Sega has revealed some of the games you can play within Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties.
The remake of Yakuza 3 that also includes a whole new spin-off “Gaiden” prequel in the form of Dark Ties, will actually feature emulated games based on real arcade games this time.
The original Yakuza 3 only offered Boxcelios, an original shoot-’em-up made for the game. The trend of having real emulated games as the games played in the arcades in a Like A Dragon game only began after Yakuza 5 onwards.
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties will now have actual Sega arcade games at the arcades you visit. These are all emulated arcade games produced by Sega.
The selection here are pretty deep cuts. The first being SlashOut, a 3D hack-and-slash released 2000, a natural follow-up after Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth previously featured SpikeOut.
There’s also a driving game, Emergency Call Ambulance (released in 1999) where you race against time to bring injured people to the hospital with an ambulance.
Finally, there’s Magical Truck Adventure (also a 1999 arcade title), where two players ride on not truck but rather a handcar or pump trolley. The real arcade machine has you actually pump up and down a pump trolley-esque controller to get through this literal on-rails adventure.
In addition, Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties will also feature emulated games from the Game Gear, the first in the series to do so. At least 13 Game Gear titles will be playable, two of which being games by Bandai Namco (back then trading as Namco): Pac-Man and Mappy. A few Sonic games including Sonic Chaos, Sonic & Tails (the Japanese version of Sonic Chaos- both games have slightly different content) and Sonic Drift.
These emulated classics are just some of the many other distractions you can find yourself in Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties. The game(s) feature a whole host of mini-games including karaoke, bowling, take picture in the Print Club photo booths, play golf, darts and pool, try your luck at the UFO catcher as well as various kinds of gambling activities.
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties will launch on February 12 for the PS4, PS5, PC (Steam), Xbox Series X|S and Nintendo Switch 2.