Like A Dragon: Ishin – Escaping Home (Chapter 1)

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NEXT CHAPTER: The Man Named Saito Hajime

After the opening introduction cinematic we will now be in control of a character known as Sakamoto Ryoma (Kiryu). A samurai who has just returned to the village of Tosa. One in which he was born and raised in.
If you activate the controller ‘Touch Pad’ you will open up the map. Not much is happening right now but we do have a few key landmarks, such as; Restaurants and Stores. The former of which can allow us to eat meals and restore any lost health. Whilst the latter can be used to purchase health. Good to know.

Feel free to speak with the townsfolk but there is not much to really do right now. Other than to progress on with the game. A scene will then trigger involving a little girl and her mother. Apparently the little girl is sick and needs
help from a doctor. Trouble then begins to loom as the joshi appear. They are basically a corrupt government figure within the village.

During the scene we will then be introduced to the fighting mechanic of the game. Alongside some rather great music. Just what we need! Personally I love all of the Yakuza and Like A Dragon soundtracks. This one is especially one of the good ones.

Anyway to begin with, this tutorial will basically be teaching us how to perform a basic kick and punch. Since we are currently in melee (Brawler) form, it makes sense. We won’t actually be able to unlock any of the other forms of fighting until much later. So, for now, get used to combining both the ‘Square’ and ‘Triangle’ buttons.

After the next following scene we will be back in control of Ryoma. The game will tell us where to go next and how to activate the map. Basically we need to use the map in order to find one of the restaurants. As we try to leave Ryoma will spot a rather strange man. A man who appears to be sitting with his back towards us. This will then introduce us to ‘Pots’. Think of them like ‘treasure boxes’. They contain items that we can find and collect. This particular pot will contain ‘Ointment’, which is used to heal ‘a small amount of health’.

Whilst exploring the rest of the village we will come across a ‘Kind Lady’. Who will then explain that she came in search of water and happened to find an ‘Iron Scrap’. This will also give us a small tutorial on ‘Well Water’. Which
is very similar to the ‘Pots’. They too can give us random items. For this particular water well we will get a ‘Platinum Filings’. Both the ‘Iron Scrap’ and ‘Platinum Filings’ will appear in the ‘Materials’ inventory menu.
Feel free to inspect both the ‘water we” and ‘pots’ whenever you see them. That goes for the others throughout the village too. You never know what you might find!

Anyway head back to the map screen and you will notice a ‘pink’ or ‘red’ flashing circle. This mainly indicates where our next mission objectives is located. Follow these circles whenever you end up getting lost during your travels.
Of course, this guide will also hopefully help with that too. Anyway head to the mission objective marker to continue. As we continue towards the objective marker there will be another pot to inspect. I found a ‘Pill Bug’ inside. Our objective is over at ‘Hama Tea Parlour’.

Our currency indicator is located at the top right of the screen, whenever you speak to a vendor. In this case, right now, Ryoma has ‘6 ryo 0000 mon’. Which is enough for anything on the restaurant menu. If you are confused with how the currency works then think of the ‘ryo being pounds or dollars’ and the ‘mon being cents or pence’. Enjoy a meal in order to continue on with the story. A ‘young Goshi’ will then appear.

KENGOSHI SCHOOLHOUSE

After enjoying a meal it will be time to find the ‘Kengoshi Schoolhouse’. However, his travels has made poor Ryoma forget where it is. So in order to find it we need to ask the nearby townsfolk. Near the restaurant there will be a small structure that we can use to ‘Pray’. This acts as a storage facility where we can store any items that we do not currently need.

As we continue our search for the schoolhouse we will encounter a Ronin samurai. Basically a samurai without a clan. This is also a tutorial on how to ‘grab an enemy’.
Here we can combine both the ‘Circle’ and ‘Triangle or Square’ to grab and attack at the same time. After successfully pulling all of that off we will then be taught how to evade attacks. Simply ‘mash the X’ to avoid incoming damage.
Having to learn the ‘Parry’ ability can be a bit more trickier as it requires precise timing. Basically you will want to perform a ‘parry’ just as an enemy target lunges at you.

After the fight we will get yet another tutorial. This time on how to improve our abilities. Our abilities can be improved through the use of ‘Soul Orbs’. We can collect these ‘soul orbs’ by levelling up and completing quests. We will also realise that the ‘Brawler’ is only one of the many fighting forms that we can use. The others being; Swordsman, Gunman, and Wild Dancer. The latter of which will not be available until much later in the game. It is also probably one of the best forms or styles of combat. Alas, we must wait.

Continue speaking with the townsfolk regarding the schoolhouse and one of them will mention a building behind ‘Chitose Provisions’. This will then reveal our location and destination on the map. All we need to do is find the ‘Chitose Provisions’ store and then squeeze through to the back of it. Here we will encounter a bunch of cats, and of course, our destination target building.

THE TOSA LOYALISTS

After the rather lengthy scene with Ryoma’s pops (Toyo). It will be time to find and dig up more information regarding the ‘Tosa Loyalist Party’. Speak with the villagers to learn more. One of which will mention ‘Takechi’ and the ‘Takechi Dojo’. Which is located to the northeast of town. Open your map and we will find our objective marker. Head there.
Once we arrive we will quickly learn that they are not accepting any visitors. We need to find another way inside.

