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'''K''': [[Hypocrisy Nod|Sure it was a tax shelter]] but he ran it like a legitimate thing. You know.|[http://www.boingboing.net/2010/08/10/yakuza-3-review.html Real Yakuza gangsters review the game].}}
'''''
The series is basically old school [[Beat'Em Up
Fighting enemies earns you experience points to gain new moves to punish them with, and you can also learn new moves by doing sidequests. There's also tons of items and equipment to find, and you can even create your own. The series is considered by many players to be the spiritual successor to ''[[Shenmue]]'', and is also compared to such classic old-school series as ''[[Streets of Rage]]'' and ''[[River City Ransom]]''.
[https://kotaku.com/yakuza-like-a-dragon-sega-brand-name-marketing-1849543173 According to Kotaku], all titles of this series will revert to their Japanese title "Like A Dragon" for all official releases, and re-releases of all future English language games in this series. This change is effective immediately as of the ''Ishin!'' remake onward.
The series currently includes:
* Seven games in the main series with Kiryu as protagonist, ''0 - 6,'' plus remasters of ''1-5'' and ''Kiwami'' remakes of ''1'' and ''2
*
* Two feudal-era but otherwise unconnected spin-offs called ''Ryu Ga Gotoku Kenzan!'', starring Miyamoto Musashi as "Kiryu Kazuma-no-suke", and ''Ryu Ga Gotoku Ishin!'', starring Sakamoto Ryōma. ''Ishin!'' has a remake, ''Like a Dragon: Ishin!''
* Very one-on-one combat-oriented PSP spinoffs called ''Kurohyou: Ryu Ga Gotoku Shinshou'' and ''Kurohyō 2: Ryū ga Gotoku Ashura-hen'' that focus on the life of underground fighter Ukyou Tatsuya.
* The spin-off featuring characters from the main series, ''Ryu Ga Gotoku: Of The End''/''Yakuza: Dead Souls'', takes place during an... [[Zombie Apocalypse|umm... outbreak of the living dead]].
* ''Hokuto ga Gotoku/[[Fist of the North Star]]: Lost Paradise'', which is technically a FotNS game but made by the ''Yakuza'' developers, using the same gameplay and mechanics, having ''Yakuza'' alumni in the cast including Kenshiro's Japanese voice being Kiryu's voice actor Takaya Kuroda and with a few familiar faces showing up, and is therefore considered part of the family.
* ''Judge Eyes/Judgment'': Another spinoff series, currently at two games, starring lawyer-turned-private detective Takayuki Yagami (voiced by in Japanese and modelled after superstar [[Takuya Kimura]], that add investigation elements into the gameplay.
* A live-action prequel to the first game, a live-action adaptation of the first game directed by [[Takashi Miike]], and radio dramas.
{{tropelist}}
* [[A Protagonist Is Ryu]] - Kazuma Kiryu
* [[Abhorrent Admirer]] - in the third game, Kazuma's animal magnetism draws the attention of the [[Drag Queen]] Michiru, causing 'her' to stalk you through several pulse-pounding chase-scenes. How is it possible to run that fast on high heels? The world may never know...
* [[Action Commands]] - Some of Kazuma's Heat Actions have these to potentially increase their damage (and pain to the unfortunate recepient). And in the second game, these sometimes crop up when Kazuma has to avoid some damaging move, tying in with [[Press X to Not Die]].
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* [[Actually Four Mooks]] - Used extensively. Anytime you walk into some random punk on the streets, you may safely assume that he's got anywhere between 1 and 3 buddies hiding somewhere [[Behind the Black]], ready to jump in to help him the moment the fighting starts.
** Also used with an amusing twist by a [[Recurring Boss]] in the third game, {{spoiler|the [[Abhorrent Admirer]] [[Drag Queen]], Michiru}}. His uncanny ability to pop up behind you when you least expect it culminates in a lengthy chase where, every time you think you've shaken him, he appears AGAIN, right in front of you, [[Daffy Duck]] style. In the end, it's revealed that {{spoiler|he's actually a team of cross-dressing [[Always Identical Twins|identical triplets]], and the other two were just chasing you to make sure you 'broke up' with the real Michiru so she could get back together with her Drag-King ex-'boy'friend.}}
* [[Adult Fear]]: Kiryu comes to be guardian for some young'uns, and grapples with the fear of them either being direct targets of the underworld or used as proxies to get at him.
* [[Amazing Freaking Grace]]: Played over the end credits for the first game.
* [[Anti-Frustration Features]]: In ''0'', you can't die when learning new moves for styles from the respective trainers. A good thing, too, considering some of the missions involved can be very annoying. That said, you don't get it back after you finish said missions either, so you'd better have a healing item on hand in case you get jumped on the way to the nearest save point.
* [[Ascended Extra]]:
** Koji Shindo was just a lieutenant of the Nishiki Family notable for leading the back-alley ambush on Kazuma at Serena in the first game. In the second, he became the Patriarch of the Nishiki Family.
** Hiroshi Hayashi was one of Ryuji Goda's right-hand men in ''2''. In ''Dead Souls'', he's a {{spoiler|''freaking'' zombie. And not just any zombie. He's the insanely durable zombie (mutant may be a more suitable term for him) who kicks off the zombie outbreak. Granted, he didn't turn into one by will, and wanted to stop Nikaido and DD from whatever their plans were before he was mutated.}}
** Akiyama {{spoiler|is probably the bum who was first shown catching money after the 10 billion yen incident. The facial features are a bit different, though that is likely due to the series' [[Art Evolution]], and their clothes are different (they wear a different cap), but they are in the exact same location and do the exact same thing (catch a bill, then gather as much as they can), so it can probably be forgiven by [[Broad Strokes]].}}
* [[Authority Equals Asskicking]] {{spoiler|Kazuma}} taking the title of Chairman of the Tojo Clan. Later {{spoiler|Daigo Dojima}} in future games.
* [[Ax Crazy]]: Goro Majima. Holy crap.
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* [[Badass Crew]]: Everyone who supported and helped Kazuma has at least done something awesome to earn this. Two of them being his [[Nakama]] in ''4'' (Akiyama, Saejima and Tanimura) and the other playable characters in ''Dead Souls'' (Akiyama again, Goda, Majima)
* [[Badass Family]]: The Amons are a clan of notorious assassins who hold a grudge against Kiryu for being one of the very few people to not only survive but defeat them.
* [[Batter Up]]: Goro Majima, in one of his more psycho moments in the first game, takes a baseball bat to one of his underlings. He gains use of bats as a playable style, Slugger, in ''0''.
{{quote|'''Majima:''' This is the part where you're SUPPOSED TO LAUGH! [WHACK!] '''[[Cluster F-Bomb|LAUGH YOU STUPID MUTHAFUCKA!]]'''}}
* [[Betting Minigame]]: The two hidden (and illegal) Casinos as well as the (also hidden and illegal) Cho-Han Dice Parlor in Kamurocho, although oddly enough they don't offer a direct cash payout, rather relying on a prize exchange system. There's also the Volcano Video Slot Parlor which is more legal and also relies on a prize exchange system for the payoffs.
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* [[Bloodless Carnage]]: In the fourth game, Saejima's murderous rampage at the start of his story has a surprising lack of gunshot wounds on his victims. {{spoiler|[[Fridge Brilliance|Which makes perfect sense]] when you later discover he was set up as [[The Scapegoat]] by Katsuragi.}}
* [[Bonus Boss]]: Jo Amon, an assassin who makes an appearance in almost every game, shows up when certain requirements are fulfilled. In the fourth game, he makes an appearance with his three brothers to take on Kazuma, Akiyama, Saejima and Tanimura. By ''Dead Souls'', he's been {{spoiler|zombiefied, but can still be fought in Kamurucho's underground (you know, [[Bonus Dungeon|the one full of zombies and mutants waiting to kick your ass]]).}} Players are usually rewarded for defeating him with a [[Game Breaker]], since he's just [[That One Boss|that hard to kill.]]
* [[Born in the Wrong Century]]:
** Kiryu is pretty much the stereotypical heroic ronin, and the feudal-era games don't dispel that impression in the slightest.
** Shishido from ''The Man Who Erased His Name'' is portrayed as pretty much the perfect Yakuza brute. A large part of his subplot concerns the fact that he would have thrived in an earlier era, but not when {{spoiler|the Omi and Tojo are disbanding and going civilian.}}
* [[Bragging Rights Reward]]: In ''0'', beating a Mr. Shakedown gives a boatload of cash. However, by the time Kiryu or Majima is strong enough to treat them as farmable [[Giant Mook]]s rather than [[Skippable Boss]]es to [[Run or Die]] from, they'll also be strong enough that not much else is a challenge that needs the upgrades that windfall will purchase to overcome.
* [[Breakable Weapons]]
* [[Bullying a Dragon]]: While most random encounters are cases of [[Mugging the Monster]], many thugs and gangs seek out fights against you knowing full well who you are and thinking they can take you anyway.
* [[Call to Agriculture]]: Kazuma's call is to manage a tiny beachfront orphanage with ten kids in it, but it's the same idea: this is his peaceful retirement from a life of crime. Or so he hoped, until ''Yakuza 3'' happened.
* [[The Cameo]]:
** In ''Lost Judgment'', there are plot-inconsequential appearances from main series characters {{spoiler|Zhao and Kashiwagi.}}
** In ''The Man Who Erased His Name'', ''Judgment'' character {{spoiler|Kaito}} appears in a sidequest.
** In ''Infinite Wealth'', the White Masks from ''Lost Judgment'' appear.
* [[Car Fu]]: In the first game, everyone's favorite [[Psycho for Hire]] Goro Majima [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vJH8-_S1Ns literally crashes the party at the Shangri-La soapland with a truck].
{{quote|'''Majima:''' LET'S FUCK THIS SHIT UUUUUUP!!}}
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** It's not just him, Kawara doubles it for being a [[Cowboy Cop]] and there's Hanaya/Kage who "plays fair," Sotaro Komaki, Fuma/Kazama, {{spoiler|his cop brother-turned-CIA Agent}} Jouji and finally Nakahara that {{spoiler|wrestled with a ''bull''}}.
* [[Counter Attack]]: Kazuma can learn several from Sotaro Komaki in the games.
* [[Cowardly Boss]]:
**
** The third Game has {{spoiler|Hamazaki}} who lets Lau and his henchman fight his own war.
**
* [[Crane Game Gag]]: In ''0'', one sidequest involves Majima helping a little girl to win a prize from a crane game.
* [[Curb Stomp Battle]]: You might as well not even bother trying to fight the Dragon of Dojima if you're a nameless thug, because you *will* be sent to the infirmary... if you're lucky.
* [[Cutscene Incompetence]]: In a cutscene at the start of ''0'''s fourth chapter, Majima has a [[Bad Dreams]] flashback to how he was prevented from helping Saejima with the Ueno hit because he was attacked by a large number of mooks sent by Shibata. This would appear to be fair if not for the fact that Kiryu had fought through a similar number of mooks in gameplay not too long ago. It thus becomes evident that Majima could have gotten out of this jam had he been under player control rather than in a cutscene.
* [[Dance Battler]]: In ''0'', Majima develops the Breaker style after watching breakers in action.
* [[Dating Sim]]: Every game has had an optional series of [[Sidequest]]s where Kazuma could visit the local hostess clubs and woo a collection of lovely ladies for [[100% Completion]] and some neat bonuses which includes [[Experience Points|XP]], sometimes very valuable items, and photo portraits of the women. In the second game, Kazuma can also optionally help out the hapless employees of a host club getting screwed over by their boss... by signing on as the newest employee and working to become the Number One Host as a gambit to root out the boss from hiding. In the western release of the third game, the whole "hostess club" aspect was cut, which just allowed Kazuma to simply take the girls out for a couple dates, then reap the benefits (no relationship values, expensive hostessing minigame, multiple choice dialogue, etc). The hostess clubs return in western release of the fourth game (at least for Akiyama, Tanimura, and Kazuma). In Dead Souls, wooing a lady allows you to use her as an escort into the Quarantine Zone.
* [[Defeat Means Friendship]]: This is pretty much how Kazuma snaps Daigo Dojima out of his hedonistic spree and gets him focused on taking charge of the Tojo Clan. Also applies to Rikiya and Majima (although he genuinely enjoys fighting Kazzy).
