Microsoft has dropped a huge bombshell on Tokyo Game Show for Yakuza / Like A Dragon fans.
As shared by Klobrille, both Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name and Like A Dragon: Ishin! are coming to Game Pass. Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is coming on September 9, 2023, making it a Day One game. In the meantime, Like A Dragon: Ishin!, which was published exclusively on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 all the way back in 2014, is coming to Xbox for the first time, also in 2023.
This follows moves Sega and Microsoft made last year, to make the mainline Yakuza / Like A Dragon games available, not only on Xbox, but on Game Pass. As of this writing, Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami and Yakuza Kiwami 2, and Yakuza 3 to 6, and Yakuza: Like A Dragon are all available on Game Pass.
For those who are unaware, Yakuza Kiwami and Yakuza Kiwami 2 are complete remakes of Yakuza and Yakuza 2. These first two games were originally published on PlayStation 2.
That makes the main story of the Yakuza / Like A Dragon franchise playable on Game Pass. Now, it has to be said that Judgement and Lost Judgement, the two Yakuza / Like A Dragon spinoff games, are available on Xbox, but they are not part of Game Pass.
So we can’t say that all Yakuza games or all of the Yakuza storyline is on Game Pass, but it’s hard to argue that Game Pass subscribers would somehow be getting ripped off of this. If Game Pass subscribers become sufficiently huge fans of the franchise to want to play Judgement and Lost Judgement, they can just buy the games themselves, and maybe wait on a sale.
It’s also clear why these two incoming games are getting published on Xbox and Game Pass this year in particular. As we had reported, Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth will release on January 26, 2024. Sega and Microsoft have probably already a penned a deal for this game.
So, don’t be surprised if it turns out that Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth will be an early year present for Game Pass subscribers, free alongside every other Yakuza / Like A Dragon mainline game in the franchise. This is already more than what Nintendo, who is strong in their native Japan, has for the Yakuza / Like A Dragon games on their platforms.
Now that may not necessarily mean that Microsoft will immediately become competitive in Japan, but the company is clearly making the right moves in this direction.
