Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan!

Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan!
龍が如く 見参！

Japanese cover art
Developer(s) Sega
Publisher(s) Sega
Designer(s) Toshihiro Nagoshi (producer)
Composer(s) See Soundtrack
Series Yakuza
Engine Havok Physics
Platform(s) PlayStation 3
Release date(s)
  • JP March 6, 2008[1]
    December 11, 2008 (TheBest)
Genre(s) Action-adventure
Mode(s) Single-player

Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan! (龍が如く 見参！, lit. "Like a Dragon Arrives!", a.k.a. Yakuza Kenzan[2]) is a spin-off game in the Yakuza series. The game was developed and published by Sega for PlayStation 3.[3] It was first unveiled at the Tokyo Game Show 2007[4] and first released in 2008.

Because it is the third installment in the Yakuza series it was often referred by the media (and confused with) Yakuza 3, which is Yakuza 2's actual sequel released one year after Kenzan!. The 2014 spin-off game Ryū ga Gotoku Ishin!, despite also being set in samurai era Kyoto, is not related to Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan!.

Gameplay

Adventure

The gameplay shows minimal evolution from the first two episodes except for the new item storage system which allows to access an unlimited amount of items from savepoints.[5] However the graphical engine's improvement is obvious during the numerous real-time 3D cutscenes.[6]

Battle

There are four fighting styles in the game; fists, one blade, two blades and two-handed blades. There are also QTE-based special moves that the player can execute, known as 'heat action'.[5]

Plot

The action moves from Kamurocho to Kyoto's Gion district
Landmarks such as the Kiyomizu Temple and Nijō Castle are modeled in the game

Setting

This spin-off is set in Kyoto during the Edo period, in 1605. It is an account of the life of Miyamoto Musashi. The main adventure is completed with sidestories including minigames and a hundred "sub-stories".[7]

Story

After being defeated by the Tokugawa clan at the historical Battle of Sekigahara which took place on October 20, 1600, Miyamoto Musashi retired from his great swordsman life to become a modest yojimbo (bodyguard) in Gion (祇園), Kyoto. Five years after the battle, a little girl named Haruka comes to Gion seeking a local hitman known as Kazumanosuke Kiryu which is actually Miyamoto's new identity. After eventually finding Kiryū, Haruka asks for him to assassinate an impostor pretending to be Miyamoto Musashi. At first, Kiryu refuses, then when the girl goes as far as becoming an indentured servant in an opulent oiran brothel in order to pay the assassination mission he accepts the one-ryō request.

Characters

Cyberware Inc.'s facial scan technology was used with main characters and fully exploited on the Event Mode's high polygon models. Here character Gion Toji borrows actor Takashi Tsukamoto's physical appearance

This is the first game in the series where the games's main characters have their face modeled in 3D after their voice actors who are Japanese celebrities.[8] Cyberware's color 3D scanner (model PS)[9] was used to analyze each actor's head & face in order to collect data on its shape and appearance, then this file was worked with the Softimage XSI 3D graphics application.

Releases

Trial versions

Two playable demos were released on January 7, 2008 via the Japanese PlayStation Store. The first demo included sandbox play, and the second had a collection of various combat and romantic gameplay segments.[10]

As part of the pre-ordering campaign, the Japanese first print was bundled with a limited item, a monography called Kamutai Magazine (March 2008 issue). Sony celebrated the Japanese release of the game with a 10,000 pieces limited edition Satin Silver 40GB model "PlayStation 3 Like a Dragon Kenzan! Pack" (龍が如く 見参！パック, ryu ga gotoku kenzan! pakku) SKU including a "Rising Dragon" (昇竜, noburyu) stickers set to customize the console case.[11]

Asian and western markets

The Japanese version was released on March 6, 2008 in both Japan[12] and South East Asia,[13] while Sony published it in South Korea on March 25, 2008 with a subtitled script book.[14]

In late December 2009, commenting the opportunity of a western release, Sega Australia managing director Darren Macbeth said "there is nothing in the plan at this stage for Yakuza Kenzan. Right now we are focusing on the release of Yakuza 3. The feedback we get from this release will help us in making future decisions".[2] In March 2010, Yakuza 3 had a western release as did in 2011 Yakuza 4. Then again, in 2012, a second spinoff was also released abroad and localized as Yakuza: Dead Souls. The non-existent western release of Kenzan! is more likely related to the western taboo matter of oiran brothel and child prostitution included in the game's plot (see prostitution in Japan).

