Yakuza: Dead Souls Heading to the US

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Yakuza: Dead Souls Heading to the US
Aaron Webber Associate Brand Manager, Sega of America
116 Author Replies

Greetings Sony fans and Yakuza enthusiasts! Today is an exciting day, both for PS3 gamers and for us here at SEGA – the PS3 exclusive, Yakuza: Dead Souls is coming to the west! It seems like only yesterday we were all sitting on the edge of our Sony-branded seats, hoping desperately that Yakuza 3 would see the light of day overseas. In the years since, we’ve seen not only the US release of Yakuza 3, but Yakuza 4, too – and, thanks to the fantastic support of fans and PS3 gamers like you, we’re proud to now announce the latest chapter in the Yakuza franchise. What was once Of The End is now Dead Souls!

So, what is Yakuza: Dead Souls all about? I traveled to the top of the mountains and spent two weeks meditating to bring you the answers. In the end, that failed, so I just played the entire game instead. It was awesome, and in doing so, I found that this game is a mix of:

  • Zombies in Tokyo
  • Yakuza with guns
  • Beautiful Hostesses

And while I’m not able to reveal how much content from the Japanese version is coming over, let me just say that you fans are going to be very, very happy when you hear how much we’ve included.

Yakuza: Dead Souls Coming to the US

The version we’re bringing to the west features the entire storyline, as well as its brand new mini-game: Pachislot. Yakuza: Dead Souls returns you back to the streets of Kamurocho, which is now under attack by hordes of Zombies. Though you won’t be restricted by Zombies as your only threat, as you’ll also face powerful mutants, and, perhaps most dangerous of all, members of the Japanese underworld.

The name Dead Souls has multiple meanings within the game, beyond the obvious “Oh-hey-that’s-totally-a-Zombie” angle. But did I mention the Zombies yet? Well, there are Zombies. Lots of Zombies. So many Zombies I’m going to start using a capital Z when I type Zombies, just to spite all those English professors back in college who said I couldn’t. Zombies, Zombies, Zombies!

Yakuza: Dead Souls Coming to the USYakuza: Dead Souls Coming to the US

Yet even for all the wacky and hilarious Japanese culture laden within the game – and in past Yakuza games, too – there is a strong layer of serious, emotional storytelling taking place here. This game has also convinced me that, without a doubt, Kazuma Kiryu is more manly than both Chuck Norris and Duke Nukem fused together – but that’s for another blog.

If you’re a fan of the series, we’d like to end by saying THANK YOU for going out there and picking up the western releases of Yakuza 3 and 4. Even now, every copy of Yakuza 4 sold, and every pre-order of Yakuza: Dead Souls helps this franchise continue to survive and grow here in the west.

Yakuza: Dead Souls Coming to the USYakuza: Dead Souls Coming to the US

Got a question about Yakuza: Dead Souls? Want to know more about the game or leave a comment below? Please do – I’m aiming to top my previous response numbers with a 100% response ratio this time. All I ask is that you keep the questions Yakuza related, where possible. Thanks guys – and stay tuned for more Zombie goodness from us soon!

playstation gamessegayakuzayakuza 3yakuza 4yakuza dead souls

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126 Comments

116 Author Replies

  • MrGamerz123
    October 5, 2011 at 5:49 pm PDT

    Brilliant move SEGA!

  • PullusPardusUS
    October 5, 2011 at 5:53 pm PDT

    Well let me take a moment and brag a little, I remember when the very first yakuza came out and had English voices, I got it the moment it arrived on store and I never knew anything about it, other than its made by sega, I remember trying to convince my shenmue loving friend to get it, and after he got it we spent most if our free school time talking about it, and ever since ,I’ve been a huge fan and with each release I think the series gets even better than before.

    Tl:dr I love Sega, I even have the niche game segaga even though I actually don’t understand anything Japanese, oh here goes me bragging again xD

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:15 am PDT

      Yakuza really does have some evolved Shenmue vibes going on. : ) Glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for sticking with the series since Day 1!

  • b16ctr
    October 5, 2011 at 6:33 pm PDT

    AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LOVE SEGA :)

  • lolidkwot
    October 5, 2011 at 6:39 pm PDT

    My bad on missing the release date! I saw the tweet and had to check out the blog but couldn’t view the video while at work.

    Yakuza 3 and 4 are in my top 5 games that I recommend to everyone!

    …now I can start a 5 month countdown. =D

    • Aaron Webber
      October 5, 2011 at 6:41 pm PDT

      Not a problem. Really happy to hear you enjoyed Yakuza 3 and 4 so much you recommend them to your friends! People like you are key to helping Yakuza spread and succeed here in the west. : ) Keep it up, and thank you!

  • Jedah_PR
    October 5, 2011 at 6:56 pm PDT

    I can’t imagine Kiryu using a fire arm; but then again it has the Yakuza logo in it; and I’m a HUGE Yakuza fan; so I’ll buy it regardless.

    • Aaron Webber
      October 5, 2011 at 6:58 pm PDT

      Kiryu uses them in Yakuza 3 / 4, but only if you make him pick one up, and fairly rarely.

