The recently released Like a Dragon: Ishin was predictably met with a lot of hype from fans, with Western audiences having waited close to a decade for a localized release of the original 2014 title. As might be expected with a remaster such as this, the release has implemented lots of brand-new content for players to enjoy, although the core gameplay and narrative of the title are predictably in-line with its source material.
Like a Dragon: Ishin is one of the most unique titles to come under the growing range of spinoff games for the Yakuza franchise, with its unique historic setting fostering a whole new world for the IP to explore and showcase. The unique nature of the game is best showcased in its offered combat gameplay, with many of Ishin's fighting mechanics being a far cry from those usually showcased within the mainline franchise.
The Usual Combat of the Yakuza Franchise
For most of the franchise's history, the Yakuza mainline games took pride in addictive beat-em-up gameplay, in which the large majority of combat features unarmed and fast-paced fighting that combines well with interactive environments and special moves. In the majority of the franchise's installments, the player can briefly equip weapons that quickly break, yet the core fighting styles that make up these titles are almost always typified by hand-to-hand combat.
While more recent mainline games like Yakuza: Like a Dragon embrace more consistent usage of a variety of weapons, the roots of the Yakuza franchise are synonymous with street fights and punch-ups that fostered some of the franchise's most iconic gameplay. These gameplay beats were so consistent within mainline games that a series of spin-off titles have been released over the years for the Yakuza IP, and these games smartly moved away from the established norms of mainline titles in a very determined manner.
How Like a Dragon: Ishin's Combat Is Unique
Like a Dragon: Ishin is set in the year 1867, and thus thrives on a setting that is significantly removed from the seedy metropolitan criminality of the mainline Yakuza story. Featuring the voice and likeness of longstanding protagonist Kazuma Kiryu as the lone Samurai Ryoma Sakamoto, it is no wonder that swords and even firearms are a core aspect of Ishin's combat.
This implies one of the key differences between Ishin's combat from the franchise norms, with three of the four core fighting styles of Like a Dragon: Ishin prioritizing either armed or ranged combat. The Swordsman style showcases bladed combat, Gunman concerns pistol combat, and the Wild Dancer style fascinatingly blends the two. The Wild Dancer style also possesses a unique spin that strays from Yakuza's standards, with the style being centered around deeply rhythmic combos that require much more concise timing than the button-mashing combos that most other franchise fighting styles possess.
While firearms and weapons can be used to a brief extent in some other mainline titles, Ishin fully integrates blades and firearms into the game's most basic combat. Ishin's in-game crafting system is also used to develop special ammo types and improved swords that can, in turn, boost the efficacy of fighting styles. Of course, the combat of Ishin is still broadly in-line with the gameplay motifs of the wider IP, but it is clear that the spin-off has worked hard to integrate a truly unique sense of style and identity within its fighting mechanics.
Like A Dragon: Ishin! is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC via Steam.