Like a Dragon: Ishin! Reviews
A new setting is not enough to disguise Like a Dragon: Ishin!'s unbalanced combat and middling story.
Taking an objective look at what the franchise has already achieved with its most recent titles, selling Like a Dragon: Ishin! as a remake may have been a wrong strategic decision, since several of its systems were not revitalized to the point of living up to the nomenclature, remaining archaic under a modern look. In addition, the slower and more bucolic tone of both the atmosphere and the narrative makes us understand why the original Ishin was ignored for a Western release. With that in mind, it becomes a little difficult to recommend it for newcomers to the franchise, but for those who are already familiar with all of the series' recurring flaws, it's a solid enough experience.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Like A Dragon: Ishin! is trying not to fix what isn’t broken, but it does not try anything new. Although the game’s fundamentals may feel dated, and the first half of the game may be slow, the story’s pivotal moments and characters’ dynamics offer thrilling battles and hype moments. Despite the game’s shortcomings, Like A Dragon: Ishin! provides hours of fun and entertainment with its mix of gameplay and side activities. If you like the Yakuza series or samurai games, Like A Dragon: Ishin! is worth playing.
While the storytelling is fabulous and the substories are legendary levels of insane, there are definitely parts of Ishin that could have used a bit more refinement, such as the combat and location design.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! sticks very closely to the Yakuza series' formula. Which means it'll bring its players both fun combat, ridiculous side content and some great character moments... and also exceeding amounts of expository dialogue and filler story beats.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Like a Dragon: Ishin is a great standalone work that holds its own in a fantastic series. An exciting whodunnit plot is the basis for a whole lot of action, some solid storytelling, and characters you sort-of know and will grow to love.
When is a remake not a remake? Ishin at times feels like the developers cut corners by incorporating existing models from other games and the original. NPC characters and animations lack refinement and didn't get the overhaul you would expect from a remake. However, the cutscenes and the original story remains strong and the gameplay with its new use of weapons and the added team cards are solid as ever. Together, Ishin fails to rise above the average, which could have been easily avoided.
Review in Dutch | Read full review
Was it really necessary to remake Like a Dragon: Ishin!? It’s questionable, but we’re glad it’s finally available in the west in some form. It’s not the best Like a Dragon game – in fact, it might come quite low in the pile – but a good time can be had with it nonetheless. Its world might not be all that attractive, and its story a slow-burner, but it has the usual charm and a bucketload of interesting activities to carry it.
A ballet of blades and bullets.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! is a remastered blast from the past that will appeal to longtime Yakuza fans, but a dated design and some bugs make the game feel rough around the edges.
Like a Dragon: Ishin's timeless story and accessibility options make up for some of its outdated gameplay.
A welcome novelty and throwback for long-time Yakuza fans, that offers everything they love about the series, although it's held back by a rather underwhelming plot and too much fan service.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! is an enjoyable and interesting spin-off from the Yakuza series, but not an essential one.
And despite some skepticism about how its historical period would be portrayed, the early turns of its story hooked me thanks to its marriage of murder-mystery, subterfuge, and deeply felt brotherly bonds. Unfortunately, these points of familiarity eventually proved incompatible with the kind of politically charged tale it was trying to tell. While most of my time with Ishin! was a delight, its closing hours are a mess due to its inability to reconcile the series' naivety and optimism with the complexities of history, resulting in a sanitized portrayal of the past that is both bewildering and somewhat troubling.
If I were to sum up the game’s pros and cons, Like A dragon Ishin is good. I personally recommend this game to all action RPG fans and especially to the Like A Dragon community to play this game if they want to see how different it is from its original version. Plus, if new players are interested in trying this out, I also recommend that they should try out the demo version of the game on their consoles as well.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! does the series justice, however it's definitely not one of its best. The story is a bit too convoluted and shot and the newer entries in the series simply have more variety to the content.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
While it doesn’t feel like it quite reaches the heights of Yakuza 0 or 7, it still stands out as another fun romp through an insane story with an entertaining batch of characters.
Like a Dragon: Ishin! feels more like a remaster than a remake, with an updated technical aspect but not up to modern standards and with the major novelty, Troops, proving to be far too invasive. At the same time, though, the game represents the end of an almost 10-year-long wait for one of the missing chapters in the series, thus turning out to be an almost obligatory purchase for any fan and for newbies alike, as it doesn't require any prior knowledge of the series.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Like A Dragon: Ishin is a competent remake of a previously Japan-only release, but series veterans might find more issues to nitpick over.
Although Like A Dragon: Ishin presents a compelling story and fun gameplay mechanics but it fails to present a proper remake on the visual side that truly commemorates the original game
Review in Arabic | Read full review