Yakuza: Like a Dragon (Quest)

It’s not news that a new Yakuza game is coming from Sega; instead, the big news is the form it’s coming in. After over a decade of iterating on the same formula, developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio is giving the series a big shake-up with Yakuza: Like a Dragon — or Ryu Ga Gotoku 7 in Japan. This installment will have a new protagonist with Ichiban Kasuga, and will primarily take place in the fictional Ijincho district of Yokohama, Japan instead of Kamurocho in Tokyo — though the latter will still be in the game.

Those are the changes most fans are fine with; the extremely and bitterly divisive change involves the altered battle system. Instead of being a brawler RPG, this installment will be a turn-based RPG. The change is justified in its story through Kasuga not being as strong a fighter as the one-man army “Dragon of Dojima” known as prior protagonist Kazuya Kiryu, and will need the help of others throughout his quest. Kasuga is also a big Dragon Quest fan, and imagines fighting in battles like in those games like a big nerd. But a big change like this was bound to ruffle the features of anyone comfortable with the series as it was. It’s also humorous considering the trend usually involves franchises with turn-based battles going real time, instead of the opposite.

This is why the Tokyo Game Show showcase was a big deal. The team didn’t show much of the battle system during the reveal conference a couple of weeks ago, something the developers admitted was a mistake. But this event was the key opportunity to detail and demonstrate the game. The new trailers and demos showed how this battle system change could work out well, but there are concerns.

Kasuga strolls around Ijincho like Kiryu and other characters in previous games, though other party members follow behind him here. Battles are also initiated like in previous games, with various street toughs looking for a fight wanting to tussle with Kasuga’s tough team. The encounter rate also hasn’t been adjusted, since these guys are walking around everywhere. It’s, of course, in the battles where this installment distinguishes itself. Initial commands are selected using the face buttons, similar to Persona 5, though actions outside basic attacks and defending will prompt a menu displaying more options.

Don’t think this is a standard turn-based game, despite how it inherits their fundamentals. The developers stressed after the reveal that its battles will be more dynamic than the average turn-based game and videos have shown how that wasn’t just damage control. (No need for me to break out that “Examples of Damage Control in Gaming” banner.)

For instance: The characters themselves are armed with weapons or items they have equipped, but can pick up and use other objects like cones and bikes lying around if they’re standing near them. The transition screens into battle and back to the field are quick, so it’s clear the development team was thinking about how not to waste players’ time.

The turn-based battles have allowed for more enemies to be present in battle, with some in the demo featuring up to five. Matching the game’s tone (in parts, anyway), actions in battle are somehow more over the top than those in previous installments, particularly with the option for summons like Gary “Buster” Holmes and, uh, a giant crayfish. The game will also have jobs which can be switched at Hello Work, a real place where people switch through real jobs in Japan.

The biggest current concern is the battle speed. Skirmishes overall are quick for a turn-based game, but look slower than the real-time counterparts from previous Yakuza titles. They’re also, interestingly, slower than Persona 5’s. TGS attendees also voiced concerns about this. The game could come with battle options to adjust the speed, in addition to the auto-battle feature. If it does, they might need to show more demonstrations.

Like a Dragon will still have several side features that can make anyone play these games for hours upon hours, including minigames new to this installment. A key one is Dragon Kart, a kart racing minigame where characters attack each other with items they pick up, similar to the Mario Kart or Sonic racing games. The movie theater minigame involves keeping Kasuga awake, who tends to fall asleep in theaters — even during action movies. There’s also the Definitive PachiSlot Simulator, a match game slot machine that includes real-life machines, including those based on Million God and anime and manga series Fist of the Blue Sky. Other activities will include karaoke (returning after missing in Judgment) and going to the cabaret clubs.

There are still several players dissatisfied with the battle system change, but as a reminder of a point I made in my last post, they aren’t married to it. Producer Toshihiro Nagoshi mentioned that the battles could be real-time again in future Yakuza installments depending on Like a Dragon’s sales and reception. It’s tough to gauge exactly how many people aren’t liking it on the internet, but we’ll see how many fans don’t like it come release.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon will release in Japan on January 16th. The western release was officially confirmed after Sega Europe previously posted details early, which will arrive later in 2020. We’ll receive a constant amount of info between the current point and its release.