Yakuza 4 breaks with the six-year-old series' tradition by putting the player in control of three new characters, each in his own chapter, with former Yakuza hero Kazuma Kiryu finally arriving in the last quarter of the game. Each character has his own storyline that intertwines with the others and the main narrative, and it's these new stories that are emphasized over the ongoing saga of the unrealistically saintly ex-yakuza Kiryu.

As a result, Yakuza 4 has less baggage to deal with, and is therefore the best entry point for new players since the original game. But ... if you are going to jump into the series, I'd better warn you about some stuff.