General stuff

• The fastest way to play the game is the HD collection (1&2) on PS3, digitally. This is because of load times
• Mash both X/O (X/Triangle on English PS2) to skip text
• Cutsene skip is disabled by default, turn it on in options
• Enemy encounters always spawn in the same location in each area of the city, memorize these locations so you can move to avoid them without having to see if they're there
• If you end a fight with a heat action, you don't lose the heat
• Many heat actions have followup QTEs, you have to time these not mash them
• You get extra experience for doing heat actions. This comes into play

Chapter 1

• Turorial: When it asks for weapon attacks, use the dropped golf club and a trash can. Try to have the last two enemies by the door for heat ations so you can build up heat faster.
• Hug the wall around the turn coming out the back of Serena to dodge the info dealers
• Man behind Serena: Grab him, heat action with the wall
• Hug the right wall running up Tenkaichi St. to avoid the info dealers, then hug Volcano Pachislot on the left by Theater Square to avoid the Hirata refight
• Inmate 1356: Ignore the minions. Build up heat, grab him, heat action into the walls or the tables. Make sure to always hit the followup

Chapter 2

• Top option talking to Punk Ass Abe
• Punk Ass Abe: build up heat, heat action with the wall by the bikes on the right
• Bump into the pink dress lady, top option to fight the guy, heat action him into the pole behind him
• Talk to info dealer, top option, run down to Stardust
• LEVELS: Tech to lv3 (get the full kick combo) before Yuya
• Yuya: spam the full combo to build heat, heat action him with the pole in front of Stardust twice
• LEVELS: If you did all the heat actions so far, you will have enough experience for Body lv2 (Heat Force 1). Otherwise get it ASAP
• Stardust fight: full combos, once you have heat you will kill enemies in one combo so don't waste heat

Chapter 3

• Run straight down the center to avoid detection (watch a video of this)
• 2nd -> 1st option to the receptionist (1st -> 2nd also works)
• Talk to funeral director inside, the badge is outside to the right, then head for the back
• Man from the Omi Alliance: spam full combos, hope he doesn't knock you down
• BUY THE BRASS KNUCKLES from the weapon dealer under the stairs (2nd to last item, costs 11,250 yen)
• Look at the pictures on the wall in the room to start the setpiece
• Room: Group enemies with the furniture
• Garden: Deal with the big lantern guys first, heat action slam them into the wall / throw them into the koi pond
• Inside: aggro all the enemies into the hallway behind the main room, heat action the two big guys into the wall on the right
• Ignore the rest of the enemies until Shimano
• Shimano: Do full combos, do unfinished combos when he is staggered so you don't knock him down

Chapter 4

• Keep right immediately coming out of Bantam to avoid a scripted fight
• Get locker keys #41, 44 inside Deborah, Taxi NW>S (top)
• Buy dog food at Don Quijote (top item with lunch box icon, costs 260 yen)
• Walk to Serena. On the walk to Bantam after, open the two lockers, equip the Angel Bell
• LEVELS: Soul to lv4 (get Stability)
• Bait the fixed encounter outside Bantam to the fence south of him to get him stuck, skip him
• White Gang: Heat action the two big ones and the gang leader, full combo everyone else
• Be careful on the walk back to Serena with Haruka to avoid all the fixed encounters (watch a video)
• Bottom option to Haruka to walk to Millennium Tower. Keep left in front of the tower to avoid the cop cutscene
• Hayashi: Throw him behind you to the left wall, try to spam heat actions on him against that wall and build up heat when he's recovering. Don't get knocked down

Chapter 5

• Taxi S > NE (top) and enter Purgatory
• Unequip the bell, bottom option to Kage twice to start the arena
• D. Feldman: spam full combos
• K. Plumuk: LEVELS: buy one soul level (better grab), grab him and do light attacks to get heat, slam him into the wall if you get heat. This guy's annoying
• Gary Buster Holmes: Alternate finished and unfinished full combos to hopefully avoid his counter
• When leaving purgatory, talk to Komaki and do his first training (the sword training) for the upgraded sword stance
• Bums of Purgatory: re-equip the bell, equip the brass knuckles (NOTE: NEVER USE THE SPIN ATTACK WITH THE KNUCKLES. Just having them on boosts the damage of normal attacks and if you never use a spin attack, they never wear out.)
• Taxi NE>NW (2nd), walk behind the fixed encounter outside the batting cage to avoid him
• Majima: deal with the minions, get Majima in a corner, do full combos. Good luck, you can buy HP upgrades if he is going to kill you

