Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

Presentation

Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name reveals what happens to Kazuma Kiryu after the events of Yakuza 6: The Song of Life. Officially dead, he abandons his name to protect the people he cares about and now works for the Daidoji faction under the codename Joryu.

This new life is built around a constant contradiction. Kiryu must remain invisible and obey the rules imposed by the organization protecting his secret, yet his past and ties to the yakuza world continue to pursue him. A mission involving gold smuggling in Yokohama is enough to pull him back into the kind of conflict he was trying to escape.

The adventure takes place mainly between Sotenbori in Osaka and Isezaki Ijincho in Yokohama. It follows several important events from the wider series while showing them from Kiryu's perspective, making the game a direct bridge between his former life and the next stage of his journey.

The game returns to real-time action combat built around two complementary styles.

The Yakuza style represents Kiryu's traditional approach. It emphasizes powerful strikes, throws and the use of environmental objects. It is the style most directly connected to the Dragon of Dojima and the experience he has accumulated throughout the series.

The Agent style instead reflects his new identity within the Daidoji faction. Faster and more technical, it combines martial arts with specialized gadgets. Kiryu can notably use electrified wires to restrain or pull multiple enemies, giving group battles a very different rhythm.

Switching instantly between the two styles allows players to adapt to the number of enemies and the situation rather than treating them as completely separate systems.

A large part of the side content is organized through Akame, an informant with deep connections throughout Sotenbori. Her network offers requests and missions that allow Kiryu to gradually strengthen his abilities while learning more about the people and problems of the district.

The Castle forms the other major space unique to this entry. This massive offshore underground facility notably contains a combat arena where Kiryu can face different opponents and assemble teams for larger-scale battles.

Around these elements, the game retains the series' familiar activities: karaoke, Pocket Circuit, cabaret, gambling and various side encounters regularly provide breaks from the more dramatic parts of the story.

The overall structure remains more focused than the main numbered entries. Gaiden is built first and foremost around Kiryu, his Joryu identity and the price of maintaining the fiction of his own death.

Key points

• A story centered on Kazuma Kiryu after Yakuza 6.
• Kiryu now lives under the codename Joryu while serving the Daidoji faction.
• A plot connecting his yakuza past to his new clandestine life.
• An adventure mainly set in Sotenbori and Isezaki Ijincho.
• The return of real-time action combat.
• Two complementary styles: Yakuza and Agent.
• Yakuza style focuses on Kiryu's traditional power and techniques.
• Agent style uses speed and Daidoji gadgets.
• Akame centralizes a large part of the side missions.
• The Castle notably features a major arena-combat component.
• Numerous side activities characteristic of the series.
• An entry that acts as a transition toward Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

Conclusion

Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name focuses on a deliberately hidden period of Kazuma Kiryu's life. He may no longer officially be the Dragon of Dojima, but his past, instincts and ties to the criminal world make a true disappearance impossible.

The Yakuza and Agent styles directly express this duality. The former preserves Kiryu's historical fighting identity, while the latter represents his adaptation to life as a covert operative.

More compact than the main numbered entries, Gaiden therefore favors a personal story tightly connected to the series' continuity while preparing the next stage of Kiryu's journey in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

Good to know

Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name was developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and published by SEGA.

The game was released on November 9, 2023 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Windows PC/Steam.

It takes place after Yakuza 6: The Song of Life and also overlaps with certain events from Yakuza: Like a Dragon, shown from Kazuma Kiryu's perspective.

Takaya Kuroda returns as Kiryu in the Japanese version.

The game uses two combat styles: Yakuza, based on Kiryu's traditional abilities, and Agent, built around techniques and equipment provided by the Daidoji faction.

The Castle is an underground facility located on a massive ship off Osaka. It notably hosts the Coliseum, around which a significant portion of the side content is built.

A Deluxe Edition adds the Legendary Fighter Pack, allowing characters such as Daigo Dojima, Goro Majima and Taiga Saejima to be used in the Coliseum. This additional content remains separate from the foundations of the standard game.

The game also included a special trial version of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, unlocked through progression in Gaiden.

This entry focuses on the main campaign and core systems of the standard game.