Yakuza Kiwami, the remaster of the first game in the series, is set to arrive on Nintendo Switch this October, allowing you to experience the opening tale of Kazuma Kiryu’s story – depending on whether you fancy playing prequel Yakuza 0 beforehand – on the handheld.
As revealed during today’s Nintendo Direct, a Switch port of RGG Studio’s game about big Kaz battling his bro Akira Nishkiyama and first getting to grips with the idea that Goro Majima’s going to haunt him for the rest of his days by popping up all over the shop and asking for a scrap is on the way.
It’s set to release on October 24, 2024, giving you a couple of months to prepare yourself for a trip to Kamurocho with both it and the TV adaptation Like a Dragon: Yakuza looking set to arrive on the same day. How do you do that? I dunno, maybe practive switching between stances as you batter some goons, and then loose just a whole bunch of money running around your local town doing a bunch of weirdly captivating side activities.
Seriously though, here’s the blurb from SEGA outlining what you’re in for: “With enhanced gameplay, an expanded cinematic story, the return of the battle styles from Yakuza 0, more nightlife spots, and re-recorded audio by the series cast, Yakuza Kiwami is the ultimate and most “extreme” version of the original vision of the series
Oh, and a spoiler-free plot setup summary: “1995, Kamurocho…Kazuma Kiryu, the Dragon of Dojima, takes the fall for the murder of a crime boss to protect his sworn brother, Akira Nishikiyama, and his childhood friend, Yumi. 2005…Akira Nishikiyama has become a changed man. Yumi is nowhere to be found. Ten billion yen has gone missing from the Tojo Clan’s coffers, putting the organization on the brink of civil war. And Kazuma Kiryu is released from prison to a world he no longer recognizes.”
Cue just a whole array of street toughs getting their heads smashed in with a bike, while some top-notch emotional drama goes on in the background.
With Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth having released earlier this year and a TV adaptation in the form of Prime Video’s Like a Dragon: Yakuza also arriving in October this year, there’s never been a better time to get into the Yakuza/Like A Dragon series.
