The Like a Dragon series is filled with beloved characters, not least of which is Goro Majima. The Mad Dog of Shimano is known for his at-times wily nature, especially for his antics in earlier-set games like Yakuza Kiwami where he'd attack Kiryu from a plethora of disguises. For the first time in many years, Majima is taking center stage in Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. It's set after Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, where an amnesiac Majima becomes a pirate while attempting to uncover his memories.

Game Rant recently played a couple of hours of Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii with a particular focus on its naval gameplay. Because of this, we didn't really get to see much of Majima's overall characterization or the larger story at play. What we did see of Majima was still calm in comparison to his younger days, but RGG Studio assured us players would get to see the Mad Dog of Shimano shine. That's exciting when paired with its at-sea gameplay, which shined quickly and brightly during our time with the game.

From Rich Island to Madlantis

Stepping into Majima's Shoes

Our preview was divided into three sections, with the first focused on sailing for Madlantis from Rich Island after improving our pirate ship. Our goal was to get to Madlantis to prove our worth and enter the Pirate Colosseum there. RGG told us that, prior to this, we had gone to Hawaii to improve the ship before returning to Rich Island. While there, we got a taste of Majima's two fighting styles: Mad Dog and Sea Dog. Mad Dog is pretty much a classic, speedy Majima who is deadly with a knife and deadlier with his doppelgangers. Sea Dog is a pirate take on Like a Dragon's action combat, with a chargeable pistol and cutlass-based attacks.

Each fighting style also has unique abilities when players fill Majima's Madness Gauge. Mad Dog Majima will summon a couple of doppelgangers to aid him in the fight, and players are even able to complete team-up-styled combos with these doppelgangers. When explaining how this was possible, RGG Studio said to just roll with it because it's Majima. Of course, Majima could do that. Filling up the Madness Gauge as Sea Dog Majima lets players summon one of four dark gods of the ocean (shark, parrot, ape, or jellyfish), each of which takes to the field with unique effects.

Read our first preview of the game for more info on Like a Dragon: Pirate Yazuka in Hawaii's Mad Dog and Sea Dog fighting styles.

On Rich Island, we took on a strong bounty enemy, cleaned up some ne'er-do-well pirates across the island, and made our way to the ship. We also stopped for a quick meal, checked in our crew, and found some pets to feed. At Rich Island's port, there's an area where players can develop bonds with animals by giving them different types of pet feed, including a cow and a Shiba Inu mix. On the ship, we could see our crew's individual levels, where they excelled as part of our crew in combat or otherwise, and found ways to throw a party or feast to raise morale and levels. There's also Like a Dragon karaoke on the ship, which is everything fans have come to expect.

Setting Sail

Once we finished up on Rich Island, we fast-traveled to a Lighthouse in the waters of Madlantis and took to the north. We intentionally fast-traveled to a Lighthouse a little further from Madlantis to get our sea legs. Any comparison to Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag holds up, as its sea controls feel just like the classic title but with a Like a Dragon twist. Players can let loose of the helm at any time to zip up to the Crow's nest and take a look around or even perform some karaoke on the high seas (it's not just limited to port). While sailing around, players can find wind tunnels to pick up speed, find loot floating around, and encounter environmental effects like lightning and whirlpools. These will, of course, damage the ship, so players should avoid them. This was a pretty straightforward sailing session, being early in the game, but we never felt the environmental dangers were dangerous. It seemed pretty simple to avoid them, but that may not be true for later encounters in the game.

We entered combat a few times, although we couldn't board any of the ships we took out at this time. We had cannons on each side of our ship, meaning we needed to line ourselves up with the enemy ships well, while we could fire with a machine gun from the front of the ship. For weaker ships, the machine gun was really more than enough to take them out, but we couldn't resist using our cannons more. Not only does that enrapture the pirate gameplay vibe of Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, but because the ship has boosts and drifts, it is a ridiculous amount of fun to drift around an enemy ship and unleash cannons upon them.

Players can also find spots around the map to take over as territory. This results in a mass battle between the pirates there and our crew, with the handful of us taking on 100 pirates who spawned from nearby treelines. Outnumbered, we found charging our pistol was a great way to take out the groups of weaker enemies, while we had to focus on the tougher boss NPCs among them.

Exploring Madlantis

Eventually, we made it to Madlantis and took a look around. While there were plenty of Like a Dragon mini-games to check out, what really caught our eye was how many recruitable NPCs were around. Some of these NPCs had certain requirements like we achieve something specific in the Pirate Colosseum or defeat them in a 1-on-1 fight, while others joined up when given enough money. We recruited an older woman who said she used to be the most beautiful pirate on the ocean, picked up a few other crewmates, and made our way to the colosseum. Our first match triggered a cutscene where pirates all over Madlantis were betting against us, while the Pirate Queen and King (the latter of whom is played by Samoa Joe) watched from above.

