Sega is still keeping quiet on Yakuza 3, the true PS3 sequel in the Yakuza series, but today it did share one bit of news regarding the voice acting staff for the Japanese version of the game. the company revealed that Jouji Takahashi and Tatsuya Fujiwara will be joining the cast, playing as yet undisclosed roles.
Kotaku: A third, proper Yakuza game? For the PS3? Exciting stuff. So let's go over a few of the game's finer details. While we already know the game will be an immediate sequel to the second, featuring the same characters and the same storyline, what we didn't know was that the game's going to be taking a pleasant break from the streets of faux-Tokyo. While the game will still be based around Kamurocho, it'll be adding a "second city": island getaway Okinawa (or, at least, a fictional take on Okinawa).
In the latest issue of Famitsu, it was announced that SEGA's toasted Toshihiro Nagoshi has been working on Ryu ga Gotoku 3 (Yakuza 3). This isn't to be confused with Edo-era PS3 exclusive Ryu ga Gotoku Kenzan!, which is actually the third Yakuza game in the franchise, but not actually Yakuza 3. Confused? According to the article, Kenzan! was a spin-off, and this newly announced game is actually the third one in the series, m'kay. Work began on the game commenced after development on Kenzan! finished, and the story picks up where Yakuza 2 left off. Well, that makes sense at least.
This is far from the official confirmation like Sega of Europe sent out, but there is a fair chance Yakuza 2 will come out in North America too. Possibly in September. Gamestop and Gamefly updated their respective databases and Yakuza 2 is in both of them.
A new image of the Yakuza 3 Playstation 3 bundle has been posted on Famitsu.com. The bundle comes packed with the Silver 40GB Playstation 3, a SixAxis controller, and Yakuza 3.
IGN reports: "Collectors of all things Sega are going to need to book a flight to Japan for this one. Sega Japan has announced a promotional campaign for its two big upcoming PlayStation 3 titles. To help push Yakuza 3 and Valkyrie of the Battlefield, the company will distribute a promotional set to those who purchase product from the Sega Direct e-commerce site, or those who sample the games at an upcoming demo event.
Kotaku, Thu Jan 17 2008, by Brian Ashcraft
A playable demo of Yakuza 3, the latest (PS3-exclusive) edition of Sega's Japanese gangster-themed brawler will be hitting the Japanese PSN as soon as this month.