Yakuza: Like a Dragon

This page details pre-release information and/or media for Yakuza: Like a Dragon.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon was first announced in 2017, although it would take fans nearly 2 years to see some footage. The game released in major Asian countries in early 2020, with a global release later that year.

Development Timeline#

• 2017
  • September - Shin Ryu ga Gotoku project is revealed during Tokyo Game Show starring a new protagonist, Kasuga Ichiban.
• 2019
  • April - RGG Studio publishes an April fools video showing turn based combat for Shin Ryu ga Gotoku. 1
  • August - The game is shown on a closed event to the press and the title is revealed to be Ryu ga Gotoku 7 alongside a short turn-based combat demo and some details about the game's setting and new location. The first teaser for the game is also released.
  • September - A couple of trailers are published, the first ever public demo is playable on SEGA's space on TGS and the localized version of the game is also announced with no release date.
  • November - SEGA releases a slightly altered TGS demo for the public on the Asian PS Store.
• 2020
  • January - The game is released in Japan and other major Asian countries.
  • November - The game is released worldwide under the name Yakuza: Like a Dragon.

Characters#

Ichiban Kasuga#

To do: Find media of the old design

Ichiban's initial face was vastly different in his initial reveal as the Shin Ryu ga Gotoku protagonist.

Drafts for Ichiban's face and hairstyle were shared in a Famitsu interview in 2019. 2

User Interface#

Promotional screenshots have a different battle UI.
The main notable differences are the turn display bar on the bottom left, remaining enemy counter on the top right, smaller enemy health bars and the MP bar and font having a bluer tone.

Cutscenes#

In a trailer released almost 5 months before the game's initial release date, the chapter 6 boss "Excavator" had a different introduction cutscene. This earlier version featured Ichiban accompanied by Saeko, Namba and Adachi.
In the final release, all 3 party members got removed from the cutscene, as well as Ichiban's bat. His hand is still positioned as if he was holding it in the final version.

Prerelease	Final