Yakuza: Like a Dragon

Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a bold restart of the renowned series that replaced both its longtime hero and its entire combat system. The main character is Ichiban Kasuga, a good-hearted low-ranking gangster who serves eighteen years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, and upon release discovers that the organization he sacrificed his life for wants nothing to do with him. He ends up at rock bottom, penniless and homeless, and from there works his way back among people. The story mixes hard-edged crime drama with scenes that are completely absurd, and that range is typical of the series.

The major change is the shift from action-based street brawling to turn-based combat, which the game openly borrows from classic Japanese RPGs, since Ichiban loves them and imagines the fights as fantasy adventures. Party members have jobs that change at an employment agency, each with its own abilities, and the surroundings play a role in combat too, since characters pick up bicycles or trash cans and make use of the street layout. Alongside the main story, Yokohama is packed with side content: running a business as an economic minigame, cart races, karaoke, a movie theater, playing classic arcade cabinets, and dozens of small stories about passersby.

On PlayStation 4 the game runs very well, and its strong point is a densely populated, brightly lit city that's a joy to get lost in. The music alternates between dramatic orchestral themes and rock and pop depending on whether a funeral or a fight with a man in a diaper is currently underway. Critics received the game enthusiastically, praising above all Ichiban's party and the courage to switch genres. The influence is evident in how the series continues to build on this direction. Today it's one of the best entry points into the world of Yakuza. Anyone who's skipped the series so far because of its characters' complicated history can jump in here without any preparation at all. The game maintains a remarkable balance between sincere emotion and total absurdity, and that very range is what makes it such a distinctive experience.