Kazuma Kiryu, the infamous Dragon of Dojima, is slated to first hit Japanese PS3s this December for the fifth-installment of the GTA-like Yakuza video game series. In regards to an American release, Sega has yet to determine a release date.
Yakuza 5 will feature, coincidentally, five playable protagonist according to Eurogamer.net. Including Kazuma Kiryu, players can look forward to exploring the intertwining stories of Tiaga Saejima, Shun Akiyama (two usable characters from the previous game), Tatsuo Shinada (a brand new character who's an ex-baseball player with some serious debt) and Kazuma's adopted daughter Haruka (who is a playable for the very first time in the series). Long-time-fans Yakuza looking to kick butt as Haruka will surely be disappointed, though.
Eurogamer.net reported players will not "be able to fight as her. Haruka won't battle street thugs . . . She will have a different sort of battle . . . Presumably it will tie into her new role as a pop-star in training." Also, Haruka will not be able to go into the hostess bars. Yeah, a total bummer, I know. But seeing as Sega's Yakuza 4 could produce something as weird as the massage parlor mini-game (click link if you dare and are alone), I can see how it is safe to keep a young girl away from the adult venues of Kamarucho.
But, with new characters, comes new locations. For the past four games, the fictional city of Kamurocho has been the heart of Yakuza. Once released, players will also be able to explore Sapporo, Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka. I doubt the majority of these new locales are as expansive as Kamurocho, which in the past games have included dozens of side-quests, mini-games, hostess bars, and the infamous Don Quijote super store. Nonetheless, new environments seem like a great nuance for an already established series.
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| The Crew: Kazuma. Shinada. Saejima. Akiyama. Haruka. |
Yakuza 5 will feature, coincidentally, five playable protagonist according to Eurogamer.net. Including Kazuma Kiryu, players can look forward to exploring the intertwining stories of Tiaga Saejima, Shun Akiyama (two usable characters from the previous game), Tatsuo Shinada (a brand new character who's an ex-baseball player with some serious debt) and Kazuma's adopted daughter Haruka (who is a playable for the very first time in the series). Long-time-fans Yakuza looking to kick butt as Haruka will surely be disappointed, though.
Eurogamer.net reported players will not "be able to fight as her. Haruka won't battle street thugs . . . She will have a different sort of battle . . . Presumably it will tie into her new role as a pop-star in training." Also, Haruka will not be able to go into the hostess bars. Yeah, a total bummer, I know. But seeing as Sega's Yakuza 4 could produce something as weird as the massage parlor mini-game (click link if you dare and are alone), I can see how it is safe to keep a young girl away from the adult venues of Kamarucho.
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| Kamurocho, baby! |
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| So, you think you can play Yakuza 5? |
Every iteration of Yakuza has witnessed an expansion of the series' mini-games playlist. In addition to claw machines, video slots, poker, roulette, blackjack, and karaoke, Yakuza 5 can now add dancing and hunting to that list of extra in-game activities. The former mini-game strictly revolves around Haruka and her path as a television pop-star. From released screenshots, the dancing segments look rhythm-based much like the Karaoke mini-game, while the hunting portion, all according to a shogungamer.com article, "will sport a rather realistic look" and may only be played as Taiga Saejima.
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| Boom! Deershot! |
If that's not enough mini-game for you, Kazuma will not only return with an entirely new storyline but with a brand new occupation: taxi driver. PSU.com states:
Kiryu-san, who has starred in the series since its inception, will have to ferry passengers around while obeying various instructions given to him. These include prioritizing things such as speed and safety, as well as following a certain vehicle.
. . . Yakuza 5 will also allow gamers to take part in street races with the gang known as Devil Killer. Here, Kiryu-san will have to race a rival and come out on top, using techniques such as drifting and fast cornering to stay one step ahead. Heat Action will also come into play, letting you quickly pull ahead of your opponent.
Among the big changes, the game's graphics seem to be be recycled but Eurogamer.net reported Yakuza 5 as the front-runner for a new game engine. The character models do look cleaner and more detailed than the previous two Yakuza games, but it's still early to dissect. Feel free to browse the short Yakuza 5 gallery courtesy of computerandvideogames.com and decide for yourself.
Meanwhile, Sega will digitally re-release the first two Yakuza games for the PS3 later this year. Yakuza 1 and 2 will be remastered in HD, but according to digitaltrends.com a U.S. release "depends on how willing Sega is to localize the game. . . a great deal of work will need to be done to accommodate the U.S. editions of both games." For those unfamiliar to the series, first of all a thanks and super kudos to you for reading this far into the article, the first Yakuza game was dubbed in English while the rest of the series followed in a subbed-fashion. Thus, we have a possible turn off point for the mainstream PS3 community.
Hopefully, America and the rest of the world can get their hands on a subbed copy of Yakuza 5 soon after the Japan release.
But until then, stay tuned for Subculture as we aim to fill your mug with news, reviews and news!
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