Ichiban Kazuga is on a mission: to find his biological mother, Akane Kishida. But there’s much more to Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth than fighting a campy kaleidoscope of baddies and becoming the hero of Ichiban’s dreams.
Be patient, Akane-san—I have 200 new Hawaiian friends to add on Instagram!
I loved the first Like A Dragon game, and I’m glad that Infinite Wealth has carried on its legacy. There’s so much to do, with 52 substories to find and follow. But these are just the beginning. Whilst some of these sidequests take a few minutes, others lead to deep, sprawling stories that can last hours upon hours, depending on how invested you are.
After 100+ hours of gameplay, you can be sure that some of the best times I’ve had around Isezaki Ijincho, Yokohoma, and Honolulu is delivering fast food to thrill-loving locals or taking photos of nearly-nude Sickos bearing themselves to tram riders. Here are my favourite things to do if you’re more interested in singing karaoke with your buddies than babysitting a bunch of over emotional Yakuza—again.
Spoilers abound for gameplay. Some early plot spoilers.
#6: Find Your Perfect Match
I don’t know about you, but I’m a sucker for a kind-hearted, fiercely loyal goofball that effortlessly persuades everyone to rally behind them. Chitose says “I don’t think he’s smart enough to cheat someone”, but really, I just don’t think it would even cross his mind to be mean. Look, I’d date Kasuga any day, that’s all I’m saying.
So, after he bears his heart to Saeko and gets rejected, surely it would be good for him to play the field.
One of the first things you do when you get to Yokohama is meet Machiko, a “legendary Hawaiian fortune teller” with purple hair poofed into the shape of a heart. She has created the Miss Match: Dating by Divination dating app, and even though Ichiban insists that his heart belongs to another, she convinces him to use the app to work out the beta kinks.
This is such a fun game, if clearly immoral. You start out choosing your job, personality, and two hobbies, as well as a final thought that shows your intentions with the lucky lady. You can pick between things like Regular Guy, Gentleman, Life of the Party, or even F***boy, as well as a variety of jobs, from Hero (absolutely true) to Doctor, Athlete, or Civil Servant. Your personality (such as Craaazy, Alpha Male, or Hot-Blooded) and your hobbies (from drinking and reading to working out or, ahem, “you-know-what”), round out your profile. These options help you align with the girl of your choosing.
You can then spend Match Points and match with a potential date. This will give you a percentage rating of how compatible you are. Pick a girl and get chatting!
This is a timed mini game that allows you to rizz up this obviously very real, very pretty lady. You’ll have to remember your profile as well as her likes and dislikes to succeed. The gameplay involves using your wits whilst speedily typing the right buttons to avoid spelling errors—which, as we all know, leaves a bad impression for a future potential spouse! Watch the meter on the top closely: if you get past certain points, you may get a saucy picture…
If you get past the heart on the meter, she’ll agree to meet up! But will they be who they said they were on their profile?
It’s a fun, silly little game that doesn’t extend into the real world. And with Ichiban so naïve in the art of love, why not give him a bit of experience?
#5: Strike A Chord With Your Buds
It’s a Japanese tradition; one that is close to the heart of many. Tea ceremonies? Flower arranging? Soaking in an onsen?
Screw all that—time to sing!
Karaoke is a hilarious pastime in Infinite Wealth. You need to visit the Revolve or Survive bars to do it—and take some friends with you, because who you have in your party matters. You wouldn’t catch Adachi singing a song clearly meant for Joongi!
Some songs also have back up performers. These don’t need to be in your party, which is great, as it’s one of the funniest features. You’ll clap and cheer while another party member sings (bear in mind you have to control both), choosing between “casual” and “passionate”. Passionate is harder than casual, but it’s necessary if you want to get a high enough score to get over 90 points…and it’s hilarious.
Case in point: choose If I Could Love The One I Love by Zhao or Joongi. Kiryu has bars, man. Who could ignore the emotion and depth behind Zhao’s passionate rendition…while Kiryu talks about his dishwasher?
“I bought a new dishwasher! But I don’t think I got the right kind! For my thing, anyway! I need to talk to the guy at the store, again!”
Another personal favourite of mine is Summertime Groove.
“So, you know that girl you like’s got a boyfriend? I hear he’s captain of the soccer team and he’s hot and smart and athletic! He’s like the whole package, a perfect 10 out of 10! You’re not in the same league, dude! Hahaha!”
The cut to Ichiban and Adachi jamming out in Hawaii with your friends swinging towels in the crowd is hilarious. The song’s a bop in general, and one of the hardest ones, particularly at the end when everyone’s jumping around.
