Like a Dragon: Ishin will feature Trooper Cards with the likenesses of AEW pro wrestler Kenny Omega, actor Rahul Kohli, and others. While neither Omega nor Kohli will actually be characters in Like a Dragon: Ishin, the Trooper Cards will allow the player to use powerful thematic abilities based on each person in combat. Similar cameos are a longstanding tradition in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchise.
Rumors of a Kenny Omega cameo in a future Like a Dragon game have been swirling for some time. The team at Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio is known to be huge fans of professional wrestling, and has featured wrestlers including Kazuchika Okada and Hiroshi Tanahashi in prior Yakuza games. In a semi-recent trip to Japan, AEW star Kenny Omega shared photos on Twitter showing him being 3D scanned at Sega's studios. It seemed like he was next in line for a cameo.
Announced on Twitter, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has now announced a special collaboration with Kenny Omega and other celebrities. A free DLC pack offered for the launch of Like a Dragon: Ishin will include Trooper Cards based on Kenny Omega and Rahul Kohli, with others to be confirmed later. As the name implies, these are simply cards. There will be no in-game character based on Kenny Omega or Rahul Kohli. Both cards do feature art turning the celebrities into time-period-accurate characters, however.
The Trooper Cards can be used in combat to cast unique and powerful abilities. Kenny Omega's ability, Essence of One-Winged Angel, is based on his Final Fantasy 7-inspired finishing move and does a spin attack leaving bright blue feathers floating through the air. Omega's catchphrase, "Goodbye, mwah! And goodnight - Bang!" also flashes on-screen. Kohli's card is named the Essence of Firestorm and shoots flame in a massive frontal cone. Fitting Kohli's humor, the quote, "Rob them of their dignity!" flashes on-screen.
As noted, the Like a Dragon: Ishin Elite Generals Trooper Card Bundle will be available for free as part of the action game's upcoming launch. It's DLC, so players will have to download it separately after they've purchased the game. Six cards in total, with Omega and Kohli being the first two, will be included.
Celebrity cameos will hopefully draw some extra attention to Like a Dragon: Ishin ahead of its quickly-approaching launch. The Like a Dragon franchise is growing in popularity, especially since the release of both Yakuza 0 and Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Embracing its strangeness, featuring cameos from pro wrestlers and comedians, is one exciting way to draw new eyes to the franchise.
Like a Dragon: Ishin releases February 21 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.