Judgment is a spinoff in the beloved Yakuza franchise, which itself was also recently rebranded to Like A Dragon. It was originally released in Japan in 2018, and launched worldwide in 2019. A remastered version came out later in 2021. While the main series focuses on the organized crime scene of Japan, Judgment introduces a new protagonist. Takayuki Yagami is a lawyer-turned-detective, and his games see him solving crimes throughout Tokyo. While the original Judgment has never risen to quite as much prominence as the main series it spun off from, it was still received well enough to prompt a sequel, Lost Judgment, which came out in 2021.
Judgment Premise
In Judgment, Yagami attempts to track down a particularly insidious serial killer known as “the Mole.” This enigmatic figure has been committing murders connected to the Yakuza and, surprisingly, removing the eyes from the bodies left behind. Yagami’s investigation eventually leads him deep into a conspiracy connected to his own past. In terms of gameplay, Judgment is a third-person action-adventure game. Its combat system, therefore, takes cues from main-series installment Yakuza 0. Yagami can consequently switch between two different fighting styles. The crane style excels at fighting groups of enemies, while the tiger style is ideal for one-on-one duels. The game also features an investigation mode where Yagami must inspect an area for clues while using stealth to avoid detection.
Much like the main Like A Dragon games, Judgment is also rich with minigames. Yagami can take part in drone racing, VR board games, and ports of classic SEGA arcade games like Space Harrier, Virtua Fighter 5, and Puyo Puyo are also available. There are also a variety of side quests to pursue, and some characters have friendship levels that you can increase over the course of the game through mechanics similar to that of a dating sim.
Judgment Main Characters
Like any good mystery, Judgment has a large roster of interesting characters. Here are some of the most prominent characters you’ll encounter on your quest to uncover the truth.
- Takayuki Yagami: The main character of Judgment was once a defense attorney at Genda Law Office. After a particularly high-profile case ended with a gruesome murder, Yagami quit his job in shame and became a private investigator instead. He is eventually dragged into the case of the Mole at the behest of his old employer.
- Masaharu Kaito: Kaito works with Yagami at his private detective agency, acting as additional muscle for Yagami when needed. As a partner, he provides especially invaluable assistance to Yagami. A DLC expansion to the sequel Lost Judgment even lets you play as Kaito as he solves his own case.
- Fumiya Sugiura: Sugiura is a former thief who also joins Yagami’s investigation as an ally. While his skills and energetic attitude make him a valuable ally, he has his own motivations for digging into the mysterious conspiracy surrounding the Mole.
- Issei Hoshino: This young man is a defense attorney at Yagami’s former place of work. He aids Yagami and his allies with research during their investigation.
- Saori Shirosaki: Another defense attorney at Genda Law Office, Saori provides Yagami with investigation jobs on the office’s behalf. She also aids the protagonist’s investigation by going undercover in order to investigate suspects.
- Toru Higashi: This Yakuza member appears as a threat to Yagami’s investigation, but his past with Masaharu Kaito hints at something deeper going on beneath the surface.
- Kazuya Ayabe: Ayabe is a dirty cop who sells information to interested parties, including Yagami. While he has a less than upright relationship with his job, he’s a solid detective and an intelligent man.
- Mafuyu Fujii: Public prosecutor Mafuyu Fujii is a major part of Yagami’s past and a constant contact throughout the game.
- Mitsugu Matsugane: The patriarch of the Matsugane family is a major thorn in the side of Yagami and his investigation, eventually ordering his subordinates to attack the detective.
- Ryuzo Genda: The Director of the Genda Law office, Ryuzo Genda is Yagami’s former employer, and the reason Yagami gets himself tied up in the investigation into the Mole.
Judgment Titles in The Series
While Judgment has only had one sequel at the time of this writing, it’s part of a much larger franchise. The Like A Dragon series has been running since 2005. Fans who want to experience the criminal underbelly of the city of Tokyo have been enjoying the series for many years. If you’re interested in giving it a try for yourself, here’s every Like A Dragon game that’s been released so far.
