Those of you who follow me on Twitter may know that I do like to game every now and then. My latest gaming squeeze has been Yakuza: Like a Dragon, which...Gurl.
When it came to console gaming in 2020, all everybody was talking about was The Last of Us Part II, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Fall Guys and Spider-Man: Miles Morales. And it was really disheartening to see Yakuza: Like a Dragon not get the same level of social media love, conversation and recognition as the aforementioned, despite it being such a stand-out game. I felt it was a far better game than The Last of Us Part II and Final Fantasy VII Remake.
HENNYWAY.
The ending credits sequence to the game, which you can't skip (this should be illegal) features a song from Shōnan no Kaze called "Ichibanka" which is produced by Nakata Yasutaka. And it also has this cool ass video which was made using the Yakuza: Like a Dragon game engine itself.
When it came to console gaming in 2020, all everybody was talking about was The Last of Us Part II, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Fall Guys and Spider-Man: Miles Morales. And it was really disheartening to see Yakuza: Like a Dragon not get the same level of social media love, conversation and recognition as the aforementioned, despite it being such a stand-out game. I felt it was a far better game than The Last of Us Part II and Final Fantasy VII Remake.
HENNYWAY.
The ending credits sequence to the game, which you can't skip (this should be illegal) features a song from Shōnan no Kaze called "Ichibanka" which is produced by Nakata Yasutaka. And it also has this cool ass video which was made using the Yakuza: Like a Dragon game engine itself.
Shōnan no Kaze have a history with the Yakuza series, with their music now featuring in three games in the series.
For those of you who are playing Yakuza: Like a Dragon or plan on playing it at some point and have yet to see this music video, don't worry. It's 100% spoiler free.Shōnan no Kaze are known as a Reggae band. And as generic and typical of Nakata Yasutaka as this song is, I'm glad we didn't get some J-Reggae song thrown into Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Although it is such a bonkers off-the-wall game, that it could have gotten easily gotten away with it.
I hadn't heard "Ichibanka" until I completed the game, and had no idea at the time that Nakata Yasutaka was behind it, given how generic it sounds. Although listening to it now knowing he produced it, I can absolutely hear it. Poor Perfume.
If you're looking for a decent game to play as the rapture takes hold with ice following a year of fire, whilst COVID is still on world tour, pick up Yakuza: Like a Dragon. It is the 8th game in the Yakuza series, but you don't need to have played any of the older games to know what's going on. There are appearances from some characters who were in previous games, the impact of which is greatly lessened unless you know who they are and the things they did. But it doesn't have a bearing on the game as a whole. Although if you do want a previous Yakuza game to play, which is also pretty cheap now, pick up Yakuza 0. It was my first introduction into the series, which I only picked up to scratch a Shenmue itch, and bitch. I was not prepared for the game to be as good as it was. Another game that was fantastic, but didn't get the commercial spotlight is deserved.
For those of you who are playing Yakuza: Like a Dragon or plan on playing it at some point and have yet to see this music video, don't worry. It's 100% spoiler free.Shōnan no Kaze are known as a Reggae band. And as generic and typical of Nakata Yasutaka as this song is, I'm glad we didn't get some J-Reggae song thrown into Yakuza: Like a Dragon. Although it is such a bonkers off-the-wall game, that it could have gotten easily gotten away with it.
I hadn't heard "Ichibanka" until I completed the game, and had no idea at the time that Nakata Yasutaka was behind it, given how generic it sounds. Although listening to it now knowing he produced it, I can absolutely hear it. Poor Perfume.
If you're looking for a decent game to play as the rapture takes hold with ice following a year of fire, whilst COVID is still on world tour, pick up Yakuza: Like a Dragon. It is the 8th game in the Yakuza series, but you don't need to have played any of the older games to know what's going on. There are appearances from some characters who were in previous games, the impact of which is greatly lessened unless you know who they are and the things they did. But it doesn't have a bearing on the game as a whole. Although if you do want a previous Yakuza game to play, which is also pretty cheap now, pick up Yakuza 0. It was my first introduction into the series, which I only picked up to scratch a Shenmue itch, and bitch. I was not prepared for the game to be as good as it was. Another game that was fantastic, but didn't get the commercial spotlight is deserved.
🛒 Buy them bitch: Yakuza 0 (Available on PS4) | Yakuza: Like a Dragon (Available on PS4, Xbox One & Xbox Series S/X. PS5 version due in March)
These are not affiliate links. I just feel strongly that those of you with PS4's or PS5's should play these games. They're amazing.
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