Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is an action-adventure role-playing game developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and published by Sega. It is a direct sequel to Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth title which came out last year. Moreover, it is a spin-off of the Like a Dragon series. It is the tenth installment in the Yakuza/Like a Dragon franchise focusing on Goro Majima. This is our review of Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii.
Like a Dragon or Yakuza is one of the infamous role-playing game series from Sega focused on city crime with Yakuza family members. Each game of the series provides a plethora of content for players to consume including side quests, minigames, and fun activities along with the main story.
Story
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii takes place six months after the events of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Unlike the previous title, Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii only offers a sole character, Goro Majima. Goro goes through some unfortunate events and finds himself stranded on Rich Island, one of the main locations in the game. However, Goro has no memories of his past life and he finds himself in a new conflict. Goro gets to face problems from both local Hawaiian pirates and ex-Yakuza members. Fortunately, he figures out a way to recover his memories but it will require him to find Esperanza, an ancient pirate ship that holds valuable treasure. To do so, he becomes the captain of a new pirate crew and sets out in search of the treasure.
Gameplay
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is an action-adventure role-playing game, very similar to the previous titles in the series. This game does a great job of keeping the originality of the series and bringing the same fun experience. With a new take on Pirates in the Yakuza series, there are several new mechanics and game systems. One of the most notable features that players will get to see in the starting hours is creating a crew. Similar to the previous games, where players have the freedom of creating a party with different characters, players will be able to create a party of pirates. These crew members will then set off on sea adventures with you.
One of the main locations in the game that players will explore is Madlantis. It is a secret island filled with criminals and pirates. As you sail into this location or roam around it looking for treasures, you will often engage in ship combat. The ship combat is relatively simple and quite fun. You can destroy and sink other ships or you can dock onto other ships and loot the valuables. In addition to the ship combat, the game allows players to upgrade their ship which helps in traversing in water. You can increase the overall speed of the ship, enhance weapons and defense, and more. However, even with the maximum speed of the ship, the overall traversal feels slow. There are numerous wind gateways across the ocean to assist you in gaining speed, but it becomes repetitive and underwhelming after a bit of time.
World and Activities
There are four main locations in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. It includes Rich Island, Honolulu, Madlantis, and Nele Island. The Rich Island is a remote island where the game begins. Honolulu is a Hawaii city, the same as the previous title. Madlantis is a secret island filled with criminals and pirates. Lastly, Nele Island is the base of the Palekana religious group. Every location offers a unique atmosphere and different challenges.
While exploring Hawaii, you will notice a friend system with the locals where you can greet and introduce yourself to all sorts of people including shop vendors. You can help the vendors by simply buying things from their shop to increase friendship with them or you can say ‘hi’ to locals to increase the friendship level. Increasing the friendship level will grant you various personality stats rewarding you with several worthy items. So, exploring and engaging in Lika a Dragon: Infinite Wealth does pay off pretty well.
There are also tons of other stuff to find and explore including meals which can be obtained by going to various restaurants. Getting certain combinations of meals will grant various passive traits like earning more experience, more money, doing more damage, taking less damage, and many more. You can also go to various shops to upgrade gear for better gear stats as well as buy gifts for your companions for leveling up.
There are several minigames from previous titles returned, such as Karaoke, Mahjong, Darts, Arcade Games, Dragon Kart, and Crazy Driver. Moreover, there is a new side activity, Masaru’s Love Journey. It focuses on Majima recruiting Minato girls to hang out with.
Combat
Now, let’s talk about combat as it is one of the biggest aspects of the Yakuza series. Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii’s combat follows the same “beat ‘em up” combat system. It is both great and refreshing for the fans, and we can say that it feels a bit more badass in this new title. Majima, the protagonist has access to two fighting styles, Mad Dog and Sea Dog. The Mad Dog is the original fighting style of Majima, allowing him to perform combos with punches and kicks. Moreover, Majima can also perform mid-air combos with the ability to jump.
The Sea Dog is the new fighting style that allows Majima to wield dual cutlasses and pistols. Majima will perform unique combos and use abilities around the weapons. As you progress the Sea Dog fighting style, you will get access to new tools as well, including a hook. Overall the combat is pretty fun and responsive which all the fans of the Like a Dragon series love to see.
Writing, Sound, & Visuals
The writing in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is phenomenal both for building the characters and the funny dialogue. Even though you have never played a Yakuza or Like a Dragon game before, the game does an amazing job of portraying the back life of the main character throughout the plot. Voice acting for the characters is done exceptionally which enhances the immersion for interacting with the characters overall and the visuals of the game are great.
Verdict – Score 9/10
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is an excellent entry to the series with fully packed content for players to experience both in the base game and post-game. However, the narrative content can be unhinged for some players, especially the ones who have never played Like a Dragon game. Apart from the main narrative, the world has so much to offer, and if you are a fan of exploration and open-world games then you would fit in perfectly.
Thank you for reading the Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii Review.
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