Yakuza: Like a Dragon, otherwise known asLike a Dragon 7, reinvented the series' approach to combat through its turn-based battle system. Coupled with the title’s minigames, both enemies and entertainment alike were scattered throughout its environment, offering up ways to further integrate the player intoYakuza: Like a Dragon’s sprawling Ijincho setting.Like a Dragon 8could stand to merge the two in an inventive way, helping to build upon its leveling system.
TheLike a Dragonseries has made itself known for its duality between emotionally driven story beats and comedic side quests and minigames, blending oscillating tones in a way that works surprisingly well.Yakuza: Like a Dragonwas no exception to this, as it followed the plight of Ichiban Kasuga on his quest to become a hero, balancing his encounters with the ‘Ijin Three’ between forays into Dragon Kart, karaoke, running a full-scale property business, and many more. The title made proper use of its Yokohama setting as a playground for Ichi and the party while tying RPG tropes into both its enemy and class design, making for an inventive depiction of a turn-based battle system.
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Like a Dragon 8 Could Incorporate Minigames Into Its Job Rank System
Ranging from conventional combat classes like Joon-gi Han’s ‘Hitman’ and Zhao’s martial arts based ‘Gangster’ jobs, to the more inventive roles like Nanba’s ‘Homeless Guy’ and Eri’s ‘Clerk’ roles,Yakuza: Like a Dragonmade clever use of real-world professions in its combat. This affected not just character designs, but the title’s move system and corresponding animations; utilizing AoE attacks like Eri’s ‘Thumbtack Scatter’ or Saeko’s Idol ‘Magical Song’ HP recovery spell allowed for humorous tie-ins to its many job inspirations while building on the title’s versatility in party structures. Such a system will likely see even more nuance inLike a Dragon 8, which could pave the way for connections to minigames themselves.
Given thatYakuza: Like a Dragonseparated its leveling system between base character levels and job levels, grinding for experience in multiple roles was pivotal to gaining access to a more rounded moveset. Rather than focusing onYakuza’s new turn-based combat system,Like a Dragon 8could weave job experience with minigames themselves, coupling two of its core mechanics. For example, a cooking minigame where Zhao teaches Ichiban how to make a dish could earn them experience in their chef classes, while a karaoke duet between Saeko and Eri could raise their Idol class rankings. The amount of experience gained could determinated by how well the player performs in the minigame, paving the way for special dialogue and group interactions.
Such a feature could supplementYakuza: Like a Dragon’s approach to aPersona-esque bond system, where its cast were able to delve more into their backstories as they sipped drinks at Survive bar. With how well the title approached its party dynamic while building on thecharacter development of its JRPG cast, the integration of minigames into job roles forLike a Dragon8could be tantamount to its predecessor’s use of ‘Party Chat’ and ‘Table Talk’ mechanics, which allowed for dialogue to pop up while roaming around Ijincho and having meals with the team. WhileLike a Dragon 8could still rely on combat to improve job ranking, using minigames as an alternative could help to diversify grinding.
With how essential leveling was for players to completeYakuza: Like a Dragon’s platinum trophy, a blend between minigames and job experience could be perfect for the next title’s post-game. Second runs of the Final Millennium Tower relied on both character levels and job levels to be in the 90s, which required an immense amount of experience grinding through combat. Having more options inLike a Dragon 8could make the process a bit more engaging while building on the strengths of its party interactions.
Yakuza: Like a Dragonis available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
