Like a Dragon: Ishin! Reviews
Check out Like a Dragon: Ishin! Review Scores from trusted Critics below. With 38 reviews on CriticDB, Like a Dragon: Ishin! has a score of:
Like A Dragon Gaiden is another great game in a long-running series, that continues the high-quality tradition. It’s packed to the brim with content and offers great drama that not only gets Kiryu sucked back into the underground world, but also yourself.
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Like A Dragon: Ishin finally arrives in the west via a slick remaster that polishes up the visuals whilst also adding some fresh new combat mechanics to boot. This is another super solid entry in the long-running Yakuza franchise, it's perhaps a little more action-focused than usual, a little more on the serious and grounded side in terms of its story, but it also remembers to pack in plenty of the sort of madcap Yakuza substories and side activities that we all know and love. There's an excellent combat system to get stuck into here alongside an epic main campaign...
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Like a Dragon: Ishin! is the most fun I've had playing a Yakuza game since Yakuza 0. Any fan of the series or fans of samurai games, in general, should check it out.
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Like a Dragon: Ishin! checks all the boxes for fans of the series. Chock-full of things to do, people to fight, food to eat, stuff to collect, and more, it feels so comfortably familiar that you can’t help but to enjoy your stay in 1860’s Tosa and Kyo regions. Some aspects of the game’s design may feel lifted from two generations ago, and the combat tweaking feels conservative, but otherwise this will be a fine entry for veterans and newcomers alike to take a stab/shot/dance at.
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The Like a Dragon series is heading deep into the past, hoping to restore Japan to its former glory. But can Kazuma -- I mean, Ryoma Sakamoto -- find a girlfriend, stop a cult, pet cats and help the Shinsengumi restore Japan?
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We’ve wanted to see a Like a Dragon: Ishin release outside of Japan for years, and the day has finally come. This spin-off is a massive departure from the neon lights and gangster-filled streets of Kamurocho. Instead, it’s a historical drama with Yakuza flare, which is sure to delight some fans of the series and confuse others. Sega was apprehensive about releasing Ishin outside of Japan for a good reason. Most gamers have only a passing familiarity with the Edo period and the Meiji Restoration, knowledge of which is required to get the most out of this game.
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To us, die-hard Yakuza/Like a Dragon fans, Ishin was like Mother 3. It was the coveted, Japan-only exclusive that sounded too good to be true, and too Japanese to ever be released in the West. I even went the distance of importing a copy of the original PS4 release of the game in order to play it, with the help of a guide and some translating apps. I was dead sure Ishin would never be released in the West, because rarely did a Japanese publisher listen to fan demand in the West. Perhaps I was...
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Like a Dragon: Ishin! is a wonderful remake that keeps the beauty of the Yakuza/LaD series alive. On top of that, it can run really well on Steam Deck!
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Mixing the classic feel of Yakuza and Like a Dragon games with some Japanese history, Ishin offers you a new way to enjoy the series and even teach you a thing or two about the way of the samurai.
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Like A Dragon: Ishin! is a near-perfect experience on all fronts. It has deeper combat than the style-oriented Yakuza 6 or Lost Judgment. NPCs are loaded with cultural essence through this historical lens on Japanese nationalism, and the localization masterfully handles all the old difficult dialects and Japanese Keigo (honorific speech). Despite being a remake of a decade-old Japanese-only game, Like A Dragon: Ishin! is the definitive version for those looking for a good action experience with a memorable and thought-provoking story, and was well worth the wait for a proper localization.
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Sega’s Yakuza games may not be global blockbusters, but the series has steadily transformed from a once-niche Japanese curio to one much better recognised outside its home market. Now known as a more literal translation of its native language title, Ryu Ga Gotoku, latest entry Like a Dragon: Ishin both moves the franchise forward and throws it back in time, swapping 80s organised crime for late 19th century samurai.
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In the past few years, the Like A Dragon series (formerly known under the title Yakuza) has taken off in Western markets like nobody’s business. Yakuza Like A Dragon was beloved by new players (and most returning ones) for uniting the series’ classic gang warfare storytelling with RPG mechanics, while the Judgment games carried the banner of the original brawling combat with a new detective protagonist. Thanks to the warm welcome the series received, we’re about to be inundated with new...
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The Like A Dragon (previously titled Yakuza) series is in its renaissance period. While we wait for the next mainline entry in next year’s Like a Dragon 8, the development team at Ryu Ga Gotoku Studios has decided to keep the franchise train rolling while at its peak. With this, Like A Dragon: Ishin!, the samurai-based affair, has arrived, serving as a remaking and reworking of the original 2014 game released only in Japan. It’s one of the series’ better stories and experiences, only s...
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Like a Dragon: Ishin is a joy to play for many reasons. It has a compelling story dealing with revenge and identity, combat that is incredibly satisfying despite being a bit dated, and a setting filled with many fun activities. Unfortunately, there are technical issues that grind the pacing to a halt and can take players out of the experience. Still, when looking at the game as a whole, it is an easy recommendation, and the extended wait for fans to play it in English seems well worth it.
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Like A Dragon: Ishin is a really fun spin off for this long-running series. Many of the big characters from the mainline Yakuza games, bar some of the newer games, are recast as new ones but none of the impact is lost. Edo Period Kyo is a great city to explore with plenty to offer players, and the combat styles are really fun to experiment with, even if Brawler is a bit wasted. The long wait for a Western release has been worth it.