Soundtrack

The Ryu Ga Gotoku Kenzan! Original Sound Track (HCV-381) album was published by Wave Master in Japan on March 6, 2008.[15] Music was composed by Hidenori Shoji, Hideki Sakamoto, Hiroyoshi Kato, Keisuke Ito and Yuri Fukuda. This OST is noticeable for an exotic track, a flamenco piece titled Baile con la mariposa (Spanish for "Dance with the Butterfly") which is the theme for the duel between Musashi Miyamoto and Itto Ittosai. The tracklist has 31 titles (details are available below).

Additional soundtrack includes two songs by Japanese hip hop artists Zeebra and Ketsumeishi ; Zeebra collaborated later with the Yakuza 4 opening theme, Butterfly City.

Marketing

Marume Nagayoshi versus Miyamoto Musashi (a.k.a. Kazumanosuke Kiryu) in Event Mode.

Licensed products

Clothes manufacturer Cropped Heads collaborated with Sega to produce licensed Ryu Ga Gotoku Kenzan! tee-shirts,[17] and Ace Cook produced Ryu Ga Gotoku Kenzan! cup noodles.[18]

Reception

As of July 9, 2008, the game has sold 270,438 copies in Japan, according to Famitsu.[19][20] As a best seller in Japan, the game received a budget re-release under the PlayStation 3 the Best bargain collection on December 11, 2008.[21]

It earned the Award for Excellence at the Japan Game Awards 2008,[22] and the famous Japanese video game magazine Famitsu reviewed it 37/40.[23]

Pseudo sequel

Ryū ga Gotoku Ishin!

Main article: Ryū ga Gotoku Ishin!

Despite being a second Yakuza series spin-off set in samurai era instead of modern-day Japan, Ryū ga Gotoku Ishin!, which was released in 2014 on both the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation 4 systems, is not a sequel to Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan!. Ishin! is set two centuries later Kenzan!, hence the plots are not related with each other since both games focus on different characters, the historical figures of Sakamoto Ryōma (1836-1867) and Miyamoto Musashi (1584-1645) respectively.

References

  1. ↑ Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan! @ GameSpot
  2. 1 2 Laura Parker (2009-12-28). "Nagoshi talks Yakuza 3". GameSpot AU. Retrieved 2010-01-01.
  3. ↑ Yakuza 3 is a PS3 exclusive
  4. ↑ PlayStation.com(Japan) TGS 2007 upcoming titles
  5. 1 2 Famitsu Article
  6. ↑ Yakuza Kenzan! (opening cutscene)
  7. ↑ PlayStation.com(Japan) Software Catalog - Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan!
  8. ↑ Reported by 福田柵太郎 Photo by 佐伯憲司 (2007-12-04). "セガ、PS3「龍が如く 見参!」完成披露会を開催発売日が2008年3月6日に決定". Game Watch. Retrieved 2009-12-30.
  9. ↑ Hewlett-Packard Japan (2009). "HP Workstation 導入事例紹介株式会社セガ 「龍が如く3」". Hewlett-Packard. Retrieved 2010-01-17.
  10. ↑ Kotaku article
  11. ↑ "『龍が如く 見参！』と新色サテン・シルバーのプレイステーション3本体を同梱した特別パックが発売". Famitsu website. 2008-02-05. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  12. ↑ PlayStation.com(Japan - Software catalog - Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan!)
  13. ↑ Product page (BLAS-50044) at Play-asia.com
  14. ↑ PlayStation Korea - PS3 software list
  15. ↑ 新たなアプローチで作られた時代劇サウンド - Famitsu.com
  16. ↑ ZEEBRA - BUSHIDO
  17. ↑ "Ｔシャツ : CROPPEDHEADS セガ コラボTee「龍が如く見参」　復刻版 : クロップドヘッズ". Repair Co. 2008. Archived from the original on July 6, 2009. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  18. ↑ "焼きうどん「龍が如く」見参！". IT Media. 2008-01-17. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  19. ↑ Weekly Famitsu, issue 1020
  20. ↑ "Sony PS3 Japanese Ranking". Japan Game Charts. 2008-07-25. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
  21. ↑ PlayStation.com(Japan) PlayStation the Best title list
  22. ↑ "Japan Game Awards 2008 – Games of the Year Division". CESA. 2008. Retrieved 2009-12-31.
  23. ↑ onAxis article

External links

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