Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name Review (gr8stalin's mustache!)
LAD Gaiden is a bit of an odd duck. I liked returning to the adventures of the man himself, and the gameplay feels like what RGG really wanted to do for Yakuza 6's. I will say that I'm glad they kept the game really short vs other Yakuza games because there wasn't a whole lot to write home about.
Gameplay-wise, RGG tweaked a lot of the bothersome issues that were afoot in Yakuza 6 and Kiwami 2. Combat physics are a little better, there's less tomfoolery around upgrades, better encouragement to use different recovery items, and the Agent style has a lot of fun gameplay potential. However, there's only so much you can cram into Sotenbori that you haven't seen before, and you end up fighting the same mobs over and over again. The game's implementation of the colosseum is really shallow, most fights devolve into dps checks. The big team fights are actually really cool for the first few bouts where you and the boys are just slammin' mooks into the ground, but the actual substory for the colosseum still manages to devolve into dps checks as well.
Storywise, LAD Gaiden covered a lot of nice ground. It painted the picture of what happened between Yakuza 6 and 7, took us back to Sotenbori, and gave us a bit more closure with the dissolution of the clans. Akame is a nice addition to the Yakuza supporting cast, and we get to learn a lot more about the Daidoji organization and its members. Enemies become friends and vice versa, very typical fare for the conflicts in the series. However, I think the Akame Network pales in comparison to prior organizations of its kind in older Yakuza games. Substories don't happen naturally anymore and are explicitly opted into, and I think it was a response to players not finding some of them naturally in the overworld, but it felt way more organic and interesting to happen upon them in the overworld. I think RGG managed to set up a good foil to Kiryu, but I think some of the motivations and twists were shallow and uninteresting, though I guess not all motivations need to be especially complex.
Following Kiryu's path through life is really fascinating and I think Yakuza/LAD might be the only game series to actually capture a somewhat realistic depiction of someone's passage through life in a video game without being a pedantic or obnoxious indie game. RGG was pretty heavy-handed when they were given opportunities for symbolism, but I think it'd be worth talking about as a long-form piece of writing. If a part of Yakuza 6 was about Kiryu learning what it means to get older and set up a new generation for success, a part of LAD Gaiden was about Kiryu learning what it means to enter the autumn of one's life.
If you're a fan of the series as a whole, especially the storyline, I strongly suggest grabbing LAD Gaiden if you're curious. Might not hurt to wait for a sale.