2021 is the 10-year anniversary for Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, and the developer behind the Yakuza series has just confirmed that it will be transitioning to a new structure. This announcement comes just 2 weeks after the release of Lost Judgment, which continues the story of Takayuki Yagami and his partner Masaharu Kaito.

Earlier today, it was confirmed that a sequel to Yakuza: Like A Dragon is currently in development at Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. It will continue the story of Ichiban Kasuga, who took over from Kazuma Kiryu as the protagonist of the Yakuza series. This sequel will likely build upon the new battle system introduced in Like A Dragon, as the series completes its transition from a brawler to a turn-based RPG. The same post that revealed this information also mentions that two key members will be leaving SEGA and RGG Studio.

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It is confirmed Toshihiro Nagoshi and Daisuke Sato will be leaving SEGA, and both had some words to share with the audience. Nagoshi thanks the fans for supporting the Yakuza series throughout the years, as well as his colleagues for their work on the franchise. He mentions that a new Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio is born and it will continue to build upon the foundation of this series. He asks the current members of RGG Studio to keep challenging themselves, and requests fans to continue to support them.

The next message is from Daisuke Sato who mentions that Series Producer Yokoyama will now take over the position of Studio Lead. Sato had been involved with the Yakuza franchise since the beginning, and served as head of RGG Studio for 9 years. Sato believes that the studio can carry this momentum to reach greater heights. He goes on to thank the audience as well as everyone who has worked on the Yakuza series, and will now look forward to new titles made by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio as a fan.

Earlier in August, it was reported that the creator of the Yakuza series will be leaving SEGA after 32 years. Back then, Nagoshi had apparently entered final negotiations with Chinese tech company NetEase, and it looks like all of those reports will turn out to be true. However, it is a surprise that Daisuke Sato is also leaving SEGA with him.

Regardless, the Yakuza series is at the height of its popularity, and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has been releasing great games at an impressive pace. The future of the Yakuza franchise is looking brighter than ever, so it makes sense for veteran studio heads to seek new challenges.

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