Lost Judgment: The Kaito Files Review [SPOILERS]

The gameplay of The Kaito Files is very similar to the base game, with some differences from playing as Kaito instead of Yagami. The first major difference is Kaito’s fighting style. While Yagami utilizes quick maneuvers, strikes, holds, and other martial arts techniques, Kaito is all brute force. He’s built like a tank and he lets his enemies know it with his two fighting styles. The Bruiser style, based on Kazuma Kiryu’s Brawler style from Yakuza 0, involves landing hard short to medium range hits. The Tank style is based on Kiryu’s Beast style from Y0, and it involves slow, heavy attacks and utilizing objects as weapons. The second gameplay difference is in Kaito’s first person investigations. Kaito utilizes his senses to scope out scents and sounds with the Primal Nose and Primal Ear features. 

The story of The Kaito Files begins in 2022, a few months after the events of Lost Judgment. Yagami is out of town, and Kaito has just successfully caught the Bato Detective Agency, a group of ex-Tojo Clan yakuza who have run a fake detective agency/extortion scheme in Kamurocho. From there, Kaito is approached by Kyoya Sadamoto, an incredibly wealthy tech CEO who offers him twenty million yen to investigate if his deceased wife is actually still alive. Kaito declines the case and the money after learning that the woman in question is his ex-girlfriend, Mikiko. Flashback scenes show that Kaito fell in love with Mikiko years ago, but they split after Kaito chose to continue as a member of the Matsugane Family. 

Kaito then gets a call from his aniki, Toru Higashi, who is still managing the Charles arcade. He finds a kid there, who has picked a fight with some thugs who are harassing a girl. Kaito takes care of them and learns that the kid is Jun Sadamoto, the neglected son of Kyoya who also hopes to find Mikiko. Kaito declines again, but eventually capitulates and decides to help Jun after he says that he might be Kaito’s son, based on what he read in Mikiko’s diary. 

As Kaito and Jun progress through the investigation, they learn that Mikiko’s sister, Maho Natsume, and their adoptive parents were tragically killed when their home was burned down over a real estate dispute. The Bato Detective Agency continues to be a thorn in Kaito’s side, as they kidnap Jun and hold him for ransom. Kaito rescues Jun, and the two are led to the Shirakaba Clinic, located out in Chiba Prefecture.

At the clinic, they meet Yasutaka Shirakaba, a doctor who lives there alone. He tells them that Mikiko is, in fact, truly dead. However, Kaito investigates further and learns that it was a lie. Mikiko was found by Shirakaba and nursed back to health, with the only caveat being that she had developed amnesia. They faked her death because Crimson Lotus was trying to kill her. Kaito asks to see Mikiko, but she left the clinic after seeing the Kamuro Theater on TV, which triggered her memories to come back. As Kaito and Jun leave after her, they encounter Crimson Lotus, who has arrived at the clinic. Kaito faces off against Shusuke Kenmochi, the incredibly strong and incredibly drunk frontman of Crimson Lotus. 

Once they get back to Kamurocho, Kaito finds Mikiko at the scene of a burning building, holding Crimson Lotus members at gunpoint. Mikiko wants nothing but revenge on all of Crimson Lotus for their role in the arson that killed her family. Surrounded at gunpoint by Crimson Lotus reinforcements, Kaito jumps off the building with Mikiko, landing on a car. After recovering from that, Kaito further investigates the scene and finds a burnt hard drive, which he sends to his good friend Makoto Tsukumo to data mine and analyze. He then tails Kenmochi, who is likely Mikiko’s next target, but it’s a trap and Mikiko is taken by Kenmochi into a hotel. Kaito finds them, and faces off with Kenmochi once again. An enraged Kaito defeats him again, and Kenmochi breaks down, expressing his regret for what happened to the Natsumes. 

Kaito ends up with the Bato Agency again, and learns that they were actually hired by Mikiko to keep Jun safe. They eventually agree to join forces and find Mikiko, who has disappeared again to a massive Crimson Lotus reunion party in Isezaki Ijincho. On the way, Kaito learns the truth about Crimson Lotus. The truth is that they were “advised” from the very beginning by Kyoya Sadamoto, and that he personally was responsible for the Natsume arson. In fact, his marriage to Mikiko in the first place was part of his plan to inherit the Natsume family fortune. 

Furious that both him and Mikiko were taken advantage of, Kaito sneaks into the Crimson Lotus reunion and finds Mikiko and Kyoya on the roof of the hotel. Mikiko has Kyoya at gunpoint, ready to kill him for his heinous actions. However, Kyoya has a plan. Kenmochi arrives, with Jun held hostage. Kyoya then holds Jun with a knife to his neck, and says that he will kill Jun if Mikiko doesn’t turn around and kill Kaito. Kenmochi then suddenly starts coughing up blood and collapses on the ground. Kyoya says that is the next part of the plan, and pulls up a live feed of the party below, where numerous guests and Crimson Lotus members start coughing up blood as well. Kyoya says that there is evidence planted to frame Mikiko for the poisoning if she does not comply. Mikiko turns to Kaito, but hands the gun to him. Kaito says he will take the fall instead. Suddenly, Jun finds the inner strength to fight back, putting Kyoya into an armlock. This leads to the final fight between Kaito and Kyoya. 

Kaito defeats him, but is weakened by poison that was on Kyoya’s knife. Mikiko is about to kill Kyoya, but Kaito persuades her not to, as it would incriminate her and throw away her future with Jun. Then, out of nowhere, Kenmochi bolts awake. Covered in blood, he lurches towards Kyoya, haunted by the lives of the Natsumes that he took because of him. Kenmochi then chokes Kyoya to death, before fully succumbing to the poison.

Kaito awakens at the hospital, with Jun and Higashi there. He is told that Yagami and Mikiko also visited while he was unconscious. Kaito has a heartfelt talk with Jun about their respective fathers being bad people, yet remembering the good moments. Jun concludes that he wants to be a strong person that his loved ones can depend on, rather than a yakuza like he thought.

The one loose end left to tie is that of Dr. Shirataka. Shirataka says that he intends to propose to Mikiko, and that if Kaito objected, he could show up and do something about it. Kaito goes with Jun to the Shirataka clinic, and Shirataka challenges him to a duel. He takes his shirt off to reveal that he has actually been training for years. Kaito does the same, and they fight in the yard outside the clinic. Kaito wins, but Shirataka is satisfied rather than upset. Mikiko then decides to get back together with Kaito and try their relationship again.

Overall, I liked The Kaito Files and the story it told in a short amount of time. It may not provide a ton of gameplay time or extras for a $30 DLC, but the campaign is good enough to be worth it in my opinion. It does a very good job of expanding on Kaito’s character beyond his exit from the Matsugane Family and partnership with Yagami. I also particularly liked the fact that it had a happy ending, with Kaito finding love again. As of this article, The Kaito Files is the last installment of the Judgment series. If this is really it, I’m glad it ended on a good note.