Originally released as a PlayStation 2 game, Yakuza (known as Ryu ga Gotoku in Japan) spawns a lengthy series that follows the steps of Kiryu Kazuma, a member of one of the most important yakuza families (the Dojima family, under the Tojo Clan), in the game’s fictional city of Kamurocho, Tokyo. He and his multiple allies and friends try to avoid the conflicts and plans being schemed by other powerful mob groups.
It took years for the Yakuza franchise to start receiving the praise and popularity it currently has outside Japan. Its reputation only seems to increase thanks to the multiple localized re-releases and new games. In this article, you’ll find a chronology of the series if you’re interested in playing each entry from the very beginning.
Jump to:
- How to play in chronological order
- How to play by release date
How Many Yakuza Games Are There?
Sega and Ryu Ga Gotoku studio have released 8 main Yakuza games and two remakes since the series’ debut in 2005. They were originally PlayStation-exclusive titles, but they were later ported to Xbox and PC, with every new game since Yakuza: Like a Dragon releasing simultaneously for every system with the exception of Nintendo Switch.
However, Yakuza is a series known for having multiple and widely different spin-offs. For example, Kurohyō: Ryu ga Gotoku Shinsho and its sequel Kurohyō 2: Ryu ga Gotoku Ashura henu are two titles exclusive to the PlayStation Portable, and they feature Tatsuya Ukyo, a completely new character. The Judgement series, which follows the story of detective Takayuki Yagami, is also set in Kamurocho but with other characters.
Then there’s the zombie-infested spin-off Yakuza: Dead Souls, which features the classic cast of characters in a dystopic setting. Yakuza Online is a free-to-play TCG available on mobile and PC in which you play as Ichiban Kasuga, the protagonist of Yakuza: Like a Dragon. The popular Japanese series Fist of the North Star received the Yakuza treatment when the studio developed the video game Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise, which shares Kiryu's games' structure and gameplay elements.
Finally, there are two spin-off games that are set in older Japanese eras and feature historic figures as their main protagonists. These are Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan! and Ryu ga Gotoku Ishin! The latter has been released in the West in 2023 as Like a Dragon: Ishin!
As a side note, it’s worth mentioning that after Yakuza: Like a Dragon, the series adopted ‘Like a Dragon’ as its new name, which is the English translation of ‘Ryu ga Gotoku’ (the original Japanese name).
Yakuza Games in Chronological Order
Beware of spoilers for the stories, characters, and relevant events of each game in the list below.
1. Yakuza 0 (2014)
The sixth released game is actually the first Yakuza when it comes to its chronology. In Yakuza 0, we play as a two protagonists. The first one is a young Kiryu Kazuma in the late 1980s, who is being framed for a murder set up by one of his lieutenants in the Dojima family. The reason behind this has to do with an ‘Empty Slot’, where the apparent murder took place. This is a piece of land that will be a key asset for the person and group who owns it.
As Kiryu becomes a target by his own yakuza family, former yakuza member Goro Majima is working in a cabaret as a punishment for being part of an assassination some years ago. He’s tasked by his ex-patriarch, Futoshi Shimano, to kill a blind woman named Makoto for unknown reasons — it’s later revealed that she’s the legitimate owner of the Empty Lot.
By the end of the game, Kiryu gets back to the Dojima family after defeating all the lieutenants, Majima leaves Makoto to live her life, and the Empty Slot is destroyed — here will be built the Millennium Tower, a key location in the series.
2. Yakuza (2005)
The first Yakuza game stars Kiryu Kazuma as its only protagonist after he goes to prison due to taking the blame for a murder he didn’t commit. The victim was Sohei Dojima, Kiryu’s boss, and he was murdered by Akira Nishikiyama, our protagonist’s best friend. The reason behind this crime was that Sohei tried to rape Yumi Sawamura, a friend of both Kiryu and Nishikiyama.
When Kiryu comes out of jail ten years later, he’s expelled from the Tojo Clan, someone has stolen ten billion yen from the clan’s account, and Yumi is nowhere to be found. In the middle of this, Kiryu meets Haruka, the daughter of a woman named Mizuki. Haruka has a pendant that seems to be a key element related to the lost money. Also, Nishikiyama shoots Kiryu’s former captain and adoptive father, becoming an antagonistic force.