      There’s a pretty cool moment where Kiryu just decides to try beating down the zombies old-school style instead of with guns – I won’t spoil it, but your imagination isn’t too far off from his normal personality.

  • Fear_Me_All
    October 5, 2011 at 6:56 pm PDT

    does western version will be censored ??
    does western version will have stuff remove ??

    i hope they keep everything in from the japan version

    let me know please thx you and happy that you reply 100% of question

    P.S. it fell strange to see in a SONY blog seeing user saying THX SEGA!! ;-)

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:14 am PDT

      Your comment hadn’t shown up before I left, so I hope you don’t think I was ignoring it. : ) Answers below!

      1. There are no plans to ‘censor’ any content. You’re buying a Japanese game to enjoy Japanese culture, and censoring it defeats that purpose!
      2. Almost everything from the Japanese version will make it in, with very few exceptions. Compare to Yakuza 4, which had a really solid localization last year, as an example of what to expect. I think you’ll be very happy when you see the list of included content.

      P.S. – A little odd if you remember back then, right? How things have changed since the early 2000’s!

  • Aaron Webber
    October 5, 2011 at 7:15 pm PDT

    Alright ladies and gents’ – 100 comments and 101 replies later, it’s time to hang up my blogging hat as the day comes to a close. It was awesome reading your responses and chatting with you guys.

    Have an awesome night – until next time, thanks once more for keeping this series alive and supporting it in the west. Your dedication does not go unnoticed, and we’re glad you’re all as excited as we are for Yakuza: Dead Souls!

    Here’s to all the Yakuza fans worldwide. Good night!

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:07 am PDT

      What’s this? More comments? Well, we can’t leave those unanswered… making another pass to catch any that showed up after last night. : )

  • RowanABoat1996
    October 5, 2011 at 7:16 pm PDT

    Hi Aaron, you mentioned there isn’t any online co-op when you answered someone’s question, so this is my question. Is there any offline splitscreen co-op?

  • Fear_Me_All
    October 5, 2011 at 7:23 pm PDT

    apparently sony finish reply to question….
    lol and like again did not get a answer for my question that was ask before his post

    thx anyways

  • KGH
    October 5, 2011 at 8:26 pm PDT

    lol, yakuza is actually the LAST game i’d imagine featuring zombies… But this is totally awesome!

  • Firecrest
    October 5, 2011 at 8:44 pm PDT

    Awesome, Aaron- thanks for the reply! Well then, here’s to a day 1 purchase of Yakuza Dead Souls and Sonic Generations. About those retro Sega classics, I can always hold out hope that they may resurface in the future. After all, if Saturn classics like [ROLLING STAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARTTTTT] and Guardian Heroes are getting the digital treatment, there’s always a possibility that some of those other games will as well. ^_^

  • Aiken_Drum
    October 5, 2011 at 8:59 pm PDT

    Well, it’s great that you’re localizing another title, but the obvious hint that something is going to be removed yet again dampens the fun a lot. I mean, if you weren’t cutting anything we care about, you’d already be telling us instead of vaguely claiming we’d be pleasantly surprised at how little you cut. (“It’s only your finger, we’re not taking your whole hand!”) It’s kind of obvious that you don’t want to spoil the announcement with an addendum we don’t want to hear, but by now we kinda know the score.

    People on the dev/pub side always say, “Well, we just thought you wouldn’t want to have to do that part.” While that may (or may not) be true, what it really means is that a lot of us don’t *get* to do that part, even if the average western gamer might find it stupid or tedious or offensive or whatever they don’t like about it. If there’s amn iffy feature, put it on a SWITCH. Don’t cut it!

    Me, I *wanted* to see and do the stuff you guys cut out of Yakuza 3, but nooooo, some might have been bored or offended, so I got a butchered version. Because of that, I’m not pre-ordering this. If people say it’s butchered, I’m not buying it at all.

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:06 am PDT

      Speaking as a fan, you won’t be disappointed. Check out Yakuza 4 to see how dedicated we are to doing these localizations right – Yakuza: Dead Souls will follow suite, building on that great step forward.

      I’d go so far as to say that when we release the list of content going in, and then the few bullet points of (extremely) minor things that didn’t make it, I think it will be met with an overwhelmingly positive response. And you can quote me on that. : )

  • DragonWolfJD
    October 5, 2011 at 10:41 pm PDT

    Wow that’s a rarity a game with zombies in the U.S. that will be fun. Haven’t played one since Red Dead Redemption’s Undead Nightmare. Looking forward to this.

  • ein_nineteenth
    October 6, 2011 at 7:08 am PDT

    This is simultaneously stupid and awesome at the same time.
    Good show Sega. Good show.

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:34 am PDT

      Going to stick with Awesome. : ) The game has a lot of funny tongue-in-cheek moments that I think you’ll appreciate.

  • ein_nineteenth
    October 6, 2011 at 7:09 am PDT

    Actually, question.
    Does this game use THX sound?

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:35 am PDT

      Aha, that one I don’t know off-hand. I’ll check it out and let you know in a future posting if confirmed.

