The reviews are in for Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, opening to a respectable “Strong” on OpenCritic with an aggregate rating of 81.
Its Metacritic sits a bit lower at 79 right now.
Executive Editor Meg Pelliccio, our resident Majima expert at TheGamer (who owns not one, but two construction hats), scored it 4.5/5 stars. She highlighted its brilliant characterisation of the Mad Dog of Shimano, the wild, arcade-y ship battles, and its action combat, which she argues is the “peak” of the entire series
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VGC – 3/5
VGC scored the game 3/5, describing the experience as an “amusing, if underwhelming way to kill time before Yakuza 9”.
Eurogamer – 4/5
Eurogamer argues in its 4/5 review that this is a “first-rate Yakuza game despite the leftfield setting and delightfully unhinged plot“.
XboxEra – 8.4/10
The 3D action brawling combat of classic Yakuza is back in style, according to XboxEra’s 8.4/10 review, now with “fun pirating sections” and even more “intense set piece battles”.
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Screen Rant – 3.5/5
Our sister site Screen Rant gave Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii a score of 3.5/5, writing that it doesn’t quite match the ambition of Like a Dragon, the polish of Yakuza 0, or the emotional heights of Yakuza 6, but still “stands on its own sea legs.”
GameSpot – 7/10
The Majima-fronted spin-off is said to be a “suitably eccentric diversion” by GameSpot in its 7/10 review, but unfortunately “The story doesn’t pick up until an excellent final chapter”.
Twinfinite – 4.5/5
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is an “excellent addition to the Yakuza franchise,” argues Twinfinite in its glowing 4.5/5-star review. It could even “qualify as one of the best Yakuza games.”
How Like A Dragon: Pirate Yakuza In Hawaii Compares To The Rest Of The Series
For comparison, here’s where it ranks among the rest of the series (going by PlayStation scores):
- Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth – 89
- Yakuza 0 / Yakuza Kiwami 2 – 85
- Yakuza: Like a Dragon – 84
- Yakuza 6: The Song of Life / Yakuza 5 – 83
- Yakuza 5 Remastered – 82
- Like a Dragon: Ishin – 81
- Yakuza Kiwami – 80
- Yakuza 3 / Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii – 79
- Yakuza 4 / Yakuza 4 Remastered / Like a Dragon: The Man Who Erased His Name – 78
- Yakuza (PS2) – 75
- Yakuza 3 Remastered / Yakuza 2 – 77
- Yakuza: Dead Souls – 64
Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii launches in just two days on February 18 for PlayStation, Xbox, and PC.
- Released
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February 21, 2025
- ESRB
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Mature 17+ // Blood, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol
- Developer(s)
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Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio