It was hardly a secret that Yakuza Kiwami 2 is headed to PC, but now we have an official release date: May 9. Just like how the first Yakuza Kiwami revisited our original introduction to Kamurocho, Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a ground-up remake of Yakuza 2's tale of clashing Dragons. They're not literal, fire-breathing, winged reptiles, mind you, but they are really tough mobsters. The Yakuza series has so many entries and re-releases and ports these days that I should probably lay out some relevant dates real quick.
- December 2006: Yakuza 2 comes out for PlayStation 2
- December 2016: Yakuza 6 comes out for PS4, introducing the new Dragon Engine
- December 2017: Yakuza Kiwami 2 comes out for PS4, using Yakuza 6's new Dragon Engine
- May 2019: Yakuza Kiwami 2 comes out for PC
The game follows the same story beats as the original Yakuza 2, bringing Kazuma Kiryu back into the fold of the Tojo Clan after the assassination of its chairman and setting him up for repeated clashes with the Omi Alliance's Ryuji Goda (who you may remember as the weirdly strong, tall, and blonde kid from Yakuza 0). I promise all of these proper nouns start making sense when you play the game.
On top of retelling the old narrative, Kiwami 2 also adds a new side story that traces Majima Goro's arc from Tojo enforcer to legitimate-ish businessman (because everybody loves Majima), the cabaret club minigame from Yakuza 0, the clan creator minigame from Yakuza 6, and even full arcade games like Virtual On. PC players will also get to enjoy unlocked frame rates, 4K resolution support, and customizable controls. The PC ports for Yakuza 0 and Yakuza Kiwami were both very good as well, so it should be smooth sailing for the continued PC adventures of Kazuma Kiryu.
Find more to play while you wait for Yakuza Kiwami 2 to arrive on our list of the best PC games. Or see what's coming up this week in our latest Release Radar video.
