Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii

I'm having really hard time whether to give this game a positive or negative. Treat this as neutral. It's an okay Yakuza game. Fun combat (except ship battles), good music. Graphics are getting worse each release and the game is crashing a lot. I was really trying to find positive arguments for this release, of course there's a lot of positive about this game but some stuff really needs to be said and finally changed. RGG yearly releases are slowly getting out of hand, quality wise. Repeating minigames, UI elements, locations and a lot of other things make the game less unique. Yeah, we got "pirate" styled elements but that's about it. If the time and budget was given to Kiwami 3 we wouldn't have another mess in 2026... but that's just my opinion and i'm still glad we got a Majima game (last playable majima was in kiwami 2) For a huge price we're getting a short gaiden style game that could be longer but for some reason instead of enhanced story we just have a whole filler chapter that has to be one of the worst ones in entire franchise. Way too many fillers. There's a lot of missed potential to expand Majima backstory and his relation with Saejima, Daigo, Kiryu and even other characters such as Makoto from Yakuza 0. It's just a story that doesn't bring in anything to the series, whether that's good or not really depends as it can be treated as cool steppingstone from Kiryu/Ichiban saga but at the same moment it's so short I wish we got more. Combat styles are fun, mad dog fighting style is really fun and I can't say a single bad thing about it. I really liked after credits cutscenes. Gave me hope for the next games. I really wish this game had the quality of Yakuza 6: Song of Life or Kiryu's Gaiden game. Hopefully future gaiden games bring that, and it better be Akiyama or Saejima one.

