen with traditional deathmatches . According to the project leader, "perhaps most impressive is the fact that although split-screen reduces the amount of on-screen space you are playing in, you don't have to make smaller movements —you can gesture as wildly as you want, and it won't interfere with the other player's on-screen quadrants". Red Steel features three multiplayer modes: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Killer: Another feature of multiplayer
1751-515: Is a "particularly harmful" yakuza group registered by the Prefectural Public Safety Commissions under the Act on Prevention of Unjust Acts by Organized Crime Group Members ( 暴力団対策法 , Bōryokudan Taisaku Hō ) enacted in 1991. Groups are designated as Shitei Bōryokudan (designated yakuza) if their members take advantage of the gang's influence to do business, are structured to have one leader, and have
1854-423: Is a score of 0. If the three cards drawn are 8-9-3 (pronounced ya-ku-sa in archaic Japanese), the sum is 20 and therefore the score is zero, making one of the worst possible hands that can be drawn. In Japanese , the word yakuza is commonly written in katakana (ヤクザ). Despite uncertainty about the single origin of yakuza organizations, most modern yakuza derive from two social classifications which emerged in
1957-458: Is able to momentarily freeze time, thus allowing for more accurate attacks. In story mode and multiplayer "Killer" matches, the remote acts as a telephone using its internal speaker. It rings for the player to place it against their ear. The mission objectives are then given without the other players being able to hear what they are. Up to four players can play together on four different maps: Dojo, Restaurant, Games, and Docks. The multiplayer mode
2060-423: Is full of ninjas and Katakara, he finds Shinjiro atop the front car; the "escape attempt" is revealed to be a trap. As the Hero approaches the front car, Shinjiro detaches the front car from the rest of the train. Shinjiro then throws a grenade to kill the Hero and destroy the rest of the train. The Hero survives, but is forced to walk through the desert for three days before finding a small ghost town. While exploring
2163-435: Is injured, on the roof . Scott learns the ways of the katana from Sato after being attacked by a waiter with a sword. Sato and Scott retreat to Sato's personal suite , where Scott covers Miyu, Sato, and Ryuichi, one of Sato's guards, as they head to their car in the parking lot . Scott eventually meets up with them, but Ryuichi turns on them and kidnaps both Sato and Miyu. Scott pursues the car and saves Isao after shooting
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#17327761969102266-857: Is often blamed on real estate speculation by banking subsidiaries. After the collapse of the property bubble, a manager of a major bank in Nagoya was assassinated, prompting much speculation about the banking industry's indirect connection to the Japanese underworld. In 1989, Susumu Ishii, the Oyabun of the Inagawa-kai (a well-known yakuza group) bought US$ 255 million worth of Tokyo Kyuko Electric Railway 's stock. Japan's Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission has knowledge of more than 50 listed companies with ties to organized crime, and in March 2008,
2369-457: Is one of the few times that yakuza display their tattoos to others, as they normally keep them concealed in public with long-sleeved and high-necked shirts. When new members join, they are often required to remove their trousers as well and reveal any lower body tattoos. The total number of yakuza members and quasi-members peaked at 184,100 in 1963, and then continued to decline due to police crackdowns. The number of regular members decreased with
2472-476: Is the notion of "bonuses". Before beginning play, each player chooses one of three bonuses: More Damage, More Life, or Unlimited Ammunition. During play, the bonus meter increases for each enemy killed. Once the gauge begins to fill up, players can press the "1" button on the control to activate their selected bonus for a period of time proportional to how full the meter is. There is no multiplayer mode for sword fighting. Scott Monroe, an American bodyguard and
2575-822: The Dojin-kai , are heavily involved in it. The most common charge for yakuza and their associates arrested in 2014 was violation of the Stimulants Control Act ( 覚せい剤取締法 ) , which prohibits the import, export, sale, transfer, possession, and use of methamphetamine, accounting for 26.5 percent of arrests. Some yakuza groups are known to deal extensively in human trafficking . In the Philippines Yakuza trick girls from impoverished villages into coming to Japan by promising them respectable jobs with good wages. Instead, they are forced into becoming sex workers and strippers. Yakuza frequently engaged in
