Yakuza developer Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio hasn't actually settled on Like a Dragon 8's final name.
Speaking to Automaton Media recently at Tokyo Game Show 2022, Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio head Masayoshi Yokoyama spoke about the upcoming title. It turns out that although the sequel was revealed as "Like a Dragon 8" last month in September, the studio hasn't completely settled on this name for the new game.
According to the interview with Yokoyama, we could well end up with a sequel called Yakuza: Like a Dragon 2, or simply Like a Dragon 2, following in the footsteps of Yakuza: Like a Dragon led by newcomer Ichiban Kasuga in 2020. Yokoyama revealed Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio traditionally ends up observing user reactions to the names of their new games, before settling on them.
In fact, the developer has thought about changing the series' name in the past. Yakuza: Like a Dragon adopted the Japanese series title as its subtitle, and although Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio previously considered changing Yakuza's overseas name after the series gained more popularity, it decided to leave it be until now.
Two titles that do have finalized names are Like a Dragon: Ishin, the remake of the long-lost Japanese samurai spin-off, and Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name, a spin-off starring Kiryu in between Yakuza 6 and Like a Dragon. As the Yakuza series increases in popularity overseas, it's hard to remember a time when Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio had so much going on at once.
Previously, Yokoyama revealed in a separate interview why Yakuza: Ishin was remade instead of Kenzan, a similarly-lost Yakuza game confined to a Japanese release.
