Like A Dragon: Ishin is out and receiving some solid praise from critics and longtime fans of the series. Fans who aren’t fully committed to the Yakuza series still might want to know how much bang they get for their buck with this game in terms of how long it takes to beat.
Games in the Yakuza series are easy to get lost in. While fans can stick to the major story missions and clear them relatively quickly, it’s hard not to burn a few hours playing pool with Majima, then a few more on becoming a hostess club mogul, then even more, trying to learn how to play mahjong. Like A Dragon: Ishin is no different.
While the game takes place centuries before the mainline games in the series, Like A Dragon: Ishin still lets players wander off and get wacky. So how long can players realistically expect to be enjoying the dying days of the Edo period?
How Long to Beat Like A Dragon: Ishin
Like A Dragon: Ishin can be beaten in under 25 hours if players rigidly stick to the game’s story missions. That said, players can push their playtime past forty hours if they dive into the game’s side quests and other features.
This is largely in line with other games in the rebranded Like A Dragon series. Games like Yakuza Kiwami can be beaten in around 20 hours, but once players start wading into the wild world of Pocket Circuit and hostess clubs, that playtime gets extended well past that mark.
Like A Dragon: Ishin is in the same boat but with missions and mini-games more appropriate to the game’s Sengoku era setting. Ryoma, the game’s main character who looks nearly identical to longtime protagonist Kazuma Kiryu, has a number of different ways to distract himself from all the bloodshed of the time. This includes buyo dancing, farming, and other mini-games that offer various rewards.
Is Like A Dragon Ishin Worth Getting?
Like A Dragon Ishin is definitely worth getting for Yakuza fans, but people who aren’t fans of the series will likely want to stay away. Though there are many unique elements to the game that set it apart from the mainline series, it still looks and feels largely similar to the previous games.
This isn’t a bad thing, as the series is cemented in place as arguably the best beat-em-up series in modern video games. While the game does occasionally remind fans that this is actually a remake of a PlayStation 3 game from 2013 with its pacing and animations, Like A Dragon: Ishin reviews are unanimously positive to this point. Fans can look forward to brutal gameplay, plenty of silliness, and some cameos from their favorite streamers and YouTubers.
Like a Dragon: Ishin comes out February 21 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.