I went hands-on with the recently revealed Yakuza Kiwami 3, and my first thought was that the game felt like a refreshingly grounded experience. Especially off the back of the madcap Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii and the irreverent turn-based shenanigans of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth.
Yakuza Kiwami 3 is a modern remake of Yakuza 3, which was originally released for PlayStation 3 back in 2009. An action RPG with a heavy emphasis on brutal fist fighting combat and a strong element of virtual tourism thanks to developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios’ faithfully realistic map design, you’ll do everything from taking down goons in the street to solving the problems of the local populace via heart warming side quests.
And when you’re not uncovering political and criminal conspiracies in the main story, you’re more than welcome to take a break by partaking in Kamurocho or Okinawa’s many delights. That includes darts, pool, shogi, or partaking in Club Sega’s many arcade games.
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The original Yakuza 3 is the only game in the series that I hadn’t previously played, but I’m loving Kiwami 3’s glow-up so far. As with previous Kiwami titles, there’s plenty new on offer here besides a graphical upgrade, so let’s dive in.
Ryukyu master
(Image credit: Sega)
The Yakuza Kiwami 3 demo I played began with a cutscene close to the start of the game. As in the original, protagonist Kazuma Kiryu travels to Okinawa in order to save the orphanage he runs from criminal interests. After a brief tutorial fight, which also introduces the brand new Ryukyu fighting style, we’re unleashed on the streets of the island prefecture.
Kiryu is able to swap between two distinct move sets in combat. His traditional style is accompanied by the new Ryukyu style, inspired by Okinawan martial arts. Ryukyu employs eight (yes, eight) different weapons and/or household objects, all assigned to their own button. For example, pressing Triangle (heavy attack) can swipe groups of foes with a large oar. Meanwhile, holding Circle (usually the grab button) makes Kiryu swing a flail in a wide area. And that’s just surface level stuff, as Kiryu also has nunchaku, tonfa, tekko and more at his disposal.
Some of these can be chained together for various combos, going from weapon to weapon as you dish out damage, though I didn’t quite have enough time to figure out the most optimal combinations. Ultimately, Kiryu’s ‘Dragon of Dojima’ style feels better configured to single-target fights, while Ryukyu is effective at keeping multiple foes at bay. Like Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, this dual style system supports swapping between both at any time during combat.
Ryukyu is great fun, and certainly different from Kiryu’s usual repertoire, being a guy who typically answers calls to combat with his fists. Then again, Ryukyu feels like a wonderful complement to Yakuza 3’s shift in tone. Especially for Kiryu, who attempts to lead a quieter, rustic life at the orphanage.
Keeping busy
(Image credit: Sega)
Combat isn’t everything in Yakuza Kiwami 3, though, and it wouldn’t feel quite like a Yakuza game without dozens of optional side activities. In an utterly wonderful pang of late 2000s nostalgia, Kiryu owns a stylish flip phone that you can customize with stickers, rhinestones, color schemes, and wallpapers.
You can change up Kiryu’s look at clothing stores, too. As in Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, you’re able to save several sets of clothes here, from the casual to the completely ridiculous. And fear not, if you’re not keen on Kiryu’s default Hawaiian shirt getup, you can change into his iconic suit at any time.
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As for other side activities, the Club Sega arcade returns. It has the usual UFO Catcher machines (which are still an absolute scam, by the way), as well as a handful of classic Sega arcade titles. In Kiwami 3, there’s nothing new here – with the selection being pulled from Judgment – but it’s a great little set in Virtua Fighter 2, Fighting Vipers, and Motor Raid.
Elsewhere, you’ve got the usual Yakuza suspects of golf, darts, billiards, and of course, karaoke. I didn’t have time to sample every single one here, but you can likely expect them to be their usual implementations here, perhaps with a few spins on the formula as we saw with Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii.
Overall, my time with Yakuza Kiwami 3 was unfortunately quite short, but it’s made a great first impression. Visually, the game is looking fantastic, though I certainly can’t help but feel that daytime Okinawa looks just a little washed out. It could’ve been the monitor I played the game on, but this may be one you want to tone down the brightness on a touch or two.
Yakuza Kiwami 3 is set to launch on February 12, 2026 for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X and Series S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC.
It’ll be accompanied by the all-new Dark Ties game which comes bundled with Kiwami 3 and offers an original story with fan-favorite Yoshitaka Mine as the protagonist.
