Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth lets you ride a dolphin to an Animal Crossing-style island getaway because "sometimes even the Yakuza need a breather"

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Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth has revealed the zany, chaotic Animal Crossing-style mode I've always dreamt of.

During today's Xbox Partner Preview event, Yakuza dev Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio absolutely stole the show with a trailer for Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's new Dondoko Island feature, which lets you hop aboard a dolphin and ride off for cozier pastures. In the studio's words, "sometimes even the yakuza need a breather," and I couldn't agree more.

On Dondoko Island, you can fish, gather materials, buy and craft furniture, mess with the design and infrastructure of the island, design your dream home inside and out, pal around with locals, host Lū'aus and amaze everyone with your guitar skills, and generally just chill the heck out, Yakuza style. You can even make friends with exotic birds, dudes with ram heads, and "strange creatures."

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Basically, this is the Animal Crossing-like I've always wanted. I loved Animal Crossing: New Horizons and, like seemingly everyone else in the world, played the heck out of its cute little self throughout 2020, but something about playing it today just makes me a little nauseous with thoughts of quarantine, Zoom call hangouts, and whipped coffee. Dondoko Island has none of those unfortunate associations and all of the nutty charm of the Yakuza series I love so much.

I genuinely fear I'll never finish the campaign with Dondoko Island just a dolphin ride away, but thankfully our Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth preview suggests the campaign is a total banger, so I'm not too worried.

In case you missed it, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth lets you switch from turn-based combat to Kiryu-style brawling.

After earning an English degree from ASU, I worked as a corporate copy editor while freelancing for places like SFX Magazine, Screen Rant, Game Revolution, and MMORPG on the side. I got my big break here in 2019 with a freelance news gig, and I was hired on as GamesRadar's west coast Staff Writer in 2021. That means I'm responsible for managing the site's western regional executive branch, AKA my home office, and writing about whatever horror game I'm too afraid to finish.