[h1]Якудза покоряет моря на Гавайях, разыскивая пиратское сокровище[/h1] Эта часть является последней на данный момент, не считая ремейков, и значительно отличается от прошлых. Она заметно более бюджетная, графика уступает даже 7-ой части, история кажется натянутой и незначительной для самой вселенной. Почти не содержит старых персонажей помимо ГГ и квестовых NPC из города и ощущается как одна большая побочка. Геймплей теперь содержит много небольших карт вместо общего открытого мира, довольно много гринда, частично необходимого для продвижения сюжета, а боевка из beat'em'up ушла скорее в слэшер. Зато есть возможность покататься на кораблях и устроить кайфовые морские сражения. Сама продолжительность игры примерно раза в 2 короче привычных старых частей. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3747161664 [h2]Сюжет[/h2] Главный герой здесь Горо Мадзима, легендарный якудза из прошлых частей. Он приходит в себя на берегу какого-то острова недалеко от Гавайев, полностью потеряв память и забыв кто он и откуда. Память возвращается только к концу игры, так что прошлые сюжеты не столь важны, так как почти все персонажи тут новые, лишь небольшие отсылки к последней части Infinity Wealth. Его находит мальчик Ноа вместе с тигренком, которого тоже зовут Горо. С ними мы и будем путешествовать всю игру. Тут же приходится столкнуться с пиратами, грабящими местные острова. Раскидыв всех и познакомившись с обитателями острова, Горо сам отжимает себе корабль и становится капитаном пиратов. Из-за своей повязки на глазу он идеально вписывается в этот антураж. Вместе с мальчиком и небольшой набранной командой они отправляются на поиски мифического сокровища Эспирансы, по слухам спрятанного несколько веков назад. Но главное сокровище, которое хочет Горо и отец мальчика - это эликсир вечной жизни, который может помочь мальчику излечить астму. В поисках они натыкаются на настоящий пиратский остров, где правит королева Мишель, по сути и становящая главной антагонисткой. Хотя тут вообще непонятно кто злодей, а кто друг, все меняется по ходу дела, не задерживая внимание на ком-то одном. Поэтому полноценного погружения в историю тут не происходит, как в прошлых частях она не цепляет и кажется просто поверхностной и развлекательной. Финал как всегда классный, но до него почти не могу выделить что-то интересного. Количество глав тут тоже сильно сократили - 5 глав, которые можно пройти примерно за 20 часов. [h2]Геймплей[/h2] Тут ощущаются отличия от привычных Якудз. Вместо большого открытого мира тут дают много разных морских карт и несколько полноценных открытых островов, а также много маленьких чисто для гринда, куда нужно высадиться и зачистить за пару минут. Самый большой открытый остров - тот самый Гонолулу на Гавайях, который был в прошлой части Infinity Wealth, но также урезанный. Впрочем, сюда приезжать по сюжету нужно довольно редко. Добавили крюк-кошку, который позволяет залезать на некоторые здания. Сама по себе игра из RPG ушла скорее в слэшер. Управлять тут можно только одним персонажем - Горо, который сражается кулаками и саблями. Можно прокачивать множество приемов за доллары. Боевка сводится к тому, что перед нами толпа врагов и их нужно раскидывать направо и налево. Причем и модельки, и имена "боссов" на островах повторяются, вместе с паттернами атак. Я люблю слэшеры, но для любителей классической Якудзы с их старыми beat'em'up или пошаговыми боями последний частей тут может быть скучно. Кроме того, после каждого боя почему-то происходит задержка примерно в 1-2 секунды, где просто герой стоит и ничего не происходит. Зачем она нужна непонятно. Зато есть впечатляющие аренды, где ты сражаешься разом против 100 врагов. Но так как эта часть посвящена пиратам, то тут также можно выходить в открытое море на своем корабле. Наверно, это и есть самая приятная составляющая игры. Можно кастомизировать и прокачивать свой корабль, набирать команду, распределять по разным позициям и также прокачивать их в боях. Устраивать водные баталии с другими кораблями, а затем брать их на абордаж и устраивать массовые зарубы. Есть битвы на морской арене в Колизее. Навевает вайбы AC: Black Flag, ремейк которого как раз скоро выйдет. В море можно открывать маяки для быстрого перемещения, а острова, где спрятаны сокровища, отмечены на карте. Из кастомизации помимо самого корабля можно менять наряды для Горо и тигренка, для пиратского наряда и обычного. А также надевать кольца на каждый палец, они дают бонусы к статам. Графика стала заметно более простой при почти таком же весе игры. Наверное, даже хуже 7-ой части Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Сама по себе как будто затемненная, иногда на экране еще появлялись темные полоски. Саундтрек тоже тут особо выделить не могу - все топовые песни, которые были, просто перешли из прошлых частей, новинок было мало и не впечатлили. По оптимизации же все стабильно хорошо, без багов и вылетов, загрузки моментальные. Добавили обязательный гринд островов, чтобы продвинуться дальше по сюжету. Благо он тут достаточно простой и приятный, а сама игра небольшая. К примеру, иногда требуется собрать нужное количество людей в команду для продолжения или получить более высокий пиратский ранг. Для вербовки людей в команду нужно выполнять какие-то индивидуальные требования от человека. Он может потребовать помочь ему с чем-то, дать предмет или победить его в драке. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3747761550 [h2]Итог[/h2] Необычная часть Якудзы, которая может не понравится любителям классических частей серии. Но для меня она была как глоток свежего воздуха и в целом предоставляет интересный набор механик. Пусть она и не может дать такой же захватывающей истории и кажется более бюджетной по графике, зато можно расслабиться нарезая толпы врагов в массовых сражениях на море и суше, не задумываясь о происходящем. Небольшой закрытый пиратский остров, наполненный сексуальными полуголыми девицами. Тут приятный гринд, в основном по тому, что сами карты значительно меньше и глаза не так разбегаются. Всем любителям пиратской тематики и слэшеров могу точно рекомендовать. Играть с геймпада. Кстати, из-за амнезии главного героя и полностью отстраненной сюжетки практически без старых героев ее можно играть вообще не проходя никакие прошлые части серии как отдельную игру. И только сцена после титров возвращает в привычный мир к старому знакомому, оставляя Продолжение следует... [h2]✅ Понравилось:[/h2] - Геймплей - Водные баталии - Массовые замесы - Оптимизация [h2]❌ Не понравилось:[/h2] - Затемненная и более устаревшая графика по сравнению с прошлыми частями, иногда появлялись черные полосы на экране - Сюжет сильно уступает прошлым частям, поверхностный и слабо связан с миром Якудзы

