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*Some Minor Spoilers*
Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name is a conclusion to a Saga that should have definitively ended in 2016's Yakuza 6: The Song of Life.
Yakuza 6 is by all means not a “bad” game and definitely not a terrible conclusion to Kazuma Kiryu's story. Instead, it is remembered as a game that didn't have the proverbial guts to end the Dragon of Dojima’s seven game journey. Yakuza 6 did numerous things correctly by establishing Kiryu as a grandfather and introducing us to a new cast of supporting characters in Onomichi, Hiroshima. Unfortunately, The game seemed allergic to using legacy characters in the Saga and relegated most of them to the wayside in favor of a new supporting cast. In consequence, Kiryu's final game feels smaller and intimate, for better or worse.
If this truly was the end of Kiryu's story, then Yakuza 6 should have been a celebration of the same. Instead, The end product was just another mainline Yakuza game and not the emotional climax of the journey. As we watch Kiryu walk down that street, fans are instead teased for more. The Dragon never dies. And the tease bore fruit. Kiryu returns as the sole playable protagonist of Like A Dragon Gaiden. Once again described as Kiryu's send off, Gaiden is set with the task of providing its audience with a smaller, intimate, and emotionally satisfying ending for one of gaming's greatest protagonists and it does so successfully.
Gaiden's story places Kiryu in an interesting setting, practically divorced from his legendary life and past relationships. Over the course of the game, Kiryu forges new bonds, fights against a new bunch of baddies, and eventually enters an ideological battle for the future of the Yakuza. In the midst of all this crime ridden chaos, Kiryu's emotional journey remains at the forefront even if it doesn't seem obvious. Kiryu doesn't show a lot of emotions in the story, the logic of its plot makes it necessary to do so. But when Kiryu's stoic veil falls, the writers really make it count.
Takaya Kuroda brings his performance of Kazuma Kiryu to new heights, delivering a beautifully human performance for a historically stoic character. For the first time in years, the writing truly allows Kiryu to become incredibly vulnerable, giving Kuroda a chance to show us a side of Kiryu never seen before. At one point, I was convinced that there were no stories left to tell with this character until Takaya Kuroda proved me wrong. There is much to tell with this character, even if this is the final stretch. It's one of the greatest voice acting performances in the video game canon and leaves its ending as the best in the series. Kudos to the facial animations as well, the emotional scenes would have been hollow without the fantastic work behind them.
Speaking of the ending, I can definitely say that the final chapter is an all time great experience. Upon its arrival, the game fires on all cylinders to deliver a climactic and emotionally resonant experience filled to the brim with fist fights, team ups, hype moments, climatic showdowns, and a greater degree of emotional vulnerability for Kiryu. It’s seemingly the end of a Saga until Infinite Wealth finds a way to top it. While I cannot say much about the ending, what I can say is that it is a fantastic ending. An explosion of emotions built up over several games. Jacob Geller in his "The Best Games of 2023" video, once called the final hours a “transcendent experience.” I am inclined to agree. This is amazing stuff and they saved the best for last.
If it's not obvious by now, the characters are the biggest strength of The Man Who Erased His Name. All of them are memorable in their own right, even if some are more developed than others. Within the short runtime, the story is able to develop its cast of new characters with varying degrees of success. Characters like Akame and Shishido are standouts and have already become fan favorites. This is thanks to the lovely character writing and great acting from their voice actors, delivering the human qualities this franchise is known for.
However, other characters such as Hanawa are written in a strange way. Hanawa typically doesn't show much emotion, but he does reveal some humanity in rare and interesting moments. Upon further examination, this is by design. But you would have to play the game to see it yourself. Despite the interesting writing and time spent, it was hard to fully invest into Hanawa. A true shame as the character makes a substantial appearance in Infinite Wealth.
Unfortunately, Gaiden has pacing issues in the story. The game mandates the player to engage with the game's side content such as The Akame Network and the Coliseum before moving onto the main story throughout the various chapters. This results in an inorganic and frustrating introduction to side content that takes away the narrative momentum of the story.
The strangely slow pacing is saved by the fun of Gaiden’s combat that I absolutely loved. This is the best brawler combat the franchise has ever done. It’s smooth, responsive, and incredibly fun to play. The game provides the player two fighting styles to toy around with. The first is the Agent style, which turns Kiryu into a methodical and elegant fighter and provides him with gadgets such as Flying drones and the Spider rope. His movement is swift and can transform a battle from a brawl to a fluid dance if done right. A far cry from the destructive, forceful, and familiar Dragon of Dojima fighting style that is also provided as the second fighting style in the game. The fighting styles serve to show Kiryu’s development as a character, that he has become refined and patient as shown with the Agent Style.
While some of its plot elements remain underdeveloped, some characters aren’t that interesting, and its pacing is somewhat of a mixed bag, the story of The Man Who Erased His Name remains to be a good and rewarding experience. The focus on Kiryu pays off spectacularly and the Saga is capped off nicely. The gameplay may be typically “Yakuza”, but it remains fun and polished to play.

8/10