The Nintendo Transfer version of Yakuza Kiwami is off to a strong start, according to Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio director Masayoshi Yokoyama.
Kiwimi is a remake of the first Yakuza game, which was originally saved for PS2 in 2005.
The remake was saved for PS3 and PS4 in 2016, before arriving on PC in 2019, Xbox One in 2020, Amazon Luna in 2022 and, in any case, Transfer End Hour.
“So, it seems like Kiwami is selling like crazy,” Yokoyama stated in a video interview posted on the franchise’s professional YouTube channel, which used to be translated via VGC. “I am very happy. You know, company executives had been making sales predictions, but I was very wrong. “I guess I looked at it too conservatively.”
“Everything has been really exciting,” Yokoyama added. “But yeah, this is great. It’s been 20 years since we made the first Yakuza game. And now, although it’s been rebranded as Kiwami, we already launched Kiwami a while ago, right? I thought it had been available for quite some time and that people around the world had already experienced it.
“This time, however, with the drama on Amazon Prime and other factors coming together, it finally came to Switch. Although technically it is just a port. And it is only available as a digital download. But still, the fact that people are willing to play it again makes me very happy as a game developer.
“Remakes are difficult to achieve,” he insisted. “Selling the same game a second time is not easy. So I’m really relieved. I feel very good about that. I think a lot of people will enjoy it on Switch. I even downloaded it myself! Being able to take it with you is really nice.”
Amazon High Video’s live-action adaptation of Yakuza premiered at the end of the hour. The first three episodes of Like a Dragon: Yakuza are available now, with the three generals expected to be released on October 31.
Sega recently announced that Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii will be available one hour until February 21, 2025.
