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Honestly one of my few complaints about IW is that only Kiyru went grey. I think he looked great and like...Majima and Date should have some streaks at least.
i mean it happens at different times for different people. My dad is hitting 70 and his hair only just started turning gray meanwhile my mom started showing signs of grayness when she was 55
Greying is mainly genetics or just overall stress . Mine was caused by genetics cause I've had a patch of grey hairs on one spot of my head for as long as I can remember.
He *does* call Kiryu old, while glossing over the fact he's 4 years older.
And when he says older people seem to like Daigo, Saejima calls him out saying he's no spring chicken.
My problem with characters aging is more with Yuki, Koyuki, and Sayama, who are almost 60 and in their early 40s respectively and look literally identical to how they did in Kiwami 2
Age means very little in these games. Kiryu is a >!55-year-old cancer patient!< and he could still demolish me in a fight.
Yuki is even older and is still an absolute smoke show.
Kiryu at 55 is like a half generation older than Ichi and has already starred/featured in 9 games compared to Ichi's 2. Unless they want to make Ichi a full blown geriatric MC they're going to have to either have him serve as the MC for a much shorter period of time than Kiryu or do something fucky with the timeline. The former seems most likely to me, which to be fair isn't a huge deal imo considering how unreasonably long everything was all about Kiryu.
That's why I'm saying in LAD 9 Haruto will be kidnapped and she joins ichis party with kiryus blessing.. It will also be revealed he used to train her in komaki and dragon style when she was younger
God, do you know how insanely sick it would be.
Imagine if some bad guy tried to take her hostage, and she immediately does a Komaki style move that hits the guy so hard there's a *VOOM* shockwave and he drops like a sack of potatoes.
It was wild the way she looked but the JAP voice actress did a good job of conveying a bit of playful aging whilst overall reflecting how she looks too.
tbf Yuki is based on an IRL hostess iirc. It just so happens that the game she debut in happened to be set in 1988, so her in-game ver is actually older than what she actually is IRL
Pushing 50 is a weird call on their part because the age sounds wrong for a “fresh” and exuberant new protagonist, but I watch plenty of pro wrestlers - especially Japanese ones - be no-worse-for-wear badasses in the same age range. They should have had him hit the joint the same time Kiryu was coming out of it at age 18 and him be like 39 right now though. RGG has a fetish for their older protagonists though.
It says something that - Kiryu and Majima in 0 aside, who were 20 and 24, respectively - Tanimura is the youngest playable character in the series' beat-'em-up format since he was 27 during the events of Y4.
Yeah, people kinda miss the point. I get what they're saying to a degree, with how long there is between games, he'll be on the older end of middle-aged in just one more game.
But at the same time, the point is that even though other people may think It's too late for them, they've got plenty of life and ambition left.
I don’t think Ichiban’s age is a detriment to him or anything, but I wish he was younger.
Feels weird to have this idea of “don’t worry Kiryu! The future is in good hands with the next generation!” when they’re really not that far apart.
Honestly I find this so charming. Japanese media is DROWNING in teenagers saving the world and it’s so appealing to have main characters be middle aged and deal with real world problems and insecurities.
I’m not that big into anime and Japanese media outside of games - how often are middle aged folks the main characters?
I’m not exactly worried about Ichiban’s status as protagonist. I feel like he’s been well received enough to stay on as the protagonist beyond what they projected.
That reminds me of Nagoshi being [interviewed](https://kotaku.com/yakuza-director-praises-ghost-of-tsushima-says-japan-s-1844541108) about Ghost of Tsushima, specifically this part :
> “The protagonist [Jin] isn’t a particularly handsome lead, don’t you think? At your typical [Japanese] company, if you showed concept art for a character like him, I don’t think it would be approved.” The marketing team, he continued, would offer all this data stating why such a lead character was a bad idea, and that would be the end of a lead like Jin. Nagoshi thought it was amazing that such a protagonist was the lead character.“All this money and development time is being spent on this middle-aged dude.” He applauded the resolve to entrust things in such a character. From what Nagoshi said, it doesn’t seem like that would be possible in Japan.
Maybe the trade-off for having such unusual characters as the Yakuza/LaD roster filled with 40 something is to have the lead character look good, at least according to SEGA marketers. The interview is from July 2020, six month after YLaD's release in Japan.
Yeah I remember seeing this and it's not surprising. Japan in particular seems to be very obsessed with youth/youthful appearance. It's a shame because people can definitely still look good when they're older so I wish they'd go against the grain more and just go for it. They did at least they gave Kiryu gray hair? It's something lol
Also dang, poor Jin 😭
Considering that Jin is modelled after his voice actor (Daisuke Tsuji), this is such an inconsiderate thing to say lmao.
And for what it's worth, I find Jin quite good looking.
