We did it! We, the fans of Yakuza, complained so much in recent years about the series' games being stuck in Japan that SEGA has now announced three games that had not yet been released in English for the West.
At PlayStation Experience today, SEGA announced that Yakuza 6 and Yakuza Kiwami will come to the West. What does that mean? It means that Yakuza 0 is arriving in January 2017, Yakuza Kiwami will arrive in summer 2017 (Brazilian winter, around the middle of next year), and Yakuza 6 will launch in early 2018, all for PlayStation 4 in both physical and digital formats. I never thought I would say this, but this is an incredible time to be a fan of the series.
For those who do not know, Yakuza Kiwami is a complete remake built from the ground up of the series' first game, originally released on PlayStation 2. In addition to significant graphical improvements, running at 1080p and 60 fps, the game includes new optional missions, 30 additional minutes of scenes, and a complete re-recording of the original Japanese dialogue. This is great news for anyone who missed the chance to play the classic on PS2! In addition, Yakuza 0 will arrive in the West on January 24, covering events before those of the first game and serving as another excellent starting point for getting to know the series. Yakuza 6, meanwhile, will be the last game in the series with its main protagonist, Kazuma Kiryu, as producer Toshihiro Nagoshi confirmed.
Yakuza 6 AND Yakuza Kiwami are coming to the West. Let that sink in. Yes, it is hard to believe! Be sure to support the games by buying them and saying nice things to SEGA on social media. Even after some games in the series sold poorly in the West, the company is still listening to fans. The Yakuza games keep improving with every release, and the series simply does not receive the recognition it deserves outside Japan. We western fans could not be more excited!
Check out the announcement trailer for both games below:
