Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Reviews

Gameplay wise its pretty good, made some very needed improvements from the previous title, the main story is decent, it's enjoyable but certainly not the best of the franchise, Yamai's arc is notable as one of the better character arcs in the game. The expansion on previous party members stories with the drink links is pretty cool, as well as fleshing out the newer characters better too. There are a lot of fun side quests to do as well if you want a break from the main story or are looking to play more afterwards. Also, an issue I had with the previous Like a Dragon game was that Ichiban felt way too weak in that game, but in Infinite Wealth he feels much stronger and more akin to previous strong Yakuza protagonists like Kiryu, Majima, Saejima or Akiyama. Finally, the Bucket List completion list unlocked for Kiryu later in the game in chapter 8 is a really nice touch and, if completed, helps properly round out the final cutscene much better. However, this game is not perfect, and there are a small few issues with it, firstly regarding the character of Joon-Gi Han. In chapter 8, Zhao and Seonhee end up leaving him to help Kiryu, and Joon-gi clearly states his distaste for their actions and ends up going to Hawaii to help Ichiban, but he joins in chapter 13, the game only has 14 chapters, realistically he should have been brought into Hawaii in Chapter 11, as it makes sense timeline wise, and bringing him in earlier makes building his bond much easier and feel less forced, also, I found that he was quite under levelled from the point he joined until the end of the game, this could've been avoided had they made Joon-gi's entrance feel more purposeful, like if he was instructed by Seonhee to go help when her and Zhao went to help Kiryu, then he could've been brought in as early as chapter 9. His entrance into the game feels very forced too, he just randomly pops up in chapter 13, almost like the writers said "shit, he was playable last game and the fans might be upset if hes not in this one and we forgot to add him". The other issue I had was the area the game is set. There are 3 maps, Kamurocho, which has been featured in every previous mainline game, its a very good and iconic map, its small enough to be easy and fun to traverse whilst also packing every square millimetre with details, it doesn't feel too overwhelming, its always easy to navigate, very nice. Ijincho, which is a fair bit bigger than Kamurocho or in fact most cities previously shown in the Yakuza series, a little bit intimidating at first, but its got a lot of detail, a lot of fun things to do, a lot of character as well. I'd go as far as to say that it is the perfect evolution of Kamurocho, a bigger new place to explore with just as much detail packed into it as they could. Now getting onto Hawaii, good grief, now I'll start with the positives of this map first, firstly there is a lot to explore, and just like Kamurocho and Ijincho, it has tons of detail and lots to do packed into it, additionally, it does feel more like a city than other games, there are plenty of streets where its mostly just housing, which I think makes the map feel more realistic. The issue I have with Hawaii, is that it is simply way too big and spread out, I'd say you could cut down various areas and condense it much more to make it easier to traverse, it feels like taxis are necessary to not just waste time. If you suddenly obtain a lot of money and want to buy new gear for your party members, everything is so spread out and it can take ages getting everyone equipped with new gear, sure its cool to have dedicated shops to get the weapons as it adds to the realism, like how you need to find a dedicated hardware store to get wrench weapons for the taxi driver job, or how you have to go to a housewares store to find weapons for the chef and housemaids, but with how spread out everything is its a real pain and incentivises taxi usage, as walking that distance is far too time consuming, meaning you won't be able to properly take in the area the game is set in, because you're not really experiencing it if you're fast travelling everywhere. Other than those 2 minor issues, I really enjoyed this game and highly recommend if you are an already established fan of the Yakuza franchise, or Ichibans saga. If you're familiar with neither, I recommend starting with 0.

more like Kazuma Kiryu game,not Ichiban Kasuga game

Loved the story, and ridiculous and outrageous scenarios, skills, and flair made the turn based combat very engaging to play around. I never really had any trouble with combat and fights till the final bosses. Kiryu made me cry SO many times. Excited to go start some Pirate adventures now ^^

I really enjoyed my time playing "Like a Dragon" series. The story was great and the game ran well with no problems. I would recommend the game to anyone that enjoys playing any JRPG

The story was not cohesive and there were multiple dropped plot lines and it did not do ichiban service at all, but the gameplay is far better than the previous turn based entry. The new jobs are very fun to play around with as well as the various combat improvements such as combo attacks and regenerating MP on normal attacks.

the game's combat has improved dramatically from the last like a dragon game. RGG never disappoints. The graphics look insane too and there are hours and hours of content. I have high hopes for the future RGG games after this one!

As a long-time fan of the RGG franchise, I'm enjoying the new writing direction the studio had picked up, which I can only describe as Fast and Furious-esque, wherein the plot drivers of each new installment become progressively more insane. That may not be for everyone -- It's ridiculous, naive, and often downright idiotic, but it matches Ichiban's character quite well. I felt like some story beats were pulled out of an аss, but I guess they worked to firmly establish Ichiban as the new torchbearer and tie up loose ends with Kiryu. At the center of it is the constant awkward reminder that, despite the game taking place in Hawaii, the language barrier element gets thrown out of the window shortly after it's been established, which is really really strange. Jeff the White Taco Truck Guy shouldn't be able to speak Japanese. Mechanically this thing is a delight to play, a giant step up from Like a Dragon -- the addition of a movement radius alone makes the fights much less rigid and repetitive. The expanded weaponsmith and Poundmates mechanics as well as a myriad of new well-balanced jobs are also very welcome. Basic combat feels like playing bowling. It's still far from perfect, at times feeling too clunky or grind-oriented, but definitely moving in the right direction. The staple financial manager minigame might be the series' best thus far, Overall, a feverish but largely enjoyable experience if you're looking to break away from the standard RGG formula of tyrannical clan patriarchs and chairmen beefing with one another. Above all else, they might as well have called it "Ichiban Funtime 2". Hopefully they send him to space in the next one.

played every single mainline yakuza game and kiryu as a main character has never disappointed and im so happy he got his ending. overall every single game was an experience and this kept me hooked till the end very end. conclusion rgg studios never fails to deliver a good game

10/10 Masterpiece! This game is a wonderful sequel to Yakuza: Like a Dragon. I like Ichiban more than in the last game. He is a true successor to Kiryu. A deserving hero. The gameplay has improved (although I still prefer Judgment or Yakuza 0 Combat) and the soundtrack is great as always. I love that this game is also set in a new location (Hawaii). The story mode is good, but not the best compared to its predecessor. But it's nice that Kiryu is in this game and gets a definitive ending (I don't like the ending of Yakuza 6, even though it's very emotional. Kiryu deserved better). You have to grind a bit in this game too, even if it's less tricky than the previous installment. There are two final bosses: the first is in Hawaii, the second in Japan. My tip: - for the first boss: level 50 or higher - for the second boss: level 52 or higher If you are not patient, you will have to buy a lot of items. Believe me, you would only be wasting your time and energy. The only thing I don't like about the game is that Sega has put New Game+ behind a paywall. You have to buy the Ultimate Edition if you want to play everything. Other than that, it's a very good game. Overall: I'm definitely glad that this game is better than Yakuza: Like a Dragon. The improved gameplay is much more fun. I hope you release this game, as well as your other Sega games on GOG. ^^ And I'm also looking forward to playing Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. ^^

The Eighth main title in the Yakuza series and the story is exceptional and as strong as ever with plenty of emotional weight behind it. Strong core of likeable and well written main characters and fantastic turn based combat makes this one of my personal favourites in the series!