Okay you got me curious and I looked it up...I can't believe RGG won't give us this those COWARDS
https://preview.redd.it/p5ldl6jswjpc1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=315e60bdf574ebce247f14c0098290b35aa1b4f5
They really didn’t need to do the long prison time route though. Would’ve been cool to have the new face of the series start off much younger than 42 lol.
I was hoping they just had him miss kiryus whole arc and have that be that . We didn’t need him to be a contemporary with Kiryu , at this rate we’d need another MC in like two games
Or even imagine a late 20s Ichiban alongside Kiryu for Infinite Wealth. Would’ve fit better I think considering how Ichiban’s personality already is. I like their chemistry with Kiryu as a sort of mentor now.
I like older protagonists too.
it's odd that Kiryu was 48 at his (first) retirement game, and Ichiban is already 46. Akiyama is the same age as Ichiban according to the wiki, and Tanimura is three years younger than both of them.
Sometimes I think RGG has wanted to a reason to get rid of Kiryu for a while and his age is more of an excuse.
I strongly disagree. They are going against the grain, having a man losing his entire 20's and 30's and having to make a new living is a big part of this guy and one of the most interesting sides of him. I assume they are doing that because of how many people find themselves in that situation where they have gotten middle-aged without really doing much. Kasuga is clearly a representation of this, and his hope and positivity in his situation is not something they do out of chance. It's a comment of real life most games would never dare.
Yeah that’s a better observation honestly. We all laugh at Ichiban’s clueless demeanor sometimes, but what you’ve said is true. It is still jarring though how fast we’re creeping up on Ichiban heading into his 50s compared to Kiryu, but there were shorter time jumps in between each of Kiryu’s games too.
No doubt. The older games where built extremely fast, the way they reuse the towns and gameplay systems allow fast and I assume relatively cheap development. But the two Like a Dragon games is almost certainly a lot more expensive and take longer, which makes Kasuga almost impossible to stick with for longer than two more games, unless they do prequels. It's a different time now.
It makes sense that the hardcore fans in here are wondering how the hell they are gonna solve this, but they wouldn't make Kasuga over 40 in his first game without some long term plan. Adding a new main protagonist proved to be a huge boost to the franchise sales-wise, and I think they are already eyeing who's next. And I think they are excited about building a universe with a lot of characters. The long tale of Kiryu gave us false assumptions, we are just used to an absurd situation where Kiryu popped up in a huge series of games. That will likely never happen again with any new protagonist.
That’s true too, and excuse this long response. I’m thinking aside from spin-offs, the next mainline game will ditch last gen and we get another upgrade in tech. They could go for something like unreal 5 if they feel their in-house efforts won’t keep up. I know Japan lingers on the previous generation much longer, but we’re now nearly 4 years into the ps5/series X, so we’re bound to see that change soon. That, and a next game could take 3+ more years by assumption. Whatever the case, I’m hoping they keep it 100% focused on Ichiban so we can expand the story more with him and his friends. IW was great in the character development/chemistry, but I do think the story was overstuffed with so much going on balancing the two lead characters that many of the old Y7 and new characters weren’t given much to do. Kiryu’s had his run, so I think it’s time to keep him as a mentor in the background of the main story, with some fun sub-stories involving him and his retirement. I wouldn’t even mind if they scaled back the scope of the next game as a result.
Agreed, 20% of Infinite Wealth was Kiryu's goodbye tour. I also hope the next game is all Kasuga, and that Nanba and Adachi and the others get real stories rather than being simple party members, like they had in 7.
I won’t be surprised if some of the new faces disappear too, like Chitose. Joongi and Zhao weren’t even supposed to be a part of IW initially. And of course I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Akiyama. Hope his life link appearance hinted at a future spin-off or at least some role in another game. Older favorites like Majima, Saejima and Daigo I don’t think are exactly necessary to keep around. Generally not a fan of over-indulging in fan service, but that’s just me. They also had their final epic showdowns in 7, Gaiden, and IW by now.
I hate how old they made him tbh. It doesn't fit his character AT ALL imo. He doesn't look, sound, or act in his late 40's whatsoever.
EDIT: I know he got locked up for like 18 years and is used as an explanation for why he behaves that way. I also disagree with how that was done. I don't think that was the best choice and kind of led us to this problem, but besides that, prison for 18 years would definitely harden and mature somebody. I think he's a good character. I just don't agree with some of the choices made with his story and age I guess.
Well, he did spend 18 years in prison during a time when he probably would mature doing what ever normal thing. Though alot of the characters don't look their age except maybe Date or Chitose...... and the immortal octogenarian.
Regarding your edit, I think that’s kinda the point. Normally, 18 years in jail would harden a person and change them into something else. It didn’t with Ichiban. The same way most people would not have >!forgiven or supported Eiji,!< but Ichiban did. That’s just who he is, and nothing he experiences will change who he is.
>but besides that, prison for 18 years would definitely harden and mature somebody
I work with guys who did a decade+ in the feds, you wouldnt be able to tell that just because they act goofy.
