We’re happy to announce that SEGA / Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s Yakuza series is headed to Xbox One and Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami, and Yakuza Kiwami 2 (the first three titles in the series, chronologically) will be available on the Microsoft Store and with Xbox Game Pass for Console and Xbox Game Pass for PC (Beta) in early 2020!
This series began in Japan nearly 14 years ago, and it’s slowly built up a cult following in the West; we’re excited to have the opportunity to finally introduce Xbox fans to this bizarre and fascinating series. It’s probably not what you expect, unless you expect a session of Yakuza 0 to have you cap off a night of bowling by hiring a chicken as your real estate manager, so let’s get right into it:
What is Yakuza?
To put it simply, Yakuza is a series of duality. On one side you have a serious, emotional crime drama. Protagonist Kazuma Kiryu finds himself embroiled in massive conflicts between the two biggest yakuza organizations in Japan time after time. On the other side, you have vibrant,
authentic, and often hilarious adventures through Japan’s seedy underbelly. The setting, mostly taking place in the city of Kamurocho which changes and evolves throughout the series, plays host to countless quirky characters. They’re just as likely to pick a fight with you as they are to ask for help getting dirty magazines out of a vending machine or managing their hostess club.
Yakuza is also full of popular Japanese pastimes in the form of its numerous minigames. Belt out a few tunes in the karaoke rhythm game, play a few rounds of shogi (think Japanese chess), or hop over to Club SEGA for an arcade blast from the past – you can sink hours and thousands of yen into various installments of Virtua Fighter, Space Harrier, and many
more.
What really sets Yakuza apart is its heart – the character and personality that runs through every facet of the game. Despite these people being what we traditionally think of as “gangsters,” they aren’t afraid to put their lives on the line for the honor of the yakuza way, and to protect the people they care about.
To sum it up, Yakuza is an action game, sure, and you could blast through the entire main story of most installments in the series in 15-20 hours or so (which is still pretty meaty!). However, don’t be surprised if you end up finishing a playthrough of Yakuza 0 with 100-150 hours on your save, with fond memories of bulldozing through battalion-sized groups of thugs with nothing but a traffic cone, protecting a man as he moonwalks down a busy street. We hope Xbox fans enjoy their intro to this incredible series when Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami, and Yakuza Kiwami 2 comes to Xbox and is
available with Xbox Game Pass for Console and PC in early 2020.
For one final welcome to the world of Yakuza, we have a brief message from SEGA Chief Creative Officer Toshihiro Nagoshi:
“I want to personally welcome Xbox fans to the world of Yakuza. This series is something I’m so proud to work on – we’ve spent so many years developing the thrilling city of Kamurocho and the many personalities that inhabit it, and I can’t wait for you to jump in, so please enjoy.”
What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments!