Yakuza 6 guide: Minigame tips

There’s always a way to entertain yourself in Yakuza 6. You can play darts, sing karaoke or even play video games at an arcade. All of these minigames and distractions are pretty light fare, compared the three minigames that become available once you get to Onomichi — spearfishing, Clan Creator and baseball. You’ll get an extensive wall-of-text tutorial when you start each of them, but we’ll give you the tl;dr version of each of these games-within-a game below.

Spearfishing minigame tips

Spearfishing is the easiest of Yakuza 6’s three larger minigames. It’s also the absolute best way to make money in the game. It’s a simple minigame — it’s just an on-rails shooter. All you have to do is shoot fish (and various other underwater targets). Each species of fish will earn you a certain number of points. At the end, those points turn into cash.

Here are a few tips to help you maximize moneymaking:

Always watch for treasure chests

These will be along the seafloor and will give you a nice boost to your points and money.

Reload manually

Reloading by pressing the circle button is a bit of a pain, but it’s key to getting huge spearfishing hauls. If you just keep whacking at the fire button, you will reload automatically, but the process takes twice (or more) as long, wasting valuable time. Listen for the clang that indicates your clip is empty and reload manually.

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Generally, harder to kill fish are worth more points (and money)

The stronger fish like sharks or the bosses of each area — anything that takes multiple hits to kill — should be your priority any time they’re on screen. Don’t ignore easy fish, but if you can take out something worth more, do it.

Clan Creator minigame tips

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Kiryu will bump into a team of (corrupt) vigilantes in Kamurocho, but he won’t be able to take sides in their fight until Onomichi. Kiryu won’t fight directly, though. Instead, he’ll manage his own clan of fighters.

You’ll start with a few clan members, but you’ll need to add more. You’ll meet people on the street who are just looking for a fight. These aren’t the roving bands of street toughs that you (constantly) meet, but people you can talk to. Once you beat them up, they’ll join your clan.

When you’re ready to fight, you need to visit either the M Side Cafe in Kamurocho or La Pente in Onomichi. Talk to your clan there to enter the minigame. You’ll have a few options when you start.

Missions

This is where you go to actually play the minigame and fight. The game is like a tower defense game. You have a deployment gauge that fills as you defeat enemies. Each of your soldiers — either generic soldiers or your named leaders — have a cost that will drain your gauge. Leaders are much more expensive than soldiers, but have special abilities you can activate during a fight. Your goal is basically just to wipe out the enemies before time runs out.

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Organization

This is where you set up your clan’s hierarchy. Higher level subordinates mean you get more influence as a clan (and start with a fuller deployment gauge). Some of your clan members work well together and get a boost when they’re near one another in the hierarchy. You’ll also set up your strike team here. These are the leaders you’ll have available during a battle.

Training

Aside from their own experience gained from fighting, you can use Kiryu’s experience points to level up your clan members.

Network

This option lets you pit your clan against the clans of other players in online play. You can raid against someone else’s defense force, set up your own defense force for other people to take on, participate in daily events, take on the top 10 clans in ranked raids or battle your friends.

Baseball minigame tips

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During your main storyline adventures in Onomichi, you’ll meet a baseball team called the Warriors. Later, they’ll ask Kiryu to become their team manager — which becomes another minigame. Once you become the team’s manager, you can take a taxi from anywhere in Onomichi to the baseball field. When you get there, the minigame will begin.

Recruiting

You’ll be recruiting players for your team from around Onomichi (but not in the minigame itself). You’ll find potential players in the bar in town and some others just standing around on the streets or next to sub-story mission prompts. When you deliver whatever it is they need (want) — booze, muscle-building supplements or some tasty octopus — they’ll join your team.

Training and leveling up

There are two ways to level up your players. The easiest is to just give a player time in a game. The other is by spending a training ticket. You’ll earn these by winning games.

Playing games

There’s not a lot of playing involved when you’re managing the team — you’ll only be called in to control the batter during certain moments in the game. (And if you ever want to practice hitting, head to the batting center in Kamurocho.) Mostly, you’re in charge of the roster. When you look at each player on your team, you’ll see their position and their stats and level. Some players will also have a special skill. Your job is just to mix and match these to ensure victory. Keep an eye on those special skills, too. They can make an otherwise weak player really useful under certain conditions.