SEGA and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio are back with Yakuza Kiwami 2, the third consecutive release on Nintendo Switch 2 for the Yakuza / Like a Dragon series. This release may be the most notable of the three, following Yakuza 0 Director’s Cut and alongside Yakuza Kiwami’s 60 FPS Switch 2 upgrade. Yakuza Kiwami 2 is the first Dragon Engine game in the long-running series to be brought over to Switch 2, and it’s a litmus test for what’s possible on the platform with Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties on the horizon. The Switch 2 version isn’t perfect, but it’s impressive, and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio may have a lot more in store for the platform.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a remake of 2006’s Yakuza 2, fully rebuilt in the Dragon Engine—RGG Studio’s premier, in-house game development engine. Following the events of Yakuza Kiwami, Kazuma Kiryu is forced back into the yakuza life after Yukio Terada, the Fifth Chairman of the Tojo Clan, is assassinated right in front of him. Having to leave Haruka Sawamura behind at home, Kiryu goes to Sotenbori, Osaka, on behalf of Terada in order to broker peace between the Tojo Clan and Omi Alliance. However, Ryuji Goda, the head of the Go-Ryu Clan colloquially known as the Dragon of Kansai, is stopping at nothing to wage a war between the rival yakuza organizations. These events, along with Kiryu’s first bout with Goda, set the stage for what’s at stake within the opening chapters of the game, ensuring you’re hooked and guessing about what will happen next.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 Comes Fully Featured and Content Complete on Nintendo Switch 2
Yakuza Kiwami 2 is far from a perfect Yakuza title, but it’s still a really great time. Despite some of the cut content from the original Yakuza 2, I think the remake still delivers one of the strongest narratives in the series. The dynamic between Kiryu and organized crime detective Kaoru Sayama, the arrogant and ambitious nature of antagonist Ryuji Goda, and the absurd but captivating moments of the main story make Yakuza Kiwami 2 a memorable game. These are just a few standout points, and although the combat in the game is not as refined or seamless as later Like a Dragon entries, there’s still fun to be had beating up yakuza and enemy gang members on the streets of Kamurocho and Sotenbori—Yakuza Kiwami 2’s main destinations.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 retains the core gameplay of Yakuza 6: The Song of Life, the game RGG Studio released in 2016, with some notable tweaks and new features, including charge attacks, an improved weapon system, and the reintroduction of taunting. It’s not the strongest Kiryu has felt by any means, but there are still a lot of moves and Heat Actions you can pull off. My biggest gripes lie in the actual feedback you get from combat and the overall balance. For example, Kiryu’s attacks feel less impactful compared to later entries like Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, but this can be mostly remedied by improving stats and unlocking more abilities the further you progress in the game.
On Nintendo Switch 2, Yakuza Kiwami 2 retains all features and content from the original release of the remake, including the Majima Saga story mode, the Virtual On and Virtua Fighter 2 arcade games, and a slew of optional substories and mini-games. It also comes with the Clan Creator Bundle DLC at no additional cost, along with other bonuses from all the previously released updates. In addition to Japanese voice-overs with Japanese and English text options, there are French, Italian, German, Spanish, LATAM Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Russian text options, which are new to the Switch 2, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S releases.
Performance Breakdown
The Switch 2 version of Yakuza Kiwami 2 runs at 1080p 30 FPS in docked mode and 30 FPS in handheld mode with what appears to be a dynamic resolution. Despite the 30 FPS frame rate lock, this port is impressive considering the original PlayStation 4 and Xbox One releases aimed for 900p. The Dragon Engine was very demanding on consoles back when Yakuza Kiwami 2 was originally released, resulting in some hiccups with gameplay elements when trying to run above 30 FPS. What’s more, load times are considerably faster in the Switch 2 version now, thanks to the SSD technology that wasn’t widely adopted in consoles at that time. Performance is really steady at 30 FPS for the most part, and Kamurocho and Sotenbori look as vibrant and as colorful as I remember.
In this case, I think RGG Studio managed to hit a sweet spot for performance and visuals for their first Dragon Engine port on Switch 2, but there’s definitely room for improvement knowing how capable Nintendo and Nvidia’s hardware is. My few performance-related gripes come with occasional frame pacing issues and frame rate dips while exploring in densely crowded areas or playing some of the mini-games, including Karaoke. There’s also a slightly softer look to the game that can be especially noticeable around hair detail, but these oddities aren’t glaring enough to take away from the overall experience, in my eyes.
For now, I’d like to hope that RGG Studio is using Yakuza Kiwami 2 as the testing grounds for optimization efforts in Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties and future titles, such as ports of Yakuza: Like a Dragon and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth. It’s clear that RGG Studio is heavily invested in Switch 2, since Yakuza Kiwami 2 is the third game on the platform in the span of five months.
Although it’s not related to performance, I did want to bring up the price of the game and its physical release to give a full picture of what everyone gets on Switch 2. Just like Yakuza Kiwami on Switch 2, Yakuza Kiwami 2 costs $29.99 digitally and $34.99 physically, which isn’t bad at all for pricing. However, both games are unfortunately shipping on a Game-Key Card. In Yakuza Kiwami 2’s case, the game’s file size is roughly 28.1 GB on Switch 2, which makes me wish that 32 GB game carts were still an option for developers and publishers.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a Solid First Dragon Engine Port on Switch 2
I’m having a really good time exploring Yakuza Kiwami 2’s action-packed and suspenseful story before Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties are out. After playing the port for several hours, I’m still not used to exploring Kamurocho and Sotenbori in handheld mode, since the image quality and performance are better than what I played on PS4 all those years ago.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a really good showing for what the Yakuza / Like a Dragon franchise is capable of on Nintendo Switch 2, along with anything else that RGG Studio could have in store on the platform. The port could be better—and I’m expecting better ports in the future as developers become accustomed to the hardware—but it’s still a great experience in both docked and handheld mode.
Whether it’s beating up yakuza on the streets, managing a cabaret club, or helping Kamurocho and Sotenbori’s citizens out of a bind, Yakuza Kiwami 2 offers so much content that will keep you engaged. On Switch 2, the portability factor simply cannot be understated, now that we’ve gotten to a point where the limitations players faced with the original Switch aren’t as prevalent. If you’re a Nintendo fan wanting to get into the Yakuza series, there’s no better time to do it than now.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 is available now for Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC via Steam, and PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S versions will launch on December 8.
Disclaimer: SEGA and Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio provided a Nintendo Switch 2 copy of Yakuza Kiwami 2 for review purposes.
