History YMMV / LikeADragon

!![[VideoGame/LikeADragon The video game series by Sega]]:
!! YMMV: All Games | ''YMMV/Yakuza1'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza2'' | ''YMMV/RyuGaGotokuKenzan'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza3'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza4'' | ''YMMV/YakuzaDeadSouls'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza5'' | ''YMMV/LikeADragonIshin'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza0'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza6'' | ''YMMV/YakuzaLikeADragon'' | ''YMMV/{{Judgment}}'' | ''YMMV/LostJudgment''

* LGBTFanbase: It's arguably not as prominent as some other fanbases, but the franchise has garnered a bit of attention from gay and bisexual men (and fans of the [[YaoiGenre Yaoi and]] [[BaraGenre Bara genres]] in general) due to the games featuring plenty of [[HoYay ripped, shirtless men]].

** The random mooks in the streets, especially if you're trying to progress to the plot. They even chase you down just to pick a fight. You can ''never'' run away from these encounters once started.

** Due to ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'''s localization coming out around the same time as ''VideoGame/Tekken7'', Kiryu rose up increasingly fast in popularity as a fan request for a GuestFighter in the latter game, with both ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}'' and ''Yakuza'' fans wanting to see him in the game after the inclusion of other guest fighters like [[VideoGame/StreetFighter Akuma]] and [[VideoGame/FatalFury Geese]].

*** Akiyama, Tanimura, and Shinada are not yakuza in any way, being a loan shark, a police officer, and a regular civilian respectively who just happen to be [[OneManArmy skilled in combat enough to take down hoards of enemies]] as they get involved in the stories.

** Seong-hui, the leader of the Geomijul in ''Like a Dragon'', is possibly the biggest one in the latter game thus far. This is owing to her very unique, cool, and beautiful design, the fact that she's the first [[TheQueenpin proper female acting leader]] of her own faction (as Yayoi was only an interim chairwoman in the wake of Terada's [[spoiler:supposed]] death), and her voice being quite [[ContraltoOfDanger easy on the ears]]. When [[https://twitter.com/bk2128/status/1268433687621689344?s=09 Famitsu held a poll]] for which character fans wished were playable in ''Like A Dragon'', she scored first.

* BetterThanCanon: The franchise, sans spin-offs such as ''VideoGame/FistOfTheNorthStarLostParadise'', has a strong modding community on the PC version. Who else would be crazy enough to make Makoto Makimura fight in the style of Majima, Yumi ''or'' Kaori fighting like Kiryu, or swapping models during Heat attacks with the protagonists being beaten up by their former love interests for breaking their hearts? Apparently Sega is fully aware of this and made ''Haruka of all people'' beat up street thugs in the ''Yakuza Online'' trailer as a form of AscendedMeme as swapping a playable protagonist with her is very popular among modders.

** The sound of your victim's entrails being utterly decimated by the iconic Komaki Tiger Drop followed by the ensuing knockdown. There's a very good reason why it's one of the single-biggest GameBreaker in the entire ''franchise'' (and ThatOneAttack if you're on the receiving end).

*** Tanimura is liked for his unique defensive gameplay, but his character isn't seen as interesting as the others. Fans were not pleased that he was PutOnABus after ''4'' (His original actor quitting and having to be recasted in the remaster aside) and want him to return in future games, while others see him as too bland and prefer Shinada over him.

*** It's shown that Kiryu is not averse to killing in self-defense, best seen when he uses a triad-allied waiter as a human shield or the admittance of his willingness to kill Iwami and Sugai when they threatened his loved ones. Kiryu ''will'' resort to killing, but out of a desire to protect those who he cares about rather than malice. This comes to a head in [[VideoGame/Yakuza6]] where Kiryu has developed a reputation as a TechnicalPacifist - several characters remark to his face that they know he never kills anyone, to which his response is usually some variation of "News to me."

*** It's shown that Kiryu is not averse to killing in self-defense, best seen when he uses a triad-allied waiter as a human shield or the admittance of his willingness to kill Iwami and Sugai when they threatened his loved ones. Kiryu ''will'' resort to killing, but out of a desire to protect those who he cares about rather than malice.