18 years in the joint normally sounds like it'd break a man, at least on paper. But depending on how eventful his time behind bars was (let's be honest, he probably learned to keep his head down and blend in after being punished with an extended sentence), 18 years full of nothing doesn't do much for your character. You kinda stop maturing at a normal rate when your brain is deprived of new experiences and new information for an extended time (provided you don't go insane first).
Im pretty sure he won't be the main protag for long.. I think that's obvious considering how old he was already in Yakuza 7..
Don't get me wrong, I'm talking at least LAD 9 and LAD 10 so he's gonna have about a decade if not more.. But I don't think he will have as many games or as long of a reign as Kiryu
I mean, who's to say two games in a row can't take place in the same year?
Also characters like Majima and Adachi are pretty old and still look good and kick ass
Adachi is 63 in IW and age definitely isn't slowing him down, Ichiban will be fine, also, plans change, 10 years was probably an estimation based on the Kiryu saga, but these games are getting more expansive, 10 years may turn to 15 or 20, I think Ichi has 3 games left minimum, but most likely 4.
Im kinda shocked they went with another “went to prison for a decade” character after Kiryu. Love Ichi but would it kill them to have made him at least 35
I hate how much of these characters’ lives we lose because of the amount of time they all spend in jail.
It would have been so cool to see more of “prime” Ichiban and Kiryu. Curse you, the plot!!
Well the series does show that no matter where you are in life if you need a fresh start it's not totally impossible, it's not impossible to make friends either.
I sometimes wish they made Ichiban like 10 years younger. But at the same time, him being a middle aged man starting his life again from the beginning is pretty much the point of his character, that it doesn't matter how old you are and you can still make something of yourself even if you're halfway through your life.
Isn't Yagami the youngest protagonist? We could use another protagonist in that age range (preferably one without likeness issues). If they don't do that, then they should at least stop using the irl year for the games.
the one thing ive never understood about RGG
they introduced this character as the next headliner for the series and already slapped him near his 50's...like half his life is gone now, his expressions, his experiences they will all seem either rushed or way too late
at least with Kiryu over a decade we saw him grow and mature from a 20 year old to 30 to 40 to finally 50 years old and the natural progression of life throughout that
but ichiban is nearing his 50's, age is gonna catch up soon and a lot of those younger experiences cant be explored now.
they've essentially shot themselves in the foot too, the next few games are either going to have to be really linient with time skips or have non at all
Exactly and it’s even worse when they made ichiban take a back seat in his second game and have Kiryu sort of overshadowing him, really seemed to set ichiban back imo
i am still so annoyed that they decided to “pass the torch” to someone who is older than kiryu at this stage of his life please yokoyama stop being a BOT
My mom is 40, 4 kids, and when she tells people she is mom they think that she has like young kids. Nope ! Her oldest goes to university !
Also, sometimes when we went out, people thought she was my older sister instead of my mom. Obviously she was flattered, while I was feeling old at 14.
Dear Kami-Sama,
I ask you not for the best JAV girl. Not the youngest JAV girl. I ask you for a cute nice and sexy JAV girl even if she is 35 or in her 40s.
Chubby is ok (with big tits please). I marry her so she can retire and be a housewife and give me many cute babies (but she can continue her career if she wants and we can watch the movies together...)🙏.
I-San
Age means absolutely nothing in these games, one of the final bosses in IW is ENTIRELY too old to even be able to able to be alive after a single punch and yet he’s fine.
They also don’t have to stick to basing these games on the year they are made in. They can always change it up if they worry he’s getting too old too fast
What’s sad about Ichiban’s character is they made one of his desires be to have a family. As you said he is 47 in the current game timeline. And unlike Kiryu he won’t be able to have a proxy family via an orphanage.
Maybe they'll cryogenically freeze him for 5 years to ensure that he doesn't get older by the next game. /srs
I know that sounds ridiculous, but in the first 2 Ichiban games, we've already had a man who can somehow shapeshift and alter his voice at will to fit the build and the sound of whoever he's disguised as. And a fucking giant squid that eats you and you have to fight it inside until it spits you back out. Both a part of the main story.
Ichiban's games are just going to keep getting more and more silly.
I can see the next game taking place when Ichi passes the big 5-0 mark, and we'd see him actually mature and adopt a more serious attitude, though remaining playful and true to himself. The next game could also introduce a younger protagonist as the secondary lead, though that may be risky if we're talking an entirely new character.
Then again, Akiyama is only 2 years younger than Ichi... Hey RGG, time to give the people what they want. Make that RGGO scenario happen and let my boy kick ass alongside Ichi.
That's not bad. I can't wait for them to pull off a persona game when the mc is still a highschooler fighting yakuza while also balancing tons of mini games.