2678-473: The Japanese government aimed at impeding revenue and increasing liability for criminal activities. The name yakuza originates from the traditional Japanese card game Oicho-Kabu , a game in which the goal is to draw three cards adding up to a score of 9. If the sum of the cards is 10 or more, the second digit is the score. So a sum of 13 is a score of 3, a sum of 14 is a score of 4, etc. A sum of 10 or 20
2781-496: The Osaka Securities Exchange decided to review all listed companies and expel those with yakuza ties. Yakuza involvement in politics functions similarly to that of a lobbying group , with them backing those who share in their opinions or beliefs. In the wake of the 1995 Kobe earthquake , the Yamaguchi-gumi yakuza group, who are based in the area, mobilized to provide disaster relief services (including
2884-751: The Philippines (10%). In 1990, a Smith & Wesson .38 caliber revolver that cost $ 275 in the US could sell for up to $ 4,000 in Tokyo. In 2001, the FBI's representative in Tokyo arranged for Tadamasa Goto , the head of the group Goto-gumi , to receive a liver transplant at the UCLA Medical Center in the United States, in return for information of Yamaguchi-gumi operations in the US. This
2987-544: The PlayStation Move and Xbox Kinect respectively, were announced during Red Steel 2 ' s development, but ultimately concluded that the current state of the motion control market does not yet justify continuing the series. There were rumors at the time that such sequel would likely be a Wii exclusive and make use of the Wii Vitality Sensor, and he confirmed that he wanted to take advantage of
3090-475: The San Francisco Bay Area , as well as Seattle , Las Vegas , Arizona , Virginia , Chicago , and New York City . The yakuza are said to use Hawaii as a midway station between Japan and mainland America, smuggling methamphetamine into the country and smuggling firearms back to Japan. They easily fit into the local population, since many tourists from Japan and other Asian countries visit
3193-403: The cellar to be tortured by Dozan, one of Tokai's henchmen. Scott manages to grab a sword and bring down Dozan, and escapes the cellar to interrogate Harry. Harry grabs a katana and battles Scott, giving him information after he is defeated and begging for his life. Whether Harry lives or dies, like most duels, is up to the player. Harry reveals that Tokai has raided Otori's dojo , having hired
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3296-432: The kobun of the subsidiary organizations also become oyabun and run their own subsidiary organizations. A large yakuza organization such as Yamaguchi-gumi is made up of five or six layered organizations. In other words, the heads of subsidiary organizations are often executives of the parent organizations. The oyabun of the organization is generally called a kumichō ( 組長 ) or kaichō ( 会長 , chairman) ,
3399-417: The kumichō ) , and shateigashira ( 舎弟頭 , pseudo oldest younger brother of the kumichō ) . Honbuchō ( 本部長 , general manager) , fuku-kumichō ( 副組長 , deputy kumichō ) , and jimukyokuchō ( 事務局長 , secretary general) , are also important positions. In general, the shikkōbu ( 執行部 , executive office) of an organization is run by the wakagashira , shateigashira , and honbuchō . Since
3502-467: The protagonist of the game, is engaged to Miyu Sato, daughter of Isao Sato. At a hotel in Los Angeles , California , Scott is to meet Isao for the first time. A gang manages to disguise themselves as the hotel staff and open fire on Sato's room. Scott tries to help, but is knocked unconscious. He awakens and grabs a pistol off a dead bodyguard, fights through the gang, and meets up with Sato, who
3605-415: The shatei are the pseudo-younger brothers of the kumichō , they are generally older and have higher nominal positions but relatively little real authority. In the Yamaguchi-gumi pecking order as of 2024, the order is kumichō , wakagashira , shateigashira , and honbuchō . Yakuza groups are headed by an oyabun ( kumichō or kaichō ) who gives orders to his subordinates, the kobun . In this respect,
3708-531: The "awesome style and energetic gameplay" and called it "one of the top titles on Wii". Official Nintendo Magazine praised the MotionPlus controls, visuals and audio, but criticised the mission design, referring to it as being "average". Eurogamer praised the "thrilling set pieces" but called the game's character "flawed, certainly, but entirely honorable with it". 1UP.com were considerably less impressed, stating that while "occasionally exhilarating"
3811-556: The 2010 European game developers conference, Red Steel 2 has sold approximately 270,000 copies worldwide. In April 2010, a French website spread a rumor that a sequel was in development, according to a Nintendo magazine. Vandenberghe expressed interest in making the sequel and previously floated the possibility of bringing the Red Steel series to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 when motion-control add-ons for those consoles,
3914-467: The Hero from reaching him. When that fails, Shinjiro, now adorned in menacing armor, draws out a newly forged katana for a final showdown with the Hero atop a high cliff. The Hero bests him in the intense, ensuing duel, but a wounded Shinjiro warns him that other clans will covet the power of the Sora Katana before the Hero tells him that history will forget him and finishes him off by stabbing him in