* [[Desperation Attack]]: Normally the Hunt and Kill Heat Action (performed on a prone opponent) is either a head stomp or a kick to the gut. If you use it while Kazuma's health is low enough for the meter to blink red however, instead Kazuma straddles the opponent and starts punching away, at which point you can [[Action Command|keep spamming the Square Button]] [[For Massive Damage]].
* [[Disappeared Dad]]: Hanaya/Kage to Takashi. {{spoiler|And Kawara to Kaoru in the second game.}}
* [[Disproportionate Retribution]]: Shimano in a [[You Have Failed Me...]] moment cuts the fingers of his underling for losing to Kazuma and getting shot by Shinji in the first game. While this actually is a common punishment among [[Real Life]] Yakuza, and is as symbolic as the physical punishment is painful,<ref>Cutting off one's fingers decreases one's ability to grip a sword effectively, making him more dependent on the group</ref> taking two at once instead of one, and the middle and index fingers instead of the little and ring at that, is quite far beyond the usual.
{{quote|'''Shimano:''' Let me see your hand for just a second..}}
* [[Doomed by Canon]]: ''0'' is a prequel released after five chronologically later games in the series. It is safe to assume that almost anyone introduced in it that doesn't get a mention in later instalments is going to be dead, in prison, or otherwise out of the picture by the end. Averted with {{spoiler|Makoto}}, though, as ''Kiwami 2'' adds new content absent from the original ''2'' in order to sew things up.
* [[The Dragon]]: This was in fact Kazuma's title and position (The Dragon of Dojima) before circumstances sent him to prison in the first game.
* [[Drunken Master]]: It's a very bad idea to pick a fight with Kazuma. It's an even WORSE idea to pick a fight with Kazuma ''when he's drunk'': while drunk, his Heat meter recharges faster, and he even has some special(not to mention BONE SHATTERING) moves that he can only do while drunk. You will probably spend lots of yen just getting him hammered or buying alcohol to go to always make sure you have a little extra oomph.
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** Pretty well averted in 4 and Dead Souls, whose multi-character gameplay (with Kiryu being the last character) allows him to be presented as more of a larger-than-life character from the perspectives of other characters. Additionally, many of his random encounters in 4 are people attacking him knowing that if they should take down the Dragon of Dojima, their own reputations will skyrocket. Still [[Suicidal Overconfidence]], but it's [[Suicidal Overconfidence]] out of ''respect''.
* [[Dulcinea Effect]]: Men are falling over themselves to protect Lily in 4, though everyone does have their own reasons. Doesn't change the fact that only one of the main characters has known her for more than a week.
* [[End of an Age]]: Part of the plots of ''7'', ''Lost Judgment'', and ''The Man Who Erased His Name'' concern {{spoiler|the dying of the Yakuza as an institution with the disbanding of the Omi and Tojo.}}
* [[Even Evil Has Standards]]: {{spoiler|At the end of Chapter 12 in the second game, Kazuma chases Sengoku up the Golden Palace past an army of [[Samurai]]-clad [[Mooks]]- and even a pair of tigers- to his office after he kidnapped Haruka as a ploy to lure Kazuma into an ambush. Sengoku is quite surprised to see Ryuji Goda waiting there for them all with a [[Katanas Are Just Better|katana]] over his shoulder. After commiserating with Kazuma's plight, Goda responds to Sengoku's mouthing off by cutting a deep gash in his chest. At that point, Ryuji makes it clear abducting Haruka was in poor taste. That might have been it if Sengoku actually had common sense and kept quiet. Instead, he [[Too Dumb to Live|spits out]] that Ryuji only got far because of his [[Nepotism|father]]. Ryuji [[You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry|had enough of Sengoku at that point]], stabbing him with the katana and pushing him to the balcony before kicking him off the top of the Golden Palace. He then lets Kazuma leave with Haruka, but makes it clear that there would be a huge brawl between the Omi and the Tojo in one day.}}
* [[Evil Counterpart]]:
** From the first game, Akira Nishiki, who basically cracked under the pressure over the years and molded himself into a cold version of what Kazuma would have become (a head of a family of the Tojo) if he hadn't been in prison.
** Ryuji Goda from the second game, who like Kiryu has [[A Protagonist Is Ryu|"ryu" in one of his names,]] a "Dragon of" moniker - namely "Dragon of Kansai" - a dragon tattoo, and overall [[Badass]] cred to match.
** And the third game has {{spoiler|Yoshitaka Mine, who grew up as an orphan like Kazuma, but without the support of friends like he had, grew up lonely and with a very twisted mentality}}.
* [[Evil Feels Good]]: The zombification process in Dead Souls explicitly feels very pleasant, due to the over production of endorphin hormones.
* [[Evil Foreigner]]: Three notable examples in the series:
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** Andre Richardson (from ''3'') - Corrupt CIA Agent who is the leader of Black Monday, an arms dealing group.
** DD - (from ''Of the End / Dead Souls'') - A [[But Not Too Foreign|Japanese-American]] arms dealer who creates the Thanatos virus, which starts the [[Zombie Apocalypse]] in Kamurucho. [[Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking|Also notorious for]] [[Dude Looks Like a Lady|looking extremely feminine.]]
* [[Evil Is Petty]]: In ''0'', Awano smashes Nishiki's face into a bartop for little good reason despite the latter having at best indirect connection to the Kiryu and Tachibana problem.
* [[Exact Words]]: ''Yakuza 0'' features a scene where Kazuma tricks Lieutenant Kuze of the Dojima Clan into confirming he's been expelled from the clan so he can beat the man up without penalty. Kuze doesn't really realize his own error until his own rivals confirm later in front of Sohei Dojima Kuze's own words {{spoiler|after Kuze tries to get Kazuma punished for attacking him and lies about how Kazuma is still punishable under Yakuza rules}}. Dojima is not amused by Kuze's duplicitly, and [[Fingore|Kuze forced to give up his pinky finger as atonement]]. [[Hoist By Their Own Petard|Which Kuze has intended for Kazuma to do in the first place]].
* [[Excited Show Title!]]: ''Ishin!'' and ''Kenzan!''
