Like a Dragon

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Like a Dragon logo.png
Like a Dragon
Developer NE R&D Dept., Ryū ga Gotoku Studio, Sega CS1
Publisher Sega
Platforms As noted below
Released 2005-present
Added to
Museum
As noted below

Like a Dragon (龍が如く, "Ryū ga Gotoku") is a multimedia series created by Toshihiro Nagoshi of Ryū ga Gotoku Studio that consists of video games, films, a television show, magazines, books, comics, and music.

Yakuza logo.png

The series was known outside of Japan as Yakuza until the official reveal of in-progress projects by Ryū ga Gotoku Studio on September 14, 2022.

It was spun-off into the Judgment series.

Fictional character biographies

Kazuma Kiryu, the main protagonist in most games in the series, is a former yakuza based in the Kamurocho district of Tokyo nicknamed the Dragon of Dojima. Kiryu took the blame for a murder that he didn't commit and spent ten years in prison. He became the sixth chairman of the yakuza organization named the Tojo Clan. He left to raise the daughter of his only love, who was murdered by her ex-husband, a crooked politician.

Ichiban Kasuga, the series protagonist of the series after Yakuza 6: The Song of Life, is nicknamed the Rock-Bottom Dragon. He was abandoned at birth and raised in the streets of Tokyo, leading him to become a low-level yakuza in the Tojo Clan. Like Kiryu, he took the blame for a murder he didn't commit. However, when he was released from prison eighteen years later, he was shot after trying to reconnect with his yakuza family and was left for dead in the Isezaki Ijincho district of Yokohama.

Other playable characters include:

Video games

Title Developer System Release Notes
Yakuza Sega New Entertainment R&D Dept. PS2 2005 Takes place in 2005, with former yakuza Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character.
Yakuza 2 Sega New Entertainment R&D Dept. PS2 2006 Takes place in 2006, with former yakuza Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character.
Like a Dragon Kenzan! Sega CS1 PS3 2008 Takes place in 1605, with the historical rōnin Miyamoto Musashi as the playable character. Released in Japan only.
Yakuza 3 Sega CS1 PS3 2009 Takes place in 2009, with Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character.
Yakuza 4 Sega CS1 PS3 2010 Takes place in 2010, with Kazuma Kiryu, Masayoshi Tanimura, Shun Akiyama and Taiga Saejima as the playable characters.
Black Panther: Like a Dragon - New Chapter Sega CS1
Syn Sophia
PSP 2010 Takes place in 2010, with Tatsuya Ukyo as the playable character. Released in Japan only.
Yakuza: Dead Souls Sega CS1 PS3 2011 Takes place in 2011. A zombie shooter with Shun Akiyama, Goro Majima, Ryuji Goda, and Kazuma Kiryu as playable characters.
Black Panther 2: Like a Dragon - Ashura Chapter Ryū ga Gotoku Studio
Syn Sophia
PSP 2012 Takes place in 2012, with Tatsuya Ukyo as the playable character. Released in Japan only.
Like a Dragon 1&2 HD Edition Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS3
Wii U
2012 Japanese-exclusive remaster of Yakuza and Yakuza 2. Known as Like a Dragon 1&2 Wii U Edition on Wii U: Takes place in 2005 and 2006, with former yakuza Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character.
Yakuza 5 Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS3 2012 Takes place in 2012, with Kazuma Kiryu, Shun Akiyama, Taiga Saejima, Haruka Sawamura, and Tatsuo Shinada as the playable characters.
Yakuza Kiwami Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS3, PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2013 Remake of Yakuza: Takes place in 2005, with former yakuza Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2017 Remake of Yakuza 2: Takes place in 2006, with Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character. The unlockable Majima Saga adds playable chapters as Goro Majima.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS3, PS4 2014 Takes place in 1863, with the historical samurai Sakamoto Ryōma as the playable character. Released in Japan only.
Yakuza 0 Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS3, PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2015 Takes place in 1988, with playable characters Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima. Released on PS4 worldwide and on PS3 in Japan only.
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2016 Takes place in 2016, with Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character.
Yakuza 3 Remastered Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2018 Remaster of Yakuza 3: Takes place in 2009, with Kazuma Kiryu as the playable character.
Like a Dragon Online Ryū ga Gotoku Studio Android, iOS, Windows 2018 Takes place in 2018. An online turn-based RPG with gatcha mechanics, with Ichiban Kasuga as the main character.
Yakuza 4 Remastered Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2019 Remaster of Yakuza 4: Takes place in 2010, with Kazuma Kiryu, Masayoshi Tanimura, Shun Akiyama and Taiga Saejima as the playable characters.
Yakuza 5 Remastered Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2019 Remaster of Yakuza 5: Takes place in 2012, with Kazuma Kiryu, Shun Akiyama, Taiga Saejima, Haruka Sawamura, and Tatsuo Shinada as the playable characters.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, PS5, Windows, Xbox One, Series X/S 2019 Takes place in 2019. A turn-based RPG with Ichiban Kasuga as the playable character.
Yakuza Remastered Collection Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, Windows, Xbox One 2019 Remaster of Yakuza 3, Yakuza 4, and Yakuza 5: Takes place in 2009, 2010, and 2012, with Kazuma Kiryu, Shun Akiyama, Taiga Saejima, Masayoshi Tanimura, Haruka Sawamura, and Tatsuo Shinada as the playable characters.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! Kiwami Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, PS5, Windows, Xbox One, Series X/S 2023 Remake of Like a Dragon: Ishin!: Takes place in 1863, with the historical samurai Sakamoto Ryōma as the playable character.
Like a Dragon: The Man Who Erased His Name Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, PS5, Windows, Xbox One, Series X/S 2023 Takes place between 2016 and 2019 with Kazuma Kiryu, as Joryu, as the playable character.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS4, PS5, Windows, Xbox One, Series X/S 2024 Takes place in 2024 with Ichiban Kasuga and Kazuma Kiryu as the playable characters.

