Possible spoilers for the franchise throughout the review. Read at your own risk.
I'm not one of those fans who has been with the franchise since its inception, Like a Dragon, or more popularly known as Yakuza, but I've acquired a special affection for it in this new phase. It's a franchise with years of history, and it's not for nothing that we're now on the eighth game. Once exclusive to PlayStation, today SEGA's franchise is reaching a record audience, not to mention the fact that this is the game in the franchise that has received the best reviews from specialized critics.
Well, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, the seventh game in the franchise, was released in 2020 and was a huge success, especially here in Brazil. This was because, for the first time in history, the franchise was being localized in our language, even if only by the presence of subtitles. Although I understand English, I've always been too lazy to play a game from the franchise because of the localization. I confess that the gameplay didn't please me either, but the main point was the localization.
But another very important factor that got me into this franchise was the fact that this game was basically a soft reboot, with a new character and new gameplay. Some might call me boring, and I understand why, but turn-based games aren't really my thing, which put a flea behind my ear. But I decided to go for it and bought the game as soon as possible (as soon as it got the feature).
I couldn't have made a better choice, because I fell in love with the franchise and its universe in a way I didn't expect. And not just with Ichiban Kasuga, the franchise's new protagonist, but also with Kiryu Kazuma, the previous protagonist. This is because, despite having a completely new group, all the history that shaped the franchise was still there, as were the characters who were present in it.
One of the great things about this game is that I, and I imagine other people too, who were unfamiliar with the franchise, felt comfortable playing it, without the feeling that they were missing out. And I also feel that those who were already fans of the franchise didn't feel disrespected either, after all, what they loved was there, in a different way? Yes, but in its purest possible state.
After many hours of playing, I fell in love with the franchise to the point of playing The Man Who Erased His Name, a standalone DLC for the seventh game. Despite being much shorter than the games usually are, I understood many things that, as a newcomer to the franchise, I would never have known without having played the previous games. And I began to take more notice of other characters in the franchise that I hadn't known much about before.
Like a Dragon, just
So, we've finally reached 2024, with a very hot start to the year for those who like JRPGs. This year alone we've had Like a Dragon, Granblue Fantasy: Relink, Persona 3, and there's more to come. In this sense, I recommend you think carefully before choosing to buy any of these games, as I had the arduous task of analyzing both Like a Dragon and Granblue Fantasy, whose review is coming soon.
Having both games without having to buy them is a great privilege, I can't deny that. However, the two games were released very close together, and we didn't receive them before launch, which ended up delaying our plans a little. But one thing wasn't in my plans, and that's the fact that Like a Dragon is huge.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will require at least 60 hours of gameplay to complete, which is quite a long time for more traditional games, although it is common in large-scale RPGs, especially oriental ones. And it doesn't last that long for nothing, in all that time, new content is always appearing and the story won't let you leave the screen. But that's it, if I could define this game in one word: GIANT.
As I've already said, the franchise is very old, this being the eighth game in the numbered line alone, and in each game, something new was added. After all, a new game needs more than just a new story, and so the Yakuza franchise did. So you can imagine that in the seventh game of the franchise, we had a lot of content, but not just that.
The game, which used to be a real-time combat game, has gained a multitude of RPG elements - after all, this is the new genre that the franchise fits into. In addition to the turn-based combat, there were some interesting new minigames, a kind of Pokémon-style bestiary (Sujimon), the implementation of levels, armor, weapons of various types with damage from different elements, among other things.
And everything that had already been introduced in the previous game has been greatly evolved and expanded, allowing you to spend hours and hours in the game and still have new elements introduced. The amount of things you can do in the game definitely impressed me.
Lots of fighting (of many kinds)
Starting with combat, the formula we had in the previous game has been maintained - turn-based. But combat has become more dynamic due to the fact that we now have an area in which we can move around before attacking. This allows us to find an ideal angle to carry out certain attacks, possibly optimizing the hit area and even the amount of damage the enemy will suffer.
This time, more buttons can be used in combat, which in theory would make it more complex, wouldn't it? Here, however, it works in a completely different way. This is because, for an action that in the previous game required clicking several different buttons (using a helpline, for example), in this game, the action can be carried out with a single button.
The variation in combat from character to character is also much greater, as some of them have unique mechanics. For example, one of the characters has the ability to change stance during the fight, delivering different blows for each stance. Not to mention when the game goes into real-time combat mode when you use a type of special attack.
Speaking of special attacks, there are some differences here too. They still exist, as mentioned in the example above, but now we also have team attacks. You can attack both in pairs and with the whole team together, using a secondary energy bar. However, in order to carry out this attack, you need to improve your relationships with the characters in your team.
Another significant difference in this game is that you no longer have the option of choosing the game's difficulty level when you start it. Because of this, I recommend that you strictly follow the levels indicated by the game at key points, to avoid frustrations such as wasting too much time on a mission and not being able to complete it. I say this from personal experience, as I suffered from this problem in my previous game.
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Who is this Sujimon?