* [[Expy]]: The boss of the Purple Killers in the fourth game is the Joker. This is apparent even before you meet him, being described as a guy in a purple suit with an insane smirk. {{spoiler|Then you find out he's killer in clown makeup with mannerisms very similar to Heath Ledger's Joker and... yeah.}}
* [[Extremity Extremist]]: Akiyama and Tanimura in the fourth game are both mild examples. Tanimura's attack on a downed attack is even a crouching punch as opposed to a stomp like everyone else. Their basic combos play it straight, but as they learn new abilities their HEAT actions (and more advenced combos) they branch out considerably.
* [[Eyepatch of Power]]: Goro Majima, who pretty much fights [[Badass|Kazuma]] in every game thus far at an even footing.
* [[Finishing Move]]: Starting from the second game, knocking down an opponent's health sufficiently in a [[Boss Battle]] will open up a window of opportunity where you can quickly charge Kazuma's Heat Meter with rapid button mashes (if it's not filled all ready) to execute a special and often [[For Massive Damage|devastating]] Heat Action that will usually drop the unfortunate recepient in one hit.
* [[Five Second Foreshadowing]]: In ''0'', {{spoiler|Oda}} is ridiculously late for an appointment, prompting one character to hope he hasn't met with an accident. Moments later, he shows up, having met with worse.
* [[Flash Back]]: The second and third games allow someone who never played the past installments to find out the storyline in segments at the opening cemetary scene.
** A small example in ''Dead Souls'': the end credits are a slide show from previous ''Yakuza'' games (save for the one PSP release in Japan), which include cameos from characters in those games (Akira in ''1'', Saejima and Tanimura in ''4''.) (Note: the part where flashbacks to ''Kenzan!'' [[No Export for You|may not make sense to non-Japanese gamers.]])
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* [[Gameplay and Story Segregation]]: Only in cutscenes does Kazuma suffer an actual injury that would cripple him. This also applies to pretty much everyone else; you can do all kinds of brutalities in gameplay that should result in a trip to the hospital or morgue like hitting someone with a motorcycle, slashing or stabbing multiple times with a knife, or [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvrEz_zfFlQ force feeding a box of nails], and it won't register as a kill if a cutscene doesn't confirm it.
* [[Gatling Good]]: Ryuji Goda in ''Of The End/Dead Souls'' sports a cybernetic [[Arm Cannon]] from the [[Final Fantasy VII|Barrett Wallace]] Collection.
* [[Gave Up Too Soon]]: In Majima's "Toilet Talk" substory in ''0'', Majima exchanges messages with what appears to be a woman named Rina, who tells him that she will be wearing a red rose on her lapel and waiting near a phone booth at Shofukucho West. He goes there and gets ambushed by a quartet of goons who say they've been using such a setup to bait suckers, but when he asks about "Rina" after kicking their asses, the confused goons say they were going by "Mayumi" instead. Majima storms off, angry at having been fooled... and walks past a woman with a red rose on her lapel, who really is called Rina and disappointedly says to herself that the stranger didn't show up. The final shot of the substory is of Rina leaving literally behind Majima's back, neither realising how close they came to meeting.
* [[Gender Blender Name]]: In ''0'', the fact that {{spoiler|Makoto}} is a unisex name hides a twist.
* [[Gilded Cage]]: In ''0'', Majima's story starts this way. He is running a swanky cabaret with plenty of beautiful women at the height of Japan's glitzy bubble economy, but it is eventually shown at the end of Chapter 3 that his apartment is watched by at least four people for any sign of him trying to escape the arrangement that has him on loan to the Omi Alliance. He's desperate to regain his freedom by getting back into the good graces of the Tojo Clan so that he can become a proper soldier of the mob once more, and he doesn't care for the warnings he receives about why that's not a good idea.
* [[Gory Discretion Shot]]:
** In the third game, {{spoiler|the severed head (or body part) of Tsuyoshi Kanda}} is never seen on camera when {{spoiler|Mine}} brings it to Kazuma and company.
** ''Yakuza 0'' gives us {{spoiler|Kuze}} being forced to slice his own finger off, and while we get to see it gushed quite a lot of blood for a severed pinky, clever use of a flash frame and an angled towel being used to collect the digit in question spare us the most gory part.
** Also from ''0'', Lao Gui goes for an [[Eye Scream|eye gouge]] on Majima. If you fail the QTE, the camera moves away enough to hide the thumb going in, only showing the gushing of blood, and returns focus to Majima only in time for him to clutch at his eye in pain.
** One Heat Action involves Kiryu or Yagami throwing a mook headfirst into a convenience store microwave and asking the cringing cashier to heat it up. You see some smoke and the body fall out, but no presumably charred head.
* [[Go Out with a Smile]]: {{spoiler|Ryuji Goda in a surprisingly heartwarming scene.}}
* [[Guns Akimbo]]: Several regular bosses and super boss hitman Jo Amon in classic John Woo style. Which makes it all the more badass when they are beaten to death by fists and feet (if the player chooses).
** This is Shun Akiyama's default weapon configuration in ''Of The End/Dead Souls''.
** Averted in Jo Amon's case in ''Kenzan!'', as he uses a sword there.
* [[Guns Are Worthless]]: At least in earlier games, where they can cause about average to little damage in gameplay and are only much more effective in cutscenes. Starting from ''3'', however, this is averted and they become PRETTY DAMN effective. The moment you see a mook with a gun, you'll make a beeline towards him to beat the gun the fuck off him to use it yourself. This is especially the case as of ''Dead Souls'', where guns are your main weapon against zombies.
* [[He Who Fights Monsters]]: {{spoiler|Kuwana}} in ''Lost Judgment''. However justifiable one might consider killing bullies who drove their victims to suicide, by the time he's blackmailing bullies with their wrongs so as to coerce them into helping him and getting innocents caught in the crossfire, it's a lot more murky as to whether it's still long-overdue justice he's meting out.
* [[Heroic Bloodshed]]: ''Ryu Ga Gotoku'' has a lot in common with Heroic Bloodshed movies in terms of thematic elements.
* [[Heroic Sacrifice]]: So many. There's an instance of [[Taking the Bullet]] pretty much once per game.
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*** [[Akio Ohtsuka|The Minister of Defense]] is [[Metal Gear|Solid Snake.]]
