Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Wouldn't be Made Without Success of Yakuza 7; New Gameplay
The developers of the Yakuza series were ready to abandon turn-based combat and new characters if the previous game was not received with enthusiasm. Fortunately, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will be released as planned, as a new gameplay reminds us.
Follow-up to Yakuza: Like a Dragon is to be one of the first big launches of 2024. However, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth might not have been created in such a form if not for the success of the previous installment.
First Like a Dragon may have caused concern among fans for a number of reasons. Not only was Kazuma Kiryu not the main character in the new installment, but on top of that, the existing combat system was abandoned in favor of turn-based battles.
The developers were well aware of the risks, as evidenced by the words of Toshiro Nagoshi (via Takashi Mochizuki on X/Twitter). The creator of the Yakuza series announced that in the event of a poor reception of turn-based system in the new game, subsequent installments will return to being "action games."
His words were recently confirmed by Hiroyuki Sakamoto, lead designer of Infinite Wealth. In an interview with TheGamer the Japanese developer revealed that not only the turn-based combat system and other gameplay changes, but also the new characters from Yakuza: Like a Dragon would have been quickly abandoned if the game was not so successful. For this reason alone the decision was made to stay with the "turn" and create a sequel.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will debut on January 26 for PC, PS4, XOne, PS5 and XSX/S. Those eager to see the game in action can check out one of the many new gameplay videos, such as those posted by IGN, 4Gamer and PlayStation Access. Keep in mind that the videos contain spoilers from the game.
We also know how much disk space the game will take up on Microsoft consoles, where the preload has already started: it's 59.20 GB on Xbox Series X/S (via IdleSloth). The official PC system requirements recommend preparing 82 GB of free space (via Steam).
