Yakuza Spin-Off Like a Dragon Gaiden Revealed For 2023

gamerant.com:

A new Yakuza spin-off called Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name has been revealed for release in 2023. The Yakuza series has only been growing in popularity in the west since Yakuza 0 introduced a whole new audience to the series in 2017, and 2020's Yakuza: Like a Dragon managed to raise the series to even further mainstream success, acting as a soft reboot and a great starting point for newcomers. Now, RGG Studios has announced a game for long-time fans of the series, one that will lead directly into the events of Like a Dragon 8, Like a Dragon Gaiden.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon marked the first mainline entry in the series to star a new protagonist, with the studio claiming to have retired past protagonist Kazuma Kiryu with Yakuza 6: The Song of Life. While this was a great call for giving the series a soft reboot and introducing a new location, new gameplay mechanics, and new protagonist in Ichiban Kasuga, it didn't stop Kiryu from making an appearance in Like A Dragon's main story. Now, with today's announcement of Like a Dragon 8, which is set for release in 2024, it's been revealed that Kiryu will be returning to co-headline the next mainline entry with Ichiban.

Yakuza 8 Officially Announced, Release Date Revealed

While many fans are excited by this reveal, there is an understandable crowd that is confused by Sega's decision to bring the character back as a main protagonist following the finale of Yakuza 6. Thankfully, Sega has come more than prepared, announcing Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, a new spin-off game set between the events of Yakuza 6 and Like a Dragon, that will also lead directly into Like a Dragon 8. Better yet, the game is planned as a cross-generational release in 2023,