Before I got into the Like a Dragon series ( or Yakuza , as it was still known at the prison term ) , I learn from the sidelines with bewildered curiosity . I assumed it was a simple criminal offence game , but every once and a while , I ’d get a wild clip of a cockamamie floor show minigame or impassioned karaoke performance and realize I knew dead nothing about the series . I finally learn about its eccentric , Georgia home boy opera aureole with 2020’sYakuza : Like a Dragon , but I ca n’t imagine how those still take care in from the outside will respond to everything I ’m about to spell aboutLike a Dragon : Infinite Wealth .
A few months back , I was invited to a marathon hands - on session that had me playing several hours of the upcoming RPG . It seemed like overkill on paper , but after 90 minutes , it became clean why Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio had insisted on showing off such a tidy clump of hands - on gameplay . In a serial sleep together for its bustle of originative gameplay swings , Infinite Wealthis already , by far , the most unpredictable installment yet .
From oppose an tremendous shark to manufacture my own island , Animal Crossing - way , every minute of my hands - on prevue adopt me on a whirlwind journey through the subsequence ’s multiple preferences . It ’s melodramatic , it ’s completely derisory , and it might make you cry . That ’s the Like a Dragon way .
A sunny refresh
My demo was divide up into four distinct parts , each of which was entirely unlike from the other . The prominent clod would throw me in Honolulu City , Infinite Wealth ’s new setting , where I was free to explore with the well-chosen - go - favourable Ichiban Kasuga and his bunch . Off the bat , the Hawaiian setting makes the subsequence sense like an entirely Modern beast . Honolulu City is handsome than the serial publication ’ distinctive Japanese cities and naturally brings a gay , holiday vibe . Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio even worked with local Hawaiian businesses to bring some authenticity to its digital city . It calls back to Ryukyu inYakuza 3 , though it ’s a more in full bring in space , with recollective , sandy beaches to campaign down .
IfYakuza : Like a Dragonwas a tribute toDragon Quest , Infinite Wealthis an ode toBaywatch . During my first 90 minutes , I ’d beat down raucous beachgoers , solve local dispute , and move around on a full customizable galvanising scooter ( which needs to be recharge sporadically ) . I ’d even take on a giant shark in an absurd late game battle that would test my accomplishment . It ’s a breezy function that piddle corking function of the traditional Yakuzaopen - existence format .
Sidequests especially stay on to be a comedic delight in the newfangled circumstance . A personal favourite has me saving a local barista from bully , only to discover he ’s a down on his luck comedian who was once famous for his coffee - themed digest - up routine . Elsewhere , a familiar Roomba makes its grand riposte , as Professor Okita needs money to fit out it with a flamethrower to serve it better pass trash … and Captain James Cook pancakes .
Yep , it ’s a Like a Dragon game fine .
Even after 90 minute , it felt like I ’d barely seen anything . I got to take on some tough enemy in fresh timed raid battles that down up around town . A young Sujimon minigame had me assembling a team of NPCs , which I could collect from gachapon machines , then controlling them in three - on - three conflict . I ’d even get a hysterical hit of societal sarcasm when I went to a tourism federal agency and met Alo - Happy , an overworked and underpaid worker incessantly dress as a decoration tree diagram . I would even find a raw dating app minigame , which feel like it ’ll be the minigame that fan haunt over at launching .
I ’d also get a raft of metre with Infinite Wealth ’s chore and combat system of rules , which are n’t too different here save for some refreshed UI . By going on tourer trip , Kasuga and company can learn a host of new classes . Familiar ones return , but some tropic - theme single pasture up too , like Fire Dancer or a surfboard - add Aquanaut . All these little change go a long means toward freshening up familiar gameplay , makingInfinite Wealthfeel like a true sequel with its own special vibe .