If you head back to the village entrance, we will find the doctor that we saw with the little girl earlier. And someone in need of help in chopping wood. By accepting to help this guy to chop wood, we will then unlock a new mini game. Our reward for helping to chop wood will be 100 moon for every single successful chop.

In order to continue with the story, you will need to find an employee being harassed by some suspicious individuals. This will then trigger a fight against the ‘Fake Tosa Loyalist’. We will now have unlocked a new fight style. The swordsman style.
Which now allows us to fight with a sword. Obviously. So here comes another set of tutorial tips and moves to practise. For the most part, this is. More or less like the ‘Brawler’ fight style where we will need to combine both the triangle and square buttons to attack.
However, this time the Parry button is now the guard button. Timing, once again, is very precise.

After the tutorial. A samurai named Shimada will now arrive. Apparently they were watching us and are impressed with our swordplay. We will now be allowed inside the Takechi Dojo. After the scene over at the Dojo, we will receive Model 2, Flame Rounds, and Enhanced Rounds. Which now allows us to switch over to the ‘Gunman style’ during combat.

THE WAITING GAME

Feel free to explore the village once again as we wait for Takechi to prepare. The mission objective, however, will take us to the ‘Yoi-Yoi’ vendor. Order from the vendor whatever you want. We should have enough money.
After enjoying our meal, a bunch of suspicious samurai will approach us. Of course, it is time to get familiar with the new fighting style that we just unlocked, the Gunman. Hence why we needed a meal really.
With the ‘Gunman’ style now having been unlocked, this means that we have now unlocked all of the fighting styles that the game has to offer. Including ‘Wild Dancer’, which is basically a combination of gunman and swordsmanship. That was surprisingly fast now, wasn’t it?
I played the Japanese version of this game and I really don’t remember unlocking all of the different fight styles so early. But there we go. Could just be my memory being a bit foggy. Or it could be because this is meant to be a remake. Anyway, we have all of the available fighting styles, so complete the tutorial and we can continue on.

After the tutorial fight, report back to the Dojo. We will then be introduced to a new character, Okada Izo. Who isn’t happy about us becoming the ‘Loyalist Party Representative’. Regardless of that we need to prepare for an ambush over at Kochi Castle. Stock up on healing items and speak to Takechi once you are ready to proceed.

KOCHI CASTLE

Things start rather choatic and we find ourselves in combat, but, against the government officials. We need to flee the areas and fast! After the first round of enemy targets we will find ourselves in a room without doors that we can use.
No problem, destroy the highlighted walls to escape the room. Who needs doors anyway? Grab the ‘Precious Steel’ on the left and continue on.

Destroy the next highlighted barricade. Usually if you can highlight it, then you can interact with it. In this next area we can find some ‘All-Purpose Medicine’. After that we will confront one of the area guards, in this case, we have Shibuya.
Shibuya, and those similar, will only remain idle if you go near them. They will not go near you. They attack from the spot. They can also hit hard too. Its best to target these with a weapon or from a distance.

After dealing with Shibuya we then need to be ready for a QTE (Quick Time Event) as Ryoma tries to flee the next wave of enemy targets. Down here we will find more ‘All-Purpose Medicine’. After the next wave be sure to check the rooms for ‘Precious Steel’ and ‘Ronin’s Hair Tie’.

We will then come across another ‘idle guard’, Shintani. just like with Shibuya. Use a weapon and attack from a distance. We will then need to fight one of the ‘Generals’ of the area. Not quite a boss but they are much more tougher than your usual typical enemy opponent.
In this case we have, Kawashima. He deals much more damage too. Be on your guard. Upon defeat Kawashima will drop an ‘Odachi’ sword. You can find it in your ‘Weapon Inventory’. It has an Attack of 250 and can be equipped in the ‘Special’ slot.

In the next area there will be more enemy targets and we can also find a ‘Crystal’ too, which will be part of our ‘Materials’ menu. As we leave the castle there will be more ‘All-Purpose Medicine’ to collect. Now leave.

The chapter concludes with us having to fight the ‘Masked Man’ from before. We, obviously, cannot defeat him just yet. So clear the fight and watch the scene unfold.

GLOSSARY:

Tosa – a domain encompassing much of Shikoku’s region. Ruled by the Yamauchi clan. The area is now known as the Kochi Prefecture.

Loyalist – an individual or like-minded group who is loyal first and foremost to the Emperor of Japan.

Tosa Loyalist Party – a political group funded in the Tosa Domain near the end of the Edo period.

Representative – rather than serving as group leader, this position is second in charge of an organisation. The name is derived from the notion that this person would be the first to sign their name on any group documents.

Black Ships – naval craft built in the western world. The methods of their construction involved painting the hulls with black pitch, leading to impressionable, intimidating designs that greatly contrasted Japanese shipbuilding techniques.

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SEE ALSO:

Like A Dragon: Ishin – Other Guides

Like A Dragon: Ishin – Video Guides