Aug 072024
Surprise trademarks often make for interesting speculation, even if they don’t always come to fruition.
New Tales entries, for example, are often preceded by a bunch of potential title trademarks, of which they only use a few.
Meanwhile, Capcom’s “Apollo Justice” trademark looked like it was going to come to nothing back in 2022, but this year we got the Apollo Justice Trilogy.
On the other hand, there’s still no sign of that Yo-Kai Watch spin-off.
(Maybe once Level-5’s other games finally come out? Maybe?)
As you can see, trademarks are far from a guarantee of an announcement, but they still make for fun speculation, especially if you know a company has an announcement coming up. That brings us to our topic of discussion today, a mysterious “Yakuza Wars” trademark filed by Sega.
RGG Studio recently confirmed they will announce a new game at TGS in September, after saying that their next game would “surprise” fans. That information on top of this curious trademark has caused speculation to run wild. Although the series is now known as Like a Dragon in the west instead of Yakuza, fans are theorizing that it might be the name of a new spin-off.
So, assuming it’s a Like a Dragon spin-off, what could it be?
Sega also owns the series Sakura Wars, a tactical RPG series mixed with visual novel and dating sim gameplay, although the most recent entry moved to action-based combat instead. Nevertheless, a “Yakuza Wars” trademark from the company that owns Sakura Wars means that one theory is a Sakura Wars crossover or a Like a Dragon tactical RPG spin-off. Interestingly, RGG Studio helped with the development of the most recent Sakura Wars game.
Another popular theory is that it could be real-time strategy, another genre that would fit well with the “wars” theme. Since the series has had light RTS mini-games in the past, it’s plausible enough.
Some fans think it will be a live service game or a mobile game, although keep in mind that there’s already a Like a Dragon mobile game in Japan. These theories generally come from either comparing the title to Mafia Wars or imagining the “wars” aspect as involving multiple players competing against each other.
And a handful off fans have suggested it could be a musou-style action game instead.
Of course, there is the possibility that this has nothing to do with the Like a Dragoon series after all. It would be very funny if Sega dropped the “Yakuza” title and then made a completely unrelated “Yakuza” game.
Between the trademark and RGG’s statement about their next game being a surprise, I’m inclined to think it’s a Like a Dragon spin-off in a new genre. The Sakura Wars theory actually feels more plausible the more I think about it – not a crossover, necessary, but a spin-off done in that style.
If the trademark is for the game being announced at TGS, we won’t have too much longer to wait. What do you think Yakuza Wars is?