Yakuza Like A Dragon - Essential Gaming
Sony officially announced the free games for the August Playstation Lineup, and while Little Nightmares, and Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1+2 are great, the third game is a true masterpiece. The Yakuza series is known for its intricate look into the yakuza lifestyle through deep and engaging storylines and the true joys of Tokyo nightlife. Released back in 2020, Yakuza 7: Like A Dragon, is a shining beacon of what the future of Yakuza can be.
Changing from the traditional beat’em up style that had been a mainstay of the series to a traditional turn based JRPG, and the protagonist from the always badass Kasuma Kiryu to the Indomitable Ichiban Kasuga, Like A Dragon is refreshingly different and a wonderful entrypoint to the Yakuza series.
For the most part, Yakuza Like Dragon, is a standalone story focusing on Ichiban Kasuga, a Yakuza who went to prison for 18 years to take the fall for his crime family, and returns to them, only to be shot and dumped in a homeless shelter in Ijincho.
The first three hours of the game are incredibly heavy, and the only saving grace is that Kasuga is trying to stay positive through it all. A man who follows his heart and styles his life around the classic Dragon Quest JRPGs he played as a kid. Juxtaposed against Kiryu, Kasuga is much more hot headed and passionate. He’s a much lighter character and he feels like a friendly neighborhood Yakuza. He wants to go back to when the Yakuza helped people and he’s so earnest about it, you can’t help but cheer him on.
With the transition from a beat’em up, to a JRPG, what good is a protagonist without a team? The companions are another huge part of what makes Like A Dragon so incredible. Nanba, Zhao, Saeko, Adachi, and Joon-gi Han are all terrific foils for Kasuga and,throughout the game,you have a constant sounding board that helps build the story out. Each member has a reason to help Kasuga and some may be more selfish than others, but each of their stories show a powerful depth to their character.
While the game’s mainline story is still incredibly dark, the overall tone itself is much more upbeat and light. Kasuga sees everything as a JRPG, and so when he pulls the Golden Bat of Legend out of a stone in a park, he begins to see assorted Yakuza, Thugs, Drunks, Flashers, etc, as different monsters and enemies. A stumbling drunken businessman becomes the Berserker, a baseball player turns into a baseball headed monster. Your bosses can vary from yakuza officials, to giant Roombas and wrecking balls.
Still, the game maintains an intricate balance of realism and absurd so it's never taking the players out of the story. Gone are the skills trees of old, instead focusing on the job system, as well as a personality wheel much akin to the one seen in Persona, where certain actions will boost one of his social traits like Charisma, Intelligence, Passion, etc.
The game does an excellent job of bridging the Yakuza games stories together. Both the overarching narrative of the last 6 games, as well as Ichiban Kasuga’s battle for Ijincho. There is a symbolic and on the nose passing of the torch that really only works, because it’s a Yakuza game. And maybe you don’t want to do the main story all at once, maybe you want something different. Well, how about over 50 substories ranging from helping Mr.Masochist finally experience pain again, to making sure a persimmon doesn’t fall from a tree before a girl has her operation, so she won’t give up hope and die? Yakuza’s iconic wild substories are an absolute ride in Like A Dragon, and you can tell each one has a lot of genuine love in it. I found myself just as enthralled in the story of a homeless man going around town and collecting materials to make a bookshelf to give to the nice kid who hangs out with him for his birthday as I was Kasuga’s quest to be the number one Dragon Kart Racer in all of Japan. Battle Towers, Dungeons, Mahjong, an entire playable arcade of Sega classics including Virtua Fighter 2&5 and Fantasy Zone, a trash collecting racing mini game, kart racing, darts, A 12 HOUR LONG BUSINESS SIMULATION GAME, and of course Karaoke. Whether you want to help Omelette and his human handler Eri take their small snack company to the top of the business billboards, or want to help Professor Sugimoto fill his Sugidex with Sugimons (which is a neat way of cataloging your enemies in a bestiary), there is hours upon hours of content in Like A Dragon. After completing my first play through, I was looking at about 60 hours with maybe 75% completion. The game is worth every dime, especially when it’s free.
If you’re looking for something new, something that you wouldn’t otherwise expect, please, give Like A Dragon a try. It’s a game that was made with a genuine love for the Yakuza franchise, and it absolutely shines when you give it time. I found myself actively engaging with the placement based combat system, and rarely using the auto battle, just because the combat system works so well. Yakuza: Like A Dragon is the first step on a different path for the Yakuza series, and while there are some fumbles, the overall adventure is phenomenal.
Tips Before Playing Yakuza Like A Dragon:
-Buy the Deluxe pack if you don’t want to grind. There are a lot of convenient time saving options that come in the base game available on PS4 and PS5, though I do recommend spending the extra ten bucks especially for later in the game. It doesn’t make the game easier like Persona 5 Royal or SMTV, just provides materials that you’d have to otherwise play the same floor of a tower climb over and over and over…
-Recruit Eri as fast as possible. Once you unlock the business simulator, beat it. Not only does it give you a ton of money and an engine to make even more later on to the point it basically breaks the system, it also gives you the chance to recruit Eri who is a secret unlockable companion. She is super important to your crew and her friendship actually builds up through the business missions rather than the traditional friendship bar so she’ll get stronger the more you earn.
-Jobs stop learning unique skills at level 28. Once you unlock the employment office, you’re given the ability to switch jobs and occupations so long as you meet the minimum requirements for them. Especially later in the game, do not hesitate to change jobs once it hits level 28. Anything after that is just a job specific stat boost. That while you will need to level one job to at least 90 to complete the post game battle tower, isn’t horribly necessary through the main game. Diversify.
-The combat system is multilayered. On top of the traditional rock paper scissors battle style of stab, bullet, blunt, you also have elemental attacks. Be aware of your enemies weaknesses in your Sugidex and plan accordingly, make sure Nanba has some of his homeless spells and you should be okay.
Yakuza Like A Dragon is available on PS4, PS5, and Xbox One & Series X. If you enjoy the game, make sure to check out Yakuza Kiwami 1,2 and 0, to better understand Kiryu's journey and the powers at play in Like A Dragon. Like A Dragon will be free for Playstation Plus customers from August 2nd, to September 6th of 2022.
Author Spotlight
I'm Aidan, The Anime Academic, accomplished anime critic and video game journalist always looking for the next great journey. Adept at JRPGs, TCG, and everything in between. Years of experience coupled with an unrivaled passion to take anime criticism to a new level.
