As the only Austrian medium, we were once again able to preview an upcoming title. At the Samurai Museum Berlin we had the opportunity to Like a Dragon: Ishin! We’ve already played it extensively for several hours and bring you our first impressions of the remake of the PS4 launch title that was released exclusively in Japan in 2014 in addition to new gameplay material and a detailed interview. After the success of Judgment/Lost Judgment and Yakuza: Like a Dragon in the West, it was only a matter of time before more titles from the studio made their way to us.
New side stories expand on the extensive main story of the original
The game’s story begins in 1867 during the Bakumatsu period – a period of great change in Japan with lots of interesting historical events that are also covered in the game. We follow the protagonist Sakamoto Ryoma, who at the beginning of the game meets his old friend Takechi Hanpeita and his mentor, Yoshida Toyo, in his hometown of Tosa. Before the squad can put their revolutionary plans into practice, Toyo is assassinated by someone skilled in the Tennen Rishin fighting style and Ryoma is framed for the crime, forcing him to flee to the capital city of Kyo. where he now lives as Saito Hajime. If that doesn’t sound like the start of the first Yakuza.
After these events, the playable section for us starts in Chapter 3 in the Fushimi district, where we apply as Saito for the Shinsengumi to infiltrate the association. Precisely because of the many historical events that are treated here in the game and the associated ancient terms, the studio decided against a linguistic localization, such as in Judgment/Lost Judgment or Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Of course, very annoying for all those who finally managed to access this great series thanks to the full localization of the mentioned spin-offs, but that’s partly understandable in the case. Despite this shortcoming and the fact that the original title was released in 2014, the remake does not lack the quality that one is used to from the popular game series. The remastered cutscenes look great, barely revealing the original underneath if you look really closely. Even when exploring the city, we actually found relatively little, which would suggest that this game will soon be ten years old.
In the Bakumatsu archives you can once again look at the exact relationships between the individual characters, including the appropriate background information.
Some of the mini-games and the dialogue sequences after the larger cutscenes let some of the original shine through, but otherwise a great job has been done here with Unreal Engine 4. Given the size of the original, a few game pieces weren’t reworked, or chickens you can bet on look pretty much identical to the original, both fans of the series and newcomers can probably cope with. The mix of over-the-top action and historical characters makes this special spin-off and at the same time justifies its well-deserved first appearance in the west. Especially since this is the first game from RGG Studio, which was developed with the Unreal Engine 4, you have to praise them for this successful intermediate step from full remake and remaster.
Another Life could be a relaxing pastime alongside the myriad of activities the original already had to offer.
Crazy mini-games meet four different combat styles
The usual action and craziness of the series is preserved in Ishin! nor taken to extremes with the use of swords and firearms. Four combat styles can be switched continuously during combat with a small delay:
1. ‘Swordsman’: Only uses the katana for stronger attacks
2. ‘Gunman’: Pure use of firearms, which is ideal for use from a distance
3. ‘Wild Dancer’: It is possible to dodge ideally while constantly switching between the katana and firearms
4. ‘Brawler’: Classic for Yakuza, you can fight your way through hordes of enemies and throw objects at them
The skill system and crafting is designed very intuitively and harmonizes very well with the catchy gameplay of the title.
In our gameplay video, we give a quick look at some of the minigames that we’ve already found in this area in just over two hours – including the boss fight! Ishin! is of course not a gameplay revolution due to the age of the original title, but it definitely plays well. The gameplay has been overhauled well enough that you rarely realize how old the title actually is. If you don’t have any prior knowledge of this, you might not notice it at all!
The revised sequences also do well in combat
In general, there will probably be relatively few players in the West who have a direct comparison to the original or who still remember the original well, but even for these fans, the side tasks and the new elements from “Another Life ‘ to surprise them a bit. The integration of characters from Yakuza 0 and Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a nice extra, which should also be very interesting beyond the chapter we have played. If you can’t decide between the countless mini-games, you should definitely try your luck at Yamabuki (the brothel). It must have been a very popular experience at the event (at least among journalists). Probably only because of the various games of skill and questions that come up to you as a player; )
I have to admit that the series only really caught my eye after Judgment and the localization, which was very successful for the first time. Still, Like a Dragon: Ishin! I can hardly get out of raptures, which surprises me, given the title of the series that is actually so “dusty”. Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has really done a great job here, although it will of course be interesting to see how well the rest of the game is reworked and, more importantly, how all these innovations still affect the game as a whole.
Like a Dragon: Shine! Welcome to Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio February 21, 2023 for PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Windows and PC. You can already pre-order the title here.
