Yakuza 6: The song of Life should've been the last adventure for Kazuma Kiryu. 11 years of story culminating into one last ride, which concludes with a bittersweet ending, which at least signified freedom.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon in 2020 marked a new beginning for the series, with Ichiban Kasuga as the new face of the franchise, a new type of gameplay and a brand new cast of characters to get attached to. The best thing about it being that, in spite of past key players still appearing in tertiary roles, the plot is easily accessible to everyone, making it a perfect jumping off point.

Unfortunately not even Yakuza is immune to the biggest hurdle of long running series: the passing of the torch!

In the years that followed, RGG studio struggled a lot in giving Ichiban the same level of presence. The last title that came out is a remake of Yakuza 3, a title that, for as much as it needed a bit of polishing, it's once again a title with Kiryu as the main character. It's very clear that SEGA isn't entirely willing of letting the character go.

Personally I love Kiryu, but at the same time I don't want his presence to overshadow Ichiban as the series flag bearer. Historically it happens often to be in this kind of situations: Raiden and Solid Snake, Apollo Justice and Phoenix Wright, Nero and Dante, all characters that have suffered living in the shadow of their predecessor.

All of this preamble, just to give the bad new that if you want to fully enjoy the story of Infinite Wealth, you're gonna have to play his adventures from Yakuza 0 up until Yakuza 6, because in this story more than any other, his past will be extremely important.

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth

Warning, some of the points discussed in this blog can possibly spoil some story point about Yakuza: Like A Dragon, I'll try to remain as vague as possible.

Ichiban's Hawaiian adventure

We're in Yokohama, three years after the dissolution of Clan Tojo and Omi Alliance. The streets are filled to the brimg with Ex-Yakuza who are trying to go back to civilian life, with many hardships. Ichiban Kasuga, now an employer for a scouting agency, is working with all his might to help these people to go back on the right track.

The already hard task, gets further hindered by Hisoka Tatara, a V-Tuber influencer specialized in exposing media scandals, with a particular focus on people colluding with the crime world. The accusation against Ichiban is one of favouring getting work to the former Yakuza with the intention of creating a front for his new personal Yakuza Clan.

The accusations spread like wildfire, Ichiban's reputation gets destroyed, and both him and his close friends end up fired from their jobs, with Ichiban even getting persecuted on the streets by Hisoka Tatara's fans encouraging him to never show his face in the streets of Yokohama again.

It's at that moment that someone from his past comes back to ask for a favour. Jo Sawashiro, former captain of Ichiban, reveals to him that Akane Kishida, his mother, is still alive and is hiding at the Hawaii, convincing Ichiban to take the first flight for Honolulu so that they finally meet.

It doesn't take long before Ichiban finds himself in the middle of a fierce manhunt. His mother wanted both by Hawaiian and Japanese underworld. It's then up to him to find her, protect her, and discover the truth about his trip to Hawaii.

Hidden face of Heaven

This is the first time that the Yakuza series takes place outside of Japan, and having it set in Hawaii might seem a bit random.

In reality is a very popular place for Japanese tourists.

I was expecting this game to paint Hawaii as this wonderful paradise island, but in reality it lifts that veil of lush beaches and crystalline oceans from the very beginning to put a light on the rotten reality being those luxurious hotels.

Unsustainable price of living, homeless people relegated into slum, natives forced to scam tourist for money and a constant undergoing war between gangs for control of the territory. A facade of wonder to hide a reality of abuse and exploitation, with no regards if not earnings from their own little tourist trap.

These aspect is highlighted very well not just in the substories, but also with the character of Eric Tomizawa, a taxist without license that tries to rob Ichiban during their first encounter.

He spent 5 years in prison, after being blamed for the aggression of a manager. During that time, his girlfriend was pregnant, and all the stress of the situation, coupled with the hardships of making ends meet without Eric's salary, caused her to miscarriage. Since then Eric is living by the day, submerged with debts and forced into the criminal world in order to get by.

Forgiveness Doesn't Exist

I really enjoyed having all this emphasis over the reality of Hawaii, especially since it's linked very well to the central theme of this story, the dehumanization of people, in particular those who have commited a crime in the past.

The story recognized that some of these criminals are past redemption, but there's also a lot of them that want to make amends for their past action and start over from the beginning.

Unfortunately they're never allowed to even make that choice.

