Why Yakuza Games Are Now Called like a Dragon

A week ago, Sega announced a spin-off game from the Yakuza series called Like a Dragon: Ishin!. Shortly after, Sega revealed the eighth entry in the main series. This new game isn’t titled Yakuza 8, but Like a Dragon 8, revealing the series’ name change in the West. During Tokyo Game Show, various outlets had the opportunity to discuss this name change with Sega, who revealed the reasons why Yakuza became Like a Dragon.

If Yakuza games are popular in the West, they are known as Ryu Ga Gotoku in Japan, which roughly translates to “like a dragon.” Sega tried bringing this name to its Western localization with Yakuza: Like a Dragon in 2020. 

In an interview with IGN, RGG Studio Executive Producer and Director Masayoshi Yokoyama explained the move from Yakuza games to Like a Dragon.

“In [Yakuza 7], it was Yakuza: Like A Dragon, and so we figured if we release this game suddenly out of nowhere with no Yakuza in it, people would be like, ‘What’s this game? What’s going on with this?’… The response to the Like A Dragon name seemed pretty good, so it gave us the confidence to take out “Yakuza” and just go straight on with Like A Dragon,” Yokoyama said.

If this name change brings the series’ title “more closely align[ed] with the Japanese name” according to Sega, it also serves a narrative purpose.

“Story-wise too, we are talking about the criminal underworld, but we’re not talking about Yakuza, really,” Yokoyama said. “So it just makes sense for us not to include them in the name. If we carry through the accent, we’d be Yakuza: Ishin! It’s not Yakuza: Ishin! That’s not what it’s about. So Like A Dragon: Ishin! makes more sense.”

Like A Dragon: Ishin! doesn’t follow the story of yakuza members like the previous entries in the series. The game is set in the 19th century, in the late Edo Period. A coup d’état is threatening the peace of the feodal domain of Tosa. Sakamoto Ryoma sets off on a quest to find out who is responsible for this uprising and get his revenge on the murderer of his mentor, a government minister.

If Ryoma was a real historical character, his face in Like A Dragon: Ishin! is well-known by Yakuza fans. He bears the traits of Kazuma Kiryu, who starred in all previous Yakuza games. Most of his crew will also be by his side in Like A Dragon: Ishin!.

The upcoming Like A Dragon: Ishin! is a remake of Ryu ga Gotoku Ishin!, a 2014 video game that served as a launch title for the PlayStation 4 in Japan. Like A Dragon: Ishin! will launch on February 21, 2023 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC via Steam.