Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii Preview: Black Flag style combat on the high seas
Against the odds, the next game in the beloved Yakuza game series, Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza In Hawaii, is shaping up to look like it will live up to its quirky name. At a themed preview event in Buena Park, California, right next to Knotts Berry Farm, myself and other journalists got to see never-before-seen parts of the game – and combat at sea looks set to be a fun highlight among the many activities.
Pirate Yakuza In Hawaii is a new adventure from Sega Studio Ryu Ga Gotoku starring series favorite Goro “Mad Dog” Majima, a wild blindfolded gangster who rises from a manic sidekick in Yakuza 0 and Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth to a master hero. Returning exactly six months after Infinite Wealth, Majima washes up on an island with no memory of his past (mis)deeds. After receiving a first look at the game late last yearthis new preview introduced me to a trio of activities featured in the trailers – ship-to-ship naval combat, coliseum battles, and the returning Dragon Kart minigame.
More importantly, I got a feel for the gameplay as the first preview session launched me into the game’s second chapter. Although lacking many abilities and upgrades, I was still able to switch between Majima’s two fighting styles. The first, in the pirate-themed Sea Dog style, had me swinging twin sachets (or throwing them like boomerangs), firing my flintlock pistol, and using a chain whip to sneak up on enemies. The second, Mad Dog style, will be more familiar to Yakuza fans who have fought Majima in earlier games: He lunges around with a knife like a brawler, even summoning doppelgangers to even the odds against a mass of enemies.
Both styles are fun, and although I got by with button mashing, I was forced to use my small set of skills and tools when enemy groups brought out weapons on me (and admittedly modern ones that put my little flintlock to shame). Although the game is collected in the Like A Dragon sub-series, it wisely ditched the turn-based RPG combat in favor of real-time combat like the main Yakuza series, and is all the better for it; swinging boomerang knives in pirate garb is the kind of crazy action that’s feasible in continuous motion (which can break down if players are given a moment to think).
In this first free-roaming section of the game, I ran into roaming gangs of island tough guys, but I mostly ran around learning the weird and wonderful angles of the game: planting herbs to harvest later, cooking meals, which improve stats, gain the favor of animal friends, and stock up on healthy items and energy drinks. Even on the islands I buy provisions for the next two-sided battle.
The next play session brought the good stuff, namely the ship battles teased in earlier trailers. As gamers long for the days of the swarthy sea dog Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flagenjoy Sea of ​​Thieves and mourn what Skull and Bones could have been, the cannon-riddled waters of Pirate Yakuza In Hawaii are sure to appeal.
Naval battles, coliseum clashes and more
The second play session began in the amazingly seedy pirate dreamland of Madlantis, the game’s big addition to the Yakuza landscape. Scalliwags walk the rusted metal walkways spoiling for fights, and neon signs point to bars, shops and a casino (where you can play poker and blackjack). But the centerpiece is the Pirates Coliseum, which lets you engage in four different types of battles of escalating difficulty.
The first, Quick Clash, places your ship in the flooded coliseum to face off against enemies in quick combat. In the lower levels, you will face single ships, but the more difficult battles will pit you against multiple ships of various sizes. Sea combat is a bit more arcade-style Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag than the more realistic Sea of ​​Thieves, as you’ll be sailing with a bird’s-eye view as attack nets pop up for your three slotted weapons: forward-firing machine guns as and a set of guns for port and starboard. These can be traditional cannons, short-range flamethrowers, or even laser cannons (stay awesome, Yakuza).
While you’ll mainly be looking between ships to get the best angle for your next cannon volley and get out of range of your opponent’s cue, there are a few reasons to step away from the helm to walk the Goromaru’s deck (as your ship is called). You will mostly need to do this if your ship catches fire, as putting out the flame will stop doing damage, as the less health your ship has, the less damage it will do. While walking around your ship, you can also operate a deck-mounted machine gun or run around firing rocket launchers at enemy ships (never change, Yakuza). Note that you will be crawling to a stop from the wheel, so watch out for enemies charging at your stationary ship.
After defeating the enemy ship, it’s time to board and you’ll automatically enter hand-to-hand combat with your crew against the other ship’s captain and mates. It’s a fun end to a fight, especially in Pirates Coliseum’s second mode, the Tournament of Captains, where your opponents will play increasingly ridiculous themes – I played against Biker Pirates, for example, who didn’t just dress up as extras in Grease or The Outsiders , but after boarding, they crossed their deck with motorcycles.
Pirates Coliseum’s third mode, Madlantis Mania, was a series of deck battles against enemy crews and a little less exciting than the others. But the fourth mode, Swashbuckler Showdown, was a fun hand-to-hand melee on an island arena, pitting you and your team against dozens of enemies – a bit like Dynasty Warriors fighting hordes of goons with some champions scattered throughout. This is where I fought long enough to charge up the Sea Dog-style Madness Gauge and summon one of the four Dark Gods of the Sea (Shark, Parrot, Monkey, or Jellyfish) to defeat my enemies a lot.
Your crew, by the way, is chosen from a delightfully wide assortment of weirdos you’ll pick up as you play through the game, some with varying abilities suited to manning the guns, being squad leaders, or becoming your first mate. From chefs to brothel ladies to accountants and gangsters, you’ll fill your squad with a who’s who. During one fight, my preset crew took to the deck of the enemy ship with me, including one dude wearing a ram’s head over his business suit while another brawled in his underwear.
Gangster, pirate, what’s the difference?
Unfortunately, we weren’t shown much about the story, although we do know that the amnesiac Majima at the start of the game will enjoy his freedom and affection for the friends he meets. However, this becomes complicated as his memories return to the crime boss he was at the end of the last game, Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth.
This preview was more to expose us to the yakuza pirate vibes that await players – and the vibes are just shy of being too ridiculous. The Yakuza series balances melodrama and tongue-in-cheek contrivance in ways that somehow complement each other, and amping up the wilder aspects in Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii works for Mad Dog Majima. It pushes the boundaries of what players can take seriously, but with plenty of familiar features returning from the core games to underpin it.
One of those recurring perks is the beloved Dragon Kart, which we got to play in the preview. While I wasn’t a master of RGG’s take on the main go-kart racing minigame, it was pretty fun to stuff Majima into a mini-vehicle and blast around corners, and there’s even a Battle Royale-like duel mode (which sounds a lot like Mario Kart Battle Mode). Of course, no Yakuza game would be complete without karaoke to sing on your ship.
But it’s the fun new pirate-themed touches that caught my eye, from decking out all 10 of Majima’s fingers with various exotic rings (to boost stats and abilities) to tweaking the cooking minigame so I can throw a ruckus a feast for my crew to boost their morale and strength. I can navigate the waters between the game’s four main land areas to battle marauding ships and find secret treasure on the shores of remote islands.
The game’s themes of freedom from rules and supporting your crew nicely replicate the same dynamic in many other Yakuza games, making the sheer silliness endearing rather than alienating. With fast-paced battles on land and sea, Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is shaping up to be a fun ride, expanding the world of the series without deviating from its core message of staying true to your chosen family (through violence).
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