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Like a Dragon: Ishin turns back the clock to the Bakumatsu period in Japan and its new remake is an excellent revitalization of an already solid entry in the Like a Dragon / Yakuza series as it finally launches in the west for the first time at last.
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What more can I say? Like A Dragon: Ishin! deserves its acclaimed reputation and can only have been improved by this modernising makeover. The story, visuals, sound design, and game mechanics are all top-class. Complexity is the name of the game as usual, but fans of the series will have no complaints about what has been delivered here. Everything that gamers love about the series has been included and improved upon to freshen things up. Even the use of familiar faces feels right when it could have seemed very wrong. For fans and newcomers alike, this game is a triumph...
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Like a Dragon: Ishin! is another strong Yakuza game that fans won't want to miss, finally localized for English speakers. The improved visuals often put the package in line with more recent fare, but the uneven results prevent it from finding the true greatness that was nearly within its grasp.
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A new setting is not enough to disguise Like a Dragon: Ishin!'s unbalanced combat and middling story.
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Like a Dragon: Ishin is not a new game. It's a remake of an old game – 2014's Ryu Ga Gotoku: Ishin, released only in Japan on the PS3 and PS4. And yet, despite the age of its skeleton, in some ways, the game stands out as one of the more impressive games in developer Ryu Ga Gotoku's (RGG) portfolio – even with a few noticeable weak points.
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The long-awaited remake of Like a Dragon: Ishin delivers an exciting and frequently gorgeous new setting to explore, a more rewarding combat system, and some of the best side quests and minigames in the series to date. Don't let the katanas fool you, this is the Yakuza you know and love at its very best.
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Was it really necessary to remake Like a Dragon: Ishin!? It’s questionable, but we’re glad it’s finally available in the west in some form. It’s not the best Like a Dragon game – in fact, it might come quite low in the pile – but a good time can be had with it nonetheless. Its world might not be all that attractive, and its story a slow-burner, but it has the usual charm and a bucketload of interesting activities to carry it.
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An 1800s action-adventure that's sure to both delight longtime Yakuza fans and make for a perfect entry point into the series for newcomers.
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Like a Dragon: Ishin is a stellar period piece filled with melodramatic monologues, great combat, goofy side content, and a whole lot of heart.
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Though Like a Dragon Ishin! is rough around the corners, its complex story and rich world with an abundance of side adventures are well worth the cost of admission. The game’s reinterpretation of Japan’s Bakumatsu period is a transporting experience that explores a moment in history that is not often available to Western audiences. Ishin has some trouble upgrading the combat system and camera controls to today’s standards, and it’s not a graphical powerhouse despite some visual upgrades. But anyone who is a fan of the Yakuza Kiwami series will likely forgive these faults to a degree. Like a Dragon...
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Exactly what fans of the series have come to expect, whilst still providing one or two interesting deviations in gameplay along the way, Like A Dragon: Ishin! fuses familiar traits with a delightfully-versatile combat system to great effect. Those worried that a game both spin-off in nature and far-flung from the series' present day roots would feel too isolated should take comfort from the fact this year's remake of a pre-0 entrant remains quintessentially Yakuza in all the right ways. And while the take on style-switching, combo-chasing combat this time round is admittedly imperfect and far from the most fluid...
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“Like a Dragon: Ishin's timeless story and accessibility options make up for some of its outdated gameplay.”
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You can't go wrong with Like A Dragon Ishin. The game includes what makes the Yakuza franchise so special and combines it with samurais and Edo Period politics. A handful of oddities aside, it leans into its strengths and irons out several of the franchise peculiarities. Every gamer, either invested in the franchise or still uninitiated, needs Ishin in their console.
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It's finally here! It's been almost a decade since Ryu ga Gotoku Ishin! released exclusively in Japan on PS3 and PS4, with Western fans begging for a localisation effort all the while. But back then, the Yak--, er, Like a Dragon series was nowhere near as popular as it is now, and so here we are with SEGA greenlighting a worldwide launch for Like a Dragon: Ishin!.
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Like a Dragon: Ishin is yet another enjoyable entry in the fan-favorite Yakuza franchise, but this time with an historical samurai twist. The strong story and generous gameplay variety should keep most players hooked until the end, even if they have to endure some long cutscenes along the way.
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Accused of murdering someone he holds dear, this lowly samurai from a backwater land renounces his name and goes into hiding. To find the true killer's identity, Ryoma must conceal himself among the wolves of the infamous Shinsengumi. Taking the alias Saito Hajime, it isn't long before he winds up embroiled in the political schemes and savage violence that will reshape the country—and give rise to legends.
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A welcome novelty and throwback for long-time Yakuza fans, that offers everything they love about the series, although it’s held back by a rather underwhelming plot and too much fan service.
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If you’re a newcomer, you’ll probably appreciate just the zany mix of comedy and action that defines the series, and is still present here. Long-time fans will still find the things they like about this series in Ishin, too. While there are some setbacks, it’s fair to say Like a Dragon: Ishin! is a good entry in the series, hitting the same highs you’d hope for and filled with just the right balance of heart and laughter that made the series stand out in the first place. Ryoma’s story has finally come west, and it’s well worth experiencing if you’re...
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