Yakuza 2, originally released in Japan as Like a Dragon 2, is the sequel to the action adventure game Yakuza by Sega. The title was released on December 7, 2006, for the PlayStation 2 in Japan and in September 2008 in North America and Europe. The game focuses on the former yakuza Kazuma Kiryu who receives a request for help from his former group, the Tojo Clan, to keep relationships with the eastern group, the Omi Family, stable. Across Kazuma's journey he learns of a Korean mafia group linked with the Omi Family and becomes the rival of the Omi's "Kansai Dragon", Ryuji Goda.
The gameplay of Yakuza 2 takes after its predecessor and has several new features. Sega wished to improve the fighting engine based on fan input to provide a far more rich experience while playing the video game. The story was aimed to feature a deep adult love story, something not seen in the prequel. Additionally, for the western versions the original Japanese audio was kept in contrast to the previous game which instead had an English audio.
Critical reception to the video game has been fairly positive with reviewers praising the presentation and fighting system. The game also achieved good sales in Japan. |