If Yakuza 6's combat feels awkward coming straight from the earlier games, start with the upgrades that change how Kiryu moves. Putting everything into Attack won't fix a slow c…

If Yakuza 6's combat feels awkward coming straight from the earlier games, start with the upgrades that change how Kiryu moves. Putting everything into Attack won't fix a slow combo, a long recovery, or getting caught after an enemy blocks you. You have one basic fighting style here. There are no separate Rush, Beast, and Brawler trees to switch between, and no inventory full of weapons to carry into every boss fight. Weapons come from the environment and the enemies around you. Useful early purchases are Boost Combo Speed, Quick Recovery, Dash Attack, Charge Attack, Parry, and Double Quickstep when you meet its stat requirement. Relentless Blows becomes available after raising Attack past 150 and helps with recovery after an enemy blocks. Quickstep Cancel is another worthwhile later tool once Evasion is high enough. Against groups, use grabs and throws to put one enemy into the others. A knocked-down group gives you room to deal with the armed man instead of letting everybody attack at once. Pick up nearby weapons, but remember they'll break. In Extreme Heat, ordinary attacks near objects can pick them up automatically, and Kiryu can handle larger objects too. Against a blocking boss, stop feeding a full combo straight into his guard. Let him attack, dodge around the end of the sequence, and punish from the side or back. A short clean opening is better than a long combo interrupted halfway through. Dash Attack gives you the running dropkick. Use enough space to make the boss approach, then kick as you close the gap. It is a useful option for several difficult fights, but don't land it blindly into an attack that's already coming. Parry uses a timed guard just before the strike connects. Tiger Drop is different: after buying it, hold the fighting stance and press Heavy Attack as the enemy's attack arrives. It requires Attack above 180 to purchase; its mastery upgrade needs further development. Learn the timing on an opponent you can read rather than expecting it to solve every boss the moment you buy it. Extreme Heat requires at least one filled Heat orb. Activate it with R2 on PlayStation or RT on Xbox. More available Heat and the duration upgrades make it last longer. The mode opens additional attacks and Heat Actions, so buy the associated moves instead of treating it as only a damage boost. Carry both health and Heat restoration. Toughness restores health, Tauriner supplies Heat, and Staminan supplies both. Restock before long story sequences. Heat Actions help interrupt dangerous situations, but don't burn all your resources on a nearly defeated street enemy if you're about to leave for a boss. The five EXP colors are Strength, red; Agility, blue; Spirit, yellow; Technique, green; and Charm, purple. They are currencies used in different combinations. Having plenty of red EXP doesn't help if the upgrade you need is waiting on green. Buy some EXP-gain and meal-EXP improvements while you're still doing the main content. Eat during normal travel, vary your meals to clear restaurant Awards, and use combinations when they fit. Watch the stomach gauge. Continuing to order when Kiryu is full wastes the EXP opportunity. For a cheap five-combo start, use the pairings in the achievement post. For Technique EXP, sushi restaurants such as Sushi Gin and Sushi Zanmai are useful. Digest through normal activity or use an appetite item, then eat again. Read the EXP preview and the stomach cost before buying a huge meal. The faster expensive route for green EXP is LIMIT+ at RIZAP: ¥15,000 for 50 Technique EXP before applicable bonuses. Ten cost ¥150,000 and provide 500 base Technique EXP. Clan Creator and spearfishing can pay for it. Don't start that shopping loop before you know whether you're actually short on green. Sodachi and Saigo are good repeat fights for combat EXP after their chains are established. Use a matching vending-machine EXP boost before fighting. Social activities, particularly the hostesses, supply plenty of Charm while you're working on the stories anyway. Yakuza Training Gear boosts EXP but weakens combat stats and affects stamina. Wear it for safe farming if you like, then replace it before a difficult boss. Forgetting you still have training equipment on can make a fight seem much worse than it should be. For Limit Breaker, raise all five natural stats to 200. The higher cap opens only once all five have reached that point. Then work them to 300 for Peak Kiryu. Equipment bonuses don't count. Skill Master is separate, so check every purchasable skill even after the stat trophies unlock. For the later story fights, these are the main adjustments. Boss spoilers follow. Someya's final Millennium Tower fight starts with a katana. Dodge the sweeps, attack after he commits, and use the room's stools when useful. Once he loses the sword, adjust to his faster unarmed attacks instead of continuing to expect the same range. Hirose's Chapter 12 fight uses a knife, grabs, and thrown blades. Don't rely on an unarmed guard to stop a blade. Stay patient through the steam-covered section and follow the QTE prompts. The knives he throws can be picked up for your own attacks. Koshimizu's last encounter begins with other enemies around him. Clear space and remove the crowd before committing to a long exchange with him. He then changes into a knife phase. Treat the phase change as a new fight, not proof that the original health bar is all you have to survive. Against Iwami, avoid trading blows while his Heat-powered rush is active. Bait the committed attack, dodge, and use the recovery. A well-upgraded Kiryu with a full inventory has plenty of options; there is no need to attempt a no-healing challenge unless you want one. Keep the prepared save at New Serena before the final departure. That gives you a good starting point for the Legend finish as well as insurance if you realize you forgot supplies.