A demo for Like A Dragon: Ishin! dropped an unexpected two-part demo for the game before its launch on February 21.
Historical brawling takes center stage in the demo
The demo is about 30 minutes in length and has two parts. Escape from Kiyomizu temple shows off the battle system to great effect. Ryoma can use his fists, sword, dancing or even a gun to take down enemies. Consequently, wielding a sword and engaging in measured sword play is slightly different, but you quickly settle in. The demo also shows off the new Trooper activation ability. This allows Ryoma access to different strikes and abilities by holding the shoulder button.
The second portion of the demo features rivals suited in armor. You must first destroy the armor before killing the man inside. This portion requires quick side steps, parries, and blocking to be successful and is more challenging.
Obviously Ryoma is more than up to the challenge, but this gives you a chance to flex his muscles if you are unfamiliar with the SEGA and Ryo Ga Gotoku brand of brawling. There are multiple stances that you can use to lay waste to you foes. The brawling system will feel very familiar to veterans of the series, despite the historical setting. Yet, there are more nuances to every system and tons of new additions to the systems to explore.
The gun play alone feels like nothing in the series before. Slashing a foe with your katana, before blasting them with your pistol, is just amazing.
Historical Japan has never looked better
In addition, the demo also shows off the upgrade in graphics that the re-release offers. Ishin! looks great even with a ton of enemies on the screen. Also, the characters show of the great character models that the series is known for.
Another welcome addition is a “Dragon of Dojima” skin for the main character. The skin makes Ryoma look like the famous Kiryu Kazama, suit and all.
SEGA never released the PlayStation 3 & 4 versions in the West. Fortunately, SEGA has taken this opportunity to give the game a significant upgrade and release it for modern platforms.
The demo will give everyone a small taste of the game ahead of it’s release. To learn more, also check out our article where we detail everything we know so far!
Like A Dragon: Ishin! releases February 21, 2023 on PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox series S/X, and PC from SEGA and RGG Studios.
