Yakuza 2

Yakuza 2
Developer	New Entertainment R&D Dept. Ryū ga Gotoku Studio
Publisher	Sega
Platforms	PS2, PS3, PS4, Wii U, Windows, Xbox One
Released	Yakuza 2: PS2 JP: December 7, 2006 PS2 NA: September 9, 2008 PS2 EU: September 19, 2008 PS2 EU: September 25, 2008 Yakuza 1&2 HD PS3 JP: November 1, 2012 Wii U JP: August 8, 2013 Kiwami: PS4 JP: December 7, 2017 PS4 WW: August 28, 2018 Windows WW: May 9, 2019 Xbox One WW: July 30, 2020
Added to Museum	PS4: October 18, 2018

Yakuza 2, known in Japan as Ryū ga Gotoku 2 (龍が如く2, “Like a Dragon 2”), was the second game in the Like a Dragon series. It was released on PlayStation 2 in Japan on December 7, 2006, in North America on September 9, 2008, in Europe on September 19, 2008, and in Australia on September 25, 2008.

It received a high definition port in Japan as part of Ryū ga Gotoku 1&2 HD (龍が如く 1&2 HD, “Like a Dragon 1&2 HD”) on PlayStation 3 on November 1, 2012, and on Wii U on August 8, 2013.

It later received an enhanced remake titled Yakuza Kiwami 2, which was known in Japan as Ryū ga Gotoku: Kiwami 2 (龍が如く 極2, "Like a Dragon: Extreme 2"). It was released in Japan on PlayStation 4 on December 7, 2017. It received a worldwide release on PlayStation 4 on August 28, 2018, and on Windows on May 9, 2019.

Plot

The former fourth chairman of the Tojo clan, Kazuma Kiryu, is pulled back into the yakuza life after the murder of the fifth chairman.

In 1980, the Yakuza Tojo clan planned to eliminate the Jingweon Mafia, and Shintaro Kazama of the Tojo clan was sent to kill the leader. He originally planned to disobey orders but went through with the assassination to protect Kazuma Kiryu, an orphan from the Sunflower Orphanage who followed Kazama because he thought that he was in danger. Kazama saved two young men, a third survived the attack, and a police detective named Jiro Kawara saved the leader's wife and son.

In 2006, the Fifth Chairman of the Tojo clan, Yukio Terada, was murdered, and the retired Fourth Chairman, Kazuma Kiryu reluctantly agreed to deliver a letter from Terada to the Omi alliance to seek an alliance between the Omi Alliance and the Tojo clan. Members of both the Tojo clan and the Omi Alliance were against the proposed alliance, but Kiryu pressed forward as he had promised Terada that he would. Yayoi Dojima, the widow of the former guardian of the Third Chairman of the Tojo clan, Sohei Dojima, and acting Chairman of the Tojo clan, allowed Kiryu to bring the letter to the Omi Alliance. Before doing so, Kiryu sought to seek out Sohei Dojima's son, Daigo, who he felt would be a good choice for the Sixth Chairman of the Tojo Clan. Until his mission was completed, Kiryu placed his adoptive daughter Haruka back in the care of the Sunflower Orphanage.

Upon finding Daigo Dojima, Kiryu learned that he had changed after he was set up by an Omi Alliance member named Ryuji Goda and sent to prison for possession of weapons in 2001. Daigo wanted nothing to do with the Tojo clan, but Kiryu convinced him to help, and Daigo sought revenge against Ryuji.

After Kiryu managed to bring the letter to the Omi Alliance, Jin Goda, the elderly Fifth Chairman of the Omi Alliance agreed to the alliance. However, Ryuji Goda, the adopted son of Jin Goda, sought to make sure that the alliance never happened. Additionally, as the "Dragon of Kansai", he sought to defeat Kiryu, the "Dragon of Dojima", as he felt there could only be one dragon in the yakuza.

Ryuji kidnapped Jin Goda and Daigo Dojima to stop the alliance. Kiryu's mission was further complicated by a detective from Osaka named Kaoru Sayama. She was originally sent to bring Kiryu into protective custody so that she could get close to the Tojo clan, but she ended up forming an unlikely partnership with Kiryu as she accompanied him on his mission.

Kiryu saved Jin Goda and Daigo Dojima. However, Wataru Kurahashi, who was previously a survivor of the Jingweon massacre named Yeongmin Ji before he changed his name and joined the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, kidnapped Sayama to lure Kiryu into a trap.

Sayama initially believed she was a survivor of the Jingweon massacre, but later discovered that Ryuji Goda was the surviving infant and that she was the daughter of detective Jiro Kawara and Shoko Suyeon, the wife of the leader of the Jingweon Mafia. This made Ryuji Goda her half-brother. In addition, Yukio Terada revealed that he faked his death and that he was really Daejin Kim, a survivor of the Jingweon massacre.

