PlayStation Plus has been adding games to the various tiers of its revamped service this year, and that looks set to continue with the Yakuza franchise. Sony Interactive Entertainment has now announced that all eight mainline Yakuza games will be added to PlayStation Plus this year. Half of them, including Yakuza: Like a Dragon, will be released in August.
The most recent entry in the franchise, Yakuza: Like a Dragon, is going to be available to all PlayStation Plus members as part of the free games being provided on the PlayStation Plus Essentials tier for August.
Then, as part of Sony’s monthly release of new games for PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium subscribers, players will be able to download and play Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami, and Yakuza Kiwami 2 in August.
Later in 2022, PlayStation Plus Premium members will be able to access Yakuza 3 Remastered, Yakuza 4 Remastered, and Yakuza 5 Remastered. Yakuza 6: The Song of Life will be available to members of both the Extra and Premium tiers.
Developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku and published by Sega, the Yakuza games have been going strong for a while now thanks to its well-written stories, compelling worlds, and hard-hitting combat. The series has been gaining popularity in the West in recent years, perhaps aided by the franchise also being available on Xbox Game Pass recently too.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon was met with a lot of praise for its new turn-based combat system and shift to a JRPG structure. Ryu Ga Gotoku has been working on a direct sequel to Like a Dragon, and it seems like some images of the new game were leaked recently. MMA fighter, Mikuru Asakura, posted photos that appeared to be screenshots of cutscenes within the new game while he was on a tour of the studio.
Ryu Ga Gotoku also confirmed that it is working on a new game that isn’t part of either the Judgement or Yakuza franchises. This could be related to some ongoing issues with the actor who played the lead character in both Judgement games.