4017-501: The Hero is about to give it to him, the two engage in a gun duel, where Tamiko is shot. The Hero chases Shinjiro through Tiger's Nest and eventually engages in a rematch with Okaji, whom he finally kills by dropping him off a cliff. He then hunts Shinjiro on a remote mountain outside the Nest, who then taunts the Hero about how the capture of his allies helped him rebuild his sword and uses explosives and henchmen in one final effort to stop
4120-476: The Hero to help him track down Payne, while sabotaging the Jackals' operations in the Upper City, as well as meeting a fight club-operating businessman named Songan. The Hero eventually locates and defeats Payne in the Jackals' hideout, Rojo House, recovering his katana during the battle. He interrogates Payne and, before killing him by throwing him off a ledge, learns that his entire clan had been annihilated by
4223-459: The Hero wield both a katana and a revolver in tandem, the latter which Vandeberghe felt was an well-contrasting counterpart to the former in a few ways and influenced his decision to make the game set in a Wild West -style world. One feature that did not carry over from the first game was a multiplayer mode. Vandenberghe explained that his development team did explore the possibilities of including one, but determined that it would never fit in
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4326-416: The Katana Giri in the process. Otori respects Scott's action and honors him. Otori and his daughter are cured with the antidote. At the end of the game, all the characters are at Isao's funeral. The Sanro Kai explains that they understand Tokai's motivation for his actions, but he must be punished. If Scott lets Otori kill Tokai or is unable to defeat Otori, then Tokai is killed; Otori and Mariko both die from
4429-588: The Komori, a new wave of elite ninjas . During the attack, Otori's daughter Mariko is poisoned by the Komori leader, who wields a poisonous katana, as she tries to protect the Katana Giri in Otori's shrine . The attack is thwarted, and Scott travels to one of Tokai's bases, where he is going to execute the members of the Sanro Kai. Scott duels Tokai, learning he wanted the Giri to kill the Kai; they executed Tokai's father with
4532-804: The United Kingdom. Red Steel 2 Red Steel 2 is a first-person shooter hack and slash video game developed by Ubisoft Paris and published by Ubisoft . It is a standalone sequel to Red Steel . Released worldwide for the Wii video game console in March 2010, the game received generally positive reviews. Red Steel 2 is played in a first-person perspective where players can alternate between shooting and sword fighting. Players are able to fight up to six enemies on-screen, though enemy packs can go up to twenty, and can deflect opponents' bullets with their swords. Tougher enemies have specific vulnerabilities that can only be exploited through
4635-552: The Wii Motion Plus Accessory, as well as only one of three third-party Wii games to require it, with the others being My Personal Golf Trainer and B-Units: Build It! . The game features an expansive amount of movement with the Wii MotionPlus allowing it to be quite an interactive game, including certain hands-on minigames such as opening combination lock safes . Red Steel 2 does not continue
4738-444: The best-known bosses of the Yamaguchi-gumi was Kazuo Taoka , the "Godfather of all Godfathers", who was responsible for the syndicate's massive growth and success during the 20th century. "Yamabishi" (山菱) In the 2010s and 2020s, the yakuza's main source of funding is a fraud called tokushu sagi ( 特殊詐欺 , special fraud) , which mainly targets the elderly to cheat them out of large amounts of money. Their methods include calling
4841-520: The car and besting the driver in sword combat, while Ryuichi manages to escape with Miyu. In Little Tokyo, they meet up with Tony Tanaka, Sato's friend in Los Angeles. Sato is revealed to be the Oyabun of one of the largest yakuza families. To track down Ryuichi, Scott raids the Angel's Heaven, a spa which Ryuichi's mistress Angel owns, and Extreme Wheels, Ryuichi's car workshop , secretly used as
4944-521: The constant stream of Vietnamese cafe shoot-outs and home invasion burglaries throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. In New York City, they appear to collect finder's fees from Russian, Irish and Italian gang members and businessmen for guiding Japanese tourists to gambling establishments, both legal and illegal. Handguns manufactured in the US account for a large share (33%) of handguns seized in Japan, followed by handguns manufactured in China (16%) and in
5047-733: The designated yakuza groups. Three of these organizations have more than 1,000 regular members, eight have more than 100, and 14 have less than 100. Fukuoka Prefecture has the largest number of designated yakuza groups among all of the prefectures, at 5; the Kudo-kai , the Taishu-kai , the Fukuhaku-kai , the Dojin-kai , and the Namikawa-kai . In August 2021, the Fukuoka District Court sentenced Satoru Nomura ,
5150-586: The designated yakuza. These six organizations have a total of 7,700 members and 6,800 quasi-members, for a total of 14,500 members, or 71.1 percent of the total 20,400 yakuza members and quasi-members in Japan. Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi split off from Yamaguchi-gumi in August 2015, Kizuna-kai split off from Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi in April 2017, and Ikeda-gumi split off from Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi in July 2020. These Yamaguchi-gumi and
5253-426: The development time window, and that they preferred to deliver a great single player experience over a mediocre multiplayer game. He also stated that plans to enhance the challenge mode by adding new enemies and unique objectives were also similarly scrapped due to technical and developmental obstacles. Red Steel 2 received favorable reviews according to video game review aggregator Metacritic . IGN praised
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#17327761969105356-402: The economic situation during the mid-Edo period and the predominance of the merchant class, developing yakuza groups were composed of misfits and delinquents who had joined or formed the groups to extort customers in local markets by selling fake or shoddy goods. Shimizu Jirocho (1820–1893) is Japan's most famous yakuza and folk hero. He was born Chogoro Yamamoto, but changed his name when he
5459-400: The edges of towns and villages all over Japan. Most of these gambling houses ran loan-sharking businesses for clients, and they usually maintained their own security personnel. Society at large regarded the gambling houses themselves, as well as the bakuto , with disdain. Much of the undesirable image of the yakuza originates from bakuto ; this includes the name yakuza itself. Because of
5562-520: The end of 2022 was 54.2 years: 5.4% in their 20s, 12.9% in their 30s, 26.3% in their 40s, 30.8% in their 50s, 12.5% in their 60s, and 11.6% in their 70s or older, with more than half of the members in their 50s or older. The yakuza still regularly engage in an array of criminal activities, and many Japanese citizens remain fearful of the threat these individuals pose to their safety. There remains no strict prohibition on yakuza membership in Japan today, although many pieces of legislation have been passed by
5665-403: The environment to attack the player (like jumping on a table instead of running around). The AI allows enemies to surrender, rather than fight to the death. The player can shoot the weapon out of an enemy's hands, causing him to raise his hands in surrender. Alternatively, disarming the leader of a mob of enemies will cause the entire mob to surrender. Once an enemy has surrendered, the player has
5768-582: The eventually-cancelled accessory if a third game were to be made. There has been no further word on the possibility of a sequel after Nintendo shifted focus towards subsequent successors of the Wii. Oyabun Yakuza ( Japanese : ヤクザ , IPA: [jaꜜkɯdza] ; English: / j ə ˈ k uː z ə , ˈ j æ k uː z ə / ) , also known as gokudō ( 極道 , "the extreme path", IPA: [gokɯꜜdoː] ) , are members of transnational organized crime syndicates originating in Japan. The Japanese police and media (by request of
5871-583: The fictional city of Caldera in Nevada , where lawless "Jackals" roam not long after the city's entrusted protectors, the Kusagari, are decimated by their rival, the Katakara, in a vicious clan war. The game begins as an unnamed Hero, the last member of the Kusagari Clan, is being dragged across the desert, tied to the back of a motorcycle. He manages to break free, but Payne, the leader of the Jackals –
5974-647: The fifth head of Kudo-kai , to death for murder and attempted murder. This was the first death sentence handed down to a designated yakuza head. Kudo-kai is the only one of the designated yakuza to be designated as a especially dangerous designated yakuza ( 特定危険指定暴力団 , Tokutei Kiken Shitei Bōryokudan ) , a more dangerous type of yakuza. As of 2023, the National Police Agency has designated Yamaguchi-gumi , Kobe Yamaguchi-gumi , Kizuna-kai , Ikeda-gumi ( ja ), Sumiyoshi-kai , and Inagawa-kai as Shuyō dantai ( 主要団体 , major organizations) among
6077-552: The final battle. Otori is bent on avenging his daughter, and goes on his own to create a diversion for Scott. During the raid, Otori is cut and poisoned by a Komori blade. Scott confronts Tokai one last time, and defeats him. Tokai pleads with Scott to let him live, telling him that only he has the antidote for what has poisoned Otori and Mariko. Here, the player is presented with a choice: they may either protect Tokai from an approaching Otori, or stand by and let Otori kill Tokai. If Scott moves to defend Tokai, he fights Otori and breaks
