Although PS5 players are still waiting forYakuza: Like a Dragonto drop in 2021, the majority of fans have likely at least started the game by now. This has given a fair amount of time for players to get accustomed to the latest protagonist, Ichiban Kasuga, and with any luck they like him, as he doesn’t seem likely to be departing the role anytime soon.
Following the events ofYakuza6, the game series has changed direction, moving to an RPG format and shaking up the core cast of playable characters. With prior protagonist Kazuma Kiryu’s story having come to a close, it seems that players should expect Ichiban to be a series fixture for at least a decade.
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This comes courtesy of a translated interview with Famitsu, where the voice actor of Ichiban Kasuga, Kazuhiro Nakaya, and Kiryu, Takaya Kuroda, sat down to discuss the history of the series andwhereYakuzais going from here. According to Nakaya, at one point theYakuzaseries creator, Toshihiro Nagoshi, pulled him aside and stated that “Nakaya, you’re gonna help me make my living for the next ten years.”
As thenextYakuzagame is already in development, it seems that Sega and the Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio have high hopes and faith in the franchise as a whole, with even the series creator predicting its future ten years out with this statement. Of course, the comment could have simply been made in jest or passing, as the series has previously pivoted away from Kiryu, at least partially, offering multiple protagonists to play as in a variety of games, including thehighly-praisedYakuza 0, only to return to his character later on.
Of course, some long-time players may be disappointed to learn that there doesn’t seem to be much of a likelihood of Kiryu returning to the forefront. Kiryu’s voice actor, Kuroda, noted that the franchise was due for freshening up, but doesn’t seem to be giving up on the idea of returning as Kiryu in the future. He noted that he would “have to maintain a level of sophistication in my life so as not to embarrass Kiryu if I were to be called upon going forward.”
While PS5 players are still waiting for the chance to meet newcomer Ichiban Kasuga in next-gen quality, PC and Xbox players who haven’t gotten to complete Kiryu’s story will be getting their chance soon. Remastered versions ofYakuza 3, 4, and 5,as well asYakuza 6,will be coming to the PCand Xbox One starting in early 2021, rounding out his character arc.
Yakuza: Like a Dragonis available now for PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S, with a PS5 version set to release on June 15, 2025.