- Yakuza (2005)
- Yakuza 2 (2006)
- Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan! (2008)
- Yakuza 3 (2009)
- Yakuza 4 (2010)
- Kurohyō: Ryū ga Gotoku Shinshō (2010)
- Yakuza: Dead Souls (2011)
- Kurohyō 2: Ryū ga Gotoku Ashura Hen (2012)
- Yakuza 5 (2012)
- Ryū ga Gotoku Ishin! (2014)
- Yakuza 0 (2015)
- Yakuza Kiwami (2016)
- Yakuza 6: The Song of Life (2016)
- Yakuza Kiwami 2 (2017)
- Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise (2018)
- Ryū ga Gotoku Online (2018)
- Judgment (2018)
- Yakuza: Like A Dragon (2020)
- Streets of Kamurocho (2020)
- Lost Judgment (2021)
- Like A Dragon: Ishin! (2023)
- Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name (2023)
- Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth (2024)
Judgment Cheat Codes
Unfortunately, there are no cheat codes available for Judgment. If you really want to bend the rules of the game, you’ll need to look to unofficial third-party cheat engines instead. As always, these come with considerable risk. Make sure you trust the source of any codes you download to your computer, as you could seriously damage your PC otherwise. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for other ways to obtain mastery over Judgment, here’s the full list of Steam achievements you can pursue on the PC version of the game.
- Trust Issues: Complete Chapter 2.
- Skeletons in the Closet: Complete Chapter 4.
- The Kansai Factor: Complete Chapter 6.
- Blowing the Lid Off: Complete Chapter 8.
- Enemies of My Enemies: Complete Chapter 10.
- Politics of Justice: Complete Chapter 12.
- Thank You!: Complete all of the main story.
- The Final Nail: Present all the right evidence to the judge on the first try.
- Professional Password Presenter: Get the password right on the first try.
- Way Too Thorough!: Fully Investigate Terasawa.
- Pay Your Rent, Yagami: Eat all of Tomioka-san’s home-cooked meals.
- The Art of Conversation: Entertain the customer flawlessly.
- I’ll Make It Double: Double your chips at L’Amant.
- He Just Doesn’t Quit: Defeat the opponent in the side case “A Final Request.”
- The Game Is Afoot: Receive the money from the Horseplayer Detective.
- Skill Dabbler: Obtain 30 skills.
- Skill Pro: Obtain 60 skills.
- Skill Master: Obtain all skills.
- KamuroGo Tourist: Complete 10 KamuroGo City Missions.
- KamuroGo Local: Complete 30 KamuroGo City Missions.
- KamuroGo Guide: Complete all of KamuroGo’s City Missions.
- KamuroGo Shopper: Complete 5 stores in KamuroGo’s Shop Missions.
- KamuroGo Trendsetter: Complete 10 stores in KamuroGo’s Shop Missions.
- KamuroGo Socialite: Complete all of KamuroGo’s Shop Missions.
- KamuroGo Master: Achieve 100% completion of KamuroGo.
- On The Case: Clear 10 side cases.
- Local Detective: Clear 30 side cases.
- Got To The Bottom Of It: Cleared all side cases.
- A Friendly Guy: Make 10 friends.
- A Popular Guy: Make 30 friends.
- A Guy Everybody Knows: Make 50 friends.
- Going Steady: Have a girl confess her feelings to you.
- Ladies, Please: Have two girls confess their feelings to you.
- Now You’re Just Bragging: Have four girls confess their feelings to you.
- Electronic Perspective: Fly the drone in first-person mode for 60 seconds.
- Oh Look, A Cat!: Find all cats in Search Mode during the main story.
- Pawn Star: Sell 100 items to Ebisu Pawn.
- Yagami Party: Clear all Dice & Cube courses at Paradise VR.
- Drone Champion: Win first place in every D-League race.
- Hung Jury: Save Sugiura with less than ten seconds left.
- The Bird’s The Word: Pilot the drone for over an hour.
- The Gamer Life: Play every arcade game.
- Retail Therapy: Shop 100 times.
- Drone Enthusiast: Obtain every drone part.
- Detective of Legend: Complete the game on Legendary difficulty.
- Zombie Apocalypse Survivor: Obtain 50 pickups in Kamuro of the Dead.
- The Greatest Detective: Obtain all other achievements.
Judgment Cheats FAQ
Is Judgment a long game? As with many video games these days, the length of Judgment is heavily dependent on how much time you want to put into it. According to How Long To Beat, the main storyline should only take about 27 hours, while a completionist can spend closer to 102 hours seeing absolutely everything the game has to offer. If you’re interested in engaging with a healthy amount of side content but not in chasing all the achievements, you can probably expect to spend around 45 hours in Judgment.