"Let's make a spin-off game where the returning character loses his memory and goes on an unrelated wacky adventure." "Great, that'll give newcomers a fun entry-point for the series!" "We will also spoil the entire core plot of 'Infinite Wealth' in an unskippable dialogue section 2 hours in, and then end on a key spoiler for the ending of that game. Even though none of it is relevant to the plot of THIS game." "...Why are you like this?"

Man is this a tough one for me! I have L O V E D every Like a Dragon game so far, and have played them all barring the ones not released in the west. I f***ing hated this game. The story is so bad it's like Z-tier fanfic, and the story is what I come to Like a Dragon games for. Yes, they're often goofy and your suspension of disbelief is often tested to its limit, but this one is just a step too far imo. Thanks to the amnesiac trope (which is extremely overdone and poorly implemented here) Majima just feels off. He's also not a good main character: see Yakuza Zero for the only way to do Majima right. The gameplay is also off. The classic Yakuza beat em up style gameplay is here, which I have always liked, but here they've added a jump button, which is bound to the dash button, which means you'll be constantly jumping instead of dodging which ruins the flow of combat. Sure, you'll probably get used to it, but as a 10+ year Yakuza fan, it's a hard switch to make and doesn't really add anything meaningful. As for the ship combat, it's ok I guess, but worse than I remembered AC Black Flag being (and probably more so than the upcoming remake). I dunno. I know this isn't a mainline Like a Dragon game, but after this and their idiotic casting choices in Kiwami 3, I'm kind of concerned about the future of one of my favourite franchises? A feeling I've become sadly all too familiar with lately.

Aiyooooo this game ah… “Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii” is what happen when developer drink three can Strong Zero and say: “What if pirate game… but yakuza… but Hawaii… but everybody crazy?” ABSOLUTE CINEMA. I start game thinking maybe serious crime drama. Instead I get: ✔ pirates ✔ karaoke ✔ shirtless middle-age men ✔ Hawaii chaos ✔ emotional damage ✔ random Japanese celebrity everywhere like surprise lucky draw And somehow IT WORK. First thing first. Seeing real life celebrity cast inside game already make me choke on fishball soup. You got famous cosplayer Enako looking beautiful until my fish at market suddenly stand up respectfully. Then Kaho Shibuya appear and my brain immediately blue screen. Aiyo Sega. You know exactly what lonely gamer want ah? Whole game feel like fever dream from eating expired seafood at 2AM. Majima running around Hawaii dressed like pirate uncle who lost all common sense. Every cutscene either: * emotional masterpiece OR * complete nonsense No middle. One second people crying about loyalty and brotherhood. Next second grown men fighting on beach dressed like discount Disneyland pirates. I cannot breathe from laughing. Combat very syiok. Punch people. Use crazy pirate skills. Cause public property damage. True vacation experience. Majima ah… this man already become immortal gaming creature. Normal human: “Maybe I should relax.” Majima: “WHAT IF I START PIRATE GANG IN HAWAII?” Legend. Absolute uncle energy. And the side content ah… Aiyoooooo. Only Yakuza game can make you: * fight criminals * sing karaoke * play weird minigame * meet celebrities * cry over friendship * laugh until stomach pain All in same hour. The Hawaii setting also damn nice. Beautiful water. Beautiful city. Beautiful chaos. I feel like going holiday except my bank account say: “Don’t dream.” The celebrity appearances actually surprisingly fun. Not feel forced. Everybody look like they having best time of their life inside this nonsense universe. Honestly if more games add random celebrities doing stupid things, gaming industry become stronger. Pros: ✔ Majima still crazy handsome uncle ✔ Hawaii setting beautiful ✔ combat fun ✔ celebrity cast hilarious ✔ Enako and Kaho Shibuya jumpscare my weak heart ✔ side activities never ending ✔ perfect balance of emotional + stupid Cons: ✘ cannot explain plot to normal people ✘ made me want Hawaii vacation ✘ sleep schedule completely destroyed ✘ now expecting pirates in every yakuza game ✘ fish stall almost late open because “one more mission” Final score: 11/10 This game like Thai seafood buffet during Songkran festival. LOUD. MESSY. FULL OF CHAOS. But everybody having amazing time. ขอบคุณ Sega. Please never become normal company.

