Yakuza: Like a Dragon Review [SPOILERS]

Yakuza: Like a Dragon’s story begins all the way back in 2000, where Ichiban Kasuga is a low-level yakuza with the Tojo Clan’s Arakawa Family. Ichiban grew up in a familiar location, that being Shangri-La, a soapland in Kamurocho. The Arakawa Family is a small group, led by patriarch Masumi Arakawa and captain Jo Sawashiro. While in the family, Ichiban collects debts and assists Arakawa’s son Masato, who deals with chronic illness. On New Year’s Eve in 2000, Ichiban turns himself in to serve prison time in place of Sawashiro, who shot and killed a rival yakuza. Ichiban agrees to this out of loyalty and devotion to Masumi Arakawa, who saved his life and brought him into the Arakawa Family. 

Ichiban ends up serving eighteen years in prison, essentially missing out on everything that happens in the first six Yakuza games (as well as the rest of his 20s and 30s). He is finally released in 2019, and finds that the world has changed significantly while he was doing his time. The first thing Ichiban tries to do is find his old patriarch, Masumi Arakawa. He then encounters Koichi Adachi, an older police officer who gets him up to speed on the state of Kamurocho. Adachi's goal is to expose corruption within the Tokyo Police Department, after he witnessed an innocent man get sentenced to prison time. Ichiban learns that the Tojo Clan is basically gone now, and that Arakawa sold them out to the rival Omi Alliance, who now has a stranglehold over Kamurocho. Ichiban and Adachi go to confront Arakawa, and Arakawa shoots Ichiban.

Ichiban somehow survives this, and wakes up in Isezaki Ijincho, a district in Yokohama. He awakens at a homeless camp, and was patched up by Yu Nanba, an ex-nurse who is now homeless. Ichiban also finds a mysterious counterfeit bill in his jacket by where he was shot. Ichiban and Nanba then find Adachi, and go to get jobs. They end up working for Isao Nonomiya, a local soapland owner. After helping one of his employees, Nanoha Mudoka, deal with a scam retirement home scheme, they find Nonomiya dead by hanging. Ichiban and co. meet Saeko Mudoka, Nanoha’s sister, who agrees to help them find the real cause of his death. They find that Nonomiya was killed by Akira Mabuchi, a high-ranking member of the Yokohama Liumang, a Chinese yakuza group that is one of three factions that forms Ijincho’s “Great Wall of Muscle.” Nonomiya was associated with the Japanese Seiryu Clan, and Mabuchi’s goal was to trigger a war between the Ijin Three. 

As Ijincho descends into chaos, Ichiban and co. uncover a money counterfeiting scheme run by the Geomijul, a Korean mafia that is part of the Ijin Three. Their leader, Seong-hui, says that the counterfeit money is used to help Yutaka Ogikubo, a prominent politician. Nanba, who is looking for his missing brother, says that his brother was investigating the scheme, and leaves to expose it. Seong-hui orders the execution of Nanba, and Nanba takes refuge with Bleach Japan, an activist group dedicated to “purifying” Japan that was founded by Tokyo governor Ryo Aoki. The Omi Alliance then invades Ijincho after learning of the scheme. Ichiban, Adachi, and Saeko help the Geomijul fight off the Omi Alliance and destroy the counterfeiting machines. Nanba then returns to their side after learning that his brother was kept in a safe place by the Geomijul. 

Ichiban then comes to the conclusion that Ryo Aoki is actually Masato Arakawa, the son of his patriarch that was assumed to be dead. Joined by Tianyou Zhao, the now-former leader of the Liumang, and Joon-gi Han, a body double of the Jingweon Mafia leader from Yakuza 6 who works for Seong-hui, they plan to expose Aoki and his corruption. Ichiban runs for office as a ploy to get closer to Aoki, against his endorsed candidate, Sota Kume of Bleach Japan. Ichiban also infiltrates the Omi Alliance headquarters to find Arakawa and learn the truth as to why he shot him. 

