With Yakuza: Like a Dragon, it feels like the series has evolved into its most social media-friendly form. This is exactly the game you would imagine if those screenshots of Nugget the Chicken and the gifs of disco-dancing Kiryu were all you had to go on.
This might just be the silliest Yakuza has ever been, and while that might squeeze out a bit of the gritty crime drama that's historically helped to ground the games, the new heights of ridiculousness that Like a Dragon has achieved are a delight all of their own.
I've spent several hours with a preview build of the PC version, with a save file getting me started at around five hours into the main story. That's the point at which the game opens up to let you fully explore the breadth of side content and minigames. If you've followed any previous coverage of Like a Dragon, you know this is a fresh start for Yakuza, with a new protagonist and a new turn-based battle system. The Yakuza series was always, sort of on the quiet, a set of role-playing games - upgradable skills, side-quests, and inventory systems were all common. But Like a Dragon goes full JRPG.
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Yakuza: Like a Dragon reviews - our roundup of the critics
Yakuza: Like a Dragon review - kill 'em with kindness
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