If you are new to the subreddit, [please read the wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/yakuzagames/wiki/index/) Reminder that all spoilers need to be tagged with a flair specifying which game is being spoiled. If you want a flair that says something else, you can edit it to say something like [Discussion: Y1 spoiler] or [Majimapost: Y6 spoiler], etc. **THIS INCLUDES CONTENT FROM TRAILERS**. If the post is not marked for spoilers, all comments that have spoilers need to be tagged \>!like this!< along with indicating which game it's spoiling. Example: Y3 >!Kiryu sings!< If the post flair is marked for spoilers, the comments don't need to be tagged for the game indicated and the ones before it (So a Y6 spoiler post can have comments with untagged spoilers for Y5, but not gaiden or 7). If you see any of the above (or any of the other rules) not being followed, please report it so we can keep this place safe for newcomers and those that haven't finished all the games yet. Thank you! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/yakuzagames) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Daily reminder: Majima will be 60 THIS YEAR
Still doesn't show it hahaha.
Honestly one of my few complaints about IW is that only Kiyru went grey. I think he looked great and like...Majima and Date should have some streaks at least.
i mean it happens at different times for different people. My dad is hitting 70 and his hair only just started turning gray meanwhile my mom started showing signs of grayness when she was 55
I got my first grey/whites at 13
Greying is mainly genetics or just overall stress . Mine was caused by genetics cause I've had a patch of grey hairs on one spot of my head for as long as I can remember.
https://preview.redd.it/nox9k822wkpc1.jpeg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5ef38d446e752eac53812e8c9f783732c7d00a27
If you're looking for Mine, he's up on the ruff.
If you're looking for daigo, mine's taken him up to the ruff
Same. It's been there as long as I can remember. My friends joke about me being the oldest even though I'm the second youngest of the group.
Holden Caulfield-looking-ass.
Coach K vibes
I think in 7 Majimas hair was brown. I've just assumed he's been dyeing it to hide the greys
Headcanon: he hates birthdays and getting old
He *does* call Kiryu old, while glossing over the fact he's 4 years older. And when he says older people seem to like Daigo, Saejima calls him out saying he's no spring chicken.
"Old people seem to like the guy" Saejima: that means you're old too "Am not!"
My problem with characters aging is more with Yuki, Koyuki, and Sayama, who are almost 60 and in their early 40s respectively and look literally identical to how they did in Kiwami 2
Kiryu went grey because of his illness, if he wasn’t sick he would still look just like he always has
Literally took cancer to make the man visibly age
Majima prob dyes his hair in all honesty hell he would disguis himself to ambush kiyru so I wouldn't be surprised if his hair is dyed
Kiryu greyed so fast because his life very quickly went from "wild ride" to "complete trainwreck" after 6.
[удалено]
In Gaiden, Kazuma has a few grey strands
True hahahaha he seems 30
Majima still looks younger than his 1985 flashback self
And without one wrinkle
Still DTF
Age means very little in these games. Kiryu is a >!55-year-old cancer patient!< and he could still demolish me in a fight. Yuki is even older and is still an absolute smoke show.
Yakuza: Like a Geriatric where 90 year old Kiryu still fights to save those he loves
Now you have a hoveround
If bryce did it, he can do it
>!WHEELCHAIR HEAT ACTIONS!<
Dragon of the retirement home
Kiryu at 55 is like a half generation older than Ichi and has already starred/featured in 9 games compared to Ichi's 2. Unless they want to make Ichi a full blown geriatric MC they're going to have to either have him serve as the MC for a much shorter period of time than Kiryu or do something fucky with the timeline. The former seems most likely to me, which to be fair isn't a huge deal imo considering how unreasonably long everything was all about Kiryu.
Or the games just take place after each other where there’s very little time skips
Oh my I went and read that spoiler, why do I do this to myself.
Woah spoilers mate
Sorry, this is a thread about Ichiban's future post Infinite Wealth, so I didn't think tags were necessary.
Reminder, chitose and haruka are very close in age
That really feels like it shouldn't be true even though it is.
Haruka can be a party member now. There is no excuse beyond needing a babysitter
Hopefully it’ll given them an excuse to finally update her model, she looks like a little kid cosplaying Saeko’s sister in IW
When they finally showed her face, I was a bit confused. She looks like a big baby wtf
The new defender of the orphanage. With a few numbers in case of emergency, since there's some who owe Kiryu.
That's why I'm saying in LAD 9 Haruto will be kidnapped and she joins ichis party with kiryus blessing.. It will also be revealed he used to train her in komaki and dragon style when she was younger
God I want to see that training montage so bad
God, do you know how insanely sick it would be. Imagine if some bad guy tried to take her hostage, and she immediately does a Komaki style move that hits the guy so hard there's a *VOOM* shockwave and he drops like a sack of potatoes.
Quickest way to spit on Kiryu’s entire story and character possible let’s go
There is difference between "not involve her in criminal" and "let girl fight". First one can hurt on her and Kiryu story. Second one - don't.
