Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name tells a tale of a man who’d do whatever it takes to protect his family. Even if it means abandoning his identity.
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is the latest installment in the Yakuza, or Like a Dragon, series. With the exception of ports and a remake titled Like a Dragon, this is the first entry since 2021’s Lost Judgment to be an entirely new release. Although the series was originally titled Yakuza, it has become more often recognized as the dragon style, which is ironic given that the new series is titled Like a Dragon. The Man Who Erased His Name welcomes us back to the Japanese criminal underworld as well as exploring other traditions in the fascinating Japanese culture.
You’d be happy to know that if you’re an Xbox Series X|S owner and you’re a subscriber to Xbox Game Pass, you can simply install the game and play it. Only this time, this isn’t a sequel but a spin-off to the iconic Like a Dragon series. This might be a little confusing, but allow me to elaborate. See, Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is set between the events of Yazuka: The Song of Life and Yakuza: Like a Dragon and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, which is due to arrive next year.
The Man Who Erased His Name takes you on the role of former legendary Yakuza Kazuma Kiryu, who would do anything, absolutely anything, to protect his family. Even if that means faking his own death and disowning his name. Due to him signing a pact with the Daijoji faction, he enlists as one of their disciples and becomes one of their secret agents. Unfortunately, one of his missions doesn’t go according to plan, and now, huge trouble awaits as he faces immense challenges. A mysterious figure intending to remove him from hiding forces him into a conflict.
Having entered a new tribe, he’s given a new identity with the codename, ‘Joryu’; Kazuma enters a thrilling solo action-packed journey that features eye-catching locations, intriguing new and existing characters, and more. Furthermore, Kazuma comes with immense swagger and charm and mostly has a presence that leads enemies to have regrets after crossing him. And when he takes his cool shades off, you just know what’s about to go down.
It must be said that Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name’s main story possesses intriguing cutscenes, immersive missions, and a tonne of emotional rollercoaster moments, and you truly understand the lengths a man will go to save his family in this new action-packed adventure.
Moreover, with the outstanding visuals, including two gorgeous setting locations, the Isezaki Ijincho district of Yokohama and the Sotenbori district of Osaka, you can strategically adapt to situations in both locations to gain advantages over your enemies. Plus, a third location is called the Castle, which acts as a hub for you to partake in side activities like gambling, single and group matches and more.
Sadly, I cannot say the same for the sub-stories and activities. Some are amusing for now, but others aren’t exciting, and you feel just to get them over and done with, regardless of their insipid qualities. Not to mention, it looks like the developer has recycled a few of its ideas from previous games.
You’re mainly here for the brutalising combat, and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name contains two unique fighting styles, Yakuza and Agent – both of which can be toggled during the playthrough. And you’ll need a mixture of both fighting styles, to successfully conquer a horde of enemies that’ll stop at nothing to take you down.
The Yakuza is focal on an aggressive brawler style, which is very similar to Kazama’s fighting style from the previous games. The Agent is the brand-new style, more on speed and precision type, using state-of-the-art gadgets to cause unrelenting damage to his enemies. There are a couple of gadgets you’ll love. One is the electrified band wires that’ll stun enemies, followed by having them go airborne.
Another is the spider gadget that’ll eject a thin, bright blue wire that temporarily wraps enemies and nullifies them hem. The wire can perform actions such as pulling and capturing enemies and their weapons. This gadget can be executed even after dodging enemy attacks. The weapons can also be used to throw against enemies.
And if you think that’s impressive, then you’ll love this. There is a devastating special attack you unleash called Heat Actions that finish off your enemies once and for all by performing incredible takedown animations. To perform them, you have to fill up your heat gauge at the top left of the screen and under your health bar on the HUD. To recharge, you’ll need to land a series of successful attacks.
When your heat gauge has increased to a certain point, you’ll be allowed to execute a number of takedowns. Also, during this process, you can be able to unlock the extreme heat mode. When you’re in certain situations, for example, when an enemy is down, when a large button icon appears right next to the enemy, you’ll have to press it on time to perform heat actions.
A heat action can also be performed with weapons, so you have so much to cause a lot of pain to your enemies. You have to remember that these skills have different activation conditions, so you’ll have to know exactly where they can be performed. If you’re still unsure, there is a very informative help page that’ll fill you in on all you need to know about heat actions.
More on the extreme heat mode mechanic of Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, when your heat gauge has reached a certain level, you’ll be able to use this special. During extreme heat mode, Joryu is less likely to be downed, but his heat gauge will be consumed when taking damage. Also, when in this mode, both Yakuza and Agent fighting styles will gain their benefits.
Your attacks are more powerful in the Yakuza style, and multiple heat actions can be performed in succession. Plus, your abilities become stronger, and the skills to attack a horde of enemies are included. As for the Agent style, new gadgets are unlocked, and the ones you already have become stronger and activate new skills. If you were wondering, yes, you can upgrade abilities, and they come with manuals that are usually bought with money. There are manuals you’ll need to progress the story to unlock, but will have other requirements for you to unlock them.
You’re getting more efficient and engaging combat than ever due to the improved and enhanced next-gen fighting animations and mechanics. Punches, kicks, and more have been refined to provide a more realistic experience. However, at the same time, it sticks with arcade-like gameplay.
As for the content of Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, if you want to take a break from the story mode, there is the highly enjoyable 2-player Vs. Mini-games mode allows you to play three classic 1990s games that were developed by SEGA. Virtua Fighter 2.1, Fighting Vipers 2, and Sonic the Fighters are the available mini-games for you to enjoy and go off against each other.
The only thing is, you can only play locally and need two controllers active to be able to play these games, hence the ‘2-player’. There is another game mode for you, and here’s a surprise, you can unlock the upcoming Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth trial version to get a taste of what to look forward to. However, you have to complete The Man Who Erased His Name to unlock this mode.
Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is an excellent addition to the series. You have an outstanding story, great characters, vibrant graphics, sizeable content, and, most importantly, the phenomenal combat and newer mechanics proving to be the best in the franchise. Switching between two unique fighting styles and struggling to decide which one I like more is a problem worth having.
However, it’s a shame that the side missions didn’t; they leave much to be desired. But overall, this is a fantastic game that even the most ardent fans will enjoy. It’s also a great touch to include the upcoming Like a Dragon game trial as a teaser for what to look forward to in 2024.