Chapter 6

• On the walk to the taxi (S>NE), get pocket tissues from the white raincoat guy
• Go to Kage, Taxi NE>NW to batting center
• B-King: Take off the knuckles
• LEVELS: buy one soul level (essence of finishing, should be at lv6 now) on B-King. Grab him and knock him down and spam the new heat action. (You should this this regularly on all bosses from now until ~ch8 to build up extra experience)
• Walk to Deborah, talk to the guy in front of the dance floor doors
• Atobe Family: two-hit combos with their knives are good, heat actions are good but DO NOT GET KNOCKED DOWN
• Talk to Kage, return to Serena, go to the park
• Taxi S>NE, go South (pay the tough guy 10k so he won't fight you [top>top]) to champion district, answer the bartender's question (top>4th ["40" in the option]), return to Stardust
• Stardust hosts: Put the knuckles back on, leave this fight with heat
• Run accross the city, equip the knife (Kage gave you this) before getting there
• Shota: Ignore the minions, do 2-hit combos on Shota to stunlock him and build heat for the knife heat action

Chapter 7

• Equip the lucky beads (this removes the bell), run to/from the tattoo parlor, talk to Date
• Ignore the info dealer in theater square, enter Club SEGA and talk to the girls
• Hand in the pocket tissues to the guy in the bathroom in the NW park for 90k, taxi NW>NE
• go to parking lot, taxi NW>S, go to park, equip the beads and knuckles
• Stardust fight: group enemies up using the stairs
• Taxi NE>S, do the good cafe substory walking up Nakamichi St., talk to the horse guy in front of Millennium Tower (top option, "3-7"), enter the gambling den
• Gambling Den: Always bet the max (until the last bet, which you lose). This is RNG but ideally you finish up with 8820 chips or more to buy swords
• Pit Bosses: deal with the minions, grab+essence of finish spam the shirtless guy
• re-enter the gambling den, buy 3x Cursed Mugetsu (fist icon, costs 980 chips)
• Taxi S>NE to purgatory, NE>S to Serena
• Shindo: Cursed Mugetsu stunlock. Targeting can screw you here easily, ignore the minions

Chapter 8

• Taxi S>NE to purgatory, walk south to the room under the champion district
• White gang (Shiraki): Focus the boss w/ cursed mugetsu
• Taxi NE>NW to Deborah
• Red gang (Akai brothers): let the larger Akai grab you from the front in the corner with the stairs, so small Akai goes through a wall and kills him instantly. Cursed mugetsu the big guy after
• Taxi NW>NE to purgatory, talk to Date to leave

Chapter 9

• LEVELS: Body up to lv8 (heat force 2) ASAP, it should come during the chinese restaurant
• Restaurant: Group enemies on the stairs
• Kitchen: Grab enemies and heat action them with the tables and the counters around the room
• Lau Ka Long: Cursed Mugetsu. Only do 2 hits, not 3, otherwise he will escape the stunlock
• Car Chase: This is RNG, when the boss standing on the truck shows up you can ignore the two people he's with

Chapter 10

• check the note on the counter & leave
• equip knuckles, discord any leftover sword you have (it's just taking up space)
• pick up 3 more Cursed Mugetsu from the gambling den on the walk to the next building
• Building: go across the first floor, then up the stairs behind you to the top, then across that floor to the stairs. You can ignore all the enemies except the ones who lock the door on the top floor. Rooftops are linear
• Arase: Cursed Mugetsu

Chapter 11

• Taxi south to the club, walk north to the forger
• On the walk south to the park talk to the horsebetting guy in front of Millennium Tower for 200k yen
• Park fight: If you used up a full sword on Arase somehow heat actions against the fence are good here. Otherwise just full combos w/ knuckles
• Walk south to the first club, talk to the girl, walk north to MEB and pick the second option (pay 300,000 yen for the pass)
• Return to Purgatory and talk to Date, then walk south to Shangri-La and to Akemi's room
• Shangri-La: ignore all the enemeis
• Majima 2: Cursed Mugetsu
• 2nd option to Date

Chapter 12

• Boat fight: you can throw the big ones overboard (heat action) or just use knuckles
• Shimano 2: Take off the knuckles! Focus on Shimano, swords suck just do full combos

Chapter 13

• 2nd option to Kazuki to start the finale
• Mob: the knives dropped by the second wave are pretty good against the third wave. Use cursed mugetsu on the third wave big black coat guy
• Mob 2: use up any cursed mugetsu you still have
• Avoid fixed encounters on the walk to the millennium tower, re-buy 3 more cursed mugetsu on the way (you will only be able to afford 2 if you fell short of 8820 chips in ch7)
• MIA: Use the guns they drop
• Jingu: Use knuckles on the minions, cursed mugetsu on Jingu. On the helipad just ignore the minions and focus Jingu
• Nishiki: Cursed Mugetsu. After the first phase his super armor will get weird