#Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

[0nsyu]

To share a quote from the tattoo artist:

Shisa and Hibiscus This, like Rikiya's, is a design that brings the essence of Okinawa to the forefront. It resembles the standard karajishi seen in irezumi, but the way its ears stand up, among other things, differs subtly. — Horitomo

Taking into account the rest of Horitomo's commentary on his designs (featured in the 10th and 15th anniversary books), as well as commentary from Yokoyama, there is for sure a wealth of evidence for the idea the tattoos are meant to represent the characters in question! I've always felt Yakuza 3's are particularly well-thought out and Nakahara's is no exception, coinciding with Yokoyama's estimation that his writing got a lot tighter overall from that game on.

Lot of good points brought up here, and there are a few things that come to mind about the origins and cultural context surrounding the shisa I'd like to add.

Firstly, shisa are not considered a form of komainu. The two are thought to have evolved separately from the shishi/karajishi at different times. "Shisa" is the Okinawan pronunciation of "shishi," and they're called "shiishii" in Yaeyaman. "Komainu," on the other hand, is chiefly thought to suggest the idea was brought to Japan via Goryeo/Koma, or perhaps more broadly the area around mainland China according to some.

Komainu came to be some time after shishi were brought to Japan from China. Shishi originally came in symmetrical, open-mouthed pairs, but thanks to Japanese sensibilities favoring asymmetry, "shishi-komainu" pairs (with an open-mouthed shishi on the right and a close-mouthed komainu on the left) became popular.

They have other differences, of course: komainu may or may not have horns while shishi never do, among other things, but a number of their features have become muddled in meaning and difficult to distinguish. The term "shishi-komainu" for the pair has in a sense become just "shishi" or "komainu" colloquially because of this, with the distinction between shishi and komainu only being made if they physically differ from one another in a way that's recognized. If you see one with a beribboned ball (like the one pictured in your post above, actually) and one with a cub, though, that's a male and female shishi/komainu respectively.

Shisa were brought to Okinawa from China around the time (or shortly after) the asymmetry between male and female was established, which may be why the open-mouthed and close-mouthed variants came to denote gender instead of species, but that one's entirely speculation on my part. Another difference between shisa and shishi-komainu is that they actually don't come in pairs as often as the game suggests; more often, sure, but there are plenty of examples of lone shisa.

This relates to the final difference I want to highlight for this post, which is that while shishi-komainu guard the emperor and the divine, shisa guard villages and homes; lone shisa were often erected to guard against fires, while pairs were erected to ward off evil. Famously, the lone Tomori shisa, the oldest recorded stone shisa in Okinawa, was used as a shield by US military forces spying on Japanese military forces during WWII. Today, the bullet holes that mark its surface have faded considerably.

So I do think it's interesting that Nakahara has a lone shisa. Shisa are, after all, often tattooed in pairs, on both sides of the chest or on the arms. Where that leads me personally, though, isn't that Kiryu represents the missing half of the pair. With regard to Saki, Kiryu doesn't say a word to her outside of Premium Adventure, and he leaves her care to Rikiya and Mikio, Haruka who volunteers, even the other orphanage kids—everyone but himself, essentially. And she's only staying at the Morning Glory for a week or less before Nakahara gets better, most of which Kiryu is in Kamurocho for. The oryu, like the shishi-komainu, is loyal to the emperor (in this case, Daigo as sixth chairman, a reading Mine's tattoo reinforces) and leaves his responsibilities behind to attend to him.

But it's not specific to Kiryu. To me, no one person represents the missing half of the pair, because there is no missing half of the pair. Nakahara is the lone shisa that guards not just his daughter and his men but his community, a community that loves him and his men and his daughter in return, in stark contrast to most other yakuza organizations in the series. And like the lone Tomori shisa, with its bullet holes from a conflict Nakahara is not even one generation removed from, his must have faded by now too.

Shigeru Nakahara's tattoo being a shīsā (J. シーサー), a regional form of the komainu (J. 狛犬), is actually really cute, and I like how it's surrounded by an Okinawan floral motif.

Shīsā are these iconic Buddhist creatures that you can find in a lot of Japanese shrines and other sacred sites. They're supposed to be protectors that almost always come in pairs. Earlier, you can encounter a substory with a married couple looking for the partner of a shīsā statue that they bought alone that introduces the player to this concept.

