Summary
Storytelling in theLike a Dragongames is defined by its gusto. Tight scripting isn’t really on the docket, and their twisting, winding plotlines tend to completely fall to pieces by the time you hit the final act - though Infinite Wealth deserves kudos for remaining largely coherent throughout. However, that isn’t a criticism. I love the Like a Dragon games as they are: mess and all.
For all the absurdity of the primary plotlines of each title, the characters are compelling. Watching the cast develop is a treat, and it’s all anchored by its two leads who embody the series’ core message.Which, surprisingly for a game about Yakuza, is to be kind and to do the right thing - even when it is hard.But one character has grown more than any other, whose development over the course of the first five games is even more crucial to these themes than the rest of the eclectic cast, and that character is Haruka.
Haruka is Kiryu’s adopted daughter and longtime fans of the series witnessed her grow from a precocious child to a fully grown woman with all the same values as her adopted father. With each new game, it was always Haruka who I was the most interested in seeing. As much as it was another absurd turn for the series’ lore, I also loved guiding Haruka on her journey to becoming a pop star in Yakuza 5. Finally, Haruka was given a starring role!
But, as you probably surmised from the title of this article, it was not to last. In Yakuza 6, Haruka spent the entire game in a coma. Womp womp. From the center stage directly to the fridge. She doesn’t appear at all in Yakuza: Like a Dragon either - which is fair, as that is Kasuga’s story, but I would have loved to interact with her and the fam in a side story or something. And then we haveThe Man Who Erased His NameandInfinite Wealth…
Both titles feature Kiryu prominently, so surely we’ll be getting a little one-on-one time with the heart of the series, right? Catch up with Haruto - Kiryu’s grandson - maybe? No. Absolutely not. Instead, Haruka (and Haruto) act as a dangling carrot. Both games tease a reunion, but Yakuza is like our fathers: it lies! I was waiting for my big Haruka moment at the end of Infinite Wealth, my breath wasthoroughlybated. Infinite Wealth looked like it was about to deliver for a scant moment too, but then it ripped our closure away. And you know what? That sucks.
Kiryu may be Haruka’s adopted father, but we all helped raise her. Sure,I play the Like a Dragon games to belt out karaoke, uppercut street thugs, and interact with men in diapers, but I also play these games because I am invested. Using that investment against me, bludgeoning me with it in the process, doesn’t feel good. It feels manipulative. It is long past time, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. No more comas. No more hiding behind a fake identity. No more delays! You need to give us our Haruka closure in the next game. And with how long you’ve held this moment back, it better hithard. I didn’t wait over a decade for dry cheeks!