The government is approving laws that bar all former yakuza to have access to bank accounts, hospitals and even renting a house for at least five years.

They're not even allowed to own a smartphone.

With all these hurdles in the way a true process of re-integration is almost impossible, an the only choice left to them is go back to the fold.

It's not a coincidence that the Seiryu clan in Yokohama has entered in a period of vast expansion, with its current captain, Masataka Ebina declaring that he wants to finalize the dissolution of the Yakuza in Japan. By reuniting all the former Yakuza and the other smaller clans into one big organization, to then give it the coup de grace. Ebina himself is also helping the former Yakuza in need of a job by making them work in his various warehouses.

The system becomes a vicious cycle, with people being forced into commiting crimes by harsh living conditions, being punished just as harshily for having dared to stain society with their presence and then being treated like the dirt you tired to hide under the carpet. You know there's gonna be mountains underneath that rag, but as long as it looks good, it's not a problem.

Don't Lose Hope

Of the most important traits of Ichiban it's his endless positivity.

As much as his characters has remained mostly unchanged, the thing that gets emphasized the most it's his relationship with the party, especially with the new arrivals.

I've already mentioned Eric and his attempted robbery, after that happening it will be Ichiban to help him break the chains that keep him so tied to the criminal world. Since that moment he joins the adventure becoming the straight man to Ichiban's insanity.

I really enjoyed seeing him crawling his way back up from the depths to get his payback and put his life back together. There's also a moment when he tries to contact his former girlfriend, not to start over, but just to make sure she was able to put her own life back together. He's really that loyal to the end friend which you would love to share a couple of beers with at the bar.

Chitose Fujinomiya, is another character that had a chaotic meeting with Ichiban, drugging him after posing as Akane's house maid as a means to extort him as much info as possible. Chitose is always shrewd and unpredictable, that type of character you find hard to trust because you might never know what they're hiding behind their innocent smile.

Even in this case Ichiban's stubbornness and naivety end up breaking through her armour, proving to her that she can trust him and pushing her to do the right thing by the end of the story.

Ichiban is that kind of person that doesn't stop against anything, and he's always convinced that there's room for redemption for someone. Sure, you'll have to pay the consequences of your own actions, but at the moment you show yourself willing to make that step, he becomes a friend you can always count on and won't stop at nothing in order to help you.

I won't deny though that I'm disappointed by the fact his character doesn't see any evolution, there was also the possibility of making this story a lot more personal for him, considering his mother is at the centre of this conflict, but at the end of it all, she was more of a mean to a goal.

I also can't shake off the feeling that part of the reason Ichiban story couldn't explored more, is because he was forced to share the space with a second protagonist, someone that as much as I enjoyed him being there, he shouldn't have been included in the first place.

The hurt of the Dragon

Such as the Seiryu Clan and the Hawaiian mob, even the Daidoji, Japanese secret services, are tracking down Akane, since they're suspicions about someone from inside the government being involved in all this. So Kiryu is sent quickly to Hawaii where he and Ichiban quickly cross paths.

Initially the two are working together, up until the mission starts taking a physical toll on Kiryu, and he's then forced to go back to Japan. But this won't leave him with nothing to do, because while Ichiban will be busy tracking down Akane, Kiryu will investigate about the true intentions of the Seiryu Clan.

During all this though, Kiryu has a much bigger hurdle to face. Citing the back of the box "Kazuma Kiryu, a broken man facing down his last days" his biggest enemy isn't a Yakuza Clan or some big national conspiracy, his biggest enemy is inside of him.

Kiryu has cancer, and has only a few months left to live, he's also refusing any treatment, preferring to let himself die willingly. After the events of Yakuza 6 he has lived like a shadow, a tool in the hands of the Daidoji, forced to give up friends, family and his own name. Kiryu is tired of fighting and he's just waiting that fatal moment when he'll be finally free from this world.

It's at that moment that an old friend returns from his past, detective Makoto Date, the only person whose aware of Kiryu and his deal with the Daidoji. Date takes it upon himself to be an inspiration for Kiryu and motivate him into fighting back and find that will to live again.

And that's the core of Kiryu's story! A trip down memory lane looking back at all the moments in Kiryu's life up to today, a true celebration and tribute to the history of the Yakuza series, even mentioning spin offs like Like a Dragon: Ishin, and meeting back with characters that were long gone from the series.