6180-686: The game moderate success. The Escapist gave it four stars out of five and said: "Over three years after the Wii hit store shelves, Red Steel 2 finally delivers the motion-controlled swordplay we expected from the original Red Steel , and it more than makes up for any niggling flaws in the level design". The Daily Telegraph gave it seven out of ten and called it "effortlessly likable". Chris Kohler of Wired also gave it seven stars out of ten, saying: "I've never played anything quite like Red Steel 2 , which lets you use swords and guns simultaneously, switching back and forth between wild swinging and precise aiming". He criticized some occasional lapses in
6283-415: The game that Ubisoft conceived and later abandoned out of dissatisfaction before the Wii MotionPlus' announcement was planned to have a setting similar to the first game and support online multiplayer via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection . Vandeberghe also explained that the decision to make the sequel's setting completely different from the first game mainly pivoted upon the need to fully capitalize on and play to
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#17327761969106386-547: The game was "clearly designed with the hardcore gamer in mind. It's slick, addictive and as close to "cool" as a game can get". The one point of agreement among reviewers was the soundtrack, which was considered exceptional by most. Despite generating mixed reviews, Red Steel has sold over one million copies worldwide. It received a "Gold" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), indicating sales of at least 200,000 copies in
6489-436: The game was "mostly unremarkable". GamesRadar praised the controls and "the engaging, intuitive combat". GamesRadar also noted that the game was drastically superior to Red Steel , noting that there was "no comparison between the two". Classic Game Room received the game well. Bussler claimed that this was the best motion controlled first person shooter that "I ever played". Not all non-video game publications gave
6592-553: The game's technical stability, such as rare game- crashing bugs and occasional moments where the game is forced to halt briefly to read the disc. The A.V. Club gave it a C+: "Though the pesky lag is largely gone, all too often, gameplay still devolves into breathless, embarrassing exercises in flailing". Ubisoft originally expected to sell 1 million copies of Red Steel 2 , but after poor sales of James Cameron's Avatar: The Game , they slashed their sales predictions in half. According to Jason VendenBerghe at his keynote speech at
6695-402: The gameplay, and they can no longer attack the player nor be hit by gunfire. In addition, the player is awarded respect points. Slaying an enemy who has surrendered has no gameplay benefits. Recklessness is discouraged by limited ammunition supplies and a system that adds "freeze points" for accuracy/efficiency while using one's weaponry. When a certain number of points is accumulated, the player
6798-401: The government formally recognized the tekiya . At this time, within the tekiya , the oyabun were appointed as supervisors and granted near- samurai status, meaning they were allowed the dignity of a surname and two swords. Bakuto (gamblers) had a much lower social standing even than traders, as gambling was illegal. Many small gambling houses cropped up in abandoned temples or shrines at
6901-472: The heart. As Shinjiro perishes, the Hero breaks the sword in two and tosses the hilt end off the cliff in an effort to deter the clans from learning more about this weapon, before looking on to see the sun rise. Development of Red Steel 2 began in the summer of 2008. Red Steel 2 was announced by Ubisoft executive director, Alain Corre in July 28. The game uses Nintendo's new accessory, Wii MotionPlus and
7004-557: The homes of elderly people to beg for money by pretending to be the elderly person's son, or visiting the homes of elderly people posing as employees of financial institutions to swindle them out of their money. In 2014, tokushu sagi accounted for 10.4 percent of all yakuza arrests, surpassing theft for the first time at 10.2 percent, and 34.6 percent of tokushu sagi perpetrators were yakuza and their associates. The total damage from tokushu sagi identified in 2019 exceeded 30 billion yen, and while yakuza accounted for just over 10 percent of
7107-582: The implementation of the Act on Prevention of Unjust Acts by Organized Crime Group Members ( 暴力団員による不当な行為の防止等に関する法律 ) in 1992, and the total number of members and quasi-members began to decline rapidly with the implementation of the yakuza exclusion ordinances in all 47 prefectures around 2010. Between 1990 and 2020, the total number of members and quasi-members decreased by 70 percent. The National Police Agency reported that Japanese yakuza organizations had 10,400 members and 10,000 quasi-members in 2023. A designated yakuza ( 指定暴力団 , Shitei Bōryokudan )
