Though 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is the eighth title in what used to be known as the Yakuza series, it is in many ways a first. It breaks new ground wi𓂃th new types of content, such as the incredible Dondoko Island side content and the new segway travel mode to name a couple, and all the while, it still respects the series’ legacy. But the most notable change is that it takes the series overseas for the very fir🎉st time, with the majority of the game taking place in Honolulu City, Hawaii.

“Adding a brand-new location is a big undertaking and required a lot of work and research for the team,” chief pr🎃oducer Hiroyuki Sakamoto tells TheGamer. “Especially as Honolulu City is the biggest map we have ever created in the series’ history.”

Due to the pandemic, the team was unable to travel to Hawaii at the start of development and did its initial research using the internet to create rough maps. Once travel restrictions were lifted, the team was able to do on-site research, which led to the funny discovery that one design element was not as it should be.“We found that we had designed the palm trees absurdly short compared to their real-life height,” Sakamoto explains. “After our onsite research, we made the palm trees to their real 🌠scale.”

Hawaii was chosen as the location for Infinite Wealth because it made sense narratively for this to be where Kasuga’s mother was hiding, as well as giving Kiryu a personal connection with Yumi. Sakamoto has previously explained that although the team considered other locations, Hawaii was always the t𒐪op choice, especially as it has a large Japanese population. This made it the p🌳erfect place to expand to for the Like a Dragon series, as well as offering a chance to invigorate the series with brand new elements and scenery.

“The geography and interesting things not found in Japan were a great inspiration for the story and locations,” Sakamoto says. “The beach, in particular, was one of the most representative Hawaiian settings, with the expanse of nature in💧 the distance. The bustle of the nearby scenery was also important to the story and location as elements unique to Hawaii.

“Also, since this was 🐭our first time abroad, we had to do research on the local culture and the language, as well as the representation of the tropical climate which was an element we had not done bꦐefore, so these areas were not easy.”

Though the Like a Dragon series has ventured out into a few locations across Japan over the years, the ꦚoriginal staple setting of the city of Kamurocho has always been ꦚiconic for fans and has appeared in every main title in some way, including Infinite Wealth. Though going overseas seems like such a big step for the series to take, Sakamoto tells us the team had no doubts about doing so.

“We weไre confident that this was the right decision for the narrative. In the same way, we also felt it was the right time to leave Kamurocho,” Sakamoto says. “After introducing Ichiban as a new protagonist in Yakuza: Like a Dragon, we felt that the time was right to expand to a new location overseas in Infinite Wealth.

“As the series progresses, we want it to grow much like our characters as they age. W🎶e feel this is realistic to the world we live in and is one of the reasons people enjoy our games.”

The Like a Dragon series has always effectively conveyed the passage of time, with landmarks and other notable locations changing from game to game. For Infinite Wealth, as less time has passed since the ending of Yakuza: Like a Dragon, the team didn’t need to give any significant age-related treatments but did change shop menus and signage to maintain a “realistic contemporary feel.” One notable alteration was the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:a🎐rcades being🐠 rebranded from Sega to Gigo.

As well as incorporating changes due to the passage of time, RGG Studio pays close attention to keeping all of the games connected, including the spin offs. “When dealing with the same location in the same period, we want to give the impression that the world is interconnected, so we try to share features as much as possible. For example, we are keeping Yagami Detective Agency in the same place, even though the titles are⛎ different.”

Sakamoto tells us that for each title, the team starts by creating the character models. For Infinite Wealth, this meant reflecting the age difference for our retired Dragon of Dojima, giving Kiryu grey hair, more wrinkles, and portraying that he has lost weight. The evolution of the series, its locations, and its characters' aging is part of what makes Like a Dragon so special, as the impressive level of detail allows us to feel more connected to the world and characters that grow as we do.

Wherever the s🅰eries takes us, the maps are so densely populated and crammed with interesting little details that bring the world to life. For Infinite Wealth, in particular, Sakamoto hopes players appreciate the interesting details in the texture, background, and language and reactions of the l▨ocal residents.

Having such a high bar when it comes to the level of detail in the series’ environments proved to offer a new hurdle for the team, as Infinite Wealth offers the largest playable map in the series to date. Sakamoto explains this was a challenge for the team as they had to figure out how to make such a huge map playable, “In an effort to make every area eff💮ectiveᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚ, various sub-elements were incorporated to make it a large volume.”

“There was the issue of the languages that were being exchanged locally,” Sakamoto adds when discussing the challenges that the team faced. “We had English and Chinese voice-overs as well as Japanese, so we basically made everyone speak the🎶 same language in the story.&rdqu🌠o;

As Infinite Wealth was the series’ first international outing, the team had doubts as to whether they would be able to maintain the same level of quality that fans had grown accustomed to. “We are good at creating adventures located in Japan because we are so familiar with it, but all of us on the team were initially unsure if we would be able to produce the same quality for our very first oversea🅰s endeavour.”

However, as the outpouring of high-score reviews and fan adoration has proved, RGG Studio has not only maintained the quality, but elevไated it. Sakamoto tells us that Infinite Wealth has given the team “a great deal of confidence” and that they’re particularly proud of being able to combine reality and level design, especially in an overseas setting.