Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth (26th January 2024)

[Hero-of-Time]

Shadows of Erdtree is an easy pass for me. They've left it far too long for me to have any interest in it. It's very rare I return to a game to play the DLC. If it's there on day 1 as in something like an GOTY version then I will play it but if I've already played the base game and then DLC follows later, I'll more than likely give it a miss.

[Julius]

11 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Shadows of Erdtree is an easy pass for me. They've left it far too long for me to have any interest in it. It's very rare I return to a game to play the DLC. If it's there on day 1 as in something like an GOTY version then I will play it but if I've already played the base game and then DLC follows later, I'll more than likely give it a miss.

Ah, that's unfortunate, but I totally get it – I mean, it has been nearly two years () since it launched, which feels like it is a crazy amount of time to wait for the first piece of paid-for DLC to land for a game (even if it does turn out to be rather substantial). For me? I want some Miquella answers, damn it! It's also really interesting how they do things like make us wait nearly two years to see some DLC, and yet I feel like the endgame content for AC VI easily could've been DLC too with how that game handles it's endings and new missions. 

Honestly, along sort of similar lines, while I'm really excited to see how it eventually shapes up (assuming it releases in our lifetime ), I very much doubt I'll be picking up Persona 6 whenever it arrives just looking back at what Royal did for 5 or what I hear Golden did for 4; as much as I enjoyed 5, it seems bizarre to me that I almost felt penalised for playing that version of the game (even more so because I played it a few years after launch and not wildly long before Royal got confirmed), maybe even more so in that case because Royal content was never made an add-on/DLC though. 

Makes me really glad that RGG just don't seem all that interested in substantial paid-for DLC. Sure, you get your outfits and your legendary paid-for characters and all the other SEGA nonsense you get with a lot of their games, but I look at Gaiden and compare it a bit to Kaito Files, Majima Saga and some other extra content released they've over the years and just think "well, they tried to go that route, those ideas kept getting bigger, and I'm guessing it didn't really work out or get the traction they've wanted, so they've just decided to make dedicated games instead."

I mean they could go and prove me wrong quite easily with Infinite Wealth by releasing a piece of add-on DLC called Dirt Cheap set in South East Asia, but I really don't get the feeling that's the direction they're planning on going. 

Unless... 

[Hero-of-Time]

Quote

Not content with aping Animal Crossing in its off-the-wall island building minigame, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth will also add a Pokémon-inspired experience to its ever-expanding list of things to do. Sujimon, as its known, will see you collecting eclectic characters from all around Hawaii, and training them to create the ultimate team. Your goal is to dethrone the existing champions of the Sujimon battle world: the Discreet Four and the Sujimon Master.

Confirmation comes courtesy of a press release, as translated by Gematsu. “As you progress through the Sujimon battle storyline, a new job, Sujimancer, will be unlocked,” the announcement explains. “Once you become a Sujimancer, you’ll be able to equip your Sujimon and summon them into actual combat. The stronger your Sujimon are, the more powerful your Sujimancer skills will be.”

Sujimon can be acquired after battle or via an in-game gacha system, although no real-world currency will be involved here. Battles are three-on-three affairs, with each Sujimon having a unique affinity. You’ll need to mix and match these to build the ultimate team. As your Sujimon get stronger, they may even evolve – is any of this sounding familiar yet? One unique feature is that you can take your Sujimon back to the aforementioned Dondoko Island, where they can train and help you make money.

Yeah, I'm getting freaked out how big this game is gonna be. 

[Julius]

42 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Yeah, I'm getting freaked out how big this game is gonna be. 

Yikes. I know we've seen some of the Sujimon stuff in trailers, but reading through that it just sounds so much more involved, complex, and I imagine much longer than I thought it was going to be. 

So I think...

On 11/26/2023 at 8:37 PM, Julius said:

At this point I've made peace with what I want to play from Jan to March (which is to say: this and Rebirth )

...I'm going to take this back.

I'll get to this game next year, for sure - maybe in the summer? It has those vibes - and I can't wait to play it after loving LAD, but VII Rebirth takes priority, and the more we hear, the more I think I'm at risk of stressing myself out over finishing Infinite Wealth before Rebirth, which is stress I'll easily pass on. 

Means I get to pick it up a bit cheaper whenever I do, hopefully, and just play some other games in the meantime. I don't think I could do this and Rebirth back-to-back with how much I know I'll want to get out of both games going in without burning myself out, let alone the thought of Persona 3 Reload, Granblue, etc. - I might just try to do one of those a quarter to stay on top of the JRPG goodness next year, but no rush 

So pleaseeeeeeee can no-one else announce another massive, 70+ hour JRPG I'll want to play for the second half of 2024 (or I'll cut you); S-E, show us DQ XII already! But save it for 2025...pretty please? 

Edited December 29, 2023 by Julius

[Hero-of-Time]

Yeah, if this indeed turns out to be massive, I'll probably also give it a miss until I'm done with FFVII Rebirth. I've got plenty of games from this year to still get through to keep me busy until then.

[Glen-i]

53 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Battles are three-on-three affairs

Well, if Pokémon won't bring back triple battles...

Sounds awesome. A mini Pokémon clone dedicated to a single JRPG job? That's kinda bonkers!

