A recap of...
Yakuza 3
Unlike Ryū ga Gotoku Kenzan! (the previous game in the series, released only in Japan), which was a Miyamoto Musashi-based spinoff set in Edo-era Kyoto, this installment continues the adventures of Kazuma Kiryu from Yakuza and Yakuza 2. The game takes place both in Kamurocho, a fictional version of Tokyo's red-light district Kabukicho, from the first two games, and in a brand new location called Ryukyu.
The area of Okinawa where the story takes place is a fictional area, based upon Naha's Makishi. It includes real life landmarks such as the Ichiba Hondori (linked to Mutsumibashi Dori and Heiwa Dori) covered shopping arcade renamed "Karyushi Arcade" (かりゅしアーケード, karyushi ākēdo) in the game as well as the popular Makishi Public Market shortened "Public Market" (公設市場, Kōsetsu Ichiba), the famous entertainment strip Kokusai Street called "Ryukyu Street" (琉球通り, Ryūkyū Doori), the Okinawa Monorail Kencho-mae Station as "Ryukyugai-mae Station" (琉球街前, Ryūkyūgai Mae) or the Mitsukoshi department store (Okinawa Mitsukoshi) which kept its actual name as part of the game's tie-in policy.
Compared with the earlier episodes, the Kamurocho area has some minor changes with additional backstreets and landmarks. South-East Kabukicho's European medieval castle-shaped karaoke box Royal Castle Bldg. (王城ビル) has been modeled and renamed "Kamuro Castle", and north-west Kamurocho love hotel Hotel Åland has been recreated in Kamurocho hotels quarter as the Hotel Tea Clipper.
Unlike previous episodes, the story is not written by Hase Seishu; instead, it was primarily penned by writer Masayoshi Yokoyama. Yakuza 3 takes a departure from the first two games with its choice of setting: instead of focusing on the gritty cityscapes of Tokyo and Osaka, it switches gears and sends Kazuma Kiryu to the rural Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa, where he runs the Morning Glory Orphanage ("Sunshine Orphanage" in the English PS3 version) with his adoptive daughter Haruka Sawamura (who calls him "Uncle Kaz").
The area of Okinawa where the story takes place is a fictional area, based upon Naha's Makishi. It includes real life landmarks such as the Ichiba Hondori (linked to Mutsumibashi Dori and Heiwa Dori) covered shopping arcade renamed "Karyushi Arcade" (かりゅしアーケード, karyushi ākēdo) in the game as well as the popular Makishi Public Market shortened "Public Market" (公設市場, Kōsetsu Ichiba), the famous entertainment strip Kokusai Street called "Ryukyu Street" (琉球通り, Ryūkyū Doori), the Okinawa Monorail Kencho-mae Station as "Ryukyugai-mae Station" (琉球街前, Ryūkyūgai Mae) or the Mitsukoshi department store (Okinawa Mitsukoshi) which kept its actual name as part of the game's tie-in policy.
Compared with the earlier episodes, the Kamurocho area has some minor changes with additional backstreets and landmarks. South-East Kabukicho's European medieval castle-shaped karaoke box Royal Castle Bldg. (王城ビル) has been modeled and renamed "Kamuro Castle", and north-west Kamurocho love hotel Hotel Åland has been recreated in Kamurocho hotels quarter as the Hotel Tea Clipper.
Unlike previous episodes, the story is not written by Hase Seishu; instead, it was primarily penned by writer Masayoshi Yokoyama. Yakuza 3 takes a departure from the first two games with its choice of setting: instead of focusing on the gritty cityscapes of Tokyo and Osaka, it switches gears and sends Kazuma Kiryu to the rural Ryukyu Islands of Okinawa, where he runs the Morning Glory Orphanage ("Sunshine Orphanage" in the English PS3 version) with his adoptive daughter Haruka Sawamura (who calls him "Uncle Kaz").