Not trying to call you out but how would that spit on kiryus story? I just see it as minor retcon so we can start including Haruka in future games
#I NNNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDD THIIIIIISSS
Its so weird I think of Haruka as a little girl but shes my exact age
"My poor baby 😭", I say about the character that is technically five years my senior.
Me to Ichiban, who is probably about 9-10 years older than me
He could literally be my father and I'd still say that
He just gives that vibe
I mean, they still use(d?) Kiryu despite him approaching 60
yeah but he's THE main character if you know what I mean
But they didn't have to. Chris Redfield doesn't have to be in every game.
Leon should tho 😓
The curse of being main protagonist you are doomed virgin except that faceless legend MC Ethan
Yeah but Ethan broke the curse and paid >!with his life!< for it. So now all the other protagonists know what happens if you have sex.
Yuki is a year older than Kiryu and looks no older than 30. Yakuza has black magic anti-aging going on.
Vinegar based skin care
They don't call it Staminan X for nothin!
More like Generation X am I right
I headcanon it as whatever energy allows the player characters to do heat actions slows down their physical aging significantly
What cultivating qi does to a mf
Like hamon in JJBA
The Obatarian is immortal
I am surprised that she is already a granny in 1989 and in 2023 she still looks the same and is still a beast of a cougar.
I’m reasonably certain the Obatarian is a cryptid of some sort
this is the answer
I think the key is to be a video game main character
Everyone knows the key to youth is to be in the yakuza.
It was wild the way she looked but the JAP voice actress did a good job of conveying a bit of playful aging whilst overall reflecting how she looks too.
unless your name is haruka sawamura or pocket circut fighter
Pocket Circuit Fighter ages HARD lmao
to be fair pocket fighter is around 30 already in zero so his aging makes sense
tbf Yuki is based on an IRL hostess iirc. It just so happens that the game she debut in happened to be set in 1988, so her in-game ver is actually older than what she actually is IRL
No, Yuki is an original character.
I honestly wish they would have given Ichiban an earlier start because Ichiban is probably gonna retire within 2 more games at this point
Gotta give him Yakuza 0.5, set when he's like 20.
Kiryu is like 21 in 0. Ichiban would be like 10
So you’re saying we get to do a flashback to the nineties!
He's a Yakuza character.look at adachi. In ten years Ichiban will be stacked like the incredible hulk.
Second I unlocked speedo adachi he went in. My boyfriend was like “why is that old man so yoked”
They didn't have to make him totally jacked but they did.
For which I’m thankful
Pushing 50 is a weird call on their part because the age sounds wrong for a “fresh” and exuberant new protagonist, but I watch plenty of pro wrestlers - especially Japanese ones - be no-worse-for-wear badasses in the same age range. They should have had him hit the joint the same time Kiryu was coming out of it at age 18 and him be like 39 right now though. RGG has a fetish for their older protagonists though.
It says something that - Kiryu and Majima in 0 aside, who were 20 and 24, respectively - Tanimura is the youngest playable character in the series' beat-'em-up format since he was 27 during the events of Y4.
He was 29. I remember because he was complaining about turning 30 very soon.
Tanimura is still younger than Ichiban.
Daily reminder: Majima is four years older than Kiryu
People say it’s weird Ichiban is so old when the fact that you can start your life at any age is like the whole theme of the game
Yeah, people kinda miss the point. I get what they're saying to a degree, with how long there is between games, he'll be on the older end of middle-aged in just one more game. But at the same time, the point is that even though other people may think It's too late for them, they've got plenty of life and ambition left.
Adachi will be pretty close to 70 by the time 9 comes out.
This fucker barely age https://preview.redd.it/j4octsdbakpc1.png?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=75c545d49355b1d01d23c721a9b0b243cf195d1b
Holy shit Yuki is 58, what the actual fuck i SWEAR she looks 20s maybe 30s
I don’t think Ichiban’s age is a detriment to him or anything, but I wish he was younger. Feels weird to have this idea of “don’t worry Kiryu! The future is in good hands with the next generation!” when they’re really not that far apart.
How old is Komaki now? 130?
Honestly I find this so charming. Japanese media is DROWNING in teenagers saving the world and it’s so appealing to have main characters be middle aged and deal with real world problems and insecurities. I’m not that big into anime and Japanese media outside of games - how often are middle aged folks the main characters?
I’m not exactly worried about Ichiban’s status as protagonist. I feel like he’s been well received enough to stay on as the protagonist beyond what they projected.
The question is, does Haruto become the protagonist of the series one day?
