Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is perhaps the silliest Like a Dragon title yet, and I mean that in the best way possible. The story and characters are wonderfully goofy, the gameplay is tight and exciting, and the wild amount of side content is something to behold. Yet again, Ryu ga Gotoku Studios has made a must-play game.
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
Developer: Ryu ga Gotoku Studios
Price: $60
Platform: PS4, PS5 (reviewed), Xbox One Xbox Series X/S, and PC
MonsterVine was supplied with a PS5 code for review.
One of the best things in the gaming industry is the steady flow of Like a Dragon games that we get. The latest in this line of bangers in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii – a Majima-focused beat-em-up that lets you take to the Hawaiian seas as a rowdy pirate. If that sounds insane, that’s because it is, and it’s a blast in every crazy regard.
As was the case with Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, this shorter title goes with the tried-and-true beat-em-up gameplay of past Yakuza games instead of the modern turn-based system. It’s always refreshing to get back to this between main games, and Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is no exception. Majima plays in a unique and faster fashion, and he has two different styles to take advantage of this time around.
There’s the expected Mad Dog style that uses doppelgangers and Majima’s iconic blade, and then there’s the more buccaneer-oriented Sea Dog, which uses cutlasses, a gun, and a rope to give off a swashbuckling swagger. Both modes are fun to use in their own distinct ways and add some depth to combat, especially since they can be improved upon throughout the game.
In addition to the usual combat, there’s pirate ship combat in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. On your customizable ship, you do battle with several other vessels using machine guns, cannons, and rocket launchers. As someone who doesn’t normally dig the weighty feel of ship combat, I actually had a great time with it here, as it feels much quicker-paced and easier to handle. I never minded taking to the sea or battling boats, or even taking part in the many coliseum boat battles you can take on in the distinct setting of Madlantis.
You have to gather a crew to use all these different parts of the boat, which offers its challenges. Some people will join through the story or by impressing them in battle or with gifts, while others will require you to complete side stories. There’s no shortage of crew members to recruit, with some familiar faces and hilarious stories accompanying them. I just kept thinking I’d recruit one more person before progressing the story because it’s both easy and enjoyable to round up your ragtag crew of delightful weirdos.
“The entire narrative is full of charm, as it sees an amnesiac Majima set sail as a pirate captain to help fulfill a young boy’s dream.“
Speaking of side stories and activities, the breadth of them available in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is something to behold. You’ll meet all sorts of wacky characters as you take part in everything from kart racing to Crazy Taxi-esque food delivery, adding to your crew and fleshing out the story and its setting. It’s impressive to see just how much there is to do outside of the story in this smaller game, and it proves that nobody does side content, both in terms of quantity and quality, quite like Ryu ga Gotoku Studios.
The entire narrative is full of charm, as it sees an amnesiac Majima set sail as a pirate captain to help fulfill a young boy’s dream. It’s filled with both the intense melodrama and comical silliness that one would expect from this series, though there’s an extra dose of comedy to this one compared to titles like The Man Who Erased His Name. The cast of new characters is strong and feels right at home in the ever-expanding Like a Dragon universe, and I hope to see them return in future entries.
Both the Japanese and English VO are quite impressive, as I messed around with both to compare. Since the story features people speaking either language, there aren’t really any moments that stand out in either dialect as clashing against the story, so it comes down entirely to which cast you prefer.
The Final Word
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is perhaps the goofiest Like a Dragon game to date, filled to the brim with thrills and laughs in equal measure. From the ridiculous and moving story to the seemingly endless amount of side content to take on, this is another example of just how excellent the Like a Dragon series so frequently is.
MonsterVine Rating: 5 out of 5 – Excellent