Welcome to Dandoko Island
None of what I ’ve mentioned so far is intimately as wild asInfinite Wealth ’s most surprising fresh feature film : Dandoko Island . The unexpended - field side modality has Kasuga ship off to a dilapidate island and reconstructing it into a vacation paradise . I ’d call it a minigame , but that would be undersell it . This is a whole secret plan within a plot .
The 30 - minute slice I played would only go over the basics , put in me to its almost satiric riff onAnimal Crossing : New Horizons(a very clear influence , which line up considering the squad was working on the secret plan during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic ) . At first , Kasuga starts with nothing as he get at a methamphetamine hydrochloride - filled island . He use his baseball game bat to tap down trees and brawl rocks to gather material . From there , he can craft furniture that can be freely locate on clean - up lots with a warm control grid - placement interface .
Lots of Animal Crossing staple fibre appear in some form here . I can get bugs with a net , chance craft recipes in bottles on the beach , and even go fishing — albeit with a harpoon instead of a rod cell . Kasuga has his own household , which he can grace how he sees fit , and there ’s a Nook - similar shop where I can buy discounted piece of furniture . While it ’s a small island and every scheme is stripped back liken to a full - on sim , it ’s a surprisingly robust experience that I could see myself lose 60 minutes in easy .
According to Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio , I scarce even started scratching the manner ’s surface . While I only had time to clear out some lots and do a little decorating , the previous game has visitors fare to the island with requests that need to be fill . finally , Kasuga can turn the quaint island into a full urban center , even construct skyscrapers . Considering how small the mode get going , I ca n’t even begin to imagine how it escalates to those stature , but I ’m excited to find out out .
Getting serious
Though I ’ve spent a lot of time here highlightingInfinite Wealth ’s elation and comedy , it ’s not all temperateness and roses . In fact , it ’s shaping up to be one of the more emotionally devastating accounting entry in the series . In another demo snipping showing off the three-fold - protagonist nature of the sequel , I ’d take control of Kazuma Kiryu ( after the result ofLike a Dragon Gaiden : The Man Who delete His Name ) . As drone have antecedently revealed , the longtime serial hero has cancer in the former installment . While he travels with Kasuga to Hawaii , the chapter I played sees him returning to Yokohama to get by with his progressing illness .
A sobering plot apparatus follow : Nanba and Seonhee encourage him to create a bucketful leaning of thing he want to do before he dies . It ’s a clever narrative trick , giving players a usual checklist of in - plot skill to jibe off . It ’s also a annihilative , grounded moment that has players facing mortality in a style that long - running biz series with marquee mascot seldom do . My time in Yokohama would almost work as a goodbye to Kiryu , with him pick up memories around town that unlock screenshots of retiring games . If this ingress does terminate up being the fibre ’s sendoff , it ’s shaping up to be a worthy , bittersweet goodbye .
Kasuga ’s story has its own emotional heart , as he ’s in Hawaii look for his long - lost mother who ’s hiding out from the Yakuza . Those two intertwining tales look to establish a rich tarradiddle about two men coping with major life change in unlike path . Kasuga is the unyielding optimist who father by with the support of his friends , so it makes sense that his Hawaiian escapade would palpate shining and sunny . Meanwhile , Kiryu ’s chapter is more saturnine , emphasizing his loaner attitude as he refuse treatment . Can Kiryu instruct a thing or two from Kasuga as he fights the hardest fight of his life ? That ’s the story I ’m eager to see flirt out in the full RPG .
If it ’s not clear from all of this , Like a Dragon : Infinite Wealthis already feeling like the series ’ ultimate orgasm — at least until its next entry . Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio is poised to top everything that made the breakoutYakuza : Like a Dragonsuch an instantaneous classic , bringing even wilder extras and more emotionally resonant storytelling . While 2024 may only be 24-hour interval old , we ’ve already got our first can’t - miss secret plan on the horizon .
Like a Dragon Infinite Wealthlaunches on January 26 for PlayStation 4 , PS5 , Xbox One , Xbox Series X / S , and PC .
