Yakuza: Like a Dragon - How to Make Money Fast

In Yakuza: Like a Dragon, you play as Ichiban Kasuga, an earnest guy who’s always wanted to be a hero. Life hasn’t been kind to him though, and to say he’s down on his luck would be an understatement. This is especially true when it comes to his financial situation, where even in the beginning, 500 yen can seem like a lot.

By the time you hit Chapter 4, you’ll be given pretty free reign over the streets of Ijincho. You’ll learn how to find stray coins next to vending machines, but that’s hardly enough to satiate your needs. Baseball bats are expensive, after all, especially the good ones. Even the crafting costs at Romance Workshop can seem ludicrously high in the early hours.

Unfortunately, money problems don’t get any easier for a long time. It all culminates when you hit Chapter 12, when you’re tasked with raising three million yen. In fact, you might even be here because of that exactly. If you’re looking for how to make money fast in Yakuza: Like a Dragon, we have some tips to help you out.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Be a Part-Time Hero

Early on in Chapter 5, you’ll run into the Part-Time Hero system. The side quest that unlocks it is on the way to a story mission in Liumang territory, so it’s hard to miss. This system installs an app on your smartphone, and it’s full of little objectives to complete, including fetch quests and fights.

To add some at stacks to your wallet, stay on the lookout for some stray Part-Time Hero quests. They’re all over Ijincho, and they’re pretty easy to complete. Each one can net you anywhere from 10,000 to 50,000 yen, which can be huge when you’re saving up for that next big baseball bat. After all, gear plays an important part in your power curve. Stocking up with the best weapons should always be front of mind, and yen is the key to that.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Hit Up the Pawn Shop

Another great way to make some extra scratch in Yakuza: Like a Dragon involves the pawn shop. Longtime fans might remember the Ebisu Pawn Shop in Kamurocho, but Ijincho doesn’t have one—at first.

Along Misaki Street, you’ll start a quest called “One Man’s Trash…” It’s not all that complicated of a quest. All you need to do is approach the area, watch the cutscene, and then return to the area after some time has passed. You’ll find markers on your map that let you know when the next step is ready.

After completing the quest, Benten Pawn will open, and you’ll be able to sell off any excess weapons, armor, and other loot that you don’t need to stock up on some yen. At first, this probably won’t be a huge source of income for you. As the story progresses, though, you’ll find yourself coming across progressively more rare loot to sell off.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Unlock the Casino

If you’re a betting person, you’ll want to unlock the casino as soon as possible. Here, you can play blackjack and poker to turn your thousands into millions, if you’re lucky enough. Unfortunately, the entrance to the casino in Ijincho is hidden in plain sight.

In the western part of Chinatown, you’ll find a public restroom, and a bouncer will be blocking the entrance to the men’s restroom. Unless your Style is at rank 4, he’ll stop you from entering after throwing a few insulting words your way. Once you hit rank 4, though, he’ll let you pass. In the back of the biggest stall, you’ll find a fake wall that leads to an underground casino.

This is a great place to make a lot of money, especially if you save scum a bit. By far, this is the easiest way to rack up a lot of yen ahead of Chapter 12 in Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Once you stockpiled a million or so yen, hit up the casino and play some blackjack. If you save scum, you’ll double and quadruple your wallet in no time.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon - Keep Running the Arena

Here’s the good news: The Arena is hands-down the best way to make literally millions of yen in a short amount of time. Bad news? You don’t unlock the Arena until after you pay that three million yen in Chapter 12. This tip may not come in handy for anyone still struggling to raise that money, but for those of you grinding stuff out for the late game, this is it.

When you unlock it, we highly recommend running through it no matter what. The EXP alone is worth a few hours of your time. Beyond that, each round pays out a pretty hefty sum. After a few runs, you’ll hit 10 million yen in no time.

But wait, there’s more! If you can complete the optional objectives in the Yakuza: Like a Dragon Arena, you’ll earn a special prize. Some of these prizes include powerful weapons, most of which you might not even need. Each of these sell for one million yen at a pawn shop.

So ask yourself: Is it worth hoarding these weapons I might not use? Or should I sell them off for some sweet stacks? Considering you can farm these weapons and get multiples of each, the answer’s pretty obvious.

We hope these tips helped you build up a wealth of savings. After all, some things toward the end of Yakuza: Like a Dragon get really expensive, so having a couple million yen goes a long way.