The Yakuza series has been picking up more and more traction in the west as fans are getting involved in Kiryu's antics. Upcoming release Yakuza: Like a Dragon was originally released in Japan back in January but western audiences have got a little bit longer to wait until November to get their hands on the game. Yakuza: Like a Dragon follows new protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga, as he attempts to get revenge on the Arakawa family for forcing him to go to jail for a crime he didn't commit, then forget about him while he was behind bars. It's now Kasuga's goal to uncover the truth behind his incarceration.
The biggest change for returning fans of the franchise is that the beat 'em 'up gameplay has been replaced by Turn Based combat. This isn't the only JRPG feature that Yakuza is picking up either as Kasuga and the rest of your party will be able to take on different Jobs that will change the types of attacks they use in combat. Just as can be expected from Yakuza these Jobs tend to get a little bit weird too. Some classes shown off in the 'How Will You Rise?' trailer include breakdancer, an Idol, night club host, casino dealer, or musician.
As information on the release dates of next-gen consoles are now known SEGA has today announced that the release date for Yakuza: Like a Dragon will be November 10th for Xbox Series S|X, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Windows 10, and Steam. The date used to be November 13th but is now in line to launch as a day one title for the Series X|S. The bigger news here is the confirmed PlayStation 5 release date of March 2nd, 2021. While it was already known that through Smart Delivery Xbox gamers who own Yakuza: Like a Dragon on one generation of consoles will be able to play it on the other it was also announced that owners of the Digital Version of Yakuza: Like a Dragon on the PlayStation 4 will be able to download the PlayStation 5 version at no additional cost.
While we don't have any detailed specifics on what the differences between the Xbox One/PlayStation 4 version of the title will be compared to the Xbox Series X|S/PlayStation 5 edition the base hardware upgrades will ensure the game is able to take advantages of the SSDs for faster loading speeds, as well as 4K on compatible displays. There's been no official word on any other features such as raytracing or frame rate performance modes.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon PC Specs
SEGA also took this time to announce the system requirements for the PC version of the game. They're as follows:
Minimum:
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS: Windows 10
- Processor: Intel Core i5-3470 | AMD FX-8350
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660, 2 GB | AMD Radeon HD 7870, 2 GB
- Storage: 40 GB available space
Recommended:
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS: Windows 10
- Processor: Intel Core i7-6700 | AMD Ryzen 5 1400
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060, 3 GB | AMD Radeon RX 580, 4 GB
- Storage: 60 GB available space
Quick Take
There has been a LOT of buzz recently about timed exclusivity in games after the confusion from the PlayStation event's Final Fantasy XVI and even Microsoft's purchase of Zenimax games but almost as much as Yakuza doesn't like to take itself seriously this timed exclusivity seems to be the least worrysome exclusive. With Jim Ryan's continual touting of 99% of PS4 games being playable on PS5 I expect those who have to wait for the upgrade will be able to go ahead and load it up anyway. Is this the first Timed Next Gen Exclusive game?
What do you think of Yakuza: Like a Dragon being released for PlayStation 5 only 4 months after the initial western release? What do you plan to play Yakuza: Like a Dragon on? What job class are you hoping is included in the game? Let us know in the comments below!
