Yakuza Kiwami’s Success on Switch Signals It’s Time to Break a Series Tradition

For most of its history, the Yakuza or Like a Dragon series has been synonymous with PlayStation. From the original Yakuza game that came out back in 2005 up to Yakuza 6: The Song of Life, almost every key entry and spin-off started on Sony’s consoles. However, in the past five years or so, Sega, the series publisher, has broadened its horizons. By 2019, fans saw Yakuza Kiwami, once a PS4 exclusive, make its way to Windows PCs. Following this trend, Sega gradually released every Like a Dragon game that had graced the PS4 on both PCs and Xbox One over the span of 2020 and 2021.

Today, the Like a Dragon series thrives with launches across multiple platforms, hitting both Xbox and PlayStation consoles, as well as PCs, all at once. Unfortunately for Nintendo enthusiasts, their experience with the series remains limited. While Sega has ported Yakuza Kiwami to the Switch, other titles in the series remain absent, and forthcoming releases like Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii aren’t planned for the platform either. The full roll-out onto Nintendo systems is yet to materialize, but if the success of Yakuza Kiwami on the Switch is any indicator, perhaps Sega will start considering day-one releases on Nintendo consoles moving forward.

Switch owners, particularly fans of mature games, might have felt a bit sidelined given Nintendo’s family-friendly reputation. Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, the developers of Like a Dragon, initially viewed the Switch as more suited for a younger audience. Masoyoshi Yokoyama, the studio head, had expressed concerns that the franchise’s mature themes might not fit well with the console’s “kiddie” image. Interestingly, as time has passed, this perception seems to be shifting. With Yakuza Kiwami now performing exceptionally well on the Switch, even Yokoyama himself has acknowledged that his earlier assumptions might not have been accurate, signaling a promising future for more such ports.

Despite this progress, Sega should aim higher. After releasing Yakuza Kiwami on the Switch, Sega sought feedback through a survey on its website, probing interest in more Like a Dragon titles for Nintendo’s console. While it’d be fantastic if classics like Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami 2 found a home on the Switch, the real game-changer would be to align future releases with those on other major platforms. An example would be Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, available from February 2025 on PS4 and Xbox One. With some technical ingenuity, bringing it to the Switch could open new opportunities. If that’s not feasible, perhaps the arrival of the Switch 2 could level the playing field, allowing for broader, simultaneous distribution alongside PlayStation and Xbox.

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