As in the previous game, each character has their own specific type of attack, but the number of characters available in this game has been greatly increased, and this not only varies the story, but also the combat. However, if you want to, you can completely change the style of the characters using occupations. These already existed in the previous game, and through them you could change the character's attacks according to the theme of the occupation.
Remember how I talked about the Sujimon above? Well, there are a lot of new ones in this game, which means that the number of enemies available has increased a lot. Now, as you walk around the city, you can encounter "special" enemies, which are identified by a crown. This type of enemy usually stays in a specific place until you defeat it. By defeating them, you can unlock the area, which can bring you good rewards.
As in the previous game, the cities are patrolled by various enemies roaming around. When you get on their radar, you logically do battle. These enemies have power indicators, characterized by the color on top of their heads. The more powerful they are, the harder it is, of course, but the better the reward when you survive.
In urban combats, when you lose, you lose a chunk of money, as well as the items you used in the fight. As for the main fights in the story, you can use your money to return to the fight the way you finished it, or spend a better amount to return to the fight with a full life. If you don't want to spend money, you'll have to restart the mission.
A new world
As we mentioned with the cities, here we have two open world maps, the one we found in the first game, Japan. And now in this new game, we are introduced to Hawaii, a completely new map. Japan, despite being an already familiar map, you can explore it fully, look for the enemies that only exist there, among other things.
However, what's really new is the map of Hawaii, obviously with a completely new look and equally new enemies. The feeling I got was that this map is much more alive, the NPCs who walk around are very different, much more varied, there are more cars, also varied, more accessible environments, including a shopping mall with a wide variety of stores.
In the first game we had a large map, which we had to walk/run across, or use cabs to make a quick trip. In this game, we have the introduction of a type of scooter, the kind you see security guards use in shopping malls, you know? You can use them to get around more quickly, but not freely. This is because it has a battery, which can only be recharged by paying.
One (many) game within another
Another evolution we've seen in the game is in its minigames... For those who know the franchise, you'll know that minigames are something very present in Yakuza and fun to the point of getting stuck into them for hours and hours. In Infinite Wealth, it couldn't be any different and, in fact, the scale is much larger, as the minigames are much more complex.
This game has taken a lot of inspiration from real life, and much of this is visible in the minigames. There's a minigame that simulates a Tinder-style dating app, with surprisingly complex interactions. There's one that has you making deliveries in the best Crazy Taxi style.
And among the minigames, there's one that's very similar to Animal Crossing, with all its complexities. The minigames are truly impressive, to say the least. Oh, and let's not forget the Sujimon tournaments present in the game, very similar to Pokemon, but with their own peculiarities. And in addition to all these minigames (and many others), there are a multitude of collectibles scattered around the map.
A makeover
Changing the subject a little, let's move on to the technical side of the game, starting with the simplest part: its soundtrack. The game's famous soundtrack is exactly what we're used to seeing in the franchise, with little or nothing new. It's far from bad, but also far from amazing. But it does its job well.
But if we talk about the visuals, we've really seen an improvement. The difference from one game to the next isn't absurd, but it's very noticeable. The characters have more detail, as does the map (which does have a good difference). The world, as already mentioned, is more alive, and with that, we have a greater presence of characters on the map, more animals, among other things.
This game also introduced the swimming mechanic, and the water is very satisfactory. If we compare it with some games on the market, the water in this game is infinitely inferior, but this is one of the most difficult mechanics to implement, and for a first attempt, it's very good.
Although the game is very realistic in its visuals, when we talk about effects and particles, we get a much more cartoonish look. An example of this is the blood in the game, which despite conveying the weight it needs to bring, is visually very simple and ends up clashing a little with the look of the game.
This is my first time playing a game from the main Yakuza franchise at 60FPS, as I started playing the previous game on PS4 and it doesn't have the function of transferring the save to PS5. And well, the difference of playing in this frame rate is absurd and finally in this game there is the possibility of transferring the save between the consoles.
Giant is the definition of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
But if there's one thing that's the franchise's strong point, it's its story. And this game couldn't be any different. Well, as usual, I won't comment too deeply on the story to avoid (more) spoilers in this text, but superficially speaking, the story of this game is impeccable, worthy of the franchise.
As usual with oriental games, there are a lot of filler moments, but we still have a very complete story. At first, I thought it was nice, but different from what I was used to. However, as the story progressed, I saw more and more of the franchise's signature.
The story surprised me because it has a much greater weight than the other games I had played. Not that the other games are light, but this one has some very dark moments and deals with heavier themes than I expected. And it's excellent, with well-written characters, a mystery that keeps you on your toes, several twists and turns and lots of fights.
Having said that, again, there's no more accurate definition than the one I mentioned earlier: this game is simply GIANT! You'll find hours and hours of content, lots of fun, you'll laugh, you'll cry and in the end you'll miss it. And that's exactly why this franchise is so incredible. This is certainly one of the biggest games of the year and deserves to be experienced by everyone who can.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is now available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. Key sent by SEGA Brazil!
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