Having played every single game up to that point, this was the apex of feeling rewarded as a fan, almost 20 years of history encapsulated into this game, and I loved every single reference.

Remembering all those old playthroughs was almost nostalgic in a way, in spite of the fact that I've been playing this series for just 10 years.

Not to mention that the incipit of Kiryu's adventure, is wonderful to me. Following the steps of this person which is facing certain death and has to find the will to live to fullest what little he has remaining without any regrets is so strong that I'm sad to say, it overshadowed the rest of the story in some aspects.

I wanted to see Kiryu patch up with Haruka, his daughter. I wanted to see him find his will to live again, because if this was the moment where we were gonna have to say goodbye to a friend, you want to at least see this friend go out on his terms and with a smile on his face.

If this really ends up being Kiryu's last chapter, this couldn't have been a better goodbye… At the same time though, I can't help buy being annoyed how this happened at Ichiban's expenses, without mentioning another very important detail.

How does a newbie experiences this story?

In my opinion, not well! Every single quote or reference is written and presented with the assumption that the player has lived those adventures. Is like walking down the streets with a friend, crossing that road you always used to do as children, taking note of everything that has changed around the place and exchanging memories about everything you went through in those streets.

Without context there's no engagement. So I wonder why they didn't take the occasion and tell this story within The Man Who Erased His Name?

It would've given us a much more complete story for that game, and the players who got into the series thanks to Yakuza: Like a Dragon would've been able to experience the adventures of Ichiban to the fullest, without the need to share the spotlight.

Even writing this words leaves me very conflicted, because I loved this game!

I loved to see Kiryu slowly getting the strength to fight back his illness, I loved to see Ichiban go to hell and back in order to find his mother who he believed died in childbirth, and I got furious watching characters like Hisoka Tatara, fuelling the fire of their fanatic followers and persecuting and bullying all these people who just wanted a chance for redemption.

The more the story moved forward the more I was intrigued by the mystery, I was suspicious of everyone around me, angry for the betrayals and disgusted by all the exploitation and dehumanization of these poor people.

But then, every time the game switched from one character to the other I couldn't shake off a certain feeling. If playing with my memories and remembering the past, was really a way to close the book forever, or just a symptom of a company who's scared of having to move the series forward without his key characters.

I guess the only way to have the answer is waiting until Like A Dragon 9 finally gets announced.

I won't hide that my expectations at the moment aren't that bright, considering the rumours from RGG Studio that they would rather dedicate themselves to more remakes.

The Fork of the Future

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is a chapter that for as much as I loved it, I can't help but feel extremely conflicted about, and it's the first time that happens for me in the Yakuza series. For as much as Ichiban's adventure was enjoyable and has some amazing moments, especially by the end, it inevitably ended up being obscured.

Kiryu's journey to accepting his situation, to find his will to fight and live again, getting back his own name in the hope that he can see his family again before dying was wonderful, deeply touching especially if you played the series form the beginning. I can't help but feel that this story should've been told in another game.

By the time I'm writing this blog, there's still no say what the plans for the future are, but I really wanna hope that this is a definitive goodbye and that Like A Dragon 9 doesn't necessarily have to include more characters from the past in order to continue his story.

I don't wanna give the impression that I hate characters like Majima or Kiryu, but I can't help but notice the insecurities about doing this passing of the torch. I can totally understand the feeling that some players do prefer Kiryu rather than Ichiban. But In that case I have something to say.

Nothing lasts forever

Especially in this series where time always moves forward! Kiryu is 60 years old, physically ill, tired and just wants that peace that's always been out of his grasps. Maybe it's time to learn to let things go, it's time for Ichiban to live his own story, and we don't have to be at his side if we don't want to.

If you're a fan of the series from the very beginning than you absolutely have to play this chapter, the story of Kiryu will make you emotional like never before. If you've only just started with Yakuza: Like a Dragon instead… I can only hope that you won't find his story boring, instead something that can still managed to leave you on a positive feeling.

So what do you think about Like a Dragon Infinite Wealth? Did you prefer Kiryu or Ichiban? Do you also think they shouldn't have shared the spotlight? Or did you enjoy that it was handled this way because you loved to see them interact? As always let me know in the comments.