** The series' infamous BonusBoss, Jo Amon, and his brothers in later games. Exceptionally fast, have more health than the final bosses, and have several attacks which will instantly destroy your life bar.

** Seong-Hui, the leader of the Geomijul in ''Like a Dragon'', is possibly the biggest one in the latter game thus far. This is owing to her very unique, cool, and beautiful design, the fact that she's the first [[TheQueenpin proper female acting leader]] of her own faction (as Yayoi was only an interim chairwoman in the wake of Terada's [[spoiler:supposed]] death), and her voice being quite [[ContraltoOfDanger easy on the ears]]. When [[https://twitter.com/bk2128/status/1268433687621689344?s=09 Famitsu held a poll]] for which character fans wished were playable in ''Like A Dragon'', she scored first.

** Daigo. While it's debatable how much of the problems with the Tojo are the result of his own actions, fans like to exaggerate him into a complete ButtMonkey or DamselInDistress. Doesn't help that he gets beaten up, captured, and/or incapacitated in just about every game he appears in (With the possible main exception of ''Like A Dragon'', where none of this seems to happen to him onscreen). Some of his Japanese detractors tend to write the normally respectful "Daigo-san" as "大誤算" (big miscalculation).

Diagnosed by the Audience: A large number of fans headcanon Kazuma Kiryu as autistic. This interpretation stems from a number of quirks he displays throughout the series, such as his awkwardness in day-to-day interactions, his tendency to fixate on and get very passionate about esoteric things like Pocket Circuit racing and arcade games (which parallel hyperfixations and special interests), and his strong sense of empathy, which can occasionally leave him vulnerable to manipulation.

* DiagnosedByTheAudience: Not that it's immediately noticeable but Kiryu does stand out in many ways when you compare him to his peers and even other playable characters.
** Despite his [[MagneticHero charisma and tendency to attract reliable friends and allies,]] he tends to be [[NoSocialSkills pretty awkward in day-to-day social interactions]] and always defaults to being [[TheStoic stone-faced, grim, and rather formal]] regardless of [[MundaneMadeAwesome how mundane]] [[ComicallySerious or silly]] the actual situation is. This often lends itself to him being [[ColdHam surprisingly dramatic and intense despite his cool temperament]] and with no self-awareness whatsoever. While being [[FishOutOfTemporalWater imprisoned for 10 years]] has much to do with it, he's behaved like this as far back as the prequel ''0'' when he was 20 years old though admittedly he was noticeably more [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold blunt]] and HotBlooded in those days.
** Adding onto him being somewhat awkward, it's not uncommon for him to stutter a bit when he's put in an uncomfortable situation, usually when random strangers are more friendly than he expected.
-->'''Hatekeyama''': "Oh I get it, y'must be too nervous to go in [the bar] because it's your first time!"
-->'''Kiryu''': "N-no. That's not it..."
** He can be ''very'' [[TheDeterminator fixated on and]] [[SeriousBusiness overly passionate]] about certain topics and activities like Pocket Circuit Racing or Arcade games. It's implied that his status as TheAce of several different endeavors is due to hard work and determination rather than any natural talent.
** He's got a great deal of [[AllLovingHero social empathy]]. On impulse, he does his best to try and help others when they seem troubled regardless of their circumstances or [[SmallStepsHero how minor the problem may be.]] At times this has led to him being betrayed, exploited, or just experiencing all sorts of misfortune but that's never stopped him from trying.
** Conversely, he's got an [[CombatPragmatist incredibly high capacity for violence]] [[BewareTheNiceOnes at odds]] [[BruiserWithASoftCenter with said kindness]] and he can be [[UnstoppableRage absolutely terrifying]] [[TranquilFury when angered]] [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge or otherwise sufficiently provoked.]]
** This is all on top of how much of a toll his life has taken on him in later games [[HurtingHero physically, mentally, and emotionally,]] having lost so many loved ones or constantly seeing them get threatened or injured. He generally [[HumbleHero doesn't think very highly of himself]] or the [[OldShame the things he's done in the past]] as an ex-yakuza. A number of times, it's even heavily implied that he's a borderline {{Deathseeker}}. At the very least he's often NotAfraidToDie.
** Overall, the people around him, even close friends and family, treat him as a [[TheParagon one-of-a-kind person that they deeply admire]] but don't really understand all that well even if they've learned what to expect from him. Perhaps commented on by Majima in ''Kiwami'' after Kiryu's "final" fight against him in the Majima Everywhere system:
-->'''Majima''': ...I've been [[RecurringBoss watching long enough]] to see how ya live your life, Kiryu-chan. As I figured, your thought process ain't even on the same wavelength as me. [[PetTheDog But, I can acknowledge that different don't mean worse.]]
-->'''Kiryu''': So, you understand now?
-->'''Majima''': [[BrutalHonesty Nah, that's a seperate discussion!]]