Colosseum fights are nothing new in Like a Dragon, but this is a Pirate Colosseum. It is naval warfare. After falling over a waterfall, we engaged our enemy in a watery dome and managed to board them after taking out their ship. Certain crew members had special unlocks for us, like increased damage or a heal over time, and our overall goal was to beat the X remaining members of the enemy crew. It's worth noting that our crew of miscreants included, but were not limited to, a couple of grown men in diapers, a dominatrix or two, and at least one man in a suit wearing a sheep's face. The boarding sequence gameplay holds up in comparison to AC: Black Flag as well, although there was less of a focus on acquiring loot or materials to repair the ship.

The Pirate Colosseum

Afterward, we were able to check out more game modes within the Pirate Colosseum: Quick Clash, Tournament of Captains, and Swashbuckler Showdown. The first is a standard, straightforward fight against another crew, like our previous encounter. This time, we found Biker Pirates who fought differently from the standard pirates from before, although the list also included concepts like ghost pirates that seemed enticing. The Tournament of Captains was a series of fights, among which we also fought some irradiated pirates who spread sickness. And Swashbuckler Showdown is a massive pirate vs pirate on-land battle.

During this time, we had flamethrowers on one side of the ship, which was a great way to deal damage close-up. It's worth noting, however, that the icon still showed us a cannon leading to some confusion. Flamethrowers do not have as effective of a range as cannons, and if we fired too early, we'd end up mostly missing. We also tried a new strategy of letting loose of the helm and firing upon enemy ships from the deck with our rocket launcher. This can presumably be upgraded in the game, but this early on, it was not an effective strategy. Almost always the enemy was able to deal tons of damage (which we had to repair) because we were a sitting duck. The damage we dealt in exchange didn't really justify the risk, so after trying it out a time or two, we stuck with drifting around our enemies.

Overall, it proved to be a fun take on the franchise's classic colosseum formula. For those who loved completing colosseums in past Like a Dragon games, this new take carries the very same promise. Combine that with leveling up the crew, finding new crew members, placing them where they can best support the crew, and so forth ensures there's a nice layer of systemic gameplay to support otherwise straightforward pirate gameplay. Prior to Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii's announcement, few would have probably expected this franchise to apply its formula to pirate gameplay, but fans of both LaD and pirates are in such luck. It really fulfills the pirate fantasy from a gameplay perspective, and given LaD's penchant for storytelling, it'll be interesting to see how the pirate life and Majima develop narratively.

Free Exploration, Hawaii, and Dragon Kart, Oh My

Afterward, we had a little free time to explore the seas and nearby locations. Now a little further in the game, we could see Devil Flags populating the open seas. These are tougher enemies than the norm, though not quite to the extent of AC4: Black Flag's Legendary Ships. They are tough enough that, at the very least, players have to interact with them to start combat instead of just running into them on the open seas. It tested what we learned so far and ensured that our time on the open seas wasn't met with a lot of down or dead time. There was constantly something encouraging the pirate within us, especially when there is a special loot catalog that players get to check off as they discover these from Devil Flags and other activities.

We didn't get much time in Hawaii, but the map was identical to Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's map, proving once again how smart RGG Studio is with asset reuse. We couldn't resist playing Crazy Delivery during our brief stint, but also checked out a side story. As fans will know, side stories are where Like a Dragon's silliness really comes to the fore. All I'll say is that this side story told a heartwarming narrative about what animals feel, childhood dreams, and predatory microtransactions, while also applying the franchise's cabaret-style gameplay to a tiger. Then, our time with Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii came to an end with a little Dragon Kart racing.

Final Thoughts

There are still many fine details to learn about Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, particularly around its plot. I'm most curious about the direction RGG is taking a much older Majima now, especially after how The Man Who Erased His Name treated Kiryu. These Gaiden games are really a great way to deliver more of the world of Like a Dragon and focus on these beloved characters, continuing their tales while the mainline series focuses on Ichiban. Fans will likely be kept on the hook waiting for these story developments until release, especially given how narrative-heavy these games tend to be.

However, there is no question in my mind about the gameplay supporting it. It is a bonafide Like a Dragon take on the AC4: Black Flag gameplay formula, while featuring its classic action combat and iconic mini-games. Assuming the narrative holds up to past RGG games, then it seems Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii could be firing on all cylinders.

Game Rant was provided travel and lodging for the purposes of this preview.