Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth: Thoughts & Review

 Spoilers from throughout the Like a Dragon/Yakuza franchise

Man 25th January 2024 was a fun one. Both Like a Dragon 8 & Tekken 8 both releasing on the same date I had to make a decision on what one to play first. Deciding narrative over fighting I started Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth and now just making the final preperations for the final bosses of the game I feel I made a good choice in what game to start (full disclosure I think Tekken 8 is good and the small amount I played I really enjoyed).

Being at the end of the game and unfortunately the ending spoilt in some capacity I end up looking to the future. Becomming the series fastest-selling game to date with over 1 million units in the first week we can expect Like a Dragon 9 at some point in the future. So I wanted to go over Like a Dragon 8, what I felt and what I hope for in the future. 

With an expanded map and roster of party members I expect us to be visting both Hawaii and Isezaki Ijincho again for the next game, this series loves its reuse of places outside of Onomichi from Yakuza 6 the new places of Yakuza 5 in Nagasugai Kineicho & Tsukimino (I'll get to Okinawa later) and I do think there's still more that can be done with both maps. It is also an interesting move to have the series leave Japan for a large part of this but I felt it served well. Hawaii felt new and with that a new story could be told. I don't think a new big setting is needed every game but I do think it should be something considered maybe for 10. All enviorments are full of charm and nostalgia in the game apart from Hawaii which I think has all the makings to become a series favourite place to use going forward. 

The new case of characters are great and continue to the difference of show Ichiban draws people to his side and accepts their aid in conjunction with how Kiryu always seemed to run headfirst alone into any issue. The new party members are good and I'm glade we finally get more of Seonhee with her being a party member this time. As far is character in Ijincho there's not a lot who are more important then her and to see her character develop is fun. Tomizawa is a character I found myself really liking by the end of his arc and he acts as a catalyst for the good Ichiban can bring to the people of Hawaii, his development from shady run of the mill crook to being able to stand against the fiercest of foes and I do hope we see more from him in the future. Unfortunately, I do believe as far as being playable I think it might be a one and done for Chitose. While I don't hate her character I do find her the quick forgiveness for here being Tatara to be a move and one that I guess fills into Ichiban's influence as a character (although her reveal was good at Tatara was good). Her story end becomming the head of her families business ventures which I imagine takes a lot of time. I can see her as a supporting character (even a poundmates summon) in 9 but as a part member I would be surprised if she did return (even if she did I imagine it wouldn't be until late game).

But I can't move on from the new characters until I talk about the best one in Yutaka Yamai. The patriarch starts off like most other antagonistic character full of bloddlust and an imposing force, however, as the came goes on that resolve fads away from his actions and the sacrifices he makes to help Ichiban and party. Be it his admiration for Kiryu and not killing him, his constant help for Ichiban sheltering Masumi and Lani all the way to his ending getting everyone out of Hawaii at the cost of confessing to the very murder he fled arrest for 30 years ago and the story which made him a big name in the Hawaii underworld. I went into this game thinking about if we would ever get a Majima counterpart to Ichiban's Kiryu and I feel like Yamai is the one. A signature weapon in his crowbar and scarred by a past love which they mask by extreme method and personality. Yamai isn't the eccentric one if anything his serious overtone makes him feel like Kiryu to Ichiban's excitable personality. I love the dynamic of Yamai and Ichiban throughout the game and seeing as the character has become arguably the most popular new addition to the game. I feel like they'll find a way to work him back in, maybe there's an international conspiracy that only Ichiban and friends can solve and as part of that Uamai is giving a release to aid (I just want those Ichiban & Yamai drink links). I want to take a comment from reddit on Yamai from 'Hot-Pirate9874' which I think helps sums up the dynamic:

'I found the idea of like “Majima but for Ichi” to be a lot deeper than I thought it would be. My first instinct was “ok so he’s always like deathly serious because Ichi is so goofy” but it’s not overly like that. It’s more to do with how much they share. For how close Majima and Kiryu are, Majima has never told Kiryu about his side of 0 and the only point we ever got of Majima revealing his past was to other characters in 4 and 5. There’s a lot more subterfuge and layers in Kiryu / Majima but I found the like pure honesty and realism of Ichiban / Yamai very interesting. I thought Yamai worked so well because it felt like he knew that Ichiban was seeing all the stuff that’s happened to him and was willing to make an exception for him. Plus there’s the two-sides-of-a-coin aspect, the guy who loves his patriarch and takes the fall vs the guy who commits patricide and is betrayed. Overall I’m a huge fan, he’s up there with some of my faves already and I hope he is playable at some point in Yakuza 9 or 10.'

With Bryce not landing for me all that much and Dwight just really being a henchman with a famous face I think Yamai helps carry Hawaii for me and he needs more. If I could ask for anything in Like a Dragon 9 it would be Yamai playable party member.

Now let's talk about Kazuma Kiryu. Going into the game I thought we would end with a final fight Kiryu saving the day one last time giving his life and passing the torch right to Ichiban. And well then he didn't. At first I didn't like this, Ichiban can never be the protagonist until Kiryu isn't there and felt it was the wrong thing to do. However, the bucket list and memory links changed my mind. Kiryu's story starts with him accepting death, completing one last mission and be done but it changes as we see the scale of the lives Kiryu has changed. While it was great for some of the major character like Date and finally letting Akiyama get closure on Kiryu being alive but it was the smaller stories which really got me. Shizuko the girl which Kiryu (as Ono Michi) helped get over her fear of sugery growing up and seeing Kiryu thanking him for what he did & Nakajima the taxi driver who saved Kiryu's life in 5 finding out he's still alive and able to pass on a message are my two favourites. They aren't major characters or featured in many games but I think it helps to show Kiryu the scale of his actions and change his perception on life. I now think it's good he's still alive maybe now with the ending that he and Haruka will be reunited and he will live out the rest of his days in Okinawa. Or he will make a miracle recovery and be back for 9 I'm not sure I think you have to look at both angles that Kiryu is seen as a major character and it's a risk to end his stroy after 9 games and what if you get it wrong? I dunno we will see I guess but I think the way they handled it made me change my mind on thinking it was a waste keeping Kiryu alive. 

One final thing I want to talk about is how since Lost Judgement there's been an effort to connect the worlds of Judgement and Like a Dragon. Zhao having a cameo in Lost Judgement, the Kaito substory in Gaiden and now seeing Tsukumo & Sugiura briefly and being referred to as detectives it's nice for a full world to recognise its parts. I don't think we will get a Yagami and Kiryu/Ichiban meetup but the confusion and debate over if each story was canon to the other seems to be resolved now which I like. Let the world have more than one story and have that impact everything. It's nice that RGG Studios is seemingly doing this while not in a major way it's nice to be recognised. It does make me wonder if now we can really have the world have another story, if RGG is going to try something I can see them having an American portagonist for a spin off game using Hawaii in a big to branch out with a western focused game. It's interesting and as RGG always seem to have my money I look forward to the future. 

Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth is packed full of the things which made a suprising change of combat and portagonsit fun while adding onto those with a new map and ideas. This series might be my favourite going and this entry is high on the list for me. LArgly good cast of new major characters and a fun story made this a good time. I look forward to how the story of this world RGG has created continues to evolve in the future.