Celebrate one of gaming’s greatest heroes
For me, the hook about Kazuma Kiryu, protagonist of Sega’s long-running Yakuza series, is that once he shows up to a scene, you know everything’s going to be alright. There could be damsels in distress, kids in danger, a buddy at death’s door, and insurmountable odds, but once the snakeskin shoes of the Dragon of Dojima appear on the scene, you know that fear redundant.
Sega, promoting the upcoming Yakuza 6: The Song of Life, have released a series of live-action shorts featuring characters telling tales of the own run-ins with the quiet man in the sharp suit. They’re well-produced and do a good job in building up the legacy of a gaming hero who has been in my “all-time greatest” list ever since I played the original Yakuza, many moons ago.
You can check out the videos below, to hype yourself for another round of bike-smashing, face-stamping, karaoke-singing, innocent-saving, golf-swinging action. Kazuma has lived a million lifetimes in just one, and if The Song of Life proves to be his last hurrah, I’ll be there, pouring a drink for the Dragon of Dojima.
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life launches on PS4 April 17.
