Skip to main content

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is the series’ most absurd game yet

Goro Majima stands with a crew in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii.
Sega

Sega announced that the next game in the Like a Dragon (formerly known as Yakuza) series will be Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. Yes, you read that title right.

The game was revealed, and we learned more about it, during RGG Summit 24 on Friday morning. Launching on February 28, 2025, Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii takes cues from 2024’s Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name. Here, the spinoff’s focus is on the eccentric Goro Majima, who loses his memory and gets swept up in what Sega calls a “pirate yakuza adventure.” Its reveal trailer gives a deep dive into its story, which begins with Majima washing up on the shores of Rich Island and being discovered by a young boy named Noah.

Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii will let players assemble a pirate crew and sail the seas around Hawaii, although we’ve yet to see gameplay of that. Sega is promising real-time battles between enemy ships, as well as islands with hidden treasure to discover. When Majima is on land, Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii features action-focused combat, with Majima being able to switch between the Mad Dog and Sea Dog combat styles during battle.

So far, three main locales have been confirmed for Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. There’s Rich Island, where Majima washes ashore. Honolulu will return after first appearing in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Majima will also visit Madlantis, a ship graveyard-turned-pirate haven run by a lady named Queen Michele. Sega also confirmed that the quirky minigames this series is known for will return in Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii; so far, Crazy Delivery, Dragon Card, Karaoke, and Minato Girls have been revealed. For an even more in-depth look at the game, watch the full RGG Summit 2024 stream:

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii launches for PC, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on February 28, 2025. It will cost $60, which is more than The Man Who Erased His Name’s typical retail price, but lower than Infinite Wealth’s.

Tomas Franzese
Tomas Franzese is a Staff Writer at Digital Trends, where he reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…
Don’t miss Like a Dragon Gaiden’s hilarious ChatGPT side-story
Chot DDT in Like a Dragon Gaiden.

Substories often feature some of the best and funniest parts of the Like a Dragon games, and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is no different. From one that crosses over with Judgment to another where players fight a bunch of overweight criminals who call themselves the White Knights, the game is full of memorable side-quests. My favorite substory from Like a Dragon Gaiden -- and possibly the entire series -- stands out because it takes on something that’s been a hot topic in the tech space for the past year: ChatGPT.

AI has been the biggest buzzword in tech industries for the past year; just earlier this week, Microsoft announced it plans to partner with Inworld AI to create game-writing AI technology. There are plenty of controversial and potentially unethical uses of AI that people are wary of and unpacking. Like a Dragon Gaiden’ uses its signature brand of social satire to lampoon AI from a specific angle: by showing how bad AI is at giving dating advice.

Read more
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will kick off a crowded 2024 for RPG lovers
Ichiban fights a guy with a machete in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

Sega released two lengthy new trailers for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth as part of its latest RGG Summit. We not only got more plot and story details about the upcoming Like a Dragon title but a release date as well: January 26, 2024.

Previously, the game only had a vague "early 2024" release date that developers use for games coming out anytime from January to May, so this release date is a bit sooner than expected for the game. It also means that Infinite Wealth launches on the same day as Tekken 8 and arrives ahead of some other highly anticipated RPGs next year, like Granblue Fantasy: Relink, Persona 3 Reload, and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
A ten-minute story trailer for Infinite Wealth confirmed lots of new story details, which you might want to avoid if you don't want spoilers. If you don't mind, the trailer reveals that Ichiban is in Honolulu City to find his mother after losing his job and hitting a rough patch in his relationship with Saeko. Meanwhile, Kiryu has been diagnosed with cancer, and it's revealed to the public that he's just in hiding, not dead. From there, the trailer continues to tease yet another wild story centered around taking on organized crime that features characters from across the entire series.
LIKE A DRAGON: INFINITE WEALTH | STORY TRAILER
As for the gameplay trailer, it confirms that most of the game takes place in Hawaii, which has been recreated with a dynamic weather system. It also confirms that Infinite Wealth is a turn-based RPG like its predecessor, although Kiryu can "awaken his fighting spirit" to temporarily fight enemies in real time. The job system and Poundmates also return and players can obtain them by doing various jobs around Hawaii. There are also tons of weird minigames for things like being a bike courier, Sujimon battles, and online dating.
LIKE A DRAGON: INFINITE WEALTH | GAMEPLAY REVEAL TRAILER
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth launches for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on January 26, 2024. If you want to play some of the game a bit early, a demo for it will be included with this November's Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name.  

Read more
Like a Dragon Gaiden will come with an Infinite Wealth demo
Kiryu and Ichiban speak in the Special Trial demo for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

Sega announced that Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, which comes out this November, will contain a "Special Trial Version" demo of 2024's Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.

Including a demo for an upcoming game with another game is a bit of an old-school tactic, with two of the more famous examples being Zone of the Enders containing one for Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty and Final Fantasy Type-0 HD coming with a Final Fantasy XV demo. A lot of new fans joined the Like a Dragon series with 2020's Yakuza: Like a Dragon, which Infinite Wealth is a sequel to, and this special trial version now gives them a reason to give The Man Who Erased His Name a shot even if they aren't as familiar with Kiryu's story.
This was all revealed in a new lengthy overview trailer for The Man Who Erased His Name featuring Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio Director Masayoshi Yokoyama. In it, Yokoyama gives an overview of the game's story, which serves as an interquel of sorts and explains what Kiryu was up to in between Yakuza 6: The Song of Life and Infinite Wealth, and its classic action-style gameplay. Then, he revealed the Infinite Wealth demo and teased that it will contain "special content like scenes not included in the main game" and that players will need to beat The Man Who Erased His Name to access it. 
Like a Dragon Gaiden | Overview Trailer & Developer Update
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name and this Infinite Wealth demo will release on November 9 across PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. The full version of Like a Dragon Gaiden: Infinite Wealth will come to those same platforms sometime in early 2024.

Read more