*** [[Aya Hirano|Hana]] is [[Haruhi Suzumiya]] and [[Lucky Star|Konata.]]
* [[Hidden Depths]]:
** While Kazuma's fists bring justice to man, his voice will shake your soul.
** The Mad Dog of Shimano is a carefully-constructed persona. Try breaking the mask at your own peril.
* [[Hide Your Children]]: Averted in the third game, not only with the Sunshine Orphanage kids, but other kids as well can be seen walking around Downtown Ryukubu.
* [[Hijacked by Ganon]]: '' 5'' has {{spoiler|Aizawa}} suddenly return as Kiryu's final boss. It comes with a [[Lampshade Hanging]] as his reply to Kiryu asking what he's doing here is "I'm not really sure myself."
* [[Hollywood Healing]]: Most main characters, and even mooks to an extent, regularly survive beatings that would kill most men ten times over. It's especially obvious when you use a triple katana slice or pistol on a lowly purse snatcher... and they live. Even moreso in ''Kenzan!'' and ''Ishin!'', where the sword combos can be ''way'' longer...
* [[Honor Before Reason]]: SO MUCH.
* [[Hopeless Boss Fight]]: Early on in ''Kiwami 1'', Majima shows up ahead of the schedule set by the original game to prove to Kiryu that the latter has become rusty after 10 years in prison. He does so with a boss fight that, while not technically unwinnable, is massively stacked against you and that you are supposed to lose.
* [[Idiot Ball]] / ''[[What an Idiot!]]'': Happens many, many, many times in all games. Rail-thin street punks picking a fight with gigantic, dangerous-looking Saejima, frequently overlapping with ''[[Suicidal Overconfidence]]'', and don't get me started on most 'betrayals.'
** 'Kay, i'll get started anyway: the most-likely-armed and still conscious treacherous ''[[Big Bad]]'' was defeated? Good, just leave him there on the ground and let's do a group hug. It happens way more often than it should, with predictable consequences. The most glaringly obvious instance of this is (warning, Yakuza 4 ending-breaker spoilers) {{spoiler|the whole finale, really. Munakata, the corrupt leader of the Tokyo police, is beaten in a fight, along with some other big figures in the game. Munakata is cornered and Tanimura whips out a revolver, ready to shoot him to settle some past debts. Arai comes by his side and stops him, taking out an automatic pistol of his own, and saying Munakata doesn't even deserve to die, seeing as he screwed lots of people for power. [[Idiot Ball|Arai then, without a shred of reasoning, drops his pistol on the ground mere feet away from Munakata and walks away.]] Munakata gets up and starts gloating that the protagonists really can't do a thing to him, because he's too important to the police. When Akiyama unveils a newspaper that would undoubtedly arrest Munakata, he goes on a crazy fit, grabs the easily accessible pistol and shoots Akiyama, who is miraculously saved by a bunch of money. Tanimura, who is a police officer, kicks the gun away from Munakata and cuffs him... while still leaving the pistol near arm's reach. Predictably, when everyone turns their backs again, he jumps at the pistol and shoots himself. All of this insane recklessness is only furthered when you remember ''he still has a loaded revolver pocketed somewhere'' from his last boss fight with Tanimura. Talk about sheer, unflinching stupidity.}}
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** Really, the protagonists as a whole need to learn to stop trusting the irredeemable villains and turning their backs on them after they've been defeated. This has happened far more times than is even slightly reasonable, resulting in the deaths of several characters. This started in the first game, and is what got {{spoiler|Fuma/Kazama and Yumi killed}}
* [[I Know Madden Kombat]]: In the second game, Kazuma can gain improved Strong Attacks and later improved Heat Actions with the baseball bat, golf club and bowling ball by playing enough times at the batting cage, driving range and bowling alley respectively then completing the related [[Sidequest]] for each location.
* [[Inexplicably Awesome]]:
** Most of the playable characters have some reason for how they can kick so much ass, and then there's Akiyama. He's ostensibly a former investment banker who was made homeless after failing to fight off false charges, only to receive a windfall from the sky that he leveraged into becoming a successful entrepreneur. None of this adequately explains how he became strong enough as to become a commendable opponent for Kiryu, first as a [[Dual Boss]] with Tanimura in ''4'' and then by himself in ''6''.
** While the series can get wacky at times, most of it remains within the conventions of [[Heroic Bloodshed]] and modern criminal action. Then there's the [[Bonus Boss]] Amon Clan, who have [[Kill Sat]]s, [[Laser Blade]]s and all other sorts of genre-defying weirdness, and no explanation whatsoever offered for all of it.
* [[Ink Suit Actor]]: In later games, many characters are modelled after their voice actors.
* [[Kingpin in His Gym]]: in the third game Mine appears kickboxing with a sandbag in a cutscene because the game wants you to know that he's no pushover. {{spoiler|Which you end up learning by yourself since he is the [[Final Boss]]}}.
* [[Knife Nut]]: Goro Majima.
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* [[The Lancer]]: Shinji Tanaka in the first game, Daigo Dojima in the second, Rikiya Shimabukuro in the third.
* [[Laser-Guided Karma]]: Kazuma helping out the fun-loving crazy old lady in the second game will not only give him the obligatory [[Sidequest]] [[Experience Points|XP]], it'll also give him access to some useful combat skills. {{spoiler|Which becomes self-explanatory when it's revealed that the fun-loving crazy old lady is in fact [[Retired Badass|Lau Ka Long's former martial arts instructor]].}}
* [[Legacy Character]]: In ''Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name'', {{spoiler|Homare Nishitani III is not actually the grandson of the character of that name from ''0'', but some guy who adopted the name and personality.}}
* [[Legitimate Businessmen's Social Club]]: The fancy-sounding Nikkyo Consortium is really the black ops arm of the Tojo Clan, advancing its interests through methods like assassination that need to be kept discreet even from the already violent rank and file.
* [[Limit Break]]: The Heat moves.
* [[Loan Shark]]:
** Shun Akiyama from Yakuza 4 operates as one. Subverted in that he loans out money with no interest or collateral, as long that the recipient [[Secret Test of Character|passes one of his tests]].