What’s the point of this rhythm mini-game, you ask? Well, you do need to sing to become friends with the Survive bartender…so yeah, it’s really just for fun. Just hit 90 or more on the croon-o-meter to hit full completion, and soon enough, you’ll be the karaoke king.
#4: Flex Your Head Muscles
Kasuga lost a lot of years to the Yakuza, and to being locked up for a crime he didn’t commit. Now he’s a free man, it’s time to go back to school.
The Ounabara Vocational School has set up shop in Honolulu, with a mission to educate people across the sea. Obsessive Ikari is back, who has 200 certificates to his name, and a new crush on employee Laura Maeda. Dodge his jealous accusations to complete all 21 exams and improve yourself, both mentally and physically.
Each exam is 5 questions long, and—thankfully—multiple choice. Each question gives you 30 seconds to answer, and if you get 3 out of 5 answers right per exam, you pass.
You can choose between plenty of topics, from Sports, World Landmarks, and Marine Life, to more obscure topics like SEGA Proficiency. If you’ve been paying attention as you’ve been running around, you’ll find Honolulu City Proficiency a breeze! But if you haven’t played all the Yakuza games, like me, Underworld Studies, which asks questions about key players in the different Yakuza factions, will be nothing short of guesswork.
Whatever your preference, you get Personality benefits that directly influence combat. For example, levelling up Passion increases Ichiban’s resistance to Sleep, whilst Kindness improves your healing skills.
The best part is at the end of each exam, when you’re waiting to see if Kasuga’s passed. Either he’ll tossed up in the air by other participants in a cute display of joint celebration…or he’ll be left standing still as a statue while the others leave, disheartened, patting his shoulder in consolation. Either way, the cutscenes get me every time.
Exams aren’t cheap, but they are fun. Or maybe I’m just a nerd.
#3: Be A Tourist
Just like Ichiban, I’ve never been to Hawaii. Maybe that’s why I enjoyed just running around this beach paradise so much, stirring up enemies, getting hit by cars, and generally being the excitable, approachable guy we know and love.
What do you do when you go on holiday? Stuff yourself on all the incredible food, of course!
I love going to the restaurants and trying to figure out the combo meals. Some of them give decent clues to what the menu items could be, like “Mango Mania” is likely to refer to all the items that include mango on the menu. Others require you to look at the product descriptions, or to have in-depth knowledge of a particular cuisine. You get various bonuses depending on the restaurant, from an EXP or Attack boost to increased money earned from combat.
Triggering a Table Talk is absolutely the point here—at least, for me. I love hearing pointless conversations between our quirky characters about silly things like how much they love strawberries or how California rolls “aren’t real sushi”. Some give you greater insight into your companions, and you get bond boosts to boot. The over-the-top Yoshinoya appreciation was a bit much, though. Did they sponsor the game?!
Partway through Infinite Wealth, you’re asked by the Alo-Happy Tours office to participate in the company’s Photo Rally. These photo spots are marked with a camera icon when you encounter them, and you can look up the prompts in your smartphone to find the ones you’ve missed. I swear, Ichiban’s awe-filled “This is it!” that he says whenever you line up the shot is forever engrained in my mind. It’s fun and really makes you always keep an eye out for the little coconut turtle perched on a wall or a colourful sign on a well-hidden wall.
But my favourite tourist-y thing to do is Aloha Links. When you’re wandering around Honolulu as Kasuga, you’ll see NPCs with smiley faces over their heads. Greet them to add them as a friend on the Aloha Links smartphone app, and they’ll turn green. If you see them multiple times, they’ll graduate to pink to show ultimate buddy status. Whether you are saving them from getting mugged, giving someone a bite to eat, or just yelling a cheery “Aloha!” at them, you’re making friends all over the place. How very Ichiban.
I love that all these things encouraged me to take in the world around me. In RPGs, too often I’m just trying to get to the next place, following a little icon on the map. These sneaky little quality-of-life sidequests meant that I was always looking at the details and appreciating the world. Being present, and loving life.
Okay, maybe it’s time to touch grass.
#2: Dondoko-A-Go-Go
One of my favourite things to do in this game’s prequel, Like A Dragon, was Ichiban Confections: an incredibly involved side quest where you manage a business to grow profits and expand the company. Infinite Wealth‘s answer to this is Dondoko Island.
At first, going to Dondoko Island will seem like a fever dream. There’s mascots, pirates, and mountains of trash you need to clear before you can make your mark. The minigame even has a separate pause menu, so you know it’s an immersive experience!
You need to clear the trash, develop all pieces of land, and furnish the Island to help it become the 5 star resort it used to be. Not only does this mean bopping meddlesome pirates with your bat, but you need to gather resources, from trash piles, trees and rocks to fish, bugs, veggies, and even precious stones. With these, you can buy and build various furnishings to house your island. These furnishings can raise the Island’s stats and provide attractions for the guests.
The guests are very pernickety! They may want mainly Rustic, Pop, Sleezy or Elegant furnishings, or they want a certain amount of resort satisfaction or popularity to be happy visiting. They may want certain lodge ratings (how could you expect a celeb to be housed in a shack and be happy?), or they may want to be given a certain critter as a souvenir during their stay. Whatever it is, you’d better keep them happy—and that involves not hitting them with a bat, even if they’re a little too close to that rock you want to smash up.
At first, I was pretty overwhelmed with the size of the task at hand. I haven’t played Animal Crossing, and this is very much Yakuza’s take on it. But after a while, once I’d started populating the areas with furnishings, getting into the swing of fishing, and chatting to the various Island workers to upgrade tools or develop souvenirs, I really got into it! Particularly when you realise how much money you can make for the “real” world. You can also invite key characters to holiday on at the resort, from the bartenders and Ounabara alumnus Ikari to legacy Yakuza characters like Goro Majima and Yutaka Yamai.
There’re also some extra bits for your Sujimon to do on Dondoko Farm. They can gather extra resources for you to make expansion easier, they can train, or they can even fight wild animals to keep them from attacking the Island. Speaking of Sujimon…
#1: Who’s That Sujimon?!
And my number 1 fun side adventure to do in Infinite Wealth is…play a different game.
I jest, of course! I love how much there is to do in Infinite Wealth, and I love Pokémon. Win-win, right?
Resident Gym Leader Blaine cosplayer Sujimon Sensei is in Hawaii, and takes Kasuga under his wing as his protégé. What does this involve? Catching Sujimon, raising them, and becoming the very best, like no-one ever was!
Sujimon are human enemies that you’ll find throughout Hawaii and Japan, and they all have their own designs, types, and elements. From the Nature type Squirm Worm wriggling about in his sleeping bag to the Blaze Type Extermination-kun that’s surely the predecessor to the AI invasion, there are so many weird and wacky Sujimon to collect.
How do you do this? Some Sujimon can be persuaded to join you once you defeat them. Some can be found during raids. Others can be grabbed from Gatcha spots around the map. This is a key highlight for me. Much like pulling Pokémon cards, there’s a sense of excitement at what new and exciting Sujimon you’ll get to add to your powerhouse team. However they come into your possession, you’ll need to convince them—and they need to know you’re serious about teaming up!
Talk to the Sujimon to try to recruit them and give them a Suji Gift. There are different types, so pick wisely! But make sure you’re sincere: accidentally kicking the box towards them instead of bowing demurely at their feet will make it less likely they want to fight alongside other weird sweaty men at your beck and call. Who knew?
If they accept, they’re part of your team! You can strengthen them with Sujimunch, by fighting other trainers around the map, or even by sacrificing other mons to Awaken them. You can also go to Dondoko Island and train them there (for a small fee in both time and money). Just make sure you have a strong team of 6 Sujimon with a mix of the elements to raise your chances of success.
All this isn’t just to fill out your dossier. Sujimon Sensei beseeches you to take on the Discreet Four (I love this reference to the Elite Four from Pokémon), become a Sujimon Master, and rid the Sujimon committee of its corruption.
The best thing about this is that you can’t defeat all the leaders at once—you must be the right level. This means that the Sujimon part of the game felt like it was slowly evolving throughout, so Kasuga’s fight against Palekana, the Yakuza, and society at large was intertwined with silly but nail-biting battles. It’s this absurdity, and Kasuga’s endearing goofiness, that really makes me love the Like A Dragon series so much.
Final thoughts
Infinite Wealth is a whiplash of a game. You go back and forth between grabbing cans around the city in a wild cycling minigame to saving children from a dangerous cult at an insane rate. This jumping between silly to serious is embodied by the two main characters, Kasuga and Kiryu, and I absolutely love it. These side adventures give me a break from the main story to get to know my buddies better, change jobs, mess around at the arcade, and just vibe.
Thank you, Kasuga, for giving me the best of both worlds. For an experience that keeps you guessing and having incredible fun whilst feeling all the feels.