  • RavageHeitaro
    October 6, 2011 at 8:13 am PDT

    Thank you Sega *1000 for bring this over. I’ve bought every localized Yakuza game and this will be no exception.

  • PainOfSarrow
    October 6, 2011 at 8:13 am PDT

    awsomeee, i have not picked up part 4 yet but 3 was great. felt veryyyy long but entertaining and very emotional. im from a hardcore ghetto and yakuza 3 even hade me teary eye with the part of his home boy at the end. not going spoil it for ppl that aint get 3 though. will say the story gets deep.

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:38 am PDT

      Glad you liked 3. The ending really was emotional, especially those last 3-4 hours. I remember playing it in Japanese thinking “I can’t stop now… gotta find out what happens!”

      Definitely pick up 4 if you liked 3. The different characters and their personalities are really refreshing, and it’s much faster-paced than Yakuza 3, too.

  • jimmyfoxhound
    October 6, 2011 at 10:20 am PDT

    Yakuza 3 and 4 are so dang underrated. They’re so unique unto themselves with great stories and that quirky Japanese sense of humor. I LOVE em!!

  • zCidz
    October 6, 2011 at 10:56 am PDT

    Yessssss, I love Yakuza.

    Thank you,

    • Aaron Webber
      October 6, 2011 at 11:39 am PDT

      Thanks for the comment! The Yakuza series loves you too.

      Except for Majima. We’re not sure quite sure if he loves anything but zombies his shotgun, and perhaps Kiryu. In a totally bro way, that is.

  • Souledge94
    October 6, 2011 at 2:00 pm PDT

    I heard they may change the gunplay a bit for the west any word on that yet? Also thanks for bringing it over im a huge yakuza fan and please dont screw NA buyers like you did before by giving us no steelcase but giving it to euro.

  • feelmuhpino
    October 6, 2011 at 2:06 pm PDT

    Wow, it makes me feel good that I decided to take the leap into playing these games. I used to see Yakuza 1 & 2 on the ‘pre-owned’ games shelf at stores all the time, the game had always kind of intrigued me. So one day I decided to bite, and bought them (used unfortunately). These games fill that void of old school beat-em-ups that other games never seemed. Not to mention the awesome story and drama, and the attention to detail, I’ve never played Shenmue, and was never a big fan of the GTA series, but this seems to have kind of blended the 2 games into a form that suits my palate. Since then I’ve bought Yakuza 3 & 4. I still haven’t finished 4, but I’m working on it! This announcement definitely put fire under my butt to finish it ASAP.

    As with many others, I agree we need the Black Panther PSP games, and I would perform the Essence of Poledancing (Yakuza 3 reference…yeah I went there) in order to get Kenzan to the west.

    By the way, I have to say that Yakuza 2, so far has been my favorite. Ryuji Goda is probably one of my top 10 most memorable antagonists. TBH though, man he didn’t age well in Dead Souls, did he? lol. D*mn you HD!

  • QuantumMercury
    October 6, 2011 at 2:34 pm PDT

    I’ve always wanted to try a Yakuza game but the demo for 4 didn’t “win” me over as much as I hoped it would’ve but I’m gonna get this one now just because you responded to every single comment I saw on here. That’s what I call dedication to the fans.

  • Baron_Von_Bonbon
    October 6, 2011 at 3:29 pm PDT

    I am grateful.

    I guest I’ll have to finish 4. I only played about 2 hours worth of story, but I have over 20 hours of playtime total! Curse you addictive minigames!

  • SEGASHIRO
    October 6, 2011 at 6:39 pm PDT

    Day 1 purchase (if not a pre-order for me)! So stoked.

  • PirateHarlock
    October 7, 2011 at 9:58 am PDT

    its good thing Aarons taking effort to reply more than usal here. But the “comment awaiting moderation” problem should be taken care of sooner rather than later. its happened repeatedly for no good reason while in other situations where it needed to be done it was utterly ignored.

  • starbuster72
    October 10, 2011 at 4:05 am PDT

    I for one am a HUGE fan of the yakuza franchise and simply can’t wait for this title !!!!! Well there goes another weekend in front of the PS3 and my girl friend telling me I’m a loser… What the heck I could always get another girl friend lol……Bring it…

  • DA_SHREDDER
    October 13, 2011 at 4:20 am PDT

    +1 respect for you Mr. Webber for even acknowledging the fact that we all have been demanding Skies of Arcadia to be ported to this gen. +10 respect if you guys actually do it. I mean, FFX is already coming, plus skies?! It seems that most rpg’s this gen just don’t live up to games of the past, so why not just bring to life games of the past to give rpg fans the games that can fill in the void that was left behind that rpg’s this gen have made. I can’t think of any rpg that compares to skies, besides FFX, and even then FFX was the last of its kind. So please, I beg of you, bring Skies, and if possible bring the Legends edition. You have no clue what joy you would bring to fans hearts. Oh and in the process, you should think about finishing development of Armada 2. All these crappy over the top arcade shooters, and noone even talks about how sick Armada 1 was. I know they started armada 2 and wanted to implement all sorts of new ideas. I would build up on that. Skies, Armada, why haven’t you guys brought these games out yet again?! Good luck, and thank you.

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