Ichiban
Kasuga, the goofy eternally optimistic ex-yakuza, has taken to helping other
former criminals find legitimate work while his formerly down-and-out comrades
Adachi and Nanba also seem to be thriving. But when a viral video threatens
their fortunes and Kasuga’s dating life implodes, he receives a surprising mission
from his former clan captain: go to Hawaii and track down his presumed-dead
mother, Akane. Upon arrival, Kasuga finds several dangerous factions hunting are
hunting for Akane as well. Fortunately, he acquires unexpected allies,
including legendary former yakuza Kazuma Kiryu, who is on a mission of his own
and whose days may be numbered. Will the group find Akane and discover why she
is wanted before it is too late?
The newest
entry in Sega’s long-running Yakuza series is the follow-up to 2020’s Yakuza:
Like a Dragon, a game that controversially moved the series from action
brawler to turn-based RPG. In its own way, however, Infinite Wealth is
no less revolutionary. It’s the first game in the series with an American
setting, and, the first that really shows longtime protagonist Kiryu’s age (55)
and health catching up with him. He’s still quite a formidable fighter, but we
get to see him as more of a team player and less of a one-man army this
go-around, and the bonds he forms with Kasuga and other party members help
flesh him out.
Kiryu is
but one of several surprisingly well-developed and well-written characters
here. From inane plot contrivances to completely detestable megamaniacal villains,
subtlety and complexity are not always Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios’ strengths. Infinite
Wealth still has plenty of zaniness – Kasuga imagines street punks as
monsters, presumed-dead characters pop up as bartenders who troll their
patrons, and you fight malicious construction equipment on more than one
occasion – but it's tempered by a more mature approach to characterization. Newcomers
Tomizawa and Chitose are introduced as a petty criminal cab driver and a
spoiled heiress, respectively, yet both have sympathetic motivations and grow to take responsibility and control
of their lives. Returning character Seonhee, the seemingly stern queen of
Yokohama’s Korean underworld, lightens up around Kiryu and displays a sisterly
affection for underling Joongi Han. Club owner Saeko rebuffs attempts to woo or control her and asserts her independence. While
one of the main antagonists fits the all-conquering mold, the others have more
understandable rationales for the extremes that they go to.
Much of
the voice cast returns from the previous game, and among the English-language
performers, Kaiji Tang (Kasuga), Greg Chun (Nanba), and Elizabeth Maxwell
(Saeko) continue to impress. Here, we’re also treated to Danny Trejo voicing a character modeled after himself, machetes and all. That said,
vtuber Yong Yea is both too young and too inexperienced to really do Kiryu
justice. The performance grows on you after a while, but it’s almost worth
switching the language to Japanese for Takaya Kuroda’s familiar baritone alone.
While the turn-based combat in Like a Dragon was serviceable, it’s both deeper
and more fluid in Infinite Wealth. Positioning plays a bigger role as you can
move around to set up back attacks and environmental attacks. New job classes
(each with unique abilities) open up possibilities to suit different playing
styles that emphasize attack or magic or healing. Kasuga can perform tag-team
attacks with party members once their hype meters fill. Kiryu, thankfully,
retains his ability from older games to switch between fighting styles, and
when his meter fills, he can step out of turn-based combat entirely and simply
start punching and kicking opponents at will (similar to the old Extreme Heat
mechanic).
There is much in Infinite Wealth that manages to be both fun and utterly
shameless. The Pokemon-ripoff Sujimon collection side activity is back,
and it is joined this time by an Animal Crossing ripoff: Dokondo Island.
I’m not a fan of either franchise, but the former eventually grew on me – the latter
continues to feel tedious. Another string of side activities can best be
described as a Kiryu nostalgia tour as he triggers memories of characters from
past games and even gets to observe some from afar (he’s been declared legally
dead, and the shadowy faction that arranged it tries to distance him from his
past life). Add to that everything from dungeon crawl battles to fishing to
baseball and more, and there is no shortage of things to do in this game.
Well-designed,
well-written, engaging, and eminently playable, Like a Dragon: Infinite
Wealth has, if not, infinite potential, then at least a reasonable
approximation of something for everybody.