Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Features the Biggest Yakuza Map Ever

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth options the largest map in the Yakuza franchise. Marking the sequence’ first enterprise outdoors of Japan, the upcoming title will transport gamers to the vacationer hotspot of Hawaii — Honolulu City, to be precise. Developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio claims that the huge new stage is greater than 3 times the dimension of Yakuza: Like a Dragon’s Isezaki Ijincho, the suburb the place the afro-haired Kasuga Ichiban was launched. That means, the Hawaii map is sort of 9 instances the dimension of the Kamurocho district, the sequence’ major Japanese setting punctuated by retailers, eating places, and nightclubs, the place we dabbled in action-packed illicit acts by the eyes of Kazuma Kiryu, the sequence’ essential protagonist who retains getting pulled again into the lifetime of crime.

As a part of the announcement, RGG Studio revealed some key places value visiting in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, beginning with Aloha Beach, the energetic sun-baked shoreline the place gamers may even head out swimming. Then there’s the Anaconda Shopping Center for Yakuza followers to fulfil their arcade gaming wants and seize a fast snack, adopted by the bustling Chinatown space that is lush with steaming meals stalls, markets, and the Nirvana Bank Hotel, the place solely the wealthiest people dwell. As a revered vacationer location, the Waiki Town space is the place to go to purchase souvenirs, District 5 to have interaction with the native mafia, and Little Japan is the spot for delectable sushi for when our heroes really feel homesick. Yep, we have got two protagonists this time, as Ichiban Kasuga is distributed to Hawaii below the promise of reuniting together with his mom, solely to fulfill with Kazuma Kiryu, who challenges him to a ‘ultimate battle.’

A story trailer from September revealed that Kiryu had been battling most cancers, along with coping with the complexities of outdated age. In a manner, it looks as if RGG Studio is retiring Kiryu from the lead function, which additionally explains why the new age of Yakuza video games had been rebranded as ‘Like a Dragon’ in the West. As such, the gameplay additionally witnessed a enormous transition, going from the overexaggerated real-time motion fight to a turn-based affair, akin to the Persona sequence of video games. As normal, something goes in these battles, so be happy to make use of environmental objects as your weapon, comparable to a automotive battery to electrocute foes, summon muscley Poundmates to pummel enemies, blast them with a automotive crash, and even pull off cinematic tag-team strikes. And after all, meals objects grant short-term stat bonuses for while you’re in a pickle.

Hoverbikes to traverse the streets, pizza supply minigames, and Karaoke classes are additionally a part of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. RGG Studio head Masayoshi Yokoyama described the title as a ‘monster class’ of a recreation, including that if one had been to play it constantly, they’d get sick. “This means that a lot of people are going to hesitate to play the game or will end up having it wait on their shelves. I found the possibility of that kind of outcome sad, so I thought, we have to get everyone hyped up enough to play it,” he mentioned in an interview. To fight that, the studio opted for a festival-like environment, which he believes would urge gamers to complete it inside a week to a month, ‘even at the price of their well being.’

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is out January 25 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.