Yakuza: Like A Dragon – The Much Needed Changes Are Welcome. Game Review

Reviews Game Reviews
Selphie1999Gaming11

Yakuza: Like A Dragon is not only the first entry into the popular Japanese crime drama to feature the new protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga.
It is also the first title in the series to be heavily RPG focused. With a completely new combat system, party layout and mechanics. All of which seem to work really well.
With the ability to change classes or Jobs in this case which grants characters new and unique abilities and each character having their own set of skills to take advantage of.

The game also manages to bring back the English voice option too, which after many years of having been limited to Japanese, came as quite a surprise.
However, the option to play with either Japanese or English voicing is there, I personally played in English and had no gripes with it.

Having said that though there are times where characters would mutter or sound Japanese despite playing in English, which was rather odd. Though it doesn’t effect the overall story it is definitely noticeable.

Though, for the most part the game mainly focuses on a new cast of characters there are times and references to past titles. Some returning characters have also been added to the game.
So this could come as rather confusing to anyone new to the series. However, this only really effects the latter part of the game.

All of the crazy and wackiness that the series is now known for is still very much there. It still feels like a Yakuza game but with added and new gameplay elements. Which in our opinion was very much needed. Lets face it after years of experiencing near enough the same thing over and over it can get rather stale after a while.

It was also nice to explore new locations to the series too, the new area in this case is known as Iljincho and it feels rather large in terms of navigating. This may come as a hindrance to some but thankfully there is the option to quick-travel which in this regard comes in the form of Taxi stands.

The story is rather interesting, full of betrayal, revenge and everything you would expect from a Yakuza title.

Packed with new and exciting mini-games such as collecting tin cans and of course returning mini-games too including the popular Karaoke, side stories and more.
All of which is included within the game for those seeking a break from the actual story. This game will keep you hooked for many hours to come.

OVERALL:

As someone who has been playing the Yakuza games for many years now, I can personally say hand on heart that the new changes are great!
I wont lie I was getting bored of the series with its repetitive gameplay and characters, so the change was needed in my personal opinion.
The fact that you can change abilities and have several characters join your party was a lovely feature, which also meant that battles where no longer a simple run and punch everyone. Instead it now meant that battles required much more strategic thinking. Getting to know more about the characters through the optional character bonding feature was also a delight!

  • Developer: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios / Publisher: SEGA
    Release Date: November 10th, 2020
    Platforms: PC, XBox One, Playstation 4, XBox Series X/S
    Genre: RPG
    Main Story Length: 35-40 Hours
    Platinum Trophy Length: 
    Platform Reviewed On: Playstation 4
  • Overall Rating: 4/5

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