7210-415: The ink is inserted beneath the skin using non-electrical, hand-made, and handheld tools with needles of sharpened bamboo or steel. The procedure is expensive and painful, and can take years to complete. When yakuza play Oicho-Kabu cards with each other, they often remove their shirts or open them up and drape them around their waists. This enables them to display their full-body tattoos to each other. This
7313-399: The islands on a regular basis, and there is a large population of residents who are of full or partial Japanese descent. They also work with local gangs, funneling Japanese tourists to gambling parlors and brothels. In California, the yakuza have made alliances with local Korean gangs as well as Chinese triads and Vietnamese gangs. The yakuza identified these gangs as useful partners due to
7416-412: The katanas of the Kusagari, called Sora Katanas, have great unpredictable power and that the method to make these is known only to them, and Shinjiro, who trained with the Kusagari as a child, plans to make more of them. Following a tip from Judd, the Hero discovers Shinjiro trying to escape the city on a train and manages to board it before it leaves. After the Hero fights his way through the train, which
7519-475: The leaders of these districts. Scott goes to the four separate districts, either managing to restore faith in the Sato Gumi to old members of the Sanro Kai or overthrowing a new leader appointed by Tokai. Eventually, Scott delivers the Giri to Otori for safekeeping. Back at Harry's bar, Tokai is waiting for Scott in the conference room . Harry turns on Scott, knocking him unconscious. Scott is brought down into
7622-400: The left little finger. Members are often portrayed as males with heavily tattooed bodies and wearing fundoshi , sometimes with a kimono or, in more recent years, a Western-style "sharp" suit covering them. At their height, the yakuza maintained a large presence in the Japanese media , and they also operated internationally . In 1963, the number of yakuza members and quasi-members reached
7725-488: The little finger and moving up the hand to the index finger progressively weakens a person's sword grip. The idea is that a person with a weak sword grip then has to rely more on the group for protection—reducing individual action. In recent years, prosthetic fingertips have been developed to disguise this distinctive appearance. Many yakuza have full-body tattoos (including their genitalia ). These tattoos, known as irezumi in Japan, are still often "hand-poked", that is,
7828-479: The lowest level members of criminal groups, such as cash receivers who play the role of financial institution employees, yakuza accounted for nearly 40 percent of the main perpetrators leading fraud schemes. The yakuza and its affiliated gangs control drug trafficking in Japan, especially methamphetamine . While many yakuza syndicates, notably the Yamaguchi-gumi , officially forbid their members from engaging in drug trafficking , some other yakuza syndicates, like
7931-465: The main protagonist, but are not considered part of his clan, while additional side missions, represented as wanted posters in the safe houses, are available to play, earning the player a monetary reward upon their completion. Money can also be earned by destroying many small objects throughout the game world with equipped weapons, opening chests or defeating enemies, with double money earned for performing finishers correctly and triple for doing so with
8034-604: The mid- Edo period (1603–1868): tekiya , those who primarily peddled illicit , stolen or shoddy goods; and bakuto , those who were involved in or participated in gambling . Tekiya (peddlers) ranked as one of the lowest social groups during the Edo period. As they began to form organizations of their own, they took over some administrative duties relating to commerce, such as stall allocation and protection of their commercial activities. During Shinto festivals , these peddlers opened stalls and some members were hired to act as security. Each peddler paid rent in exchange for
8137-408: The northernmost part of the island, has the largest number of designated syndicates among all of the prefectures. During the formation of the yakuza, they adopted the traditional Japanese hierarchical structure of oyabun-kobun where kobun (子分; lit. foster child) owe their allegiance to the oyabun ( 親分 , lit. foster parent) . In a much later period, the code of jingi ( 仁義 , justice and duty)
8240-424: The occasional sword-fighting sections, and GameTrailers noted that the controls are ambitiously complex and take time to master, but otherwise work well. Likewise, while IGN lauded the graphics as technically impressive, GameSpot and 1UP.com both contended that the graphics are in fact inexcusably below par compared to other recent releases, and GameTrailers claimed that the graphics bizarrely vary between
8343-400: The option to either shoot the opponent or direct him to kneel with hands behind his head by waving the gun at him. In the sword fighting aspect, a similar option exists. After winning a sword fight, the enemy gets on their knees and the player has the choice of whether to deliver a coup de grace or to show mercy. In both sword and gun fights, sparing a defeated enemy essentially removes them from
