A Legend Reborn: Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties

Put a double D on your calendar for February 12, because the Dragon of Dojima is back, and better than ever, in Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties. Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of its  Like a Dragon/Yakuza series, and marked the occasion with a new release that’s also a revisit. Could this mean more slap attacks, charge kicks, and merciless throws from Kazuma Kiryu, the guy with the dragon back tattoo? Intel Gaming Access invited Hiroyuki Sakamoto and Ryosuke Horii of Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio to talk remakes and rebirths. 

Hiroyuki, Like a Dragon series Chief Producer, has been with the series since its inception, co-directing the first Yakuza game in 2005. “Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio is a development team within SEGA,” he explains. “We created and continue to develop games for the Like a Dragon und Yakuza series, which portrays the life of relatable people living in Japan’s red-light districts. Our games bring players into a true-to-life realization of modern Japan while exploring themes of love, humanity, and betrayal, creating what we feel is a unique experience.” 12 million sold units later, we think maybe they were onto something… 

This latest title is a remake of Yakuza 3, which was released in 2009 (2010 for North America and Europe), and while the narrative may be mostly faithful to the original, no gamer is made to play on another decade’s terms. Ryosuke, game director and producer of Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties, details the approach taken. “We did not want to make a simple remake,so we took a more aggressive approach to Yakuza Kiwami 3,” he explains. “We added many new elements and even revised a part of the story. The game has greatly evolved with many new cutscenes, new and re-recorded voice lines, and upgraded animations. We also greatly improved combat, which is quite different from Yakuza 3. We carried over our latest technology and rebuilt the whole system almost from scratch. Yakuza Kiwami 3 was rebuilt from the ground up, using the engine developed by our team.” The message is clear: with Yakuza Kiwami 3, you get much more than a remake—so much more, in fact, that Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio decided to throw a whole other game into the mix. 

“Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties is unique in that it is two games in one,” Ryosuke, director of both, reveals. “Yakuza Kiwami 3’s concept is ‘a legend is reborn and a new legacy begins’, and it follows series protagonist Kazuma Kiryu and his life in both Kamurocho, Tokyo, and—special to this game—Downtown Ryukyu, Okinawa. In Yakuza Kiwami 3, players can experience life at the Morning Glory orphanage (known as the Sunshine Orphanage in some territories), with Kiryu as a father figure, or team up with a ladies’ biker gang to protect Okinawa. The second game, Dark Ties, is a brand-new tale featuring Yoshitaka Mine, one of Kiryu’s formidable foes from Yakuza 3. It offers a dark, serious tone that feels true to the Yakuza series, and is the first time players can experience playing the game as this character. Our goal was to create a fresh and innovative experience that feels like a brand-new title. We created this game with both new players and long-time fans in mind, and we feel it offers something that everyone can enjoy.” 

Another thing gamers enjoy is peak performance without the peak price, something Hiroyuki Sakamoto addresses. “In the past, performance depended heavily on having an expensive graphics card, but now, with technologies like Intel XeSS and other hardware‑based upscaling solutions, users have far more options available to them. As long as players meet the recommended specs we provide, they should be able to enjoy the game in its best form.” And that is quite some form. Intel has worked with Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio since Wie ein Drache: Ishin! first had official support for XeSS. “Since then,” Hiroyuki recalls, “Intel has continued to be a valuable partner, and we’ve supported XeSS with every new RGG Studio title we release. Intel’s tools and technical support were also valuable during optimization and performance testing. They helped the team identify bottlenecks, better understand hardware behavior, and fine-tune the implementation of advanced features like XeSS. That kind of direct collaboration saved development time and resulted in a smoother experience for players.” 

That’s who it’s all about, after all. And after February 12 when Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties launches, what do those players have to look forward to from Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio? “We are hard at work on several exciting projects,” Hiroyuki assures us. “We look forward to being able to finally share more with players around the world.” As ever, watch this space. 

Pre-purchase Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties on Steam.