The Yakuza series, while not exactly best sellers in the US, is still a well respected and generally well received franchise. Of course, that’s not going to stop Sega from trying to make it better, and everyone knows there’s only one way to do that when it comes to video games: add zombies.
Japanese mag Famitsu has broken the story of Yakuza: Of The End, which stars characters from previous Yakuza games and takes place in the wake of an April 2011 zombie apocalypse. Confirmed characters include Kazuma, Goro, Ryuji, and Shun, all returning from previous games in the series.
The four characters stay behind in the city of Kamurocho after the rest of the citizens either evacuate or are wiped it – it’s not yet clear which. Players will be able to customize weapons, and one image shows Goro with a gun attached to his arm.
This is a huge departure for Yakuza, which in the past has dealt with Japanese organized crime with an open world and a focus on melee combat, story and RPG elements. Gun customization is nice, but it’s currently unknown whether the other customization and progression elements from past Yakuza games will return, or whether the game will still focus on beat ’em up combat.
This may be Sega’s attempt to increase Yakuza‘s appeal in the West, where the games have traditionally seen poor sales. We definitely love our zombies, but this attempt may be a little misguided.
Of course, that will depend partly on exactly how Of The End fits in with the rest of the franchise. Is it a numbered entry, or merely a spinoff? Is the zombie invasion canon in Yakuza‘s universe, which has been consistent throughout all three games in the series? Will it be a retail release or downloadable from PSN?
Famitsu wasn’t able to squeeze any of these details out of Sega’s Toshihiro Nagoshi, other than the game’s reported PlayStation 3 exclusivity. Bringing zombies to Yakuza is either a great idea or a terrible one; either way, we’re excited to see how it turns out.