During the climax, Kiryu finds Yumi, the lost money, and fights Nishikiyama. Kiryu is asked to be the Fourth Chairman of the Tojo Clan, which he accepts. However, moments later he names Yukio Terada, a former Omi Alliance yakuza, as the new chairman, and he decides to stop being a yakuza to raise Haruka as his adopted daughter.
3. Yakuza 2 (2006)
Yakuza 2 starts with Terada, the Fifth Chairman of the Tojo Clan, asking Kiryu to help him prevent a war between his clan and the Omi Alliance, their eternal rivals. After being shot in an ambush, Terada seems to be dead and Kiryu looks for Daigo Dojima, son of Sohei Dojima, to make him the new chairman of the clan.
While helping Daigo, Kiryu meets Ryuji Goda, the son of the Omi chairman, and they become enemies because Ryuji doesn’t want a truce with the Tojo Clan. Another character, detective Kaoru Sayama, comes into play and tries to help Kiryu while learning about her parents, who disappeared when she was young.
4. Yakuza 3 (2009)
The first entry released on PlayStation 3, Yakuza 3 presents an unusual beginning with Kiryu far away from the yakuza lifestyle. Instead, he’s taking care of an Orphanage in Okinawa called Morning Glory Orphanage. He’s assisted by Haruka, and he looks after many new kids living there.
Unfortunately, peace doesn’t last for long. Our protagonist has to face multiple troubles with different characters, involving new yakuza families, multiple assassinations, shootings, betrayals, an arms smuggling group, and even the CIA.
5. Yakuza 4 (2010)
One year after the events of the previous game, Yakuza 4 raises the stakes and brings another type of story to follow. This is still a tale of families, betrayals, and crimes, but on this opportunity, it is shown from the eyes of four protagonists.
Apart from our well-known Kiryu Kazyuma, three other new faces join the streets of Kamurocho. The first one, Shun Akiyama is a loan shark who works in his own firm, Sky Finance, and finds himself in the middle of a conflict between the Tojo Clan and the Ueno Seiwa Clan. He’s also asked for a 100 million yen loan from a mysterious woman named Lily.
Taiga Saejima, Goro Majima’s blood brother, went to prison after performing a hit against the Ueno Seiwa Clan in 1985. Twenty years later, after successfully escaping, he looks for Majima, who abandoned him when they had to perform the hit.
Detective Masayoshi Tanimura, another new protagonist, is investigating one of the recent murders in the Tojo Clan. While doing so, he meets Lily, who is actually Saejima’s sister, and she’s being attacked by the Shibata family. Tanimura later finds out that the patriarch of that family was related to the hit Saejima participated all those years ago.
Ultimately, Kiryu meets his new partners and finds out what happened to all the characters involved in the ongoing conflicts.
6. Yakuza 5 (2012)
If Yakuza 4’s story got complicated with the multiple protagonists’ points of view, Yakuza 5 went all-in in the same direction. This time, you play as five protagonists in different scenarios, making this one the biggest game in the series.
First you follow Kiryu, who left Kamurocho and moved to Fukuoka without Haruka, leaving his orphanage behind. As usual, he won’t be calm for long before he learns that Daigo is missing, and the peace between the Tojo Clan and the Omi Alliance is about to break.
Saejima is in prison once again, but he’s looking to escape with his cellmate Shigeki Baba when he hears that his blood brother Majima is dead. In the meantime, Haruka is already a teenager and she’s following her dream of becoming a J-Pop Idol. Things get complicated when the president of her talent agency, Mirei Park, is found dead, with what seems like a staged suicide. Returning protagonist Akiyama appears to help Haruka learn who was really behind Park’s death.
The last piece of the puzzle is the brand new character Tatsuo Shinada, a former professional baseball player who was banned after being framed for fixing an important match. A mysterious man, who’s actually Daigo, will meet Shinada and ask him to find out what really happened all those years ago.
7. Yakuza 6: The Song of Life (2016)
Yakuza 6: The Song of Life is presented as the final beat in Kiryu Kazuma’s life in the Yakuza series. Our protagonist spends some time in prison again, but on this occasion, it is for his past crimes and not by being framed by anyone. At the end of the previous game, Haruka revealed in a concert broadcast that Kiryu was her father and that he was an ex-yakuza member.