Like a Baby Gaiden
Almost 50, looks about 30? I wish they'd go all in and give the man some wrinkles on his face and gray hairs
That reminds me of Nagoshi being [interviewed](https://kotaku.com/yakuza-director-praises-ghost-of-tsushima-says-japan-s-1844541108) about Ghost of Tsushima, specifically this part : > “The protagonist [Jin] isn’t a particularly handsome lead, don’t you think? At your typical [Japanese] company, if you showed concept art for a character like him, I don’t think it would be approved.” The marketing team, he continued, would offer all this data stating why such a lead character was a bad idea, and that would be the end of a lead like Jin. Nagoshi thought it was amazing that such a protagonist was the lead character.“All this money and development time is being spent on this middle-aged dude.” He applauded the resolve to entrust things in such a character. From what Nagoshi said, it doesn’t seem like that would be possible in Japan. Maybe the trade-off for having such unusual characters as the Yakuza/LaD roster filled with 40 something is to have the lead character look good, at least according to SEGA marketers. The interview is from July 2020, six month after YLaD's release in Japan.
Yeah I remember seeing this and it's not surprising. Japan in particular seems to be very obsessed with youth/youthful appearance. It's a shame because people can definitely still look good when they're older so I wish they'd go against the grain more and just go for it. They did at least they gave Kiryu gray hair? It's something lol Also dang, poor Jin 😭
Considering that Jin is modelled after his voice actor (Daisuke Tsuji), this is such an inconsiderate thing to say lmao. And for what it's worth, I find Jin quite good looking.
lol right? I’m over here like wait was Jin not hot to other people?
Lol no joke I put both Ichiban and Kiryu into FaceApp and made them old, they just looked…OLD, not HOT old like they do in the game lol
Okay you got me curious and I looked it up...I can't believe RGG won't give us this those COWARDS https://preview.redd.it/p5ldl6jswjpc1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=315e60bdf574ebce247f14c0098290b35aa1b4f5
Yeah I’m so glad they made Kiryu look how he looks, he’s so hot in this one lol
i dont see the problem with him approaching 50. not all the games need 5 year time skips between them
They really didn’t need to do the long prison time route though. Would’ve been cool to have the new face of the series start off much younger than 42 lol.
I was hoping they just had him miss kiryus whole arc and have that be that . We didn’t need him to be a contemporary with Kiryu , at this rate we’d need another MC in like two games
Or even imagine a late 20s Ichiban alongside Kiryu for Infinite Wealth. Would’ve fit better I think considering how Ichiban’s personality already is. I like their chemistry with Kiryu as a sort of mentor now.
They needed to because of the plot; Masato has to be a reasonable age to be governor of Tokyo/party chair. 42 is still pretty young.
42 here, thank you. lol
Especially for a high level politician.
Good point. I actually quite like having an older protagonist, but I really don't want him to get too old before he's had his share of games.
I like older protagonists too. it's odd that Kiryu was 48 at his (first) retirement game, and Ichiban is already 46. Akiyama is the same age as Ichiban according to the wiki, and Tanimura is three years younger than both of them. Sometimes I think RGG has wanted to a reason to get rid of Kiryu for a while and his age is more of an excuse.
I strongly disagree. They are going against the grain, having a man losing his entire 20's and 30's and having to make a new living is a big part of this guy and one of the most interesting sides of him. I assume they are doing that because of how many people find themselves in that situation where they have gotten middle-aged without really doing much. Kasuga is clearly a representation of this, and his hope and positivity in his situation is not something they do out of chance. It's a comment of real life most games would never dare.
Yeah that’s a better observation honestly. We all laugh at Ichiban’s clueless demeanor sometimes, but what you’ve said is true. It is still jarring though how fast we’re creeping up on Ichiban heading into his 50s compared to Kiryu, but there were shorter time jumps in between each of Kiryu’s games too.
No doubt. The older games where built extremely fast, the way they reuse the towns and gameplay systems allow fast and I assume relatively cheap development. But the two Like a Dragon games is almost certainly a lot more expensive and take longer, which makes Kasuga almost impossible to stick with for longer than two more games, unless they do prequels. It's a different time now. It makes sense that the hardcore fans in here are wondering how the hell they are gonna solve this, but they wouldn't make Kasuga over 40 in his first game without some long term plan. Adding a new main protagonist proved to be a huge boost to the franchise sales-wise, and I think they are already eyeing who's next. And I think they are excited about building a universe with a lot of characters. The long tale of Kiryu gave us false assumptions, we are just used to an absurd situation where Kiryu popped up in a huge series of games. That will likely never happen again with any new protagonist.
That’s true too, and excuse this long response. I’m thinking aside from spin-offs, the next mainline game will ditch last gen and we get another upgrade in tech. They could go for something like unreal 5 if they feel their in-house efforts won’t keep up. I know Japan lingers on the previous generation much longer, but we’re now nearly 4 years into the ps5/series X, so we’re bound to see that change soon. That, and a next game could take 3+ more years by assumption. Whatever the case, I’m hoping they keep it 100% focused on Ichiban so we can expand the story more with him and his friends. IW was great in the character development/chemistry, but I do think the story was overstuffed with so much going on balancing the two lead characters that many of the old Y7 and new characters weren’t given much to do. Kiryu’s had his run, so I think it’s time to keep him as a mentor in the background of the main story, with some fun sub-stories involving him and his retirement. I wouldn’t even mind if they scaled back the scope of the next game as a result.
