Yakuza: Dead Souls

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Yakuza: Dead Souls
System(s): PlayStation 3
Publisher: Sega
Developer: Sega
Genre: Action
Number of players: 1
Release Date RRP Code JP 2011-06-09 ¥7,600 (7,980)7,600 (7,980) BLJM-60316 JP (The Best) 2013-02-21 ¥2,800 (2,940)2,800 (2,940) BLJM-55054 US 2012-03-13 EU 2012-03-16 AU 2012-03-15 KR 201x AS 201x BLAS-50440
ESRB PEGI BBFC USK OFLC CERO Missing Parameter! GRB

Yakuza: Dead Souls, known as Ryu ga Gotoku of the End (龍が如く OF THE END) in Japan, is an action game developed and published by Sega for the PlayStation 3 in 2011.

Dead Souls is a spin-off (or parody) of the Yakuza franchise not considered part of the main canon, wherein a zombie outbreak occurs and characters from the series are forced to take up arms. Dead Souls is a third person shooter, unlike previous games which were akin to more traditional beat em' ups.

Story

A zombie outbreak occurs in Kamuro-cho. Dead rise from their graves and attack the living. Those who bitten, turn to zombies and no cure for the infected seems to be avaiable. The Japanese Self-Defense Force called in and they attempt to block parts of the city in order to prevent the spread of disase further. It is eventually revealed that this is not a natural disaster, rather a well planned and executed attack on Kamuro-cho, aimed at Tojo Clan, particulary the fifth chairman, Kazuma Kiryu.

Gameplay

Similar to Yakuza 4, Dead Souls has four main characters and main story is divided between four parts, culminating in the final fifth part.

Characters

Shun Akiyama One of the main characters from Yakuza 4, Akiyama continues his life as a money lender with his secretary Hana. His somewhat dull life is shattered when he finds himself in the middile of the zombie outbreak. Escaping from his office, which is in the sealed-off section of Kamuro-cho, Akiayama attempt to find a safe place for Hana who is now going down with a fever.

Akiyama's signature weapons are a pair of fast firing handguns.

Goro Majima One of Kiryu's closes allies (and a fan favourite) Goro "Mad Dog" Majima starts his part of the story in the Millenium Tower, where the office of the Majima Family is located. After the tower is attacked by zombies, Majima gleefully grabs his shotgun and happily joins the fight to save the Kamuro-cho from undead.

Majima's signature weapon is an automatic shotgun.

Ryuji Gohda Primary antogonist of Yakuza 2, Gohda, who was presumed killed at the end of that game, returns as a playable character. Kicked out of Omi Alliance after the events of the Yakuza 2, Gohda settles down in Kamuro-cho as an assistant Takoyaki chef. He is involved with story when, Tetsuo Nikaido, his underling from his days as a member of Omi Alliance, visits him and asks him to join up with him again. Not wanting to go back his old life, Gohda refuses and immediately the town is overrun by zombies. Worried that Nikaido might have a hand in this, Gohda enters the fight.

Gohda's signature weapon is his robotic right arm which can transform into a gattling gun.

Kazuma Kiryu Kiryu returns to Kamuro-cho once more when his adopted daughter Haruka is kidnapped by an unkown man. Not wanting to kill people, he initially refuses to use guns but finally relents after witnessing the death of a fellow yakuza.

Kiryu's signature weapon is a powerful anti-materiel rifle, which he gains at the end of part 4.

History

Development

Yakuza: Dead Souls was intended for release shortly after Yakuza 4, but was delayed due to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.

Legacy

Dead Souls, unlike previous games (particulary Yakuza 3 and 4) received mostly mixed reviews from overseas reviewers due to its shift in genre and tone as well as several fundemental design problems. The controls were especially criticised (for example, the left stick is used for aiming firearms instead of the right stick like most shooting games).

It is believed that Binary Domain, another third-person shooter released in early 2012 by many of the same team members, was designed based on experience and feedback learned from Dead Souls.

Magazine articles

Main article: Yakuza: Dead Souls/Magazine articles.

Artwork

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Physical scans

PlayStation 3, US
Cover

PlayStation 3, EU
Cover

PlayStation 3, EU Limited Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, JP
Cover
Disc

PlayStation 3, JP (First print)
Cover
Disc DVD Case

PlayStation 3, JP (PlayStation 3 the Best)
Cover

PlayStation 3, AU
Cover

PlayStation 3, AU Steelbook Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, UK
Cover

PlayStation 3, UK Limited Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, FR
Cover

PlayStation 3, FR Limited Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, FR Steelbook Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, DE
Cover

PlayStation 3, DE Steelbook Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, ES
Cover

PlayStation 3, ES Limited Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, IT
Cover

PlayStation 3, AT
Cover

PlayStation 3, AT Steelbook Edition
Cover

PlayStation 3, KR
Cover

PlayStation 3, Asia (Ryu ga Gotoku)

PlayStation 3, Asia (Yakuza)
Cover

External links

• Official website (Japanese)
• Sega of Japan catalogue pages (Japanese): PlayStation 3