After getting out of prison, Kiryu returns to Kamurocho but only for a little while. He learns that Haruka is in a coma due to an apparent car accident, and she had a child named Haruto. Haruka was in Onomichi for a long time before the accident, so Kiryu goes there to investigate what happened and who’s Haruto’s father.
While finding clues, important characters like Daigo, Saejima, and Majima are imprisoned, and the rival groups of the Chinese Saio Triad and the Jingweon Mafia are looking to make their moves in Kamurocho.
8. Yakuza: Like a Dragon (2020)
A fresh new start, Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a big turning point in the series. For the first time, the main protagonist is not Kiryu, but a Tojo Clan member named Ichiban Kasuga, who went to jail for 18 years to protect Jo Sawashiro, his captain. When he gets out, he finds out that nobody is looking for him because the Tojo Clan has finally been defeated by the Omi Alliance.
Masumi Arakawa, the patriarch of the Arawaka family and the man who asked Ichiban to take the blame and go to prison instead of Sawashiro, was scheming with the Omi and betrayed the Tojo Clan. He also shoots Ichiban when they meet after almost 20 years.
Ichiban wakes up in Ijincho, and a homeless man called Yu Nanba heals his wounds. This is the starting point for our new protagonist, who will meet multiple new faces for his party. The new group will try to uncover the reason behind Arakawa’s play, and they will face three criminal groups while doing so: the Yokohama Liumang, the Geomijul Mafia, and the Seiryu Clan.
How to Play the Yakuza Games By Release Date
- Yakuza (2005)
- Yakuza 2 (2006)
- Yakuza 3 (2009)
- Yakuza 4 (2010)
- Yakuza 5 (2012)
- Yakuza 0 (2015)
- Yakuza 6: The Song of Life (2016)
- Yakuza: Like a Dragon (2020)
What’s Next for Yakuza?
It seems like the Yakuza universe is far from over. Now retitled ‘Like a Dragon’, there are two new upcoming releases in the franchise: Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, which has a release date for sometime in 2023, and Like a Dragon 8, which is scheduled for 2024. The former will focus on Kiryu and what happened to him after Yakuza 6, while the latter will continue Ichiban’s story, but with Kiryu also having a major role in the plot.
FAQs
How to Play the Yakuza Games in Chronological Order? ›
The Yakuza games shouldn't necessarily be played in the order they were released, or even necessarily in the chronology that they're set. Below is the order in which you should play Yakuza. Trust us, it's for the best.
Can Yakuza games be played out of order? ›The Yakuza games shouldn't necessarily be played in the order they were released, or even necessarily in the chronology that they're set. Below is the order in which you should play Yakuza. Trust us, it's for the best.
Should I start with Yakuza 0 or Kiwami? ›Why You Should Play Yakuza 0 First. For the most part, mainline Yakuza games are released in chronological order. Yakuza takes place before Yakuza 2, and so on. Remakes aside, Yakuza 0 is the only game that breaks from that tradition, much to the benefit of newcomers.
Is Yakuza 0 the first Yakuza in the storyline? ›It is the sixth main entry in the Yakuza series and a prequel to the original game. It was released for PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 in Japan in March 2015, and in North America and Europe for PlayStation 4 in January 2017. It was released on Windows on August 1, 2018 and on Xbox One on February 26, 2020.
Can I play Yakuza 1 first? ›You can start with either one. While Yakuza 0 technically takes place before the events of Yakuza 1/Yakuza Kiwami, it was made afterwards. There are some events and characters that you would react differently to if you played the other games before 0, but 0 is also a very good starting point.
Which Yakuza to start with? ›First off, if you want to explore the mainline games — that is, Yakuza 0 through 6 for Kiryu's story — then Yakuza 0 is a great place to start. Not only is it one of the best, most beloved titles in the franchise, it's also the first mainline game chronologically.
Which Yakuza game is the longest? ›Yakuza 5 is easily the longest game in the series, but it's also one of the most ambitious.
Can I start Yakuza by like a dragon first? ›You Don't Need to Have Played Any of the Previous Yakuza Games to Understand Like a Dragon: Ishin!