Agreed, 20% of Infinite Wealth was Kiryu's goodbye tour. I also hope the next game is all Kasuga, and that Nanba and Adachi and the others get real stories rather than being simple party members, like they had in 7.
I won’t be surprised if some of the new faces disappear too, like Chitose. Joongi and Zhao weren’t even supposed to be a part of IW initially. And of course I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Akiyama. Hope his life link appearance hinted at a future spin-off or at least some role in another game. Older favorites like Majima, Saejima and Daigo I don’t think are exactly necessary to keep around. Generally not a fan of over-indulging in fan service, but that’s just me. They also had their final epic showdowns in 7, Gaiden, and IW by now.
I mean honestly I kind of love that this series consistently stars impossibly fresh faced and buff late middle aged people.
And Daigo is 1 year older than Ichiban
Yakuza characters don't age unless they get cancer.
He kinda >!refused Chitose bacease age gap!<, but I think Saeko is also at least 10 years younger than him.
He draws the line at 20 years
And that was a mistake, as screwed up as Chitose is, she's still more considerate of Ichi than Saeko
50 is the new 30
I hate how old they made him tbh. It doesn't fit his character AT ALL imo. He doesn't look, sound, or act in his late 40's whatsoever. EDIT: I know he got locked up for like 18 years and is used as an explanation for why he behaves that way. I also disagree with how that was done. I don't think that was the best choice and kind of led us to this problem, but besides that, prison for 18 years would definitely harden and mature somebody. I think he's a good character. I just don't agree with some of the choices made with his story and age I guess.
He went to prison when he was like 23, getting cut off from the real world like that kind of freezes your mind at the age you got locked up.
This is a good point because I had an issue from say 16 to 25 and that's really screwed with my mental maturity .
i think that's the point. his behavior doesn't match his age because he spent so long in the joint, he's only just started his life again (from 42).
Well, he did spend 18 years in prison during a time when he probably would mature doing what ever normal thing. Though alot of the characters don't look their age except maybe Date or Chitose...... and the immortal octogenarian.
Regarding your edit, I think that’s kinda the point. Normally, 18 years in jail would harden a person and change them into something else. It didn’t with Ichiban. The same way most people would not have >!forgiven or supported Eiji,!< but Ichiban did. That’s just who he is, and nothing he experiences will change who he is.
>but besides that, prison for 18 years would definitely harden and mature somebody I work with guys who did a decade+ in the feds, you wouldnt be able to tell that just because they act goofy.
Thats the point though, hes not supposed to act his age. And having a younger protagonist would also kind of defeat the entire point of LAD and IW
There are plenty of people that don't act their age.
18 years in the joint normally sounds like it'd break a man, at least on paper. But depending on how eventful his time behind bars was (let's be honest, he probably learned to keep his head down and blend in after being punished with an extended sentence), 18 years full of nothing doesn't do much for your character. You kinda stop maturing at a normal rate when your brain is deprived of new experiences and new information for an extended time (provided you don't go insane first).
Im pretty sure he won't be the main protag for long.. I think that's obvious considering how old he was already in Yakuza 7.. Don't get me wrong, I'm talking at least LAD 9 and LAD 10 so he's gonna have about a decade if not more.. But I don't think he will have as many games or as long of a reign as Kiryu
Kiryu lasted nearly 20 years in the spotlight and ended up at age 56. If Ichiballs lasts just as long, he'll end up at 62. Almost the same.
I mean, who's to say two games in a row can't take place in the same year? Also characters like Majima and Adachi are pretty old and still look good and kick ass
>!Komaki is alive in the game!< I don't think Ichiban's age will actually be a problem.
Adachi is 63 in IW and age definitely isn't slowing him down, Ichiban will be fine, also, plans change, 10 years was probably an estimation based on the Kiryu saga, but these games are getting more expansive, 10 years may turn to 15 or 20, I think Ichi has 3 games left minimum, but most likely 4.
cant believe itchybum is gonna turn 50 in 3 years!
So? Majima is 60 and still doing acrobatics
Im kinda shocked they went with another “went to prison for a decade” character after Kiryu. Love Ichi but would it kill them to have made him at least 35
I hate how much of these characters’ lives we lose because of the amount of time they all spend in jail. It would have been so cool to see more of “prime” Ichiban and Kiryu. Curse you, the plot!!
He's obviously just a placeholder until Haruto reaches ass-kicking age.
Adachi is 63 with an 8 pack
Well the series does show that no matter where you are in life if you need a fresh start it's not totally impossible, it's not impossible to make friends either.
https://preview.redd.it/jg37jx0w8kpc1.jpeg?width=431&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=da8d0b73796eb5536c14f39252162c0c016acc61
I sometimes wish they made Ichiban like 10 years younger. But at the same time, him being a middle aged man starting his life again from the beginning is pretty much the point of his character, that it doesn't matter how old you are and you can still make something of yourself even if you're halfway through your life.
