Summary
- Like a Dragon Gaiden brings back Kiryu's classic moveset and introduces new gadgets, offering incredible combat with the Agent and Yakuza Styles.
- Both styles in the game are versatile and feature finely-tuned movesets that make defeating enemies flashy and fun. Upgrades play a key role in success, with money being an important resource.
- The Agent Style excels in crowd control with gadgets like Spider and Hornet, while the Yakuza Style is perfect for one-on-one fights, showcasing Kiryu's strength and skills. Ultimate Counters and Extreme Heat Mode add depth and power to combat.
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name brings Kiryu and his fighting prowess back into the spotlight, this time, with a couple of new gadgets up his sleeve. Not only does the Dragon of Dojima have his classic moveset to rely on, but through the teachings of the special agent Daidoji faction and the help of a Sotenbori weapons inventor, he's able to utilize an entirely new mode of battle. Between the Agent and Yakuza Styles, Gaiden boasts incredible combat, worthy of the Like a Dragon name.
Like a Dragon Gaiden's Agent and Yakuza Styles both hold immense versatility, with finely-tuned movesets that make defeating enemies flashy and fun. As with the series' prior entries, combat abilities and strength/health are gradually unlocked through player effort, making upgrades a key component of success in combat. In Gaiden's case, money is the name of the game, and while it may become easier to acquire throughout the course of the story, players should try to balance their spending to get the most out of both styles.
Both Like a Dragon Gaiden's Agent and Yakuza Styles Are Incredibly Versatile
Agent Style is Perfect For Crowd Control
The Agent Style moveset lets Like A Dragon's Kiryu be as nimble as ever before, complete with palm strikes, wall kicks, and the clever use of four gadgets. These include:
- Spider: A device that protrudes a thin wire, letting Kiryu rein in enemies and objects. Perfect for combo finishers.
- Hornet: Lets Kiryu summon a mass of drones to support him offensively and defensively.
- Firefly: Allows Kiryu to chuck explosive cigarettes, incapacitating enemies from afar. Works well in conjunction with Serpent.
- Serpent: Jet-powered shoes that allow Kiryu to glide across terrain with ease. Great for the Coliseum's Hell Team Rumble.
The Agent Style's four gadgets accompany a moveset focused greatly on speed. The Daidoji way of fighting sees Kiryu move from enemy to enemy with ease, allowing for consecutive quicksteps and fast strikes that make it hard for Kiryu to be touched. Agent Style works particularly well when faced with enemy mobs, both in Sotenbori and the Coliseum, as Kiryu's momentum when he's in his fighting stance allows him to lock in on and take out enemies in quick succession. Agent Style is both flashy and stylish in its portrayal, lending itself well to newcomers and series veterans alike.
Yakuza Style Lets One-on-One Fights Shine
Kiryu's Yakuza Style is an amalgamation of past techniques, from Brawler to Rush to Beast, though its focus skews towards the more methodical, heavy-hitting strikes of the latter category. Yakuza Style lends itself well to one-on-one fights, with numerous ways to break an enemy's guard, from a charged uppercut to a grab to a headbutt parry. Gaiden's iteration of Kiryu's Yakuza moveset seems to hold a lot more inertia than the series' earlier entries, with the momentum of his combos pushing him towards the opponent. While Agent Style allows for consecutive quicksteps, Yakuza Style opts for a Beast-Style dodge roll, along with a Breaker-Style recovery when on the ground.
While players can favor either style they wish, the opportunity to use Yakuza Style on bosses feels a bit more in-character for Kiryu, especially in consideration of Gaiden's story. As Kiryu fights both Yakuza members and Daidoji agents alike, the moves he's learned throughout the course of the series help to hone in on just how strong he's become, upholding his legacy as the Dragon of Dojima.
Extreme Heat Mode Melts Through Enemy Health Bars
Both the Yakuza and Agent Styles utilize an Ultimate Counter, serving as a timed parry to an enemy's Ultimate Attack that works as a fantastic complement to Gaiden's combat. Ultimate Counters in both styles leave the perfect opportunity for a follow-up Heat Action, though the Heat Gauge has even more versatility through Extreme Heat Mode, allowing Kiryu's damage to increase tenfold when activated. This, in conjunction with the variety of their movesets, allows both the Yakuza and Agent Styles to be compelling conduits for Kiryu and perfect representations of the series' beat-em-up combat.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 79 /100 Critics Rec: 81%
- Released
- November 9, 2023
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio
- Publisher(s)
- Sega
- Engine
- Dragon Engine
- Franchise
- Yakuza
WHERE TO PLAY
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure
