Lost Judgment Could Reportedly Be The Last Entry In The Series

Lost Judgment, the upcoming squeal to Judgment could be the end of the series before it even launches according to recent reports.

A new report from Japanese website Nikkan Taishu, the site has apparently heard about ongoing disputes between SEGA and actor Takuya Kimura’s talent agency, Johnny & Associates. The issue seemed to stem from the agency not wanting Kimura to be in a PC version of the game.

the agency supposedly "has strict control over the [likeness] rights of its talent, and the use of their image online is still limited to a few". It's not clear why the company wants to block the titles from PC specifically but my guess would be due to the openness of the platform. Sadly due to the dispute, future installments of the game are said to possibly never be released.

The reason behind this, according to the report, is if they can't "distribute the game on Steam, it would be very difficult from a business standpoint, and the series will end with the second game, Lost Judgment.”

There's no official word of this yet, so take everything as a rumor but this could cause problems with the future of the Yakuza series too. SEGA recently confirmed that the beat-em-up style of gameplay would live on in Judgment while Yakuza would be making the switch to turn based combat after Yakuza Like A Dragon. This whole ordeal if true would kinda mess up those plans, however it's also possible that they just end up switching up the protagnist for future Judgment games which would be a shame as i love Tak as a character and can't wait to experinece more of his story but i'd rather that than see this series go away.

The Yakuza Series will continue to be a turn-based RPG for the forseeable future

Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has seemingly confirmed that the Yakuza games will continue to use the turn-based RPG mechanics from Yakuza: Like a Dragon.

in an interview with IGN, Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi and producer Kazuki Hosokawa confirmed the change would be permanent, saying: "The Yakuza series has been transformed into a turn-based RPG. On the other hand, over the years, Ryu ga Gotoku Studio has accumulated resources and know-how of making flashy and exhilarating action games that are effortless to enjoy. We decided that we should let our signature action gameplay live on through Lost Judgment"

I personally welcome the change and I feel it fits better with the themes of the Yakuza series. Yakuza Like A Dragon was a breath of fresh air that showed that you don't need a single overpowered protagonist to steer the ship of the story but more so it can be a joint effort. That's can only be a good thing as RGG Studio makes some of the most compelling characters in games to date. That and they can do wacky stuff like Majima running down the side of a skyscraper for a special attack.

Lost Judgment Announced By SEGA

Ryu Ga Gotaku Studio has announced a sequel to Yakuza spin-off Judgment in the form of Lost Judgment coming in September.

The game will follow the main character from the first game detective Takayuki Yagami as he is thrown into a new murder investigation that begins on the streets of Kamarocho but will eventually take him to the Ijincho distrct of Yokohama. (the location of Yakuza Like Dragon)

Players will have to search for clues, chase down criminals and deliver the delicious dish of justice in the form of Tak's Fist.

Investigations return with the usual tailing, chasing and cross-examining suspects, however, Tak gets some additional tricks that include new stealth moves, wiretapping, and acrobatic skills.

On the punching side of things, Tak has gained a brand new fighting style in the form of the Snake, where it's described as using the foes moves against them. Crane and Tiger style also both return but let's be real, we're all gonna use the new fighting style.

In regards to the story, players will go undercover at a local high school, and it looks to be where you'll get to experience the side missions which have formerly been renamed in Lost Judgment to School Stories. They will apparently be just as wacky as prior games with mini-games that range from dancing to controlling battle robots.

Lost Judgment will be launching globally on September 24, 2021, on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4