While there’s definitely been some confusing branding with the series (RGG Studio wants it known as “Like A Dragon”, but they keep releasing “Yakuza” games), Sega has done a solid job making Like A Dragon more “mainstream.” They’ve done such a solid job that they’ve managed to alienate a lot of veteran fans in the process. Unfortunately the studio’s latest release, Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties, has been caught in fires Sega would rather not be in.
Like Yakuza Kiwami 1 and 2 before it, Yakuza Kiwami 3 is a souped up remake of Yakuza 3. The first two Kiwami games were made to bring Yakuza 0’s control scheme to the originals and modernize them. Kiwami 3 follows suit despite Yakuza 3 Remastered already existing and cleaning the gameplay up.
At that, many fans consider Yakuza 3 to be the weakest game in the series even with the remaster. How can it be sold? Giving the package much-needed value is Dark Ties, a new and original Yakuza experience that puts players in the shoes of Yoshitaka Mine, one of the key players in the plot of Yakuza 3.
Catching Up With Kiwami 3
Yakuza 3 had its faults, but its story was a breath of fresh air. Following the events of Yakuza 2, Kazuma Kiryu left his life as a yakuza and moved to Okinawa with his adopted daughter Haruka to start the Morning Glory orphanage. As a fully fledged civilian, Kiryu has gone full parent mode as the owner of the orphanage.
Back in Tokyo, the Tojo clan, under seventh chairman Daigo Kojima, is hurting financially. The easiest way to get out of that hole is with a politically charged land acquisition in Okinawa. But what’s in Okinawa? Morning Glory, and it’s right in the center of where Japan wants to build. As you’d expect, Kiryu won’t budge. Classic Yakuza storytelling happens from here, with your typical mix of seriousness and silliness. You already know Kiryu is going to beat a bunch of guys up in the story. Still, this is a Kiwami game, so let’s talk about the biggest changes.
Cozy Kiwami
The most unique part about Yakuza 3 was Morning Glory, and Kiwami makes it an even bigger highlight. As mentioned, Kiryu goes full daddy mode having to take care of nine kids including Haruka. Early on in the game, you notice Haruka going the extra mile as a caretaker. Being the dad that he is, Kiryu does his best to alleviate some of that burden. At Morning Glory, Kiryu can fish, farm, cook, catch bugs, help with schoolwork, play games and even sew to see his kids smile.
It’s like how Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth decided to put their own version of Animal Crossing in the game with Dondoko Island. Kiryu’s time in Morning Glory gives Kiwami 3 a cozy feel. That cozy feel is so well done that it’s easy to spend countless hours taking care of the kids. All the activities from fishing to sewing we talked about earlier? They’re minigames.
When fishing, it’s about how much fish Kiryu can spear in a limited time. Farming is reliant on Kiryu planting and harvesting crops both to cook and sell. Selling the crops generates profits for the orphanage to be self-sustaining. Cooking is the same bunch of microgames borrowed from Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. Catching bugs is another timed minigame, except here, you’re competing with the other kids to catch bugs too. Helping with homework consists of timed trivia. There’s a board game to play with the kids. And lastly, there’s a sewing minigame to create different apparel to sell.
When engaging in any of the above minigames you’ll earn money and resources. Funnily enough, both can be exchanged at the Requests Board to earn even more money and resources. It’s an endless but rewarding loop that adds a considerable amount of fat to the game. At least it’s stuff that’s enjoyable.
Kiwami Filler
While Morning Glory had claws firmly on my playthrough, much of the new content in Kiwami 3 felt like bloat. There’s another secondary plotline in Kiwami 3 called Bad Boy Dragon. Early on, as you really explore Okinawa, you’ll come across the Tokyo Night Terrors. They’re a gang wreaking havoc on the streets of Okinawa, attacking women for no reason other than to be jerks.
