“Yakuza 6: The Song of Life” (called “Ryū ga Gotoku 6: Inochi no Uta” in Japan) is to be released worldwide on April 17, 2018. The release comes over a year after the original Japanese one, which came out on Dec. 8, 2016. It’s an action adventure video game that is developed and published by Sega for the Playstation 4.
The game was originally announced back at the Tokyo Game Show on Sept. 26, 2015. The release date was left ambiguous and only known as Autumn 2016, a prediction that ended up being false due to “Yakuza 6” coming out in the winter instead.
However, there was an error made on Feb. 27, 2018. Instead of the demo that was supposed to go up in Playstation stores, the entire game ended up being released for free. Upon discovering the mistake, the demos and free copies of the game were all revoked. The incident was properly rectified on March 19, 2018 when the real demo was re-released into the Playstation store.
The gameplay follows the same formula and set up as the previous installments. It takes place in an open world environment and is played in a third person perspective. As normal, exploration and over the-top arcade style combat are included. The player once again takes the wheel as the main (and only playable) character: Kazuma Kiryu.
The game has been given generally favorable reviews at this point, the lowest score overall landing at a 7 / 10 from Destructoid. The first week of its release in Japan ended with 218,168 copies sold. As of Dec. 23, 2016, “Yakuza 6” had sold nearly 50 thousand more between then and the original release. Combining these sales with ones from the rest of Asia, the game shipped over 500,000 copies across the continent.
The Yakuza series began back on Dec. 8, 2005. The series came from Toshihiro Nagoshi’s desire to make a game that would tell about the life of a Yakuza. While struggling to find a platform for the project, it caught Sony’s eye.
The series focuses mostly on Kazuma Kiryu, a Yakuza of the Tojo clan. While he does odd jobs for the clan, he also is searching for another way of life in the form of raising orphans. The game revolves around either confronting enemies or doing various tasks to gain experience.
Since its release, the series has become a critical and commercial success. As of 2017, Sega has reported that over 10.5 million digital and physical copies have sold since its debut 12 years prior. The mass sales in the original Japanese market even sparked expansions of the franchise into other mediums, including a film adaption in 2007.
“Yakuza” as a series, with its success, has never earned anything under a C across several gaming magazines. Magazines with 40 point scales have consistently given the games middle to upper scores in the 30’s, percentage based ratings are always above 76 percent and have been on the cusp of a B several times, and ones out of 100 have given nothing below a 75, a solid C.
Erika Brandenburg
Staff Writer