Category: Games

Celebrating Like a Dragon & Yakuza’s 20th Anniversary: New Games Out Today, and What’s Coming Next

Stacy DeVeraSr. Communications Manager, Sega

Summary

RGG Studio’s developers celebrate the Like a Dragon & Yakuza series’ 20^th Anniversary, and reflect on its growth in the West.
Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut, plus new versions of Yakuza Kiwami & Yakuza Kiwami 2 arrive today for Xbox Series X|S.
Fans can look forward to Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties when it releases on February 12, 2026.

Today marks the 20^th Anniversary of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio’s acclaimed Like a Dragon & Yakuza series, with Sega releasing three games for players around the world to enjoy – Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut, plus new versions of Yakuza Kiwami & Yakuza Kiwami 2 for Xbox Series X|S.

The critically acclaimed origin story, Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut features newly added cutscenes, an online co-operative ‘Red Light Raid’ mode, a new English dub, and added text language support in French, Italian, German, Spanish, Latam Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian. The theme song ‘Bubble’ that was not included in the original western release of Yakuza 0 has also been added for fans to enjoy.

Yakuza Kiwami is the total remake of the game that launched the series nearly 20 years ago. Play as former yakuza Kazuma Kiryu and unwind a 10-billion-yen conspiracy in Tokyo’s red-light district, fueled by his fists and the unyielding resolve that will make him a legend.

This updated version features added text language support in French, Italian, German, Spanish, Latam Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian. The songs ‘Receive You [Reborn]’ and ‘Bleed’ that were not included in the original western release of Yakuza Kiwami have also been added.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 has ‘The Dragon of Dojima’ Kazuma Kiryu return to face ‘The Dragon of Kansai,’ Ryuji Goda in an all-out war between rival Yakuza gangs in the sequel to Yakuza Kiwami. This updated version features added text language support in French, Italian, German, Spanish, Latam Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian.

RGG Studio’s Developers Reflect on the Series’ Growth & What’s Ahead

In celebration of the Like a Dragon & Yakuza series’ 20^th Anniversary, we caught up with some members of RGG Studio’s development team – Masayoshi Yokoyama, Hiroyuki Sakamoto and Ryosuke Horii – and chatted with them about the series’ growth in the West, and what fans can look forward to next for the series.

Can you share your impressions or memories about the Like a Dragon & Yakuza series in the West?

Masayoshi Yokoyama, RGG Studio Representative & Executive Producer: Well in Japan, the first Yakuza game gained popularity through word of mouth as a cabaret club game where you could explore the nightlife district. The first title became a hit, and that led to the development of Yakuza 2 and subsequent games. I think the initial appeal in the West was also about experiencing Japanese city life.

I believe players come to appreciate Japan itself by playing in Kamurocho—a city inspired by Kabukicho, Japan’s largest entertainment district. Through the Like a Dragon & Yakuza series, I believe players have come to enjoy experiencing Japanese culture and lifestyle.

This is something we truly want to continue cherishing going forward. So, I hope players will keep enjoying the quirky Japan. Well, in a way, the real Japan—through the Like a Dragon & Yakuza series.

Hiroyuki Sakamoto, Like a Dragon & Yakuza Series Chief Producer: Initially, it was a drama centered around Japan’s bustling downtown areas, and we developed it primarily for Japanese players. But then, as we gradually continued localizing it, I vividly remember overseas fans truly appreciating it as a uniquely compelling game.

Now, I truly believe it has grown beyond just a Japanese game into an IP that people all over the world can enjoy. Moving forward, I want to keep striving to create policies that allow everyone around the world to enjoy it.

Ryosuke Horii, Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties Producer/Director: It’s truly amazing that so many people around the world found something unique about our titles. Even though it was originally created for Japanese audiences in Japan, the fact that so many people found it interesting is something I consider a real blessing. We’re incredibly grateful that people chose to support our games from among the vast array of wonderful content available.

Western and Japanese audiences have slightly different tastes in what they like, especially as it relates to comedy. I think our content has quite a few funny parts, and the way people latch onto those things is different. I feel like the reaction is actually stronger from people around the world than it is in Japan. And for me personally, I guess it’s karaoke. Even with karaoke like ‘Baka Mitai’, singing Japanese songs is pretty tough because of the different language. But everyone sings along like “Dame da ne, dame yo.” Seeing videos where people overcome that language barrier, learn our songs, and sing along together… well, it actually brought tears to my eyes. Development can be tough sometimes, and there’s a lot of frustration, but seeing that really made me feel, “Ah, I’m so glad we made this.” Yeah, that part really stuck with me.

What’s next for Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and the Like a Dragon & Yakuza series?

Yokoyama: First off, I’m very confident in the quality of our next upcoming release, Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties releasing on February 12, 2026. I’m currently checking all the gameplay myself, and I think it’s turning out to be a very interesting title.

This installment focuses more on the characters than the city, especially Dark Ties. It’s a title you can enjoy through its character-focused approach.

Horii: It’s a project we’re deeply invested in. So, remaking it like this… well, it takes courage, you know? We naturally wrestled with how much to change, but we felt that simply recreating something similar would actually be disrespectful to the original.

We challenged ourselves to aim for something even more interesting. We want it to be a title that both the original Yakuza 3 and Yakuza Kiwami 3 fans could love. It’s a game the whole team poured their hearts into making. If fans play it alongside Dark Ties, we think they’ll really feel that passion we put into it.

Sakamoto: We’re certainly also considering projects that will follow after that.

Yokoyama: Going forward, I believe Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio will continue creating works centered around Japanese culture, cities, and various other elements, aiming to deliver a complete picture of the Japan of today to players. Please keep an eye on our new endeavours.

Start or continue your Like a Dragon & Yakuza series journey today with Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut, Yakuza Kiwami, or Yakuza Kiwami 2 on Xbox Series X|S, and you’ll be ready for Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties when it releases on February 12, 2026.

It’s hard to believe we’re already celebrating 20 years of this amazing series. It feels like just yesterday that Yakuza: Like a Dragon launched together with the Xbox Series X|S back in 2020. Oh, how time flies… like a dragon.