Waves crash against the hull of a ship that looks like it could have been plucked straight from the 17th century, seagulls scream overhead, and a figure wearing a Hawaiian-print shirt sits at the controls. Not exactly what you would expect after meeting Goro Majima, arguably one of the most popular characters in Like a dragon but it sets the tone. Polygon was invited to a recent hands-on demo to get a taste of what Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii would have in store — and this is the story of Majima, on the bottom and out, on his way to becoming the greatest pirate the world has ever seen. That’s all Like a dragon what fans could expect.
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is as absurd as you might expect – it is Like a dragon game, and Goro Majima is the protagonist, so it’s only natural that Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio would go for it. Majima is probably one of the few characters in the series to receive complete character arcs full of the most emotional moments Like a dragon games have seen. But not here! At least not in this preview. Instead, Majima and the gang head to the city of Madlantis, another hazardous underground city full of violence and filled to the brim with other scoundrels, most of whom are not dressed like Gore Verbinski’s Party City Jack Sparrow Pirates of the Caribbean. Just like Like a dragon: infinite wealththe non-Japanese characters are an approximation of what Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios has created to more or less fit the average Like a Dragon trip: wandering tourists, a few locals scattered here and there, and throngs of thugs ready to beat you up because you looked at them comical or because they want to kick a fallen man. It’s very much a video game city.
Compared to Madlantis, Honolulu isn’t all that electrifying, and during my playthrough of the game’s preview, I mostly found myself bouncing around the city with my fearless child companion and his Bengal tiger kitten, singing along to Majima’s best karaoke hits — including “24-Hour Cinderella” from Yakuza0 — or change Majima’s look in a poorly constructed changing room. You can run around shirtless with a grimace of the white Hannya face tattooed on Mad Dog’s back for all to see, or you might want to slip back into that iconic snakeskin leather jacket, leather pants, and silver-toed boots and all. I chose Yakuza0 look, because it reminded me of better times in the series. I was also desperate to chase that feeling after cutting up Keith, a generic-looking pirate with a tricorn hat who somehow got on Majima’s bad side. I’m sure that will be explained in the full game and will probably have more significance.
You see, while Majima is aging like the rest of us and has reached the age of 60, that doesn’t mean he’s any less spry. Mad Dog of Shimano is still capable of learning a few up-to-date tricks, and with his Sea Dog fighting style, he wields a pair of broadswords and a 17th-century hand cannon. All of his attacks are as rapid as they are deadly, and you can employ the wire to throw yourself at enemies with reckless abandon. There are also some air combos that are fun and feel a bit too powerful, but I won’t complain about the game adopting a policy of coolness for one of its most popular characters. But if you want a return to the familiar—something that will take you back to Yakuza0 or this Yakuza2 additional scenario – you can revert to Majima’s signature Mad Dog fighting style to tear through enemies with a tanto in hand. It’s not as crazy as in previous games, but you can summon doppelgangers and employ a frosty spinning attack to send enemies flying or kill them instantly. I can confirm that the up-to-date “Receive You” remix plays in Mad Dog’s style, and the music in Sea Dog isn’t bad either. It’s not the same intrusive EDM OST that plagued Infinite wealth and seems a bit subdued.
After I slaughtered Keith and his crew, I searched what I could in Madlantis. It’s not like the other crime-ridden underground areas in previous Like a dragon games. It’s muddy, rusty and a patchwork of ships gathered from the proverbial graveyard. Neon lights illuminate the crumbling buildings, reflecting off the surface of the water, on which everything floats precariously. It’s not like Purgatory from the original Yakuzaor Castle with Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name. It wasn’t flashy or showy. Oddly enough, it was a nice change from what I’m used to, and I was willing to give Madlantis a chance, even if I could only try it a little bit. I didn’t get to participate in the ship battles to make Majima the most feared pirate on the seven seas, or steer my own ship through the waters of Honolulu, but those options will be available in the full game.
Like a Dragon: Yakuza in Hawaii I really feel like Gaiden game, something that was meant to fill the gap between releases, to satisfy the hunger of a growing up-to-date audience. Or to lure away long-time fans who had otherwise grown tired of the series and just wanted to play as Majima one last time. There were a lot of shortcomings and a lot of reuse of assets, which isn’t always a bad thing, but the Dragon Engine (which the team first used for Yakuza6 in 2016) is really starting to show its age. It’s strange why Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio didn’t switch to Unreal Engine 5 like they did with Like a Dragon: Ishinwhich looks like a step above Yakuza in Hawaii. At least I can’t say it’s more of the same, as the change in protagonist and return to more action-oriented combat feels refreshing.
