It’s a testament to the franchise that when Goro Majima was confirmed to star in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza’s next Hawaii adventure, few fans were surprised.
The cache that Ryu Ga Gotoku has built among fans since the Like A Dragon franchise reached a new level of popularity in the last decade means that it essentially has the license to do whatever it wants. This may be their biggest departure yet, but from what we’ve played, fans’ faith in RGG is well justified.
The game takes place a few months after Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Goro Majima, the former running mate of Like A Dragon protagonist Kiryu Kazuma, has appeared on a distant island with no memories of his past. His life is saved by a random boy who gives Majima water and shelter. Trading the streets of Kamurochō for the high seas, Majima forms a pirate crew and embarks on his latest career change.
Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii combines traditional Yakuza action gameplay with Assassin’s Creed Black Flag-style naval combat. When on the ground, Majima fights his way through groups of random, wandering enemies. Majima has two fighting styles, each offering a unique approach to hospitalizing random thugs. These can be changed mid-fight and influence which attacks Majima can use.
The fighting is traditional LaD beat-em-up combat instead of the turn-based gameplay of previous titles. In addition to Majima’s weaponry and martial arts skills, he can also play magical instruments (just do it) to summon spiritual creatures from the deep. A giant celestial shark? Sure, why not? Speaking of sharks, during a presentation of the game, we are shown that eventually, Majima’s ship will be able to be equipped with shark cannons, as well as laser cannons. Sharks with lasers attached are currently unconfirmed.
Ship combat involves lining up your ship with other ships and smashing them to pieces. You have to maintain your ship’s health, which, if it gets low enough, will cause the ship to burst into flames. Majima then runs around the deck of the ship trying to put it out with a small fire extinguisher. RGG is very talented at playing farce comedy with a straight face.
The ship combat we encountered in our preview was pretty easy, but for more complicated battles, once the enemy ship is weak enough, Majima and his crew can board it and finish it off. This manifests itself as large group battles in which you must defeat the entire opposing crew and the captain, before losing any of your crewmates. There are naval combat tournaments, as well as random battles that take place while navigating between zones.
The small preview of the game‘s main story was intriguing, but we also got the feeling that Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is more than happy to give you time to explore the world yourself. At one point we are literally told to go and stretch our legs and see what weird and wonderful people we can meet.
“The little trailer for the game‘s main story was intriguing, but we also got the feeling that Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is more than happy to give you time to explore the world for yourself.”
One of the first people we encountered begged us on his knees to fight him, for no other reason than the love of a fight. We did so and, after our battle, we invited him to join our team. Our demo jumped in the game‘s first few hours, so while we didn’t get a full idea of how we assembled our ridiculous team, we’re eager to find out.
In a side quest we took on, a retired salaryman begged us to allow him to join our merry band of pirates, much to the dismay of his wife and son. We let him join, but it soon becomes clear that life at sea is not for him and he remembers that the pirate’s true treasure was his family. All of this melodrama takes place against the backdrop of men in tiger masks and pizza delivery men murdering each other on the deck of a ship.
In another side mission, a popular idol takes Majima on a bus tour of Hawaii, only to quickly realize that things are not what they seem and that the idol may be taking some of the poor people on the bus for more. of a type. for a walk The amount of traditional Like A Dragon in the game is something that really surprised us. Sure, you spend a lot of time in the ship-to-ship action, but there’s also a lot of time to explore, meet strange characters, and play classic LaD minigames.
Even if you already spent 100 hours in Hawaii last year for Infinite Wealth, the game, from what we’ve played, makes great strides in not only filling the place with new characters to meet and greet, but also rewarding fans who stopped by. that time with references, Infinite Wealth side quest follow-ups, and more.
The inclusion of Hawaii also greatly helped with the game‘s production, reducing development time to less than 18 months. The game splits time between Hawaii, Madlantis, and a few more pirate islands; However, it appears that Hawaii is the largest explorable space, aside from the sea, of course.
We had no doubt that RGG would be able to pull off Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, but we’re still very impressed by the confidence he has. This game, which RGG confirmed will bridge the gap between Infinite Wealth and the next entry in the main series, will cleanse the palette of fans who need a break from the main turn-based series and reward those who have been fans of Goro Majima for longer. a decade now.
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