Our next adventure will be very peculiar, because Goro Majima is gonna be the solo protagonist for the very first time with a swashbuckling adventure in Like A Dragon Gaiden: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. But before saying goodbye, let's jump into the…

SPOILER SECTION - Proceed at your own risk

This game puts a lot of pieces on the board from the get go: between murders in the dark, influencers starting a witch hunt, and a Yakuza clan which while expanding itself it also seem suspiciously free from any persecution, if not supported outright.

The moment everything resolved, I was flabbergasted and some in some aspects I felt the situation hitting very close to home to what we're going through today. Everything revolves around two key figures: Masataka Ebina and Hisoka Tatara, let's start with the first one.

Eternal Punishment

Ebina wasn't lying when he told about making a second dissolution, it's just that the methods he adopted would end up being far more vicious. By taking advantage of Hisoka Tatara he would've forced the former Yakuza to return to the clan, with the promise that everything would be like the good old days. Meanwhile Hisoka would've put over a media campaign praising the Seiryu Clan for their initiative in getting the streets rid from the former Yakuza.

At that point two more pieces will be added, the Japanese Government and an Hawaiian contact. The government was facing a crisis with getting rid of some nuclear wastes, which Ebina, thanks to his contact, would've been able to make disappear in one of the islands, where all the former Yakuza would've been deported as workforce, probably dying of cancer induced by the radiations.

The Government thus gets rid in one fell swoop of all the toxic wastes, people that consider scum of society, and it also make themselves look like the ones that cleaned up the country.

Meanwhile Ebina finds himself on the fast track to become prime Minister.

There's still the problem of that Yakuza Clan he's currently captain: and that's when the second dissolution starts, which is more closer to a change of appearance. Because from now on, the Seiryu clan will become a non-profit organization, with the objective of bettering society and getting rid of all the moral grey ares, Bleach Japan!

The moment I heard that name I had to pause, because I was dying inside. Through this entire game the plan was to take advantage of an influencer popularity, fill up the heads of people with fabricated lies, in order to allow a far right organization to be reborn and take direct control of the nation.

A situation that feels more and more real during these times, where empathy gets demonized and dehumanization it's the way everyone uses to vent their frustrations on a minority that gets labelled as the source of everyone's problems. This diseased system that favours the few, which demands even faster profits and makes is so that those who have few have to suffer the most. The complete Hypocrisy of Ebina being potential prime Minister makes also clear how the problem isn't the criminal itself, just the ones that don't have enough money and power behind them to be actually useful to those in charge.

Forgiveness exists only for those who can afford to buy it.

Ebina is the kind of guy you see way too much in television today. Spreads poison, encourages hate, relies on bigotry and ignorance, to then eventually become the man who has a say in all of our lives. Putting him down a peg or two was extremely satisfying and the same I can say for his Hawaiian contact.

False Prophet

Bryce Fairchild is the man leading the Hawaiian mob, if not the entire archipelago. He managed to climb to that position by killing the leader of the Palekana cult. By taking advantage of that position he changed the cult into a tried and true sect, elevating himself as a holy-man, seen by the public as a true saviour, while in the private he's a ruthless manipulator. He brainwashes orphan children and other under his wing, turning them into devoted spies who infiltrate every facet of the island, keeping everyone in check.

This type of figure, who indoctrinates and exploits people under the false idea of selling them salvation, always made my skin crawl. By the very first minute this guy appeared I knew exactly where the story was heading, the game was not subtle about it.

Bryce is completely irredeemable: the only things he cares about are profit and his position of power. He whores himself to every state, by offering to bury their secrets in exchange for money, and the only people he surrounds himself with are indoctrinated slaves willing to kill themselves in order to protect him. I couldn't wait to destroy this guy.

At the end of it all, he's really just a puppet in Ebina's scheme, even after his final battle against Ichiban when he finally gets overthrown and exposed as the fraud he is. There's a bitter aftertaste because this isn't the final fight of the game. You have no time to celebrate his downfall because the scene instantly changes to Japan, where Kiryu is ready to put a stop to Ebina's scheme, the true final boss.

That was the moment when I feared the most that Ichiban had just became an accessory to the story of what might be Kiryu's last ever battle. But then came the epilogue, the closure for Hisoka Tatara which, in my opinion, encapsulates perfectly not just the message of the game but also Ichiban's character.

Wolf dressed as a Sheep

Let's talk about Eiji Mitamura, the man behind Hisoka Tatara.