What I like about Nakahara's shīsā is that it's alone, he only has one on his back, but as a character he's defined by two particularly strong bonds. One is with Saki, his adoptive daughter, the character he is protecting and whom the desire to protect acts as a power up here, and the other with Kiryu, who is implicitly, in my nerd headcanon here, being positioned as the counterpart guardian during this storyline.

I may be totally off here but I want to believe this is the case because it is more evidence to my growing Yakuza Tattoos Are Advanced Fursonas Theory.

I also just think it's a really cute design for a fat old Okinawa jiji to have.

*the komainu are themselves a regional form of a broader East Asian concept, and I'm pretty sure but not certain that "komainu" itself is a portmanteau meaning "Korean dog," and they're also sometimes referred to as karajishi, meaning "Chinese lion." This is not to say that the symbolism and narratives associated with them are universal!! It's kind of like how gumiho (K. 구미호) foxes in Korean mythology tend to be real assholes who turn into hot women to eat your guts, while their role in Japanese mythology is influenced by the Inari Ōkami (J. 稲荷大神) fox religion.

Shīsā specifically have a lot of Ryukyuan religious influence, and tend to be gendered, with the male having his mouth closed to keep evil out and the female having her mouth open to let good in, though I've heard the reverse. Shīsā can be found in Okinawa on gateposts to non-religious buildings just like Morning Glory, and have been built for a variety of reasons like warding off fires. According to Ryukyuan legend, they were even used to ward off dragons.

Mythology and culture are super complex living things and I'm being very very very broad here. I apologize if I'm incorrect, I am just a student. Please be nice to me.

[vgadvisor]

[helioshellion]

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[mikaeled]

Get out there and enjoy the finest entertainment Japan has to offer. Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name (2023)

[skeith-platinumprincess]

Sega just released a new trailer showcasing the various minigames playable in Like a Dragon Gaiden! Because I am a FREAK who loves these minigames too much, I noticed many small changes in that trailer. Below is an article analyzing the trailer and all of these small changes!

[grimdraaaws]

Happy Birthday, Dad.. 

[easternmind]

I've lost contact with the Ryu Ga Gotoku series after the fourth episode, which I believe I still covered to a small extent in a post here at the time. I still pay close attention to the studio's work, and have sampled every episode without exception. Sadly, these are time consuming games surfacing at a moment in my life when availability to play videogames is scarce.

Today I tried Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, and was positively impressed by its presentation, which always seems to be the case with each iteration. This intimate scene in a bar is a common one in both the main series and its inspired spin-offs. But the manner in which it is directed and the subtlety of its countless little details is a full notch above the last entry - particularly if one considers that these may very well be real-time generated visuals.

[kyndaris]

Taking Down the Old Guard

Nestled between the seventh and eighth installation of the Like a Dragon franchise, Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is a side story that turns its focus back on Kiryu Kazuma: the Dragon of Dojima and what he has been up to after his supposed death at the end of Yakuza 6. It serves as both a tribute to the main protagonist we had all come to love, as well as farewell. Especially when it came to Kiryu's arc and role in the story.

(Yes, I know Kiryu makes a return in Infinite Wealth and he plays pivotal role in Ichiban's romp through Hawaii, but it is clear his star is beginning to set. Even if he still has a few story threads that have yet to be fully tied up in a neat bow for the player).

Kiryu's story and arc serve as a particularly important parallel to the main narrative, which sees the dissolution of both the Omi Alliance and the Tojo Clan. Together with allies of old, he is there to hand off the franchise of Like a Dragon to a new generation in the best way he knows how: by punching and kicking any dissenters to the change.

But as always, I'm getting ahead of myself.

The Man Who Erased His Name (or how I shall refer it from here on out: Like a Dragon Gaiden), begins with our hero, now going under the name of Joryu, serving as a bodyguard for the daughter of a power man. In these opening scenes, he is escorting her from a nightclub after she had a drunken night out. As is always the case, he serves as a steady presence and a protector. It isn't long before they are approached by a predatory man and his posse, who are looking to take advantage of an inebriated young lady. Joryu, of course, is quick to teach them the error of their ways in the only way he knows how.

With his fists.

Once the young lady is seen off, Joryu returns to where he has been residing these last few years since the ending of the sixth entry: a temple run by the Daidoji faction. He is approached by his handler, a man named Hanawa, for assistance with another job. And it is here, I'd like to explain who and what the Daidoji are.

The Daidoji, as best I can make out, are a shadowy secretive faction working to maintain control of Japan's politics and economy in the hands of a few men. In the game, they are there to do the dirty work for the people in power. Like espionage agents in the vein of James Bond or Ethan Hunt.