This causes you to join the Haisai Girls and engage in Turf Wars with other Okinawan gangs in what’s pretty much a PvE subset very similar to the crew battles found in Pirate Yakuza. Like those pirate crew battles, they’re really just horde battles. Is there much of a reason to take part in them aside from earning in-game currency? No. To make matters worse, one chapter in the game forces you to take part in this for way too long before moving on with the main story.
This is Yakuza Kiwami 3’s biggest problem. Whether it’s Morning Glory or Bad Boy Dragon, the game forces you to level up in both these metas before making substantial progress in the campaign. That’s annoying whether you’ve experienced Yakuza 3 before or not, and it really bogs down the experience. The bounties, photo hunt, and random social networking found in Pirate Yakuza and Infinite Wealth? It’s all here too, so you’ll have to go through a lot of filler to get that Platinum.
Dark Ties
The biggest reason fans will be interested in this game is Dark Ties. Dark Ties is heavily promoted as its own game, but it really just feels like optional DLC.
Dark Ties puts you in the shoes of Yoshitaka Mine, one of Yakuza 3’s most beloved villains. It begins by going over his origins and how he moved up the Yakuza ranks to become Chairman of the Hakuho Clan. Those that really care about the character will find a lot here in these three chapters, but the gameplay is quite lackluster.
Dark Ties is as close to Kiwami 3 as it gets, including the bad and mandatory repetitive stuff. The main thing you’ll be doing in Dark Ties is raising the public reputation of Tsuyoshi Kanda, another of the secondary antagonists in Yakuza 3. To do that, you’ll need to save civilians from criminals, bullies, and other yakuza, do good deeds, and other sidequests of typical silly and serious Yakuza nature. At the end of the day, all you’re really doing is running around Kamurocho, talking to people, beating people up, or doing fetch quests until the game tells you it’s okay to move on with the plot. There’s even an optional-but-required roguelite subplot you’ll be introduced to that’s an unapologetic ripoff of Squid Game.
While being able to fight as Mine and build another skill tree was intriguing, he ultimately wasn’t as fun to use as Kiryu. The result just feels like even more fluff to go along with the filler you just finished. The devs intend people play Dark Ties after finishing Kiwami 3. I just wouldn’t suggest marathoning the two because of their repetitiveness, even with Dark Ties being less than five hours.
Controversy
I’d be remiss to not at least mention the controversy RGG Studio is facing with the Yakuza series. Sega recasted two pivotal characters in Yakuza 3, and it was an unnecessary move on its own. To make things worse, Japanese actor Teruyuki Kagawa was cast to play the villain Goh Hamazaki. In 2019, Kagawa was involved in a scandal that he admitted to in 2022 involving forcing himself on a hostess. There have since been several pleas on the internet and social media to get Sega to recast him again.
There was nothing wrong with the original model and actor (I’d even argue the original model looked more conniving), so I don’t understand why RGG and Sega felt the need to go with this casting. On top of this, despite the backlash, Sega doubled down on the marketing with a video that prominently featured the recast. It wouldn’t surprise me to see sales for this game falter as a result at this point.
Verdict
Getting back to the game, the best thing about the package is that it’s a full on Yakuza. At the same time, as fun as some of the sidequests can be, even as someone that didn’t play the original Yakuza 3, I went through some of these sequences thinking “this is so unnecessary” or “wait, I already did this in the last game.” I’m okay with recycling assets, but you don’t have to do it so consecutively. How many times do we need a side story regarding a Segway prototype?
What honestly could’ve been a valiant attempt at improving people’s least favorite game in the series ended up being a release that will undoubtedly be the most divisive, and the worst part is it isn’t even all related to gameplay. At the end of the day, as a whole, I did enjoy playing Yakuza Kiwami 3 and Dark Ties, especially when it came to bonding with the kids at Morning Glory, but I wouldn’t recommend getting this game at full price or even half price.
Score: 6/10
Review code provided by Sega. Reviewed on PS5.
