At the end of 2005, with 128-bit consoles at their peak (and even giving way to the beginnings of the next generation), the saga Yakuza in Japan, now known in these parts as Like a Dragon. Sega sponsored a project born within Ryu Ga Gotoku Studiocon Toshihiro Nagoshi al frente.
That first Yakuza was exclusive to PlayStation 2, and would not make the jump to Europe until September 2006. It is curious, because its European emergence would coincide with the arrival of Yakuza 2 in its native country.
At the doors of celebrate its 20th anniversary next year 2025we have enjoyed more than 20 games of the Yakuza franchise, if we count all the main installments, spin-offs and derivatives that have seen the light of day on PC, consoles and mobile devices.
The most recent delivery is Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealtha gem that represents the eighth part of the story, created by an RGG Studio without Nagoshi, but with renewed hopes.
It is also worth highlighting the status of the saga, currently known as Like a Dragon far from Japan, in Europe and America. Sega has even considered adapting the IP to the big screen (again), as it did with Sonic the Hedgehog.
In this report, we review all games in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchiseas well as the order you should follow to complete the story in chronological order.
How to play the Yakuza/Like a Dragon saga in the correct order:
All Yakuza/Like a Dragon games
The Yakuza saga, now called Like a Dragon, was born in December 2005con a first PlayStation 2 exclusive game. Curiously, years later it was ported to Wii U, but only in Japan.
Since that title, and for more than 18 years, the Sega and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio franchise has accumulated a whopping 20 games.
Obviously, not all of them are main or core deliveries, because more than one represents the daring of the guys at RGG Studio to do something different, for better or worse. In addition, they have been launched two compilations of the franchise.
Before you ask, in this count we have not included the two games of the Judgment IP, which are closely linked to Yakuza/Like a Dragon, but They are not part of its plot as such.
It should also be mentioned that, throughout all these years, they have launched tres remakes, which we have counted as titles independent of the originals on which they are based. These are the cases of Yakuza Kiwami, Yakuza Kiwami 2 and Like a Dragon: Ishin!
For its part, Yakuza 3, Yakuza 4 and Yakuza 5 had remastered versionswhich were sold separately and also in a pack (in The Yakuza Remastered Collection).
These are all the titles in the franchise, in release order:
Yakuza (2005) Yakuza 2 (2006) Yakuza Kenzan! (2008) Yakuza 3 (2009) Yakuza 4 (2010) Yakuza: Black Panther (2010) Yakuza: Dead Souls (2011) Yakuza: Black Panther 2 (2012) Yakuza 5 ( 2012) Yakuza Ishin! (2014) Yakuza 0 (2015) Yakuza Kiwami (2016) Yakuza 6: The Song of Life (2016) Yakuza Kiwami 2 (2017) Yakuza Online (2018) The Yakuza Remastered Collection (2019) Yakuza: Like a Dragon (2020) Streets of Kamurocho (2020) Like a Dragon: Ishin! (2023) Like a Dragon: The Man Who Erased His Name (2023) Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (2024)
The main saga
As we have already indicated before, the Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchise is also made up of spin-offs and derivative games, which do not have as much weight in the narrative or canon.
It’s up to you whether to play them or not. If we talk about the main saga, so far A total of 9 games have been releasedthe last of them being Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, which is the eighth installment of the series.
We do not count spin-offs that are canon, since they are not core titles of the IP, and it is not mandatory to play them to understand Kazuma Kiryuand later Ichiban Kasuga.
In the same way, it must be clarified that Yakuza and Yakuza Kiwami are essentially the same, as are Yakuza 2 and Yakuza Kiwami 2.. The Kiwami versions are remakes of Kazuma’s first two adventures, adapted with the engine used in the most modern games in the series.
That being said, these are the main games of the franchise:
Yakuza Yakuza 2 Yakuza 3 Yakuza 4 Yakuza 5 Yakuza 6: The Song of Life Yakuza 0 Yakuza: Like a Dragon Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
All spin-offs and derivatives
Now we will talk about spin-offs and derivatives. Are they necessary to understand the story of Yakuza/Like a Dragon? No, but you would do well to play some of themsince they are enjoyable experiences, and you will better understand some details.
This does not apply in all cases, mind you. The RGG Studio franchise has the peculiarity that not all spin-offs are equally important to the canon.
Besides, some games never left Japan, so they’re not as accessible to have a Yakuza marathon. This is the case of Yakuza: Kenzan!, although, fortunately, Yakuza: Ishin! Yes, we had an outstanding remake last year.
Then we have the case of Judgment and Lost Judgment, which are two games developed by RGG Studiosponsored by Sega, and released in 2018 and 2021.
They are not part of the canon story of Yakuza/Like a Dragon, but they are set in the same universe, mainly due to the appearance of secondary characters. In these adventures, we control the detective Takayuki Yagami.
These are all spin-offs and derivative games from the saga:
Yakuza Kenzan! Yakuza: Black Panther Yakuza: Black Panther 2 Yakuza: Dead Souls Yakuza Ishin! Like a Dragon Ishin! Yakuza Online Judgment Lost Judgment Streets of Kamurocho Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name
The chronological order you should follow
If you want to start playing the Yakuza/Like a Dragon saga, our recommendation is that leave the vast majority of spin-offs and both Judgment games for later. At least, in the case of a few spin-offs and derivatives.
In fact, in chronological order we only include two of them, which are Like a Dragon: Ishin! and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name.
If we stick strictly to chronological order, Like a Dragon: Ishin! It is the first game in the franchise, since is set in feudal Japan (1860s)but we do not recommend starting with this title (nor with the original version unpublished in the West).
The best starting point is Yakuza 0, an installment released in 2015 (in Japan), but which ranks as the second game in chronological order, and the first if we stick to the core story. It is Kazuma Kiryu’s first experienceprotagonist of the saga.
You can also start with the original PS2 Yakuza, although in this case the best option is Yakuza Kiwamia remake that tells the same story, but with more modern graphics and playable mechanics.
From there, the best option is continue with Yakuza Kiwami 2and later with the remastered versions of Yakuza 3, Yakuza 4 y Yakuza 5to finish with Yakuza 6.
Upon reaching Yakuza: Like a Dragon, which It represents a change of protagonist and game mechanicsyou can choose to play the spin-off The Man Who Erased His Name first, or play this spin-off before hitting Infinite Wealth.
He chronological order of the saga it would look like this:
Like a Dragon Ishin! (2023) Yakuza 0 (2014) Yakuza Kiwami (2015) o Yakuza (2005) Yakuza Kiwami 2 (2017) o Yakuza 2 (2006) Yakuza 3 (2009) Yakuza 4 (2010) Yakuza 5 (2012) Yakuza 6: The Song of Life (2016) Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name (2023) Yakuza: Like a Dragon (2020) Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (2024)
Currently, the Sega and RGG Studio franchise is in the best health in its history, both in Japan and the West. Good proof of this is that Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, the latest installment, managed to sell more than 1 million copies in its first week.
If you are interested in complete other sagas in chronological ordertake a look at these reports: All Sonic games, All Final Fantasy games, All Hitman games, All Resident Evil games, and All Assassin’s Creed games.
How many games of Yakuza o Like a Dragon you have played? If you want to get started in the Sega and RGG Studio saga, we encourage you to follow the chronological order that we have left you above, although you can also do it in the order of release of all the titles.