Kurahashi, Terada, and Ryuji Goda planted bombs all over Kamurocho. With the help of the surveillance equipment of the Florist of Sai, Goro Majima and the Tojo clan disarm the bombs. However, Terada revealed that the last bomb was right where they were standing, at the Millenium Tower. Kurahashi killed Terada and Jiro Kawara and Ryuji Goda killed Kurahashi. Afterward, Ryuji fought Kiryu as the bomb counted down, with both men intending to die in the explosion. However, no explosion occurred as the bomb was a fake, and it was revealed that although Yukio Terada wanted revenge, he never intended to blow up the Millenium Tower.

Thus, Terada was still honored in death as the fifth chairman of the Tojo clan and Daigo Dojima became the sixth chairman.

Majima Saga

In Yakuza Kiwami 2, a three-chapter story is included wherein Goro Majima has to clear his name when he is blamed for a crime he didn't commit. The chapters are unlocked as the main story progresses, but they take place before the main storyline.

In 2006, the fifth chairman of the Tojo Clan, Yukio Terada, began a restoration of the Tojo clan. He declared that the Tojo clan captain would be the patriarch of the family who had earned the most money. The members of the old guard of the Tojo clan were offended by this, as they felt the new patriarchs who came with Terada from the Omi Alliance made their money by not upholding the morals of the Tojo clan because they made money from hurting civilians. Just as it appeared that a former Omi Alliance patriarch was going to be made the new Tojo clan captain, Goro Majima appeared with a wheelbarrow of money, and Terada declared that the discussion of the position of captain would be tabled until another time.

The former Omi alliance patriarchs were later found murdered, and Goro Majima was the prime suspect. However, after investigating throughout Tokyo's Kamurocho district, Majima met with the Florist of Sai, who was now working with the Tokyo police again. The Florist gave him the information he sought for the price of taking over his operations beneath Purgatory.

The Florist's information took Majima back to Osaka's Sotenbori district. He reunited with Makota Makimura at the chiropractic massage clinic where they met in 1988. She said that since he saved her life and brought her out of her psychologically caused blindness, she had gotten married, had a child, and was finally happy. She revealed that she kept the watch he gave her, but was sad because she could not find a band that matched the original. She said that she was to fly to the mainland with her family. Before she left, Majima purchased a band identical to the original and left it with her office. She opened the box on the plane and told her husband that she no longer had any regrets.

Majima's investigation ultimately revealed that one of the Majima family members was behind the murders, to pay off his massive debts. To prevent a war between the Omi Alliance and the Tojo Clan, Majima disbanded the Majima Family and started Majima Construction to build Kamurocho Hills over the former Purgatory site.

Playable games

Yakuza 2

At Club Sega, you can play Sega arcade games.

• UFO Catcher
• YF6 - a first-person lightsaber fighting game

In addition, there are gambling parlors, casinos, and bars that allow you to play various parlor games and gamble.

• Baccarat
• Batting Center
• Blackjack
• Darts
• Karaoke button-based rhythm game
• Mahjong
• Pachinko Slot
• Roulette
• Shogi

Yakuza Kiwami 2

At Club Sega, you can play Sega arcade games.

• Toylets
• UFO Catcher 8
• Virtua Fighter 2
• Virtual On: Cyber Troopers

In addition, there are gambling parlors, casinos, and bars that allow you to play various parlor games and gamble. As with Yakuza 0, the Japanese gambling games that had previously been cut out of previous western releases of Yakuza games are playable, complete with instructions on how to play them.

• Baccarat
• Batting Center
• Blackjack
• Bowling
• Cee-lo
• Cho-han
• Darts - includes 301, 501, 701, 901, cricket, and count-up
• Golf
• Gravure Photo Studio
• Karaoke button-based rhythm game
• Koi-koi
• Mahjong
• Oicho-kabu
• Poker
• Roulette
• Shogi
• Video booth

Versions

The original PlayStation 2 release of Yakuza 2 had several changes when it was translated into English, including the name of the game itself. In Japan, it was titled Ryū ga Gotoku 2, or Like a Dragon 2, after the dragon tattoo on Kiryu's back. In addition, several character names had been changed.

Yakuza Kiwami 2, the high-definition remake of Yakuza 2, had reverted most of these changes when it was translated into English. The characters regained their original Japanese names. Shintaro Fuma is Shintaro Kazama, Akira Nishiki is Akira Nishikiyama, and Kage the Florist is given the translation of his Japanese title Sai no Hanaya, Florist of Sai.

Pre-order bonus

People who pre-ordered the original Japanese version of the game received a physical magazine with articles based on the world of the game titled Kamutai Magazine.