整体玩下来像如龙 · 迪士尼外传 op和ed一出来更感觉majima拿了公主剧本 槽点多有些角色真的直接把“我是工具人”写脸上了，有位有活过三分钟吗直接成石头了然后放起如龙特色温情小bgm，随后又免费送了个女儿当队友，人无语的时候真的会笑，嗯。 但奈何真岛老头实在太帅了剧情什么的已经无所谓了脑内自动开启磨皮滤镜，特别好的真岛老头使我的F12键旋转冒烟，诚邀大家都来玩奇迹majima

While it is unlikely for me to beat the game this time around (see why below) i ultimately give this game 8/10 and actually recommend it. Why? THE GOOD +Fresh story can be enjoyed by those who don't understand the series or only partially. Basically the guy you play as had an amnesia but still remember what kind of a guy he is (in short a honorable one) +things to do in Honolulu, spend me 15 hours once i land there. Not to mention the arcade games!!! Granted i didn't play Infinite Wealth though... +SIDE ACTIVITIES AND MINIGAMES. The Arcades choice alone (ESPECIALLY BOTH VERSIONS OF SEGA RACING CLASSIC 2 AND THE FIRST TIME EVER THE OCEAN HUNTER IS PLAYABLE OUTSIDE OF EXTINCT ARCADES) is why i buy this game. To put into perspective, counting the minigames and the game itself this game has 10 or more games worth, 6 if you count only arcades and Master System (a flopped but hidden gem of a NES competitor back in pre-Genesis era) games. +The arcade games and Master System games are made easier. They respectively have difficulty levels and rewind save load respectively. Legal emulators ahoy and ironic that this game is about pirates... get it? +Surprisingly good English dub. I immediately switch to English in the beginning. THE BAD: -NOT ALL OF THE DIALOGUE IS VOICED EVEN IN STORY SEGMENTS, and this is a 2025 game. I've seen games 2 generation behind and even a relatively recent remaster that is fully voiced, not taking much space in comparison, and yet it is fully voiced. -You can't make Japanese characters speak Japan and Hawaiian American characters speak English. Oh they did but only for crews and enemy gangs with no story roles. -Frequent load times, which reminds me of Sonic 2006. Often short scenes are precluded with not-so-long but extremely frequent load times. If you're in Honolulu, you're basically surfing, but if you're in story segments, well... It's even worse when you (have to) raid islands and fight Devil Flags. I found Bethesda games, even Starfield, loading bearable in comparison. -Uneven pacing and repetitiveness, especially once you get to qualified to Madlantis and set sail -The pirates sailing. Unlike the seamless Assassin's Creed Black Flag and Assassin's Creed Rogue (and even if those games have load times it isn't as many as those), the sea segments are split into numerous smaller ones, there's loading screens when you have to board enemy ships and land to raid an island, and.... -Repetitive combat. That's it. Once you become a/the legend, especially. -Despite putting solid characterisms, once they're on board your ship they mostly become statistics with repetitive soundbaits. Well i need a break, it's not Chapter 3 yet and i'm like 30 hours or something in the game. Maybe later. Or that 35 years old me found long story games increasingly unbearable.