I mean, how else ought one describe the spiderwire gizmo watch Joryu wields? And the subsequent upgrades he receives later? An army of drones, cigarette grenades and rocket shoes?

Except, of course, it should be noted that Joryu isn't a consenting agent of the Daidoji. Were it not for the threats laid against the children at the Morning Glory orphanage he founded back in Yakuza 3, Kiryu, i the guise of Joryu, would hardly be one to play lapdog. But play it he does as he is sent to the docks where other fellow Daidoji agents await an illicit exchange.

Unfortunately, things don't go as smoothly as Hanawa envisions. Joryu and the rest of the Diadoji goons are attacked my members of a local yakuza family. Of course, given Joryu is STILL the Dragon of Dojima, he is able to fend off the attack and even save Hanawa from their clutches (the seeming target for the attack). In the aftermath, both he and Hanawa head to Yokohama in a bid to figure out who was responsible for masquerading as the head of the rebel group the Daidoji were meant to be meeting.

In Yokohama, Joryu tracks down the Seiryu clan but is able to cross them off the list of suspects. Instead, he finds himself entangled with the Omi Alliance - the actual culprits. Int he scuffle, Hanawa is taken.

Unable to sit around and let his one remaining connection to his past be tortured and killed, Joryu disobeys orders from the Daidoji and sets out alone to rescue Hanawa. His destination? Sotenbori!

So begins a convoluted mess where members of the Watase family try to recruit Joryu to their cause, or plead with him to defect. But instead of talking it out rationally, they force Joryu to jump through hoops and even threaten to hurt the children at Morning Glory.

Honestly, why can these yakuza types never communicate properly? If they had explained what they needed from the start, Joryu would have most likely understood. In fact, he even asks them numerous times why they're looking for him but Tsuruno just wants to play hardball and use whatever else he can in his bid to solicit Joryu's aid: kidnapping, torturing, sending Joryu out to an elaborate casino and fighting arena floating out on the ocean, bribing the Daidoji with 50 billion yen...

Although, if I think about it, it makes a sick amount of sense. They're all stubborn men. Is it any wonder none of them know how to negotiate in good faith without threatening violence?

I kid, I kid.

Or am I?

In any case, after all the unnecessary underhanded dealings that consume the first two and a half chapters, the Daidoji and the Watase Family finally arrive at an agreement. In order to assist with the dissolution of the yakuza in both the Kansai and Kanto region of Japan, Joryu is tasked with taking down Homare Nishitani III, an old-school yakuza type who lives off the fear his name invokes. After all, were Nishitani to learn of Watase's plan to disband the Omi Alliance, he would most likely lead a riot and bring together the other young disillusioned members to forge a new family. Something, which, Watase, and by extension, Daigo, cannot afford - especially when it comes to the betterment of the people under their command.

From a wider Like a Dragon narrative standpoint, Gaiden fills in some of the missing holes that were evident in Ichiban's debut title. After all, why was Kiryu present in Yokohama and then again at the Omi Alliance clan headquarters?

More than that, though, Gaiden gives fans of the series one last peek into the life of Dragon of Dojima (until Infinite Wealth made Kiryu a playable character). But, truth be told, I can't be mad. Kiryu Kazuma is the epitome of positive masculinity (in fact, all the protagonists of the Like a Dragon series are pinnacles of manhood).

Is he a bit hard-headed sometimes and not know the best way to communicate? Well, yes, but he also treats all people with respect. From women tot he homeless. And he is never one to judge how others choose to lives their lives (except when they impinge on others by taking advantage of them). It must be said, Kiryu has always had a magnetic draw. True, he is a strong and good-looking man, but it has always been his emotional vulnerability and how he isn't afraid to shy away from anything that others may deem 'lesser' that shows what a wonderfully multifaceted person he is. I mean, he is an avid Pocket Circuit fan even in his early 50s!

Not to mention the other kooky shenanigans he almost always gets involved in during the optional substories. Like giving romance advice or staking out a haunted apartment. And while Like a Dragon Gaiden doesn't have as many substories as other games (it is a much SHORTER game), they still showcase who the Dragon of Dojima is behind the image he initially projects.

Suffice it to say, Kiryu Kazuma is a multifaceted character. Something which the games never shy away from as they portray him as a flawed human.

And what tugged at my heartstring the most was the ending when Hanawa shows him a video recording of two of the kids he had raised at Morning Glory. The way he unabashedly misses them, the joy in seeing the picture Haruto has drawn...