Should I play Yakuza 6 easy or normal? ›Easy: Recommended for players who are new to action games or the Yakuza series. (Enemies deal much less damage in combat and don't attack as often. You deal more damage, too.) Normal: This is the standard difficulty level.
Can I start with Yakuza like a dragon? ›Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a fresh start in the franchise with a brand new lead character and a new genre to boot. While this game is most enjoyable after going through the rest of the series, you can start with this title just fine.
How old is Kiryu in Yakuza 1? ›
In 1995, after completing his final debt collecting job from Peace Finance, 27-year-old Kiryu is informed that Yumi had been kidnapped by Patriarch Dojima. By the time Kiryu arrived at the scene, Nishikiyama is already there, already having murdered Patriarch Dojima to prevent him from raping Yumi.
How old is majima in Yakuza 0? ›The furthest scene into Majima's past has him - then aged 20 - talking with Saejima about an upcoming hit on behalf of the Tojo Clan in 1985.
Are all Yakuza games connected? ›Few video game series that have lasted this long and have this many sequels have a story that is actually connected. Although every Yakuza game more or less has its own rounded narrative, in order to follow the complete story chronologically you need to play a lot of games.
How many hours is Yakuza 1? ›When focusing on the main objectives, Yakuza is about 14 Hours in length. If you're a gamer that strives to see all aspects of the game, you are likely to spend around 30½ Hours to obtain 100% completion.
What is the difference between Yakuza and Yakuza Kiwami? ›Kiwami improves the resolution, framerate, textures and loading times compared to the original game, and additional content was added to resolve some of the more confusing plot points, as well as tie the story more closely to the events of the prequel title Yakuza 0.
Is Majima playable in Yakuza 1? ›He is one of the main playable protagonists of Yakuza 0 and Yakuza: Dead Souls, as well as the Majima Saga of Yakuza Kiwami 2.
What is the hardest Yakuza game? ›- Yakuza 0.
- Yakuza Kiwami / 2.
- 291. Yakuza 3.
- Yakuza 4.
- Yakuza 5.
- Yakuza 6.
1 Yakuza 0
Yakuza 0 was a brand-new entry in the Yakuza series, and being a prequel, it is the perfect starting point for newcomers to get into the series. It's also arguably the best game in the series, and its quality helped the series gain a lot of new fans in the process.
The fighting mechanics in Yakuza aren't necessarily bad, but, as it was the original, it naturally shows its age the most in terms of combat and presentation. The powerful Dragon of Dojima controls better than expected for a game that was released back in 2005, but he's certainly rough around the edges.
What is the saddest Yakuza game? ›Yakuza 6: The Song of Life
Most Yakuza fans agree that Yakuza 6 had one of the saddest stories in the series. The Song of Life is far more depressing than any other game in the series because it's the last entry with the beloved Kazuma Kiryu as the protagonist and the tragic tales of many in-game characters.
Which Yakuza has OutRun? ›
In Yakuza. OutRun appeared for the first time in Yakuza 0 as part of the games available at the SEGA HI-TECH LAND. It takes an important on certain substories like gaining the friendship of Luka, which allows Kazuma Kiryu to later on purchase the arcade for his Real Estate company.
What is the best selling Yakuza game? ›1. Yakuza 0 - ~2,000,000 Copies Sold. Quite possibly the best-selling title of the franchise, Yakuza 0 acts as a prequel to the rest of the series. Players control series protagonist Kazuma Kiryu and the fan-favorite rival Goro Majima as they uncover monetary mysteries and high-stakes plots.
What happens if you romance everyone in Yakuza: Like a Dragon? ›If you enter a romantic relationship with all six women, you can head to Survive Bar to start a new substory named "The Lone Survivor". Complete this substory to receive a +10 boost to your Defense stat. That's all for this page, but we've got plenty more Yakuza: Like A Dragon guides.
Can you keep playing after beating Yakuza: Like a Dragon? ›Minigames, unresolved quests, moneymaking opportunities, and job searching can take up just as much time as your first playthrough and will leave you wanting the next entry in the series to arrive soon. Dive back into the world of Yakuza and tackle the post-game fun waiting for you.
Can a 12 year old play Yakuza: Like a Dragon? ›Parents: According to the ESRB this game is rated M and contains Blood, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, and Use of Alcohol. No kids, please. This is violent even by Yakuza standards.
