Yakuza Kiwami

Presentation

Yakuza Kiwami is an action-adventure game developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. It is a full remake of the first Yakuza, originally released in 2005 for PlayStation 2.

The story begins in 1995 in Kamurocho, a fictional district inspired by Kabukicho in Tokyo. Kazuma Kiryu, a promising member of the Dojima Family, agrees to take the blame for a murder committed by his sworn brother Akira Nishikiyama.

Sentenced to ten years in prison, Kiryu returns in 2005 to a world that has changed dramatically. Nishikiyama now leads his own family, Yumi Sawamura has disappeared and the Tojo Clan has been destabilized by the theft of ten billion yen.

His investigation leads him to Haruka Sawamura, a young girl searching for her mother and mysteriously connected to the missing money. Their relationship gradually becomes one of the main driving forces of the story.

The game alternates between exploring Kamurocho, dialogue, story missions and real-time combat against yakuza, street thugs and various opponents encountered throughout the city.

Kiryu has access to four fighting styles inherited from Yakuza 0. Brawler offers a balanced approach, Rush focuses on speed and dodging, Beast emphasizes power and the use of environmental objects, while Dragon of Dojima represents his signature style.

Combat also makes use of the Heat Gauge, which allows powerful Heat Actions to be performed when the required conditions are met.

Progression allows Kiryu's attributes to be improved and new techniques to be unlocked. The Dragon style, however, follows a particular progression path largely built around the Majima Everywhere system.

Goro Majima can appear in many situations across Kamurocho to challenge Kiryu. These recurring fights allow him to gradually recover the abilities he had mastered before his imprisonment.

Outside the main story, Kamurocho offers numerous substories and activities, including karaoke, bowling, batting cages, casino games, mahjong, shogi, arcades, Pocket Circuit and MesuKing.

Key points

• A full remake of the first Yakuza from 2005.
• Kazuma Kiryu as the protagonist.
• A story beginning in 1995 and continuing in 2005.
• Kamurocho as the main area to explore.
• A plot centered on the theft of ten billion yen from the Tojo Clan.
• Haruka Sawamura plays a central role in the story.
• Akira Nishikiyama is a major figure in Kiryu's journey.
• Four fighting styles: Brawler, Rush, Beast and Dragon.
• Fighting styles can be switched quickly during combat.
• Heat Actions make use of the environment and different combat situations.
• Progression improves Kiryu and unlocks new techniques.
• The Majima Everywhere system notably develops the Dragon style.
• Numerous substories spread throughout Kamurocho.
• Karaoke, arcades, casino games, bowling and other side activities.
• New scenes deepen certain characters compared with the original game.

Conclusion

Yakuza Kiwami rebuilds the first chapter of Kazuma Kiryu's story with combat systems and presentation developed years after the original PlayStation 2 release.

The four fighting styles offer different approaches during battles, while Majima Everywhere turns Kiryu's progression into a recurring confrontation with one of the series' most iconic characters.

The remake also expands several narrative elements, especially Nishikiyama's journey, while preserving the series' characteristic mix of crime drama, urban exploration, combat and much lighter side activities.

Good to know

Yakuza Kiwami is developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and published by SEGA.

The game originally launched in Japan on January 21, 2016 for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.

The international PlayStation 4 version launched on August 29, 2017.

The game later arrived on PC via Steam in February 2019, followed by Xbox One in April 2020.

A Nintendo Switch version launched in October 2024.

New editions arrived in 2025 for Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, accompanied by a broader selection of text languages.

These recent versions do not fundamentally change the base game's content: they retain the story, combat and activities of Yakuza Kiwami.

The game is a single-player experience.

Kiwami reuses several systems from Yakuza 0, including Kiryu's four fighting styles, while adapting progression to his situation after ten years in prison.

The remake adds new scenes focused notably on Nishikiyama, showing more of what happened during Kiryu's absence.

After completing the story, Premium Adventure allows free exploration of Kamurocho, while New Game+ and Climax Battles extend the available content.

This entry focuses on the main story, Kazuma Kiryu, Haruka, Nishikiyama, the four fighting styles, Majima Everywhere and the main activities of Kamurocho, without detailing every substory or mini-game.