On a personal level, I also feel like the story of Gaiden, which sees the dissolution of the Omi Alliance and the Tojo clan, echoes the slow death of the patriarchy and the hypermasculine world of the past. The traditional gender roles most people have grown up with, and which were used to prop up an unjust world, are dying out.

What we have seen in the aftermath of the 2024 US election, the rise of the anti-woke content, especially when it pertains to video games and films, are simply the remnants of the old guard in their death throes. Their attempts to revitalise something nobody even cares about is because they are scared of what the new changes might bring.

If only it were so easy to have the likes of Taiga Saejima, Goro Majima and Kiryu Kazuma on-hand to beat the living snot out of this vocal minority, and bring them kicking and screaming into the new world we're charting.

Alas, it is much harder to shake such entrenched beliefs. But I like to think we, as a world, are making incremental steps forward. Change, after all, takes time.

From a gameplay perspective, Like a Dragon Gaiden gifts Kiryu with a new fighting style to take down his enemies: Agent. For those familiar with the series, Agent feels a lot like Rush from Yakuza 0 mixed in with a few nifty gadgets for crowd control purposes. The other fighting style Kiryu uses against his enemies is simply titled 'Yakuza' but plays like a combination of brawler, beast and Dragon of Dojima. It certainly sees Kiryu dealing out the most damage and includes such classic moves as the Tiger Drop.

Combat aside, the gameplay remains the same. Kiryu can still play a range of minigames including the arcade, karaoke, golf and pool. While previous cabaret clubs used in-game models, Like a Dragon Gaiden has actually used full-motion video, which was, in my honest opinion, quite a bit jarring. I mean, I knew about it going into the game but chatting with the hostesses and then going on dates with them?

Let's just say, it wasn't as sexy as I feel Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio thought it would be. In fact, it was downright cringey.

That aside, I still thoroughly enjoyed the vast array of optional minigame content that were readily available. Plunging into Like a Dragon Gaiden was like returning home, even though it had been a while since the Sotenbori map had been used. True, it's not Kamurocho and it didn't have the Don Quijote Ferris Wheel that the real life Dotonbori but it had all the signature shots of real life locations I've come to expect from the Like a Dragon games.

Overall, I have to say I enjoyed my time with Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name. Plus, it doesn't hurt that the platinum was one of the easiest to obtain. Yes, you've read it right! This humble internet blogger has finally obtained her first and only Like a Dragon platinum, bringing my total to 22!

So, I suppose, if I have a soft spot for the game, that may be entirely to blame.

Still, it's certainly a worthy entry and should not overlooked for the main entries!

Here's hoping Infinite Wealth and Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii don't disappoint. But given the latter has Majima in the starring role, I know it won't. Plus, you know, pirates!

[brawler1993]

2023 in Review: Every Video Game I Completed This Year

You know those Twitter threads where people list off every video game they’ve completed throughout the year? It’s something I’ve always been a bit keen on doing, but I figured summing up each game in a single Tweet wouldn’t do them justice. So, throughout 2023, I decided to keep a record of every game I completed, composing what are essentially mini reviews to try and cover every facet I liked or…

[rednether]

Why must we fight Nishitani III? Let's just settle it in Pocket Circuit instead

[gamesline]

We're here. We're back. We're present. We're Game Of The Year Day 2. Today's all about the moments. You love them. We love them. Two whole hours of the best moments, scenes or levels or 2023 and what we love about them.

[games-desu]

Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name (2023)

[vgadvisor]

[helioshellion]

gaiden

[spankymerve]

The 10 Best (and 2 Worst) Video Games of 2023, Plus Some Special Awards

It’s impossible to talk about 2023 in gaming without mentioning the seemingly endless stream of layoffs and studio closures in the games industry. Every week brought both a certified banger of a game—sometimes more than one banger!—as well as another devastating press release explaining that a dozen or more developers had been let go from their jobs due to “macroeconomic conditions” or “economic…

[satoshi-mochida]

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth ‘Special Trial Version’ included with Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

Gematsu Source

A “Special Trial Version” of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will be included with Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, publisher SEGA and developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio announced.

“As you may have been surprised to see, we’re including a special trial version of next year’s Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth as bonus content with purchase of Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name,” said Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio director Masayoshi Yokoyama in a developer update. “As the name implies, special content like scenes not included in the main game will be unlocked after completing Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name.”

Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is due out for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC via Steam and Microsoft Store on November 9. Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is due out for the same platforms in early 2024.