Sega explains why it’s officially ditching the Yakuza name for Like a Dragon

By Tomas Franzese September 14, 2022

The Yakuza name is no more, as Sega plans to officially rebrand the series of crime dramas under the franchise name “Like a Dragon” moving forward — a move that became apparent with the reveal of three new games prior to this year’s Tokyo Game Show. Speaking to Digital Trends, a Sega of America representative confirmed the reason for the name change.

“I can confirm the series will be known as “Like a Dragon” moving forward to more closely align with the Japanese name,” a representative for Sega of America tells Digital Trends.

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In Japan, Sega has called the series Ryū ga Gotoku since its inception in 2005, and that phrase is even the namesake of developer RGG Studio. “Ryū ga Gotoku” translates to “like a dragon” in English, but Sega decided to call the series Yakuza when it brought the first game to the West in 2006. Now that the series is more popular than ever and largely moved on from telling stories directly focused on the Yakuza, it makes sense for Sega to give the series a similar title in all regions. Sega localization producer Scott Strichart pointed out on Twitter that 2020’s Yakuza: Like a Dragon foreshadowed the change by naming a chapter “Chapter 12: The End of Yakuza.” Strichart is not involved with the localization of upcoming Like a Dragon titles.

I don't know how we could have been any clearer pic.twitter.com/tc4WuU89OA
— Scott Strichart (@TriggerRedd) September 14, 2022

Three Like a Dragon games are in the works for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Like a Dragon: Ishin will be the first one of them to release, as it launches on February 23, 2023. Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name follows later next year, while Like a Dragon 8 continues the mainline series in 2024.

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As a Gaming Staff Writer on Digital Trends, Tomas Franzese reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…

Gaming

All Gold Ball locations in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

Kiryu listens to a message in his earpiece in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name.

Every time Kiryu thinks he's out, the Yakuza life pulls him back in. This once again rings true in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, where we follow Kiryu after his last adventure, but before Ichiban takes up the mantle in Like a Dragon and the upcoming Infinite Wealth. Unlike the majority of the games in the series, you won't be running around the iconic Kamurocho, but mostly Sotenbori, Isezaki Ijincho, and the Castle. What remains the same is the numerous side stories and optional tasks that, for whatever reason, always seem to present themselves to the stoic and brooding Kiryu. One of those this time around is the "Gotta Catch Some Balls!" request given via the new Akame Network where you need to locate seven golden balls hidden around the maps. These are well-hidden little treasures in very dense locations, so here's the location of all seven in Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name.
All gold ball locations

The first six of seven balls can be obtained as soon as you have access to the location they're in. The seventh and final one is tied to a Stroll n' Patrol request that only appears later in the game as a reward.
Sotenbori gold ball locations
No. 1: At the southwest end of W. Shofukucho Street, enter the Kiss Shot Billiards & Bar. This ball is one of the prizes you can get by exchanging 777 points, so play a few rounds to save up.

Gaming

Don’t miss Like a Dragon Gaiden’s hilarious ChatGPT side-story

Chot DDT in Like a Dragon Gaiden.

Substories often feature some of the best and funniest parts of the Like a Dragon games, and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is no different. From one that crosses over with Judgment to another where players fight a bunch of overweight criminals who call themselves the White Knights, the game is full of memorable side-quests. My favorite substory from Like a Dragon Gaiden -- and possibly the entire series -- stands out because it takes on something that’s been a hot topic in the tech space for the past year: ChatGPT.

AI has been the biggest buzzword in tech industries for the past year; just earlier this week, Microsoft announced it plans to partner with Inworld AI to create game-writing AI technology. There are plenty of controversial and potentially unethical uses of AI that people are wary of and unpacking. Like a Dragon Gaiden’ uses its signature brand of social satire to lampoon AI from a specific angle: by showing how bad AI is at giving dating advice.

Gaming

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will kick off a crowded 2024 for RPG lovers

Ichiban fights a guy with a machete in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

Sega released two lengthy new trailers for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth as part of its latest RGG Summit. We not only got more plot and story details about the upcoming Like a Dragon title but a release date as well: January 26, 2024.

Previously, the game only had a vague "early 2024" release date that developers use for games coming out anytime from January to May, so this release date is a bit sooner than expected for the game. It also means that Infinite Wealth launches on the same day as Tekken 8 and arrives ahead of some other highly anticipated RPGs next year, like Granblue Fantasy: Relink, Persona 3 Reload, and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
A ten-minute story trailer for Infinite Wealth confirmed lots of new story details, which you might want to avoid if you don't want spoilers. If you don't mind, the trailer reveals that Ichiban is in Honolulu City to find his mother after losing his job and hitting a rough patch in his relationship with Saeko. Meanwhile, Kiryu has been diagnosed with cancer, and it's revealed to the public that he's just in hiding, not dead. From there, the trailer continues to tease yet another wild story centered around taking on organized crime that features characters from across the entire series.
LIKE A DRAGON: INFINITE WEALTH | STORY TRAILER
As for the gameplay trailer, it confirms that most of the game takes place in Hawaii, which has been recreated with a dynamic weather system. It also confirms that Infinite Wealth is a turn-based RPG like its predecessor, although Kiryu can "awaken his fighting spirit" to temporarily fight enemies in real time. The job system and Poundmates also return and players can obtain them by doing various jobs around Hawaii. There are also tons of weird minigames for things like being a bike courier, Sujimon battles, and online dating.
LIKE A DRAGON: INFINITE WEALTH | GAMEPLAY REVEAL TRAILER
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth launches for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on January 26, 2024. If you want to play some of the game a bit early, a demo for it will be included with this November's Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name.