Goro Majima crashed into my house with his pirate ship and told me to 100% this game or else he'd plunder my booty with his blunderbuss

I have only played some of Yakuza 0 before jumping into this so don't mind me. Majima has always been the one reason I wanted to get into the Yakuza series. He is extremely charismatic and wacky so the fact he got such a ridiculous spin-off game for himself was no surprise to me (at least from an outsider's POV). I don't generally like pirate themed stuff but I enjoyed those aspects in this one. Ship battles, recruiting people and treasure hunting was really fun (although I wish islands were more free to explore rather than dungeon-like). Despite everything else that happens in the game I found the main plot the most ridiculous of it all even though they were trying to play it to be serious... I didn't like it at all and just wanted to keep exploring and wandering Honolulu. Lol I had tooons of fun with the side stuff! If it wasn't for the main plot I would have rated this higher. This game made me want to try mainline Yakuza again and spend more time with Majima.... and I guess Kiryu

Majima's weird pirate adventure is fun BUT are the waters it's treading deep or shallow? PROS: ★ Pirate's Coliseum. It's underground coliseum but for your ship and your crew. Highlight of the game and hella' fun. ★ Hawaii's Honolulu hub recycle BUT it is a big place to explore. Also, almost all minigames from 8 are present which is another highlight of the game (i.e. dragon kart, perv pictorial, food delivery, etc) + Substories are still really fun, memorable, and did I mention fun? Well, almost all of them are but I forgot how good these substories are. There's even a dedicated dating one for your first m8 and it's funny as ♥♥♥♥. + Character Customization - one of the few modern addition that I can get behind to. Introduced in Gaiden and as far as I know, should stay on the upcoming games. Why didn't I rush the Luffy outfit was beyond my understanding. + Works well on my rig and with the deck HIT OR MISS: ? Seafaring Elements are a mixed bag of pros and cons: *arcade-y and janky *no upgrades to ship speed throughout the game *camera angle is way off and you can't see much in both seafaring cameras * no real exploration in sea; instead, game shows key points / areas in map for you to go to * deck exploration was actually really good though; you can basically do anything you can do on land while not in combat. (i.e. camera selfies, talking to crew, and you have added captain functions like hosting a feast, giving gifts to crew, mini farming) You can't jump out into the open water though ? weakest story of the franchise and thought in the beginning that it was a character assassination for Majima. Rushed through the story after exploring all that the game offers. That said, after finishing the game, the ending was tacky BUT was the reason the story went from a CON and into the HIT OR MISS section. Last bit before the epilogue became a literal Filipino classic lol but you can tell Majima will really do those things. ? The pirate land hub didn't have anything fun in it except for the Pirate's Coliseum ? Melee combat was meh: You had two choices, classic majima and pirate majima which has different movesets. Classic majima is always welcome BUT they could've done more with the pirate moveset. Feels off sometimes and I just end up switching to classic anyways because it's the better choice to kill mobs. CONS: - Relationship dialogue while exploring the open world is just white noise. I know it's meant to deepen their relation ship but it's extremely boring ♥♥♥♥. Guaranteed everyone skipped this. - Phone menu is just part of the main menu lol. I don't get it, why didn't they just put the phone menu features inside the main menu? - Color grading is WAY off. Makes everything look like plastic or against the light. I think it also has this problem in Kiwami 3. - Grenadier enemy crew stun locks and steam rolls your boarding party. - sound design was cheap for LAD: Pirates especially for the sword sound effects lol. Game is fun as hell BUT if you're looking for a character progression for Majima inside the Yakuza universe, you're looking at the wrong game. Fun is all that LAD: Pirates has to offer for Yakuza fans. Barely got in BUT I have to recommend LAD:Pirates, preferably on sale, especially if you've played Yakuza Infinite Wealth since you've explored half the game already. 2.5/5