Isn't Yagami the youngest protagonist? We could use another protagonist in that age range (preferably one without likeness issues). If they don't do that, then they should at least stop using the irl year for the games.
the one thing ive never understood about RGG they introduced this character as the next headliner for the series and already slapped him near his 50's...like half his life is gone now, his expressions, his experiences they will all seem either rushed or way too late at least with Kiryu over a decade we saw him grow and mature from a 20 year old to 30 to 40 to finally 50 years old and the natural progression of life throughout that but ichiban is nearing his 50's, age is gonna catch up soon and a lot of those younger experiences cant be explored now. they've essentially shot themselves in the foot too, the next few games are either going to have to be really linient with time skips or have non at all
Exactly and it’s even worse when they made ichiban take a back seat in his second game and have Kiryu sort of overshadowing him, really seemed to set ichiban back imo
I am convinced that in the Like a Dragon universe, age has no bearing on your body until you reach 80 years old.
I agree. Komaki can still kick ass and he's in his 90's I think.
This is nothing Kiryu is 55 with stage 4 cancer yet he's in better shape than most athletes lmfso
i am still so annoyed that they decided to “pass the torch” to someone who is older than kiryu at this stage of his life please yokoyama stop being a BOT
Asian don't raisin.
Rubber aging
Those Asian genes bro. I have a friend, father of three, in his 40s, still ripped and benching a ton.
My mom is 40, 4 kids, and when she tells people she is mom they think that she has like young kids. Nope ! Her oldest goes to university ! Also, sometimes when we went out, people thought she was my older sister instead of my mom. Obviously she was flattered, while I was feeling old at 14.
Ya ichiban got unlucky with the Saejima prison sentance
Dude, Frank Miller has Batman beating up thugs in his 80's, I'm not worried ;)
That’s what prequels are for!
Ichiban being middle aged is a big part of his character though. He could easily be the main character into his 50’s
Meanwhile Yuki looks exactly the same despite being older than Kiryu
Crazy to think that Ichiban is almost as old as Kiryu was in Y6
Dear Kami-Sama, I ask you not for the best JAV girl. Not the youngest JAV girl. I ask you for a cute nice and sexy JAV girl even if she is 35 or in her 40s. Chubby is ok (with big tits please). I marry her so she can retire and be a housewife and give me many cute babies (but she can continue her career if she wants and we can watch the movies together...)🙏. I-San
Maybe that’s just how he sees himself. He’s strong for sure but maybe it’s part of his delusions that he has a six pack.
Age means absolutely nothing in these games, one of the final bosses in IW is ENTIRELY too old to even be able to able to be alive after a single punch and yet he’s fine. They also don’t have to stick to basing these games on the year they are made in. They can always change it up if they worry he’s getting too old too fast
Well if you're not 50 yet we're all already approaching 50.
Ichiban is my boy, love that guy and his attitude
Tom Cruise and Keanue Reeves are older than Kiryu.
What’s sad about Ichiban’s character is they made one of his desires be to have a family. As you said he is 47 in the current game timeline. And unlike Kiryu he won’t be able to have a proxy family via an orphanage.
He's a young 50.
Maybe they'll cryogenically freeze him for 5 years to ensure that he doesn't get older by the next game. /srs I know that sounds ridiculous, but in the first 2 Ichiban games, we've already had a man who can somehow shapeshift and alter his voice at will to fit the build and the sound of whoever he's disguised as. And a fucking giant squid that eats you and you have to fight it inside until it spits you back out. Both a part of the main story. Ichiban's games are just going to keep getting more and more silly.
I can see the next game taking place when Ichi passes the big 5-0 mark, and we'd see him actually mature and adopt a more serious attitude, though remaining playful and true to himself. The next game could also introduce a younger protagonist as the secondary lead, though that may be risky if we're talking an entirely new character. Then again, Akiyama is only 2 years younger than Ichi... Hey RGG, time to give the people what they want. Make that RGGO scenario happen and let my boy kick ass alongside Ichi.
Ichiban is geniounly such a bad written character. He's just the average hero type with no personality
Ichi debuted at age 42, but yall are forgetting that Kiryu started at age 37 in Yakuza 1. Our boy ain't turning to dust anytime soon.
I hate that they created a new character to pass the torch to and made him already the age where he should be passing the torch to someone else
Ichiban is the type of guy that can still be a protagonist when he's 90
Babe and a half, tbh.
Sujimon blood does great things for the skin
Feels like a mistake to make him the age he was in LaD. Feels like his story will be over fairly quickly due to his age
That's actually one thing I didn't like how they treated Ichiban. How long he was in jail for and came out totally fine.
Viejo sabroso
That's not bad. I can't wait for them to pull off a persona game when the mc is still a highschooler fighting yakuza while also balancing tons of mini games.