We've all read articles and seen videos where real members of a profession try out video games based on their profession, whether it's guitarists playing Guitar Hero or football players playing Madden, but this one is special.  Grand-daddy cyber-culture website Boing Boing has posted a review of Yakuza 3 written by actual members of the shadowy Japanese underworld.

A couple of the gangsters had trouble playing the game because their pinkies had been cut-off -- The yakuza punishment for failure -- but overall, the verdict is that It's a pretty good approximation of the yakuza life:

"While it vilifies organized crime in many parts, in the end it glorifies the yakuza and gives the protagonist just cause — it was good PR for their profession. Plus, it is not wildly off the mark in depicting the modern yakuza."

The Japanese mobsters thought the constant violence of the game wasn't realistic, but noted that the enviroments were spot-on. It's a fascinating read, and concludes with a message for Westerners from the yakuza:

"The sections that Shirokawa seemed to enjoy the most were cut out of the US version: mahjong, the sexual massage parlor, and the hostess clubs. After I explain to him what Sega cut from the US version, he said: ????????????????????USA?????.(Translation: I feel sorry for the people who bought the American version. SEGA USA sucks.)"

Source: Boing Boing