Is Yakuza 0 kid friendly? ›The game is set in 80s Japan during the bubble economy - which means that the backdrop is a time of sex, booze and gangsters. Which should be enough to keep kids away from the title.
How many years between Yakuza 6 and 7? ›The game is set in 2019, three years after the events of Yakuza 6: The Song of Life.
Does difficulty matter in Yakuza? ›Difficulty is a game setting present in all Like a Dragon titles from Yakuza 2 onward. It changes enemy attack patterns, general behavior, and how much damage they deal and take. In Yakuza Kiwami 2, Judgment, and Lost Judgment, bosses have the same health and defense across all difficulties.
Can you get drunk in Yakuza: Like a Dragon? ›Being drunk in Like a Dragon gives you a status effect similar to being confused in most JRPGs, so if your party gets drunk and you run into enemies there's a pretty good chance Ichiban and company will kill each other within a few turns.
Do I need to play Yakuza before Judgement? ›The plot in Judgment is standalone and does not require you to have played the Yakuza games.
What is the minimum for Yakuza: Like a Dragon? ›
System Requirements
Processor: Intel Core i5-3470 | AMD FX-8350. Memory: 8 GB RAM. Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 660, 2 GB | AMD Radeon HD 7870, 2 GB. Storage: 40 GB available space.
Mayumi Madarame | Yakuza Wiki | Fandom.
Is Kiryu canonically a virgin? ›I know that canonically kiryu is a virgin, and I could believe it from 0-2.
What is Kiryu full name? ›Kazuma Kiryu (Japanese: 桐生 一馬, Hepburn: Kiryū Kazuma) is a fictional character and the protagonist of Sega's action-adventure beat 'em up Japanese role-playing game series Yakuza.
Did Majima beat his wife? ›Majima, feeling betrayed by his wife, hit her. With their marriage destroyed and Majima believing he was doing Park more harm than good by staying, the two divorced, and he left for Kamurocho.
Who is the strongest Majima? ›1 Goro Majima
The Mad Dog of Shimano is the strongest Tojo Clan member simply due to his nature of embracing sheer violence and respecting those who are physically strong. Unlike Kiryu, Goro earned his nickname and respect among the Tojo Clan due to his combat ability above all else.
Type of Villain
He is a playable protagonist in Yakuza 0, a major antagonist in its sequel Yakuza and its remake Yakuza Kiwami, the main protagonist of the Majima Saga in Yakuza Kiwami 2, and a recurring supporting anti-heroic protagonist for the rest of the series.
Unfortunately, it would seem that there are no plans to show of Yakuza Kawami 3 at the upcoming virtual convention, although Sega does have a spot on the official schedule where fans may want to keep an eye on for some subtle hint at what's to come.
What is the Japanese name for Yakuza? ›yakuza, also called bōryokudan or gokudō, Japanese gangsters, members of what are formally called bōryokudan (“violence groups”), or Mafia-like criminal organizations.
Why is Yakuza called Like a Dragon? ›Western gamers were eating up titles like True Crime: Streets of LA and Saints Row, which likely impacted the localized name choice. Sega probably decided to dive headlong into the organized crime aspect of Like a Dragon and rename it Yakuza to appeal to Western audiences still riding the GTA high.
Is Yakuza 5 the longest? ›
All in all, if you're crazy enough to try to 100%, you're looking at more than 120 hours of content. This is easily the longest and meatiest of all Yakuza games, surpassing even current-gen titles like Kiwami 2 and Yakuza 6.
What is the easiest Yakuza game to 100? ›Y6 is by far the easiest.
Does Yakuza play order matter? ›Ultimately, Yakuza's ongoing story threads and recurring cast of characters do make this a series best played in chronological order.
Who is the girl in Yakuza Kiwami? ›Haruka Sawamura (澤村 遥, Sawamura Haruka) is a main character in the Yakuza series. She is the adoptive niece and daughter of Kazuma Kiryu, whom she first meets and becomes close to during the events of Yakuza/Yakuza Kiwami, when Kiryu helps her to locate her missing mother.
Does Kiwami mean? ›“KIWAMI” means EXTREME.