Once Ichiban and his friends are inside, they meet some very familiar faces to longtime Yakuza players in Goro Majima and Taiga Saejima. After a very difficult battle with the two, they also meet the Tojo Clan’s sixth chairman, Daigo Dojima. They all introduce Ichiban to Masumi Arakawa, who has formulated a plan with Masaru Watase (of Yakuza 5 fame) to dissolve the Omi Alliance and Tojo Clan after Watase is released from prison. They do this because in their eyes the age of the yakuza is ending, and they do not want to just be pawns for people like Ryo Aoki. As Watase and Daigo dissolve the two organizations, chaos ensues, and Ichiban and co. help fight off the rioting Omi yakuza. Entering the fray to help is none other than Kazuma Kiryu, who has been virtually gone since Yakuza 6’s ending. He introduces himself as simply a bodyguard for Watase.

Afterwards, Ichiban talks one on one with Arakawa, and learns that Masato (aka Ryo Aoki) was the one who really committed the murder that he took the fall for all those years ago. He also learns about how Masato got his disabilities from being left in a cold coin locker as a baby while Masumi was hiding from yakuza who were out to kill him. The next day, however, Ichiban learns that Masumi Arakawa was assassinated, likely on orders from Ryo Aoki. An enraged Ichiban confronts Jo Sawashiro, who reveals the truth about Aoki. Sawashiro had also left a baby in a coin locker on the same night as Arakawa, and Arakawa took his baby by mistake, and the other baby was found and later dropped off at Shangri-La. This means that it is very likely that Masato is really Sawashiro’s son, and that Ichiban is the real son of Masumi Arakawa. 

Ichiban, determined to avenge Arakawa no matter the cost, confronts Kazuma Kiryu, who has information about Ryo Aoki. After an intense battle between the two, Kiryu tells Ichiban that Aoki intends to assassinate Sawashiro, before disappearing once again. Ichiban and his friends stop the assassins, then return to Kamurocho to confront Aoki once and for all. Ichiban tells Aoki that there is evidence of him ordering murders inside his offices at the Millennium Tower, and that he will be exposed. Unable to determine whether or not Ichiban is bluffing, Aoki sends all of his men there to find the evidence. After a battle with high-ranking Omi officer Yosuke Tendo, Ichiban plays dead and captures video evidence of Aoki ordering him and his friends to be executed. This video is then broadcast over the airwaves and social media, effectively ruining Aoki’s political ambitions. Aoki runs away to the coin lockers, and Ichiban follows him. Ichiban, in tears, tells Aoki that he still sees the good in him, and that he, Arakawa, and Sawashiro saw him as family. However, right as Aoki has a change of heart and decides to turn himself in, he is stabbed and killed by Sota Kume, who felt betrayed by Aoki using the ideals of Bleach Japan for his own ambitions.

The story ends with Ichiban at the funeral for Masumi and Masato Arakawa. Daigo Dojima, who is starting a security firm that will employ ex-yakuza, asks Ichiban if he wants in, but Ichiban declines, saying that he has more to do in Ijincho. Adachi’s story also ends in satisfaction, as he is able to expose the corruption within the Tokyo PD with evidence from Ryo Aoki’s office.

In addition to a great story, Yakuza: Like a Dragon also has great gameplay. The switch to a turn-based system is somewhat jarring for a series that has had primarily the same beat-em-up gameplay for its entire existence, but it works incredibly well once you get used to it. The game is not extremely difficult, but a good amount of level grinding is necessary, especially before the fights against Majima/Saejima, Kiryu, and Tendo. These boss fights and a few others have very sudden difficulty spikes, and extensive grinding before them is often a requirement. Thankfully, the game provides areas such as the Sotenbori battle arena and Kamurocho underground for players to get all of the money and experience they need for them. The game also has a job system, similar to games like Final Fantasy V. Characters may need the skills that come with different jobs for different situations, adding an extra degree of strategy and flexibility. The soundtrack is also incredible, with some of my favorite tracks being War Maker, Enter The Tiger, Answer From Geomijul, and Receive You The Hyperactive. In particular, the latter provides an incredible moment as Majima and Saejima return and battle Ichiban. I also loved how certain tracks from previous games made appearances, such as Outlaw’s Lullaby from Yakuza Kiwami 2 being the battle theme in Sotenbori. 

In conclusion, I absolutely loved Yakuza: Like a Dragon. After six games that all felt very similar besides changes in story and characters, bringing in a new main protagonist and changing up the gameplay mechanics brought some much-needed refreshment to Yakuza as a series. For a first-time attempt at a turn-based RPG, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio knocked it out of the park, and made a game that stands as one of the best that the genre has to offer today.