14 DAY TRIAL // SEGA has announced that it has decided to release Yakuza 4 on March 18, 2010 on the Japanese market. The game, bearing the original title Ryu Ga Gotoku 4: Heir to the Legend, is set to retail for 7,980 Yen, which is the equivalent of 90 dollars, and it's arriving only one year and a month after the previous installment in the series was released.
The game is set to come exclusively to the PlayStation 3 home gaming console from Sony and SEGA is not yet talking about the possibility of actually preparing a version of the title for Western markets.
Yakuza 4 should again be a gangster story that delves deep into the underworld of a modern Japanese city, showing all the dirt and weird characters that lurk under the neon lights. It seems there are now four playable characters that will be controlled by the player at certain points during the experience. There are also signs that weather effects are introduced for the first time in the series and that the entire graphical presentation has been enhanced to almost photo realism.
The game is also famous for the way it simulates modern life in a big Japanese city. There are ramen shops, which can be raided for foods or to kill some baddies, there are dates to go on, various mini games to play, characters to dress up and stores to explore.
Fans of the Yakuza series in the West are probably pretty annoyed by the fact that the latest installment is still not confirmed as arriving outside of Japan but they must be happy to know that Yakuza 3, which was out in Japan in February 2009, is set to be launched in the United States in March 2010. They are probably hoping that the title performs well and convinces SEGA to also port the fifth game.