Who is stronger Kiryu or Majima? ›Even if we play as Majima against Kiryu, Kiryu will wins. And one extra moment-you can defeat Majima in Yakuza Kiwami in "rusty and dull" form, but Majima won't be satisfied. Technically, you can beat Kiryu as Saejima. But, in story, they had a draw.
Is Majima a real name? ›The Majima family name was found in the USA in 1920. In 1920 there was 1 Majima family living in Washington. This was 100% of all the recorded Majima's in USA. Washington had the highest population of Majima families in 1920.
Do I need to play previous Yakuza games before 3? ›You Don't Need to Have Played Any of the Previous Yakuza Games to Understand Like a Dragon: Ishin! Before we explain why you don't need to have played any of the previous Yakuza games, we're going to get the new naming convention out of the way.
Do you have to play Yakuza 1 and 2 before 3? ›Yakuza 3 Remastered
The collection includes Yakuza 3, 4, and 5, and spoils moments from the previous games. It's best not to play this trio if players have not finished Yakuza 0, Kiwami 1, and Kiwami 2.
Do i need to play the first Yakuza to understand what's going on in Kiwami 2 or can i play it as a Stand alone game? You don't have to.
Do I need to play any Yakuza games before Judgement? ›
Judgment is its own story… The only similarity being a few of the characters are from previous games in the series and the game takes place in the fictional city of Kamurocho from the previous Yakuza titles.. Aside from that the story is completely original and DOES NOT require playing previous games to understand it..
Can you play Yakuza 0 after ending? ›You can use the Premium Adventure game mode to return to Kamurocho and Sotenbori to free roam. Alternatively, you can start a fresh playthrough from the main menu. If you're looking for some more specific recommendations, here they are.
Should I start with Yakuza 0 or like a dragon? ›If you are someone who likes the narrative more and wants to learn the way of the clan with the OG characters, then Yakuza 0 is a great game to get into. But if the addition of new achievements, unlockables, characters, gameplay mechanics, and environment excites you, then Like a Dragon is your best bet.
Are all the Yakuza games connected? ›Few video game series that have lasted this long and have this many sequels have a story that is actually connected. Although every Yakuza game more or less has its own rounded narrative, in order to follow the complete story chronologically you need to play a lot of games.
What is the difference between Yakuza and Yakuza kiwami? ›Kiwami improves the resolution, framerate, textures and loading times compared to the original game, and additional content was added to resolve some of the more confusing plot points, as well as tie the story more closely to the events of the prequel title Yakuza 0.
Can I just play Yakuza like a dragon first? ›Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a fresh start in the franchise with a brand new lead character and a new genre to boot. While this game is most enjoyable after going through the rest of the series, you can start with this title just fine.
How many hours of gameplay is Yakuza 1? ›When focusing on the main objectives, Yakuza is about 14 Hours in length. If you're a gamer that strives to see all aspects of the game, you are likely to spend around 30½ Hours to obtain 100% completion.
Should I play Yakuza 1 6 before like a dragon? ›While starting with an older Yakuza game like 0 or 1 can give new players some context regarding the setting, Yakuza: Like a Dragon is more than capable of standing on its own merits. If they end up enjoying it, then newcomers have every reason to go back and play through the main series.
How much time has passed between Yakuza 1 and 2? ›Both Yakuza 2 and its remake, Yakuza Kiwami 2, take place in 2006, a year after the events of the first game.
Is Judgement and Judge Eyes same? ›Judgment (JUDGE EYES：死神の遺言 Judge Eyes: Shinigami no Yuigon, lit. "Judge Eyes: The Grim Reaper's Will"), previously known as Project JUDGE, is an action-adventure/beat-'em-up game released for the PlayStation 4 on December 13, 2018 in Japan and on June 25, 2019 worldwide.
Can you play lost Judgement without playing the first? ›
Lost Judgment is a cathartic power fantasy if you hated high school. Lost Judgment takes place a while after the predecessor, but you can more or less play it without having played the first game.
What games is Majima playable? ›Goro Majima (Japanese: 真島 吾朗, Hepburn: Majima Gorō) is a major recurring character in Sega's Like a Dragon video game series, previously known as Yakuza outside of Japan. He is one of the main playable protagonists of Yakuza 0 and Yakuza: Dead Souls, as well as the Majima Saga of Yakuza Kiwami 2.