The game series formerly known as Yakuza has been an inroad to modern Japan for its legions of overseas fans. Now, it hopes to do the same for Japanese history

Like a Dragon – the game series formerly known as Yakuza – has been going for almost 20 years. These are melodramatic games about the feuds and inner humanity of Japanese gangsters, one part soap-opera, one part kerb-stomping, chair-throwing over-the-top brawler and one part surprisingly true-to-life recreation of Japanese city nightlife. In their cities, from Osaka to Yokohama, in between knocking thugs’ heads together and navigating Yakuza clan drama, you can eat and drink at real-world bars and restaurants, duck into an arcade and play the games there, visit hostess clubs and sing karaoke. For a lot of its overseas players, its vibrant, sleazy recreations of Tokyo’s nightlife have been their first introduction to modern Japan.

But that was never the intention. “When we made this game, we never planned on releasing it overseas. We didn’t think people would like it,” says Hiroyuki Sakamoto, now series director, who’s been working on the series since its first planning meetings in 2003. “So we were able to focus on our Japanese audience, on making a game for and of Japan … we thought we were making a game that was probably only ever gonna be enjoyed by older guys with an interest in [Tokyo nightlife district] Kabukicho and its criminal underworld.”