• News

Like A Dragon: Ishin gets February release date at State of Play

The next title from Sega and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio is set to continue the Like A Dragon line of games.

Ozzie Mejia

September 13, 2022 3:12 PM

Sega

1

Tuesday's PlayStation State of Play presentation continued with a look at what's coming up from publisher Sega. It's a new samurai tale from Yakuza studio Ryu Ga Gotoku, built on Unreal Engine 4, which carries the label of spin-off series Like A Dragon. However, while it carries the "Like A Dragon" title, players will be going much farther back in time than the previous Yakuza game.

"Like a Dragon: Ishin is an action-adventure historical thriller set uniquely in 1860s Kyo, a fictionalized version of Kyoto," Sega of America Global Community Manager David Hinds said on PlayStation.Blog. "While other games tell earlier stories in Japanese history, Ishin lets you experience the story of how the iconic samurai era vanished. Our hero, Sakamoto Ryoma, is a true historical figure largely credited with overthrowing the shogunate and taking Japan into a radical reformation."

While this latest game takes people into the 19th century, there is still a Yakuza connection in place. Sakamoto Ryoma is otherwise known as Kazuma Kiryu, returning from previous titles. While the characters may look familiar, this setting is entirely new for the old Yakuza crew and it promises new twists, both in terms of story and gameplay.

As far as gameplay goes, Ryoma can pick up a sword to combat his foes, grab a revolver for a firearm-oriented style, or use his bare fists for a more personal approach. RGG is also promising new heat actions, one of which was on display and saw enemies mauled by a tiger.

This isn't all we'll see of Like A Dragon: Ishin. Sega and RGG have a special presentation lined up for this Wednesday, where the team will share more information on what's to come. Like A Dragon: Ishin is coming to PC, PlayStation, and Xbox in February 2023.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?