LogInJust one week after launch, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth sold over one million copies, making it the series' fastest-selling title to date.
Image Credits: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio's Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth arrived earlier this year in January, selling over one million copies in the first week, despite the release of other big anticipated titles like Persona 3 Reload around the same time. It's the eighth mainline installment in the Yakuza series and a direct sequel to Yakuza: Like a Dragon. For the first time in the series, it's set outside of Japan and focuses on Kazuma Kiryu, the original protagonist of the series, teaming up with Like a Dragon's protagonist Ichiban Kasuga.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth has broken many records for the almost 20-year-old franchise, becoming the series most well-reviewed and fastest-selling title. However, in an interview with Japanese video game website 4Gamer, the studio director and series producer Masayoshi Yokoyama has confessed it's an unprecedented speed of sales the developers didn't expect at all.
Image Credits: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
"We gave a press release about how Infinite Wealth sold over one million copies worldwide in one week following its release, but it's really a speed we have never experienced before. Like a Dragon games sell in the long run rather than right off the bat. This has been the case ever since the series' early days. It has an adult player base, after all, so there's no rush, you know? People hear about the games from their friends, they happen to come across them, and that’s how the titles grow. That's why the way Infinite Wealth started was quite surprising to me", commented Yokoyama.
So, it's exactly because of the Yakuza series' target audience Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio was not used to explosive sales but expected regular steady growth over time. Yet it seems that Infinite Wealth has broken the pattern with the immediately high launch sales. In addition, apparently, sales in Japan and Asia were unparalleled as Masayoshi Yokoyama noted: "The game is incredibly strong in Japan. Sales in the rest of Asia are also quite strong, but the momentum in Japan is even greater than in the past". (translation via Automaton-Media)
Although the Asian market has become the driving force of Yakuza 8 sales, Yokoyama has previously mentioned he never intends to make the game content global-friendly, while his overseas staff, however, also emphasizes not to change anything. Perhaps, there's some ultimate formula the developers achieved that has contributed to the series' worldwide growth.
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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