If you haven’t tried the Yakuza series yet, this might be the best way to get into it.
Sega announced today that Yakuza Kiwami will come out for the PlayStation 4 in the Americas and Europe on August 29. This is a remake of the first game in the series, which tells the story of Kazuma Kiryu, a member of the Japanese mafia who is both kind and brutal, and his adventures. Yakuza originally came out for the PlayStation 2 in 2005 and managed to sell over 1 million copies. It spawned a series that now includes five sequels and one prequel (Yakuza 0, which came out in the U.S. in January).
The remake will cost $30 and be available digitally and physically. Kiwami has new HD visuals, re-recorded dialogue from the original Japanese actors, and 30 minutes of new cutscenes.
“Yakuza Kiwami provides an excellent starting point for those who have always heard about the series but have yet to try it,” Sega noted in a press release. “It preserves the charm of old-school, PS2-era beat-’em-up gameplay, but deftly combines it with a hard-boiled crime drama punctuated with the liveliness of Kamurocho — the fictional red-light district of Tokyo the game is set in — and all the distractions that a red-light district can offer.”
Sega has also launched a new Yakuza website, Yakuza Experience. It includes an interactive timeline for the series and the first part of a 10 issue digital comic called “The Dragon’s Path,” which will recreate iconic moments from the franchise.