Jan 202021
A supposed leak suggests RGG Studio is working on a new Yakuza spin-off starring Ryuji Goda from Yakuza 2.
According to the information, it features locations from Yakuza 5 and 6 and is based on Ryuji’s story in Ryu ga Gotoku Online, the Japan-exclusive mobile game.
(If I were you, I wouldn’t read the comments in that thread. Just look at the screenshots.)
The first screenshot shows Ryuji’s RGG Online character model standing in what appears to be one of the areas from Yakuza 6. The second screenshot shows him again, with Joon-gi Han (a Yakuza 6 character) apparently following him, and a debug menu open along the side of the screen.
There’s good reason to be skeptical about this leak. For one thing, it was only a few months ago that a screenshot began circulating of an Omi Alliance spin-off starring Watase, only for it to be confirmed fake.
However, it would have to be a fairly elaborate fake to use Ryuji’s RGG Online character model in a Yakuza 6 area, and several people say the debug menu in the second screenshot looks legitimate.
If the Ryuji spin-off is real, I have mixed feelings. On one hand, I loved Yakuza Kiwami 2 and thought Ryuji was a pretty cool character, so the idea of a Ryuji game is neat. I’ve also completely fallen in love with this series, so I want to play anything that RGG Studio has lined up next.
On the other hand, I’ve been really, really hoping that the long gap between Yakuza 7 and anything new will provide the space we need to get Ishin (and Kenzan!) in the West without oversaturation concerns, so I wouldn’t mind a little more time without a new announcement.
(Please give us the unlocalized spin-offs, I’m begging you!)
So what do you think? Real spin-off or elaborate fake? Share your thoughts in the comments!