* VideoGameMoviesSuck: [[SoOkayItsAverage It's not the worst video game adaptation out there, but it does fall significantly short of its source material]]. The biggest failing is that much of the plot goes unexplained and expects you to already be familiar with the games (or a separate prologue short film), presenting several concurrent stories but doesn't develop and intertwine them very well. The good thing is that the action scenes are well worth watching, especially when they involve lovable madman Majima -- even if he's got his eyepatch on the wrong eye.

* {{Misblamed}}: Crime novelist Seishū Hase had often been credited for being the head writer for the first two games, and some fans weren't happy with the direction the series took after his departure from the series after the second game, blaming head writer Masayoshi Yokoyama for things like making Kiryu run an orphanage and the convoluted plots of the fourth and fifth games. In actuality, Yokoyama has actually been the head writer for each game in the main series and Hase only served as a supervisor for the first two games to ensure that the yakuza was depicted accurately and prevent it from suffering from CriticalResearchFailure, which Yokoyama's initial script did. Kiryu running an orphanage was the result of Nagoshi's and the team's desire to explore a more human side to our hero.

* MemeticMutation: [[Memes/{{Yakuza}} See here]].

* DiagnosedByTHeAudience: Not that it's immediately noticeable but he does stand out in many ways when you compare him to his peers and even other playable characters.

* ArchivePanic: With ''VideoGame/Yakuza0'' out in the west, many reviewers admitted that one of the reasons they didn't jump into the series sooner, particularly with the [=PS3=] titles, was because they weren't familiar with the previous stories or characters and feared they would be lost not knowing the details. Due to better marketing and ''0'' being a prequel, serving as an excellent entry point into the series, [[NewbieBoom many jumped on board]] and discovered what they had been missing out on, with some expressing a desire to go back and play the previous titles. Anticipating this, SEGA of America ordered a limited reprint of the first four games, including the now difficult-to-find [=PS2=] games, shortly after the game's release which can be ordered online. Yakuza 0 was itself followed by remakes of the first two games, plus a compilation release of 3, 4 and 5, which was the first time the latter game had been available in the west in a physical format. As of 2021, pretty much the entire series (except for ''VideoGame/RyuGaGotokuIshin'', ''VideoGame/RyuGaGotokuKenzan'', ''VideoGame/YakuzaDeadSouls'', and ''VideoGame/{{Judgment}}'' and ''VideoGame/{{LostJudgment}}'' on PC, sadly) is now available on PC and on Xbox for more fans to enjoy, with ''Like a Dragon'' receiving a [=PS5=] port on March 2nd, 2021, and the aforementioned ''Judgment'' getting a [=PS5=] and Xbox remaster on April 23rd, 2021.

* CompleteMonster: See [[Monster/{{Yakuza}} here]].

!! YMMV: All Games | ''YMMV/Yakuza1'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza2'' | ''YMMV/RyuGaGotokuKenzan'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza3'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza4'' | ''YMMV/YakuzaDeadSouls'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza5'' | ''YMMV/RyuGaGotokuIshin'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza0'' | ''YMMV/Yakuza6'' | ''YMMV/YakuzaLikeADragon'' | ''YMMV/{{Judgment}}'' | ''YMMV/LostJudgment''