8446-440: The organization is a variation of the traditional Japanese senpai - kōhai (senior-junior) model. Members of yakuza cut their real family ties and transfer their loyalty to the oyabun . They refer to each other as family members— oyaji ( 親父 , fathers) , ojiki ( 叔父貴 , uncles) , and kyōdai ( 兄弟 , elder and younger brothers) . The yakuza is populated almost entirely by men and the very few women who are acknowledged are
8549-427: The oyabun if he wants to spare a member of his own gang from further retaliation. This practice has started to wane amongst the younger members, due to it being an easy identifier for police. Its origin stems from the traditional way of holding a Japanese sword . The bottom three fingers of each hand are used to grip the sword tightly, with the thumb and index fingers slightly loose. The removal of digits starting with
8652-429: The person corresponding to pseudo younger brother of the kumichō is called a shatei ( 舎弟 ) , and the person corresponding to pseudo child of the kumichō ( kobun ) is called a wakanaka ( 若中 ) or wakashū ( 若衆 ) . Although positions in yakuza organizations vary from clan to clan, the three most important yakuza positions are kumichō , wakagashira ( 若頭 , second-in-command and pseudo eldest son of
8755-550: The player a brief chance to finish them off with a particular Wii Remote gesture. The player begins each enemy encounter with full health that automatically replenishes once all enemies are defeated; should the enemies overwhelm the player to the point where all health is lost, the game ends and play can be resumed from the last checkpoint passed. As the player progresses through the main missions, new techniques, armor, and weapons become available for purchase from safe houses established by non-player characters who ally with
8858-492: The poison. Scott and Miyu leave Tokai's estate alone, ending the game on a more negative note. The associate producer of Red Steel , Jean-Baptiste Duval, said in an interview with Australian video game magazine Hyper that the game runs on a modified Unreal Engine 2.5 . He said that much of the Ubisoft staff had worked on the engine and knew its strengths and weaknesses. The graphics of the game have been designed to achieve
8961-547: The police) call them bōryokudan ( 暴力団 , "violent groups", IPA: [boːɾʲokɯꜜdaɴ] ) , while the yakuza call themselves ninkyō dantai ( 任侠団体 , "chivalrous organizations", IPA: [ɲiŋkʲoː dantai] ) . The English equivalent for the term yakuza is gangster , meaning an individual involved in a Mafia -like criminal organization. The yakuza are known for their strict codes of conduct, their organized fiefdom nature, and several unconventional ritual practices such as yubitsume , or amputation of
9064-528: The story of its predecessor, but adapts the common theme of mixing together ranged and melee combat as well as Eastern and Western culture. It is set in a more make-believe and somewhat more technically advanced world, where mysterious warrior clans employ both samurai and cowboy weapons and fighting styles in tandem, similar to the PlayStation 2 video game Samurai Western , in a Wild West-like North America carved up into territories. The game begins in
9167-402: The strengths of the system, citing how the first game's effort to reproduce realistic, urban environments hurt the gameplay and controls, particularly the sword fighting. When it came to carrying over the recurring theme of mixing Eastern and Western culture, his approach for doing so would be to juxtapose elements from both rather than closely fusing them together. One example of this was having
9270-413: The sword, and he wanted to avenge his father with it. Scott bests him and saves most of the Sanro Kai, but Tokai flees, thanks to a distraction by a Komori. After catching up to him, Scott is forced to duel with the Komori leader, allowing Tokai to escape; Scott emerges victorious, but it is unknown whether life or death of the leader is canonical . Otori and Scott travel to Tokai's private residence for
9373-480: The three organizations that split from them are fighting each other. In recent years, the three major yakuza syndicates have formed a loose alliance, and in April 2023, Kiyoshi Takayama , the wakagashira (second-in-command) of the Yamaguchi-gumi , Shuji Ogawa , the kaichō (chairman) of the Sumiyoshi-kai , and Kazuya Uchibori ( ja ), the kaichō of the Inagawa-kai , held a social gathering. One of
9476-487: The town's deserted train depot to travel there and is nearly killed when Shinjiro blows up a bridge up ahead. While exploring the Canyon, the Hero is attacked by the leader of the Katakara, Okaji, but manages to defeat him, only for him to return from the dead. Following Tamiko's plan, the Hero then uses explosives stolen from the mining quarry to break into the Canyon's Kusagari Temple, taken over by Shinjiro. This temple has