** The very first thing Kiryu does in ''0'' is shake down a guy who's behind on his debt repayments on behalf of one of these. The debtor in question is later found dead from gunshot, and Kiryu's quest to prove that he wasn't the murderer drives much of the rest of the game.
* [[Love Interest]]: Yumi Sawamura in the first one, Kaoru Sayama in the second.
* [[Man Behind the Man]]: Pretty much at least one per game.
* [[Manly Tears]]:
** Kazuma actually sheds these when {{spoiler|Rikiya}} dies. You know from this moment on that someone is [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge|GOING TO FUCKING DIE.]]
** In ''Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name'', he breaks down again when seeing {{spoiler|a video of the orphans he raised.}}
* [[Mark Hamill]]: Plays Goro Majima.
* [[Mighty Glacier]]:
** Saejima's attacks are more ponderous than Kiryu's, but hit harder.
** ''0'' has the four Mr. Shakedowns. Basketballer-tall and built like brick shithouses, they are very obvious when walking around, can't give chase to start a fight at any faster than a jog, and their attacks are highly telegraphed, but that doesn't really matter when just a few mistakes will put Kiryu or Majima's health in the grave, and the boss-level health they have means there will be plenty of opportunities to make those mistakes.
** In ''0'' and ''Kiwami'', the Beast style is the slowest of the normal three, but also the most powerful.
* [[Mirror Boss]]:
** The final boss of Kiryu's half of ''0'' has three phases mirroring Kiryu's [[Stance System]] - a speed-based style analogous to Rush, a power-based style that emphasises using environmental objects analogous to Beast, and a balanced style analogous to Brawler or Legend.
** Also from ''0'', Nishitani's style is clearly meant to be the in-universe inspiration for Majima's Mad Dog, with similar moves.
* [[Miyamoto Musashi]]: Appears in ''Kenzan!'', eventually getting a name change to {{spoiler|Kiryu Kazumanosuke}}.
* [[Mood Whiplash]]: The series is infamous for going between serious crime drama in the main story and silly substories. This can also happen within substories, though; one of Majima's substories in ''0'' plays hopscotch between the absurd silliness of a cult's practices and the disturbingly real harm it's done to a vulnerable recent inductee.
* [[Mooks]]: An endless horde of thugs, gangbangers and Yakuza endlessly harass Kazuma with their tough talk and cruel actions. He is not impressed.
* [[Mugging the Monster]]: The thugs constantly trying to beat up/extort the main characters as they walk down the street have no idea what they're getting into. In Tanimura or Akiyama's case, that's somewhat forgivable as neither of them look anywhere near as strong as they are. Well-built, clearly-a-(former) Yakuza Kazuma and built-like-a-brick-shithouse-on-steroids Saejima, on the other hand....
* [[Mysterious Informant]]: Kage the Florist, although he's not really all that mysterious. Just well-connected.
* [[Nakama]]: By the endgame of ''4'', Kazuma has formed a nakama with Shun Akiyama, Taiga Saejima and Masayoshi Tanimura. A more impressive collection of bonafide badasses will be hard to find.
* [[Never Bring a Knife to A Fist Fight]]: Because first, it won't do any good. And second, Kazuma will then use it on your friends.
** Guns won't be any better either, especially once Kazuma has mastered the Komaki Shot Stopper. He'll deflect your aim off, then proceed to beat the shit out of you.
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** Averted in Dead Souls, it's impossible to kill a zombie with melee attacks, and Kiryu has a rough time when he {{spoiler|goes into the quarantine zone without any weapons.}}
* [[Nice Guy]]: Kazuma missed his calling in life as the Patron Saint of Niceness. He helps any innocent bystander no matter how big or small the problem, rescues young girls, pets, old women crossing the street, and forgives men who try to kill him on several occasions at the slightest hint of their redemption. This makes his status as the entire underworld's [[Butt Monkey]] so far as picking fights go all the more hilarious. In 3, he goes so far as to track down the most dangerous hitmen in Japan... JUST to beat the crap out of them and drag them to a reform center so they can get out of the criminal life.
* [[No Export for You]]: The
* [[Noble Demon]]: Ryuji Goda. See [[Even Evil Has Standards]] above.
* [[Not Quite Dead]]: ''Like a Dragon'' reveals that {{spoiler|Kashiwagi survived his apparent murder in ''3'' and opened a bar in Yokohama.}}
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* [[Old Save Bonus]]: Starting a file for the second game in a card with the files from the first nets Kazuma a bonanza of items, most of which Haruka gave to him in the first game to indicate his [[Karma Meter]] progression and comprise of one-shot healing items and accessories that affect his stats.
** In ''Yakuza 3'' (may be JP version only), having a ''Kenzan!'' save file will net you Ukiyo's Bell, an exclusive protective item.
* [[One-Man Army]]:
** Kazuma. In the course of multiple games he was able to fight alone against almost everything, from entire yakuza families to triads to trained military personnel and even rogue CIA agents.
** Chronologically preceding Kiryu's first rodeo was Saejima, who got the "18-Count" moniker for killing 18 men as part of a hit on a rival clan leader and is still [[Famed in Story]] for that more than 20 years later.
* [[The Only One Allowed to Defeat You]]: {{spoiler|Goro Majima pretty much gives the as the reason why he took a knife meant for Kazuma in the gut... right after coldcocking the underling who used the aformentioned knife. }}
* [[The Other Darrin]]: As of ''Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name'', Kiryu's English voice actor has been changed from Darryl Kurylo to Yong Yea.
* [[Papa Wolf]]: Do not mess with little Haruka, Kazuma's adoptive daughter, if you value your life.
** And in ''3'', don't mess with ANY of Kazuma's kids. It counts against your life expectancy.
* [[Paper Fan of Doom]]: Ryuji gets to use this ''of all things'' to fend off various mutated zombies in ''Of The End/Dead Souls'', when trapped in a gas leak. Literally played straight, as it only takes ''a few hits'' to kill what could've taken lots of bullets, and has infinite durability
* [[Playing Against Type]]: In the English version of the first game, Bill Farmer- best known as the voice of Goofy- gives a rather remarkable and down-to-earth serious performance as Detective Makoto Date.
* [[Point of No Return]]: Usually Merciful. Before activating a mission where there is a major story progression and you get locked into a sequence that often leads all the way to the chapter boss, it is usually the case that Kiryu or the other player character will monologue about being adequately prepared and a prompt appears to check if you really want to proceed.
