Recently, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio made a significant heel-turn with its titular beat 'em up franchise to something far different. Rather than continue with Kazuma Kiryu's story in Kamurocho, the Yakuza series will be starting anew with Ichiban Kasuga, boasting a gameplay experience closer to Persona than Yakuza. Yakuza: Like a Dragon not only kicks off the new protagonist's story, but also ushers in a completely new JRPG framework that significantly changes how the series is played. Both critics and fans alike received this seismic change surprisingly well, and it seems the development studio intends to continue iterating on this foundation for future Yakuza entries.
According to a report from Famitsu, the Japanese voice actor for Ichiban Kasuga was told by Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi that he's got some serious job security. Similar to how Kazuma Kiryu was the protagonist for nearly every Yakuza game before it, apparently Yakuza: Like a Dragon is only the beginning for Ichiban Kasuga. Supposedly, Kasuga is meant to be the next headlining protagonist for the franchise throughout the next decade. This could also mean that Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the start of a long line of Yakuza turn-based JRPGs as well. However, the question remains whether or not Like a Dragon's JRPG format has the same staying power.
How Things Have Changed For Yakuza
Going back and playing the classic Yakuza games, especially after finishing Yakuza: Like a Dragon, emphasizes how different things have become. Yakuza games were strictly beat 'em up games, with some elements of JRPG progression, but mostly focused on brawling enemies with combos and stance changes. Yakuza: Like a Dragon flips that notion on its head, favoring turn-based attacks with different Yakuza-flavored JRPG jobs/classes. Fights aren't a hectic throwing of fists, despite the kind of violent energy Ichiban often brings into his performance. Combat encounters are always turn-based, filled with plenty of JRPG flair like magic, weaknesses, and strategy.
Progression is handled similarly as well, compared to previous Yakuza games which had tiered unlocks for new abilities in different fighting styles. Yakuza: Like a Dragon focuses on character progression within each character's job(s), varying between offense, buffing/debuffing, support and healing builds. Of course, that's without even mentioning the fact that players have to micro-manage progression for seven different characters, rather than the lone Kiryu. As a JRPG, Yakuza: Like a Dragon is still surprisingly excellent, even if it's a little rough around the edges. If the Yakuza-JRPG foundation is going to stick around for a decade, Like a Dragon is a strong start.
The Staying Power of a Yakuza JRPG Approach
To this day, it's still fascinating that Yakuza: Like a Dragon took such a drastic leap into a completely new genre. After how successful the entirety of Kazuma Kiryu's legacy has been for Yakuza, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio was still willing to up the ante with something else. Not only is Like a Dragon a true-to-form JRPG, but the game makes nearly every effort to celebrate its inspirations, to the point where Ichiban Kasuga is an actual Dragon Quest fan in-game. If that's not an indication that the Yakuza series intends to triple down on the JRPG genre, perhaps Yakuza: Like a Dragon's recent sales successes will prove that JRPGs are emblematic of Yakuza's immediate future.
Perhaps the next Yakuza game, which is reportedly already in development, will emphasize the staying power of Yakuza's new JRPG era. So far, fan response has been surprisingly positive in the face of such a drastic genre change, even if Sega still considers the franchise to be more "niche." One thing that's worth pointing out is that Sega has been seeing significant worldwide success with Persona, another significantly more popular JRPG series. Many fans have even made comparisons between Persona 5 and Yakuza: Like a Dragon, altogether emphasizing how these two franchises have offered some of the best JRPGs in recent history.
For new or existing Yakuza fans that haven't tried Like a Dragon, it's certainly worth the shot. There's plenty of Yakuza DNA in the latest game, but for Ryu Ga Gotoku's traditional JRPG debut, the game is surprisingly excellent. As for the staying power of Yakuza's new JRPG direction, time will certainly tell in the long run. However, in the short-term, Yakuza: Like a Dragon's efforts show another promising decade of Yakuza may be on the way.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.