9579-440: The town, the Hero discovers Songan, who explains that the ghost town is a Jackal ammo dump. The Hero drives off the Jackals and survives an attack by a Katakara force, led by the lieutenant Calhoun. After reestablishing communications with Tamiko, Judd, and Jian, the Hero learns that the trio have tracked Shinjiro to the isolated mining community of Rattlesnake Canyon. The Hero then takes Songan's advice and uses an old locomotive in
9682-482: The two extremes. Finally, while GameSpot and 1UP.com described the sword-fighting sections as clunky and crude, with GameSpot remarking that they "feel more like two cavemen hitting each other with clubs than like two highly trained samurai going at it", both IGN and GameTrailers described them as flawed but overall decent, with GameTrailers praising the strategy created by having life bars for both man and weapon. Official Nintendo Magazine agreed, saying that
9785-437: The use of Wii MotionPlus technology; some enemies can parry off sword attacks with a defensive stance that the player must circumvent either with a slash parallel with the enemy's blade or three consecutive heavy strikes performed with large, fast swings of the Wii Remote, and some enemies wear armor that makes them immune to damage unless they are removed with heavy strikes. Attacking enemies in certain ways will stun them, giving
9888-476: The use of a helicopter). Media reports contrasted this rapid response with the much slower pace at which the Japanese government's official relief efforts took place. Following the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami on 11 March 2011, the yakuza sent hundreds of trucks filled with food, water, blankets, and sanitary accessories to aid the people in the affected areas of the natural disaster. CNN México said that although
9991-430: The war effort and society came under the control of the strict military government. However, after the war, the Yakuza adapted again. Yubitsume , also referred to as otoshimae , or the cutting off of one's finger, is a form of penance or apology. Upon a first offence, the transgressor must cut off the tip of his left little finger and give the severed portion to his boss. Sometimes an underboss may do this in penance to
10094-469: The wives of bosses, who are referred to by the title ane-san ( 姐さん , older sister) . When the 3rd Yamaguchi-gumi boss ( Kazuo Taoka ) died in the early 1980s, his wife (Fumiko) took over as boss of Yamaguchi-gumi, albeit for a short time. During the World War II period in Japan, the more traditional tekiya/bakuto form of organization declined as the entire population was mobilised to participate in
10197-476: The yakuza operates through extortion and other violent methods, they "[moved] swiftly and quietly to provide aid to those most in need." The presence of individuals affiliated with the yakuza in the United States has increased tremendously since the 1960s, and although much of their activity is concentrated in Hawaii , they have made their presence known in other parts of the country, especially in Los Angeles and
10300-406: The years, and in 2023 there were only about 150 sōkaiya , of whom 30 worked in groups and 120 worked alone. Yakuza also had ties to the Japanese real estate market and banking sector through jiageya . Jiageya specializes in inducing holders of small real estate to sell their property so that estate companies can carry out much larger development plans. The Japanese bubble economy of the 1980s
10403-520: Was adopted, a common Japanese practice. His life and exploits were featured in sixteen films between 1911 and 1940. The roots of the yakuza survive today in initiation ceremonies , which incorporate tekiya or bakuto rituals . Although the modern Yakuza has diversified, some gangs still identify with one group or the other; for example, a gang whose primary source of income is illegal gambling may refer to themselves as bakuto . The island of Kyushu (and particularly its northern prefecture Fukuoka ) has
10506-583: Was developed where loyalty and respect are a way of life. The oyabun-kobun relationship is formalized by ceremonial sharing of sake from a single cup. This ritual is not exclusive to the yakuza – it is also commonly performed in traditional Japanese Shinto weddings, and may have been a part of sworn brotherhood relationships. The structure of yakuza organizations is characterized by a multi-layered hierarchical structure. The kobun (pseudo child) of an organization become oyabun (family head and pseudo parent) and run their own subsidiary organizations, and
10609-452: Was included in a bundle. It was developed using the proprietary LyN game engine. Red Steel 2 features stylized, cel-shaded graphics, in contrast to its predecessor's more realistic aesthetic. The visual style is similar to Ubisoft Paris' own XIII , released in 2003. The game is also free of graphic violence , like its predecessor, save for occasional unrealistic blood-like splash effects when enemies are slashed or finished off with
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