SEGA
Like a Dragon: 8 marks the return of Ichiban Kasuga in a teaser that confirms partner and release date
We have the trailer, the name and the first details of the eighth main installment of the Yakuza franchise, which in the West changes its name.
Ichiban Kasuga is back. Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has confirmed the name and the first official details of the eighth main installment of the long-lived Yakuza saga. Like a Dragon: 8 will bring us back to the JRPG orchestra lived in 2020 with important new features. You can see its spectacular teaser trailer under this paragraph. It will arrive in 2024 on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One and PC.
This time there will be two main characters. Ichiban will be accompanied by Kiryu, who shows a major change of look. Its developers do not yet want to delve into the reasons that will lead them to cross paths again. The story "will be the main focus" and will be a direct sequel to Yakuza: Like a Dragon, as we already knew. And it is confirmed that it will remain a JRPG.
You have PS Plus and can now discover the complete Yakuza franchise
August has been a relevant month for the brand. SEGA joined forces with PlayStation to add the titles published in the West to the PS Plus catalog in its Extra and Premium modes. Therefore, from now on you can access the following games if you have an active subscription:
- Yakuza 0
- Yakuza Kiwami
- Yakuza Kiwami 2
- Yakuza 3 Remastered
- Yakuza 4 Remastered
- Yakuza 5 Remastered
- Yakuza 6: The Song of Life
- Yakuza: Like a Dragon
We should point out several things if you are new to the franchise. All of the aforementioned titles are in perfect English except for Yakuza: Like a Dragon, which arrived with the texts localized to English as part of the beginning of a new storyline stage after the retirement of the Dragon of Dojima, Kiryu Kazuma.
It is best to play them in chronological order starting with the prequel to the original, Yakuza 0, which is also one of the best of the entire saga.
The 'Kiwami' moniker for the first two is due to the fact that they got a remake. Being PS2 games, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio discarded the remasterings it released in Japan to renew them both visually and playable; in fact, Yakuza Kiwami 2 makes use of the latest version of the Dragon Engine, which among other improvements eliminates transitions through the interiors of Kamurocho and in street fights.
Source: RGG Summit 2022