Over the last decade, the Like a Dragon series, formerly known as Yakuza, has blossomed from a relatively niche franchise in Japan to a highly-popular part of the west's video game culture. Like a Dragon's stable of fans grows larger with each iteration, and with three games on the horizon, it shows no signs of slowing down. Equally impressive is developer Ryu Ga Gotoku's new-found ability to transition the series from an action-packed beat-em-up into a calculated, turn-based RPG without compromising on action or entertainment. Like a Dragon 7's turn-based combat system impressed fans, but now the series is looking to find a balance between the two systems with its upcoming iterations.
Ryu Ga Gotoku has confirmed that the next mainline entry, Like a Dragon 8, will be keeping this new turn-based combat while featuring dual protagonists in series veteran Kazuma Kiryu and the returning newcomer Ichiban Kasuga. The other two upcoming entries though, Like a Dragon: Ishin!, and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, are both confirmed to feature the more traditional beat-em-up combat that was associated with the series for so long. This ensures fans of both the new and old combat systems should have reasons to feel appeased, and also shows that Ryu Ga Gotoku is not afraid to mix things up to keep combat fresh.
Ryu Ga Gotoku Now Has Two Sets of Fans to Appease
Inevitably, with the two styles being so different, fans will favor one over the other. Some will feel that the more traditional beat-em-up style usually showcased by Kazuma Kiryu throughout much of the Like a Dragon series timeline is more in-keeping with the series' brash tone. Others will argue that the new turn-based system is more nuanced, and adds several more layers to combat encounters. While neither side of this argument is necessarily right or wrong, it does leave Ryu Ga Gotoku with two sets of fans to appease. Fortunately, it seems to have been able to answer this issue by diversifying future installments.
Like a Dragon: Ishin!, set to launch in February 2023, is a remake of 2014's Ryu Ga Gotoku: Ishin! from the PS3 and PS4. The game takes well-known characters from the franchise such as Kiryu and Majima Goro, and reimagines them as samurai warriors in Japan's late Edo period. A showcase of the game's new look confirmed what many fans had assumed: it will retain the beat-em-up combat style of the original game. It also looks to place extra emphasis on the use of weaponry, with swords and guns commonplace among the samurai at this time.
Another spinoff title, Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, will follow Kazuma Kiryu between events in Like a Dragon 6 and 7, in an effort to help fans fill in the blanks in the popular protagonist's timeline. Not much else is known about the game, which is also set for a 2023 release, but it has been confirmed by the developer that the gameplay will return to the beat-em-up style seen in most of the previous installments.
Like a Dragon 8 will need to balance its dual protagonists carefully, with Kiryu and Ichiban sharing the limelight. The 2024 release window leaves plenty of room for speculation on how things will play out, but RGG says the game will see a return for the turn-based combat system that was such a breath of fresh air in the last installment. With an evolving and diverse combat system on offer, a developer that is committed to the franchise's long-term future, and new and interesting games to look forward to, it's a great time to be a fan of the Like a Dragon franchise right now.
Like a Dragon 8 will launch in 2024 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
