
Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a soft reboot for the series and stars a new protagonist, which means you should be able to start there if you want. I suggest you start with Yakuza 0, since Kiwami added content that references it, but either is fine. Yakuza 0 is a prequel to the entire series, while Yakuza Kiwami is a remake of the first game. Ideally you should play Yakuza 0 or Yakuza Kiwami first.

So, which Yakuza game should you start with? The movie is not based on the upcoming Yakuza: Like a Dragon game. There is also a live-action movie called Like a Dragon, which is an adaptation of the first game in the series due to that being the actual translation of the series title. Yakuza: Like a Dragon is the western title for Yakuza 7, and it is the first game in the series to move away from brawler action RPG combat in favor of turn-based combat.
Meanwhile, Yakuza 3-5 were remastered and bundled together as the Yakuza Remastered Collection.Ĭurrently, all of these games are available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, and Yakuza: Like a Dragon now has a PS5 version available as well. The original Yakuza and Yakuza 2 for the PS2 have been remade as Yakuza Kiwami and Yakuza Kiwami 2. The Yakuza game order is actually pretty straightforward, so let’s take a look. In this post, I’ll be answering popular questions like “Which Yakuza game should I start with?”, “Can I start with Yakuza 7?”, “When should I play Dead Souls?”, and “Is Yakuza Ishin ever going to be localized?” (okay, I don’t have an answer for that last one, as much as I wish I did). There are currently 8 games in the main series, 4 localized spin-offs, and 5 spin-offs exclusive to Japan. Yakuza, or Ryu ga Gotoku (Like a Dragon) as it’s known in Japan, is a long-running brawler/action RPG series featuring intense crime drama storylines, wacky side quests, and a ton of fun mini-games.

Questions about the order to play the Yakuza series come up routinely in Yakuza discussions, especially from new fans wondering which Yakuza game to start with.