* [[Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner]]: Near the end of the first game, Kazuma and Haruka are about to head for the Millennium Tower to locate her mother and the missing Tojo money. Suddenly pedestrians clear the street and they're surrounded by an armed mob. Kazuma reassures Haruka that he'll get her to her mother, then turns around to stare down the mob and let them know what's coming:
{{quote|'''Kazuma''': [[Suicidal Overconfidence|So you're ready for me?]] [[Bring It|Then step the fuck up]], it's time to ''[[Tranquil Fury|die]]''.}}
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** The [[wikipedia:Ryu Ga Gotoku#Tie-in and product placement|Other Wiki]] has more specific details on the Product Placements.
* [[Psycho for Hire]]: Goro Majima. {{spoiler|To the point where you hire him in the second game, and it's real nice to have him on your side this time.}}
* [[Purple Is Powerful]]:
** In ''0'', Awano wears a purple jacket. He seems like a petty bully whose body has seen better days at first. Then he does a [[Punch Catch]] against Kiryu, who has just flattened his five underlings who had defeated {{spoiler|Oda}}. Later, he punches a wall hard enough it craters.
** Also in ''0'', Majima's [[Infinity+1 Sword]] Legend style has a purple aura and is very much worth all the trouble needed to get it.
* [[Ranged Emergency Weapon]]: In Dead Souls, Pistol ammo is infinite, making a Pistol a [[Ranged Emergency Weapon]] for most characters (except for Akiyama, whose primary weapon is a pistol). But as the first character in the game this works to soften the learning curve by making ammo not much of an issue until later).
* [[Redemption Equals Death]]: While not wholly repentant, {{spoiler|Nishiki}} died avenging someone he cared about. Ditto {{spoiler|Mine in the third game}}. Also {{spoiler|Hamazaki}} in Yakuza 4.
* [[Reformed Criminal]]: Possibly a few examples in the games, but in particular Hanaya/Kage. In the first game he had been a former police intelligence officer who was busted by Date for selling some of the information he gathered and ended up becoming the de facto ruler of Purgatory while continuing to sell information. In the second game, it turns out that the police contracted him for his abilities and he left Purgatory in the charge of [[Crazy Awesome]] Goro Majima to move his base of operations to the Millennium Tower.
* [[The Remnant]]:
** In ''Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name'', among the villains are those opposing {{spoiler|the voluntary dissolution of the Tojo Clan and Omi Alliance.}}
** In ''Lost Judgment'', {{spoiler|RK was founded by and is comprised of many former Tojo Clan members.}}
* [[Rival Turned Evil]]: Akira Nishiki, childhood friend of Kazuma who, after a series of tragic events, really changed during the years Kazuma was in jail for {{spoiler|a murder that Nishiki himself committed - granted, he had a good reason.}}
* [[Roaring Rampage of Revenge]]: Played most straight in ''Dead Souls,'' when Kazuma enters the quarantine zone to confront those that kidnapped Haruka... and proceeds to fight zombies. Unarmed.
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** {{spoiler|And in ''Of the End/Dead Souls'', Gary is your personal Drill Instructor for Zombie Killer Boot Camp.}}
* [[Screw the Money, I Have Rules]]: Pretty common, with Daigo refusing a land deal in 3 because it would inconvenience Kiryu, and the entire main cast (especially Akiyama) {{spoiler|throwing away 100 billion yen to figure out who was pulling the strings and bring them to justice.}}
* [[Selective Condemnation]]: The moralising the games have about how killing changes you for the worse - like in ''0'' between Sagawa and Majima or in ''4'' with Saejima's [[Shaming the Mob]] speech in Purgatory - fall flat considering that they allow and even reward the use of brutal Heat Actions that would put someone in the emergency room or morgue in real life, yet have no narrative consequences because of [[Gameplay and Story Segregation]].
* [[Signature Sound Effect]]: The loud echoing crack that rings each time Kazuma delivers a finishing blow to the last opponent in a combat round... even if it's just a simple straight punch to a [[Suicidal Overconfidence|suicidally overconfident]] and [[One-Hit-Point Wonder|fragile]] twerp.
* [[Shout-Out]]: Ryu Ga Gotoku 2 contained references to the previous game, [[Ashita no Joe]], SEGA, the [[Play Station 3]] cat and even [[The Matrix]] (the "Man in black").
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** More like Kazuma is the only person [[The Determinator|durable]] enough to stand up to his psychotic rage.
* [[Spoiler Opening]]: In Yakuza 3, {{spoiler|Mine is shown to be [[Not So Stoic]] in the opening video, which would be a surprise considering his seemingly low-importance for most of the game.}}
* [[Stance System]]:
** In ''0'', Kiryu and Majima can switch between four styles. There's a balanced starting style with a blue aura (Brawler for Kiryu, Thug for Majima), a speed-based style with a pink aura (Rush for Kiryu, Breaker for Majima), a power-based style with a yellow aura (Beast for Kiryu, which emphasises using environmental objects, and Slugger for Majima, which emphasises a bat), and a secret [[Infinity+1 Sword]] Legend style unlocked through a long series of sidequests that serves as a [[Call Forward]] to chronologically later games ({{spoiler|Dragon of Dojima}} for Kiryu with a white aura, {{spoiler|Mad Dog of Shimano}} for Majima with a purple aura). This returns in ''Kiwami'' with Kiryu's Legend aura changed to red and method of development being different.
** In ''Judgment'', Yagami has two styles, Crane for groups and Tiger for individuals. ''Lost Judgment'' adds Snake for counterattacks and Boxer, which is [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin]].
* [[Status Quo Is God]]: A small example: Akiyama's overweight secretary Hana becomes a [[Beautiful All Along|gorgeous bombshell thorough dieting]] by the events of ''4's'' end. She ends up returning to her old body type by ''Dead Souls.'' She's actually back to her old body type by the non-canon [[New Game+|Premium Adventure Mode]], but when/if that actually takes place isn't clear.
* [[Suicidal Overconfidence]]: "[[Mugging the Monster|Hey, we're having a pretty bad day, so we need to take out our aggression on you.]] [[Genre Blind|Huh? Why you looking at us funny?]] [[Hilarity Ensues|You wanna die, old man?!]]"
