At a recent event in China, Yakuza franchise producer Daisuke Sato was asked about the possibility of getting a Yakuza Kenzan remake in the Kiwami style for PlayStation 4. On that occasion, Sato’s answers were documented and published on the Siliconera blog, as seen below.
Will you continue releasing new Kiwami remakes?Daisuke Sato, producer: “Personally, Yakuza: Kenzan is quite suitable for a ‘Kiwami’ overhaul. Kenzan was the first game in the Yakuza series on PlayStation 3 and was released only in Japan. Many Western players have mentioned that they want to play this game in English, and Asian players also want the game to be released in Chinese. And because it was one of the first PS3 games, a simple HD remaster would make it seem as if something were missing, so in my opinion, a ‘Kiwami’ version would be better.
You mentioned that renegotiating contracts is quite problematic. Would you consider making games like Kenzan that do not really require contracts?
Sato: “Since Yakuza: Kenzan! is an early game, the characters’ overall appearances are quite old, so if we create a ‘Kiwami’ version, we could find new actors to hire and replace the models. ”
For those unfamiliar with it, Yakuza Kenzan is a spin-off of the franchise with a samurai theme, featuring characters living in Japan during its historical period known as the Edo period. It features the best-known samurai in Japanese history, Miyamoto Musashi, portrayed here by the character Kiryu.
