Yakuza Holiday

In a week of absolute insanity (tariffs on!  Tariffs off!  Sheesh.), there was one highlight--the release of the "Ichiban's Holiday" DLC for Dave the Diver!  I almost forgot about it amidst all the craziness (and, I don't think it has been particularly well advertised).  I played through it this weekend, so here are my thoughts.

What is it?

A short crossover DLC for Dave the Diver that features characters from the popular Yakuza series.  I am not familiar with Yakuza, but I know there are some folks out there who are big fans and will enjoy seeing some of the characters (and possibly some aspects of gameplay) related to the series.  It cost $6.99.

How much new content/playtime can I expect?

It's pretty short, so unfortunately, not a lot.  There is some downtime between missions/events, but the DLC is basically 1 mission and then a post-mission celebration/sushi bar scene.

Kasuga shows up with a mysterious guest.

Pros:

+ Even though the DLC is on the short-side (the real questions folks are likely to be asking themselves is whether they should spend $6.99 for a small amount of content), what does get added in is enjoyable and adds to the weird randomness of gameplay that is central to Dave the Diver.  A central part of the mission turns into a Street Fighter style fighting game where Kasuga and Cobra team up to fight their way through a horde of dolphin poaching pirates.  It's fun (and doable even if you immediately forgot the controls and just button mash your way through it like I did) and adds something novel to the gameplay.

+ If you are someone who is a fan of the Yakuza series you'll probably enjoy (and recognize) the characters who make appearances in the DLC.  There are several and a few tidbits related to the stories in the series.  There's also some karaoke...which is apparently a part of the Yakuza series.

+ New items!  Unfortunately it's nothing diving related, but instead are more cosmetic.  There's a new phone charm for Dave's phone (it's cute) and the addition of a cocktail shaker for the sushi bar.  Now Dave can mix up some fancier drinks for the patrons of Bancho Sushi!

Cons:

- As mentioned above, it's short.  Many people might balk at paying $6.99 for very little additional content.  If you don't want to pay that price, give it a wait and it will likely go on sale in the summer.  A lot of the DLC content has been crossovers, so they are definitely going after fans who might be more likely to shell out additional coins.

Recommendation:

$6.99 seems a bit steep for what you actually get, but as a big fan of Dave, I was happy to spend more time diving in the Blue Hole and running Bancho Sushi.  The new content is fun and throws in some new gameplay and there's definitely plenty there for fans of Yakuza.