In 2022, a video game came into my hands that would completely change me. With a protagonist with an impressive afro hair that caught my attention from the first moment I saw it, Yakuza: Like a Dragon went from being simply a very fun video game to becoming a fundamental part of my life.
And that was the first one. With the desire to catch up with the events of the saga and to play the recently released Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, I set out to play all the Yakuza games and complete them 100%. Now, two years later, and with hundreds and hundreds of hours behind me in a saga that was worth every penny invested, it is my moral duty to recommend to everyone why Yakuza/Like a Dragon, created by Ryū ga Gotoku Studio, is not just another video game saga. Well, I give you reasons to buy it (you can thank me later).
Two styles of play, two protagonists
One of the strong points of the Yakuza saga today is that, depending on the title you play, it will belong to one genre or another. On one hand, the “classic saga” starring Kazuma Kiryu is a beat’em up type, where you face groups of enemies with bare fists. On the other hand, the “new saga” starring Ichiban Kasuga belongs to the JRPG genre, or Japanese role-playing game, where characters fight in turns in the purest Dragon Quest style.
Each style of play has its own peculiarities, so if you don’t fully enjoy one of them, you will always have the other. Yes, it’s all part of a continuous story and you would really miss out on part of the overall plot of the saga if you decide to skip games of one genre… But, between you and me: it’s not that big of a deal and you will still have a good time. Play whatever you want without fear.
You will love their characters madly (or you will hate them deeply)
Like a Dragon is a saga full of plots and a wide variety of characters. From ruthless yakuza leaders to assassins from a secret clan, in your adventures in the saga you will encounter characters overflowing with charisma and portrayed by wonderful actors (including actors who already had experience playing yakuza in Japanese series and movies).
With plots that absorb you and characters who give it their all, you will end up fully immersing yourself in the events you will experience with Kiryu and Ichiban, coming to madly love many of their characters (stay until the end of the article, trust me) and deeply hate many others (and sometimes surprisingly, after an unexpected plot twist). Either way, I regret to inform you that many of the supporting characters only appear in a single installment, so don’t get too attached to them. Or do.
Drama, yes, but also a lot of humor
Kidnappings, beatings, murders, corruption plots… Yakuza is a saga about the yakuza, and that is evident from the very beginning. The different plots of this saga will put you in very intense and emotional situations, full of betrayals and very tough moments. But that doesn’t mean that, in between, we can’t laugh.
Perhaps one of the most well-known peculiarities of the Yakuza saga is how surprisingly well it combines its more serious side with all kinds of “ridiculous” and absurdly humorous moments. This humor will be the main distinctive feature of the games’ side missions, so if you want to relieve tension and take a break from all the drama, take on that mission where you face a chimpanzee controlling a demolition crane. I swear I didn’t just make that up (and it’s not even the most absurd thing).
A soundtrack that brings video games as a gift
Like any good video game saga, the soundtrack is one of the fundamental parts of Yakuza. Already in the main menu of the first game, you hear for the first time Kiryu’s leitmotif: Receive You/Rolling Eyes Fall, a theme that would end up being versioned in multiple occasions throughout the saga. To this, wonderful themes such as For Faith, Reign, Destiny, or Update With Gunfire would be added, almost always reserved for the most challenging bosses.
But the best part of it all is the great diversity of themes and the contexts in which you hear them. The soundtrack of the Like a Dragon saga manages to combine genres as diverse as house or EDM (especially in the latest installments), which will make you wish the battle lasted a little longer just to keep listening to them. Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, the songs you can sing in mini-games like the disco (Yakuza 0) or the karaoke, present throughout the saga, are also pure magic.
Kiryu-chaaaaaaannnnnnn!!!!!!!
I had to do it. I had no other choice. While I have already talked about the charisma of the characters in the Yakuza saga, the case of my dear Goro Majima, the “Mad Dog of Shimano”, is special. Majima started out as a villain with a certain “aroma” of Batman’s Joker (in fact, he was voiced by Mark Hamill himself in the original Yakuza game for PlayStation 2, although the actor himself doesn’t remember it), who gradually became a recurring supporting character and one of Kiryu’s best comrades.
Majima’s behavior is not random. While at first he may seem like a crazy person, little by little you will see that his personality has a reason and that the “mad dog” hides more than meets the eye. Every time he appears, you will smile like a teenager seeing their “crush” or your face will turn pale with pure terror. There is no middle ground. Majima my beloved ❤️.
