Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza In Hawaii Release Date Brought Forward a Week to Avoid Monster Hunter Wilds Clash

ign.com:

Sega has brought forward the release date of Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii to February 21, 2025 to avoid a clash with Monster Hunter Wilds.

In a video shared by Like a Dragon developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, below, studio head Masayoshi Yokoyama said the release date is shifting up one week from the originally announced February 28. Capcom announced the same release date for Monster Hunter Wilds just five days after RGG Studio revealed Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii's.

While Yokoyama didn't mention Monster Hunter WIlds explicitly, he did say RGG Studio wanted fans "to play the game that comes out after with peace of mind" and "enjoy hunting at [their] own pace."

The Monster Hunter and Like a Dragon franchises are both developed in Japan and, while the monster hunting role-playing game and pirate action adventure don't share genres, it makes sense that Sega and Capcom wouldn't want two of their headlining franchises going head-to-head on the same day.

"We have decided to bring forward the release date by a week to February 21, 2025," Yokoyama said. "This is partly because development is progressing more smoothly than expected, but we also want to deliver the game to players around the world as soon as possible. We wanted you to be able to play the game that comes after it with peace of mind."

He added later: "If you are interested in pirates, but aren't familiar with the series overall, please have a go. And after that, I hope you'll also enjoy hunting at your own pace."

Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is a spin-off sequel to Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, the eighth mainline entry in the Yakuza / Like a Dragon series (or ninth including Yakuza 0). It follows fan favorite character Goro Majima as he wakes up with amnesia and becomes a pirate.

A trailer released at the October Xbox Partner Showcase revealed a proper first look at ship combat akin to Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag and the return of the beloved character Taiga Saejima, perhaps teasing more ties to the main series