We meet him for the first time as a disabled boy on a wheelchair, with Ichiban who helps him by pure compassion once they disembark the Hawaii. Between the two sparks an instant bond, helped by the fact that Ichiban sees in Eiji the same trouble that his brother Masato had to suffer through.

In reality Eiji is just pretending, and following Ichiban just to get new material to discredit him, and also taking advantage of his investigation to help Ebina find Akane first. Eiji had his life ruined by the Yakuza, and he joined Bleach Japan in the hope that he could've seen it completely purged from japan. Chitose was the one who unmasked his farce, since up until that point she was working as an accomplice.

Chitose is the person that created Hisoka Tatara, initially as a character to use for his own personal Vlog, but the turning point was when she decided to use the character as a way to uncover the illicit activity of her own family, since she's also the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. That video went nowhere but it peaked the attention of Eiji who immediately took the occasion.

Hisoka's vlog became a collaboration effort: with Eiji running the investigation and writing the scripts, while Chitose give her voice to the character, which was also completely redesigned to be more sexualized and appealing for the general public.

Chitose herself also started to feel uncomfortable when the stories became more and more mean spirited, and more aimed towards petty crimes, but Eiji was not willing to listen to reason to the point he even blackmailed her to reveal everything to her family in case she decided to back out.

When Chitose finally decides to confess, not just to Ichiban, but to the entire world the truth about what was happening, was one of the best moments in the game, and I loved the courage shown by Chitose to take full responsibility for her actions.

After Eiji gets unmasked, he becomes one the slimiest characters in the game, one of those villains you love to hate. Fake being disabled to manipulate Ichiban emotionally is bad enough, but then he constantly manages to escape your grasp in multiple occasion. Quick and evasive a snake, always with a backup plan that saves him at the last minute, and always mocking you with his "Bon Voyage!"

I also love the contrast of presentation: the man that appears to be well meaning towards us, is one of the worst person in the game, while the two characters that immediately tried to screw us over, are the best people in the whole story.

My hands where itching every-time he managed to escape me. Eiji is such a colourful character, able to make you feel every kind of emotion: from compassion and friendship at the beginning, to hatred and annoyance in the second half and then compassion once again, while his castle finally crumbles beneath his feet.

There's always room for Forgiveness

Chitose's confession completely exposed him. Ebina won't be able to help him, all of Japan now knows he's a fraud and all his followers are roaming the streets in order to find him and possibly lynch him as well.

It's at that moment that Ichiban enters the scene.

In spite of everything he's still willing to forgive.

Not matter the lies, the deception, the hardships of this whole adventure: for Ichiban that sweet, friendly boy he met stuck on a wheelchair really does exists, and finding Eiji scared for is life, abandoned by everyone and forced into hiding, he can't help but feel compassion for him.

He encourages him to turn himself in, make amends for his crime, and close the door on his past.

He's willing to risk everything for his future, he feels there's still hope, and we see him carrying him on his shoulder while he accompanies him to the police station, all the while an enraged crowd stones them through the streets of Tokyo.

This final scene for me is the apex of Ichiban's character, a man that more then anyone signifies hope. He got screwed over many time, he has seen stuff that many would've deemed unforgivable, but he never gave up.

He always threw himself in the fire trying to stop someone making a wrong choice: for him there's always hope that someone can find a way to change, and if that doesn't happen, it just that he has to try harder next time.

In a world that is more then ever exalting: selfishness, apathy and cynicism as answer to the world around us, in order to bring us down and convince us that nothing will change, characters like Ichiban serve as an inspiration as how empathy, altruism and optimism, should be the qualities that carry us forward.

Forgiving instead of condemning, give another chance instead of being blinded by hatred, being the first to held out your hand instead of turning the other way. We're so scared of what surrounds us that we prefer staying in our bubble and cure only our own yard for the sake of peace and quiet, but this isn't healthy.

We should always be willing to land a hand and give some help in any way we can, even if it makes us vulnerable, even if our trust can be betrayed, even if the fear of the worst possible outcome is always gonna be present.

We should always be like Ichiban: more positive, guided by hope, willing to see the good wherever possible.

Because is that positivity and empathy that one day will become our own infinite wealth.

If you arrived this fare, I really thank you a lot, I wasn't expecting this game to bring out so much out of me.

But now I wanna hear your opinion, what were your favourite parts about Infinite Wealth? What disappointed you? What did you wanted to see? Let me know in the comments below, I can't wait to read them.

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