Yakuza Dark Ties’ Operation Balls is one of the many missions you can undertake to improve Kanda’s overall reputation in Kamurocho. It’s also perhaps the silliest side quest you can undertake as Mine overall. Similar to previous Yakuza/Like A Dragon games that featured this mission, you will have to use what few hints you’ve been given to find the 7 wish orbs, scattered across town.
These are much easier to find than the ones in Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, for example. If you want to grab some incredibly easy money in Yakuza Dark Ties to increase your skills/stats, make sure to complete Operation Balls. Here’s everything you need to know about this mission.
Where to find all 7 orbs for Yakuza Dark Ties’ Operation Balls
You can pick up Operation Balls early in Yakuza Dark Ties. It’s one of the missions you can pick up in Chapter 2, when the Kanda Damage Control operation officially begins. Like all of these missions, you pick it up at the Nishikiyama Office. After you leave, you’ll receive a text with the following hints.
Hints for Operation Balls
- Mach Bowl (Inside entrance, look to the right at the wall)
- On A Theater Square Poster (NW Theater Square, look at the posters on the wall)
- Batting Center (Head left after going inside, look to the poster on the wall)
- A place you can play pool (Sitting on the pool table at Kiss Shot Billiards)
- A Gambling Hall in Kamurocho (On a pedestal in the Dragon Palace)
- A Pachinko Parlor (Nakamichi St, the alcove at Parlor Lucky)
- By the Pharmacy Giraffe (Kotobuki Drugs, on the Giraffe cutout)
Mach Bowl is incredibly easy, and you can swing through and pick it up, potentially before you even get your hints. Just walk inside the doors, and turn to the right, and you’ll see it right on the wall. No need to even do any bowling.
The next stop for Operation Balls in Yakuza Dark Tides is NW Theater Square. Just walk along the building and you’ll see a poster with a golden ball on it. Interact with it to grab it, and you can move along to the next item.
The Batting Center has a wish orb right as you walk inside and look to the left. It’s past the points redeemer, and it’s very easy to spot. Just walk over to the wall, grab it, and get ready to trek across town for the next part of Operation Balls.
There’s only really one place to play pool, and that’s at Kiss Shot Billiards, on Park Blvd. Walk inside, and you’ll see a huge golden ball just sitting on the main table you’d complete pool challenges on. Just grab it and go! The only one that’s even kind of annoying to get is the next one.
Head to the Dragon Palace Gambling Hall on Park Blvd, and in the main hall where you do all the gambling, there’s a golden ball sitting on a pedestal. The only reason it can be slightly challenging to get, is you need to angle your camera in such a way that it doesn’t make you interact with the NPC that’s right next to it.
When you’ve grabbed this one, head over to Nakamichi St. and look for the huge Parlor Lucky sign. There’s an alcove under it, and one of the Operation Balls targets in Yakuza Dark Tides can be found there.
Your last stop is the Kotobuki Drugs Store on the corner of Pink St. It’s the only place you can get decent healing items outside of food, so you’ll probably be stopping in here pretty frequently. Look at the giraffe cutout, and you’ll see the wish orb!
Return to Nishikiyama HQ, and you’ll then be directed to go meet Shen at the Millenium Tower. He’s sitting outside, and is incredibly easy to find. You will be given several options, as for your wishes, and most of them at least do something.
All potential wishes (and best option) for Operation Balls
When you speak to Shen for Yakuza Dark Tides’ Operation Balls, he’ll let you pick any of the wishes we’ve listed below. All of them except one have an impact on your gameplay, and while technically, there’s no wrong choice, here’s what we think of them:
- A True Bond: Nothing.
- Endless Riches: 10,000,000 Yen.
- Eternal Life: 100x Staminan X.
- Sexy panties: Shen-san’s Panties
At first, you might think Endless Riches is the best pick. However, you can sell Shen-san’s Panties at the Pawn Shop for 15,000,000 yen! That makes it the best pick, if you’re going for sheer monetary value. I can see the 100x Staminan X being useful, but only if you really find yourself taking a beating. Some of the optional fights can be pretty intense, damage-wise, so it does make sense. However, for our money, Sexy panties are the best wish in Yakuza Dark Tides.
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties are a bundle that serves as a remake for Yakuza 3, as well as expands on the backstory and actions of Yoshitaka Mine, leading up to the end of Yakuza 3. You can learn more about this game in our in-depth review.
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Edited by Jason Parker
