I’m thankful that developer Ryo Ga Gotoku Studio seems just as reluctant to let Kiryu go as I do. Although he may appear to be a one-dimensional brute to the untrained eye, Kiryu spends just as much time cracking street punk skulls in Gaiden as he does beating himself up for the mistakes he’s made in the past, and as a longterm fan of the series I’ve never felt more endeared to him.

Amidst all the bloodletting, it also presents a deeper insight into Kiryu’s character and his very personal motivations for heading to Hawaii for next year’s turn-based RPG, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. Admittedly, with just five chapters that took me around 12 hours to complete, Gaiden’s story is a little on the short side compared to previous Yakuza games, but I actually appreciated the more focussed framing of its plot.