* [[Taking the Bullet]]: Pretty much at least [[Once Per Episode|once per game.]]
* [[Tattooed Crook]]: Given that the game series deals heavily with the subject of Yakuza this is ''de rigeur''. The tattoos on the main characters (Kazuma- Blue Dragon, Nishiki- Carp, Majima- Oni, Goda- Gold Dragon) turn out to be very symbolic in the games and are often reflective of their personalities and traits.
* [[Tempting Fate]]: In ''0'', Nishiki says he likes to hang out at Serena because the family higher-ups aren't aware of its existence. Guess what happens shortly afterwards?
* [[They Look Just Like Everyone Else]]:
** ''Kiwami 2'': Kei Ibuchi, with his neat hair, glasses and proper suit and tie, could be mistaken for any ordinary salaryman rather than the patriarch of a Yakuza family if you just passed him on the street none the wiser.
** ''Lost Judgment:'' Some of the White Mask mooks are [[You All Look Familiar|generic NPC models you might have walked past a dozen times without second thoughts]] until they mask up and start throwing punches.
* [[Thou Shalt Not Kill]]: Beating the crap out of dozens of people? Forgivable. One lowly punk getting shot/stabbed to death? [[Serious Business]]. Like, clan-war serious. This may come off as [[Values Dissonance]] for people used to western crime dramas, but remember that guns (and thus, gun violence) are a lot rarer in Japan, plus yakuza are ''really'' political. Unless they're [[What Measure Is a Mook?|foreigners]] in which case you can gun them down without remorse. Ditto zombies.
* [[Town with a Dark Secret]]: The [[Driving Question]] for a large part of ''6: The Song of Life'' is "What is the Secret of Onomichi and why are the Yomei Alliance going so far to keep it?"
* [[Turncoat]]: So far, apart from [[The Lancer|Shinji Tanaka]], significant individuals in the Nishiki Family are doomed to this role.
* [[Two Guys and a Girl]]: Kazuma, Nishiki, and Yumi in the first game pretty much fits this trope, especially as the story went by.
* [[The Unfought]]: {{spoiler|Hamazaki}} in the third game. Sagawa and Dojima in ''0''.
* [[Walking Armory]]: Taiga Saejima made his debut by using more guns than anyone else in the entire series: six at once! Two in either hand, two in his pockets, one in his belt, and one in his teeth. 36 bullets to wipe out an entire branch of an enemy clan. In Japan, where guns are rare to begin with, this is ''ludicrous.''
* [[Weapon of Choice]]: In ''Dead Souls/Of The End'', each of the four playable characters have one primary firearm that they use as their default weapon.
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** Majima has a [[Shotguns Are Just Better|pump-action shotgun.]]
** Ryuji's main firearm is actually one of his arms, [[Gatling Good|which transforms into a gatling gun.]]
* [[What an Idiot!]]:
** Almost [[Once an Episode]], Kiryu or another playable character will leave a defeated enemy lying on the ground but not dead or even unconscious to go talk to someone.<br />'''You'd Expect:''' They would thoroughly frisk the defeated enemy for weapons and confiscate any that are lying around. As experienced criminals, they should know that they're dealing with spiteful scumbags who will do anything to ruin the lives of their enemies.<br />'''Instead:''' They don't bother doing so. The enemy manages to recover, get his or her hands on a weapon, and fatally wound someone before finally getting put down or at least knocked out properly.<br />'''Even Worse:''' The fact that this happens across multiple games shows that Kiryu and co. are incapable of learning, despite the fact that even one friend lost to this idiocy should have been one too many.
* [[What Happened to the Mouse?]]: Averted HARD with {{spoiler|Hamazaki}} in the third game.
** Yet played straight in the same game with {{spoiler|Rikiya's childhood's friend}}. The side mission where he finds her working in a pole dancing club is treated like a main mission, with cutscene and all. {{spoiler|Rikiya promises to take her out of this life style for good}}, but he ends up {{spoiler|dead in the end}}, but the {{spoiler|girl}} is never brought up in the main storyline, and how {{spoiler|she feels about her White Knight being dead}} is left unknown.
* [[Wide Open Sandbox]]: Kamurocho in general, and other locations as the series goes on.
* [[The Worf Effect]]: In the final chapter of ''0'', the supposedly badass Nikkyo Consortium is overwhelmed by {{spoiler|the Shibusawa Family}} and Kiryu and Nishiki must intervene to save both it and the VIP it is protecting.
* [[Wouldn't Hit a Girl]]: Imposed by the games on the player; Kazuma will never find himself in a situation where he must (or can) strike a woman. On the rare occasions where he is tracking or is attacked by a woman, it will always turn out to be a [[Gender Bender|guy in drag]].
** {{spoiler|Which is hilariously subverted in a [[Sidequest]] in the first game. Refusing to go into a Hotel for some "fun" with a woman results in her calling her thug brother in an attempt to pummel Kazuma. After the obligatory trashing ensues, it's then revealed that the siblings are [[Gender Bender]]s, with the "woman" being [[Dude Looks Like a Lady|male]] and the thug "brother" being the actual female.}}
** The lack of female opponents is somewhat averted in 4. While helping her out with her investigation, Tanimura takes up a female Korean cop who's in Japan chasing a Korean criminal as a sparring partner. She's the only female opponent in the game, though, and neither one of them have any intention on holding back on each other.
** Finally averted in Dead Souls, which has female zombies, including special mutants that are exclusively female.
** This becomes an aversion of [[Gameplay and Story Segegration]] in ''7/Like a Dragon''. {{spoiler|When you fight Kiryu as a boss, he will never deliberately target female party members.}}
* [[Wrestler in All of Us]]: Pretty much everyone in all the games, actually, but special mention goes to {{spoiler|Yoshitaka Mine in the third game, who gives the [[Big Bad]] a Dragon Suplex ''off a thirty story building''.}}
* [[Zombie Apocalypse]]: ''Of The End/Dead Souls''. Yes, a Yakuza game [[Out-of-Genre Experience|features zombies]]. Somewhat subverted in that the outbreak is contained to Kamurocho and is thus not a truly global [[Zombie Apocalypse]].
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