Films

Title Production company Distributor Release Notes
Like a Dragon: Prologue Art Port Sega 2006 Prequel to Yakuza.
Yakuza: Like a Dragon Art Port Toei 2007 Based on Yakuza.

Television series

Title Production company Distributor Release Notes
Black Panther: Like a Dragon - New Chapter TBS Television TBS Television 2010 Adaptation of Black Panther: Like a Dragon - New Chapter.
Black Panther 2: Like a Dragon - Ashura Chapter TBS Television TBS Television 2012 Adaptation of Black Panther 2: Like a Dragon - Ashura Chapter.
Like a Dragon: The Song of the Soul Avex Entertainment Avex Entertainment 2016 Series with an original storyline created to advertise Like a Dragon: The Song of Life.

Other games with Like a Dragon characters

Title Developer System Release Notes
Everybody's Golf 6 Clap Hanz PS3, Vita 2011 Kazuma Kiryu is a DLC character in the Japanese version of this golf game.
Taiko no Tatsujin Portable DX Taiko Team PSP 2011 MachineGun Kiss has cameos from Shun Akiyama, Ryuji Goda, Kazuma Kiryu, Goro Majima, Haruka Sawamura, and cabaret club hostesses.
Binary Domain Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PS3, Xbox 360, Windows 2012 Kazuma Kiryu, Shun Akiyama, Goro Majima, Taiga Saejima, and Ryuji Goda were available as DLC in the Japanese version of this third-person shooter set in 2080 in a Tokyo that has been ravaged by global warming.
Project X Zone 2 Monolith Soft Nintendo 3DS 2015 Kazuma Kiryu and Goro Majima are in this crossover tactical role-playing game with characters from franchises by Bandai Namco, Capcom, Sega, and Nintendo.
Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise Ryū ga Gotoku Studio PlayStation 4 2018 A Kazuma Kiryu skin for Kenshiro Kasumi is available as DLC.
Streets of Kamurocho Empty Clip Studios Windows 2020 Endless Beat-em 'up in the 16-bit Streets of Rage style, with Kazuma Kiryu, Goro Majima, and Ichiban Kasuga as the playable characters.

Pachinko games

Title Developer Release Notes
Like a Dragon Kenzan! 2
Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan! 2
(龍が如く 見参!, "Like a Dragon Arrives! 2")
Taiyo Elec 2014 Pachinko game.
Like a Dragon: Of the End
Ryū ga Gotoku OF THE END
(龍が如 OF THE END, "Ryū ga Gotoku")
Taiyo Elec 2015 Pachislot game.

Soundtrack albums

Title Studio Release Notes
Dragon Song: Like a Dragon - Karaoke Best Selection Sega 2011 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon Of the End.
Dragon Song: Like a Dragon 5 - The Best Songs Selection Sega 2012 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon 5.
Like a Dragon Series: Best Soundtrack Sega 2014 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon Ishin!.

Magazines

Title Publisher Release Notes
Kamutai Magazine
(December 2006)
Sega 2006 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon 2.
Kamutai Magazine
(March 2008)
Sega 2008 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon: Kenzan!
Kamutai Magazine
(February 2009)
Sega 2009 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon 3.
Kamutai Magazine
(March 2010)
Sega 2010 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon 4.
Hot•Dog Press
(March 2015)
Sega 2015 Preorder bonus for Like a Dragon 0.