[drahkon]

Quote

When it comes to trying to experience everything a sprawling hundred-hour RPG has to offer, New Game+ can often be an essential tool for running through a game a second or third time without causing too much psychological damage. Some games, like the Persona series, even require a NG+ run if you want the full completionist adventure.

It makes it all the more baffling, then, that Sega's upcoming Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is locking its New Game+ mode behind its Deluxe and Ultimate editions, which cost an extra $15 and $40 on top of the base game respectively. This is a series which, traditionally, has had its own features locked behind a NG+ run such as the legendary difficulty mode.

 

Specifically, NG+ is being folded into the 'Master Vacation Bundle' which isn't included with the game's base version. According to the game's official website the bundle also includes a bonus dungeon, special sujimon (from a Pokémon-like mode), resort guests, outfits "and more." 

Frustratingly, none of these specifics are included on the game's Steam page. It lists out each edition and what bundles you get for them, but fails to detail what's included in each one. That means if you're just going by the Steam page it's perfectly reasonable to assume that a series which has traditionally included NG+ for no extra price would, in fact, have it in its standard edition.

(Image credit: Sega)

It feels a little rancid to me to have such a basic feature require at least a $15 upgrade in order to have. Sure, you get a couple of other goodies for the pleasure, but they're considerably more optional in nature. 

Of course, there's still the chance that this is some rather confusing wording on Sega's part. But considering one eagle-eyed Redditor noticed the situation about a month back and got in touch to be told that yep, this is legit, I'm not too confident. Regardless, I've asked Sega for clarification about the situation, and I'll update this article if I hear anything back.

From pcgamer.com

If this is what it'll be like...fuck you then. Second-hand purchase in 2 years or I'll wait for it to be on PS+

[Hero-of-Time]

Yeah, it's absolutely disgusting. Welcome to modern gaming.

It was actually the same for Yakuza 7 in Japan but once it was released over here it was changed. Guess they ain't bothering to alter it this time around.

[RedShell]

Man, that is greedy. I'm not a fan of this multiple edition malarkey at the best of times, but locking a once standard feature behind the most expensive edition? Not cool at all. In this particular case (NG+) it's not something that I'd personally miss, but even so, I'd hate for this type of practice to become the norm.

Not sure if I'm going to get this at launch or wait for a sale.

[Julius]

Kamiya has chimed in on the situation:

Quote

Sega has become a company that makes you pay money to play laps...lol lol

[...]

They'll make you pay for playing laps, you'll be desperate to catch money with the Amapura business method, a certain world-famous and gentle game designer will become unemployed..The game industry is crazy these days, isn't it?

Found that funny as heck 

Anyways, agreed with everyone: this sucks.

The NG+ stuff doesn't bother me too much, but of course things like the Sujimon and exclusive bonus dungeon really does, and I'm curious to see how that bonus dungeon is handled as it's not really detailed – is it additional story stuff or just a place to grind? 

While it sucks, considering that Like a Dragon has "only" sold 1.5 million units as of the end of month, I can see why, if this were a smaller studio, things like this end up being done - not that it's okay, but sometimes it's just how it goes. But a SEGA-published title, already starting to milk a franchise for all that it's worth off the back of "only" 1.5 million units sold of this upcoming game's predecessor? For all of the platforms that Yakuza is on now, while it's awesome that the franchise has blown up, I'd argue there's still a long way to go (and I think this series can get there) before you can start pulling things off like this in a similar way to what they've done with Persona 5. It still feels like it's on an upwards trajectory and I think they need to tread carefully, because these games rely SO heavily on word of mouth that pissing off your core audience could have ramifications if I continue this with future games and take the content divide between editions further (which, unfortunately, seems likely). 

Cosmetic stuff, fine. Optional cards/whatever in side content to speed things up/customise further, fine-ish (feels kind of like a mobile game at that point). But bonus content, which kind of feels like it's stuff being taken away from people buying the game at anything but those premium tiers, rather than additional stuff being added? It's disgusting. 

[Dcubed]

9 minutes ago, Julius said:

Kamiya has chimed in on the situation:

Found that funny as heck 

Anyways, agreed with everyone: this sucks.

The NG+ stuff doesn't bother me too much, but of course things like the Sujimon and exclusive bonus dungeon really does, and I'm curious to see how that bonus dungeon is handled as it's not really detailed – is it additional story stuff or just a place to grind? 

While it sucks, considering that Like a Dragon has "only" sold 1.5 million units as of the end of month, I can see why, if this were a smaller studio, things like this end up being done - not that it's okay, but sometimes it's just how it goes. But a SEGA-published title, already starting to milk a franchise for all that it's worth off the back of "only" 1.5 million units sold of this upcoming game's predecessor? For all of the platforms that Yakuza is on now, while it's awesome that the franchise has blown up, I'd argue there's still a long way to go (and I think this series can get there) before you can start pulling things off like this in a similar way to what they've done with Persona 5. It still feels like it's on an upwards trajectory and I think they need to tread carefully, because these games rely SO heavily on word of mouth that pissing off your core audience could have ramifications if I continue this with future games and take the content divide between editions further (which, unfortunately, seems likely). 

Cosmetic stuff, fine. Optional cards/whatever in side content to speed things up/customise further, fine-ish (feels kind of like a mobile game at that point). But bonus content, which kind of feels like it's stuff being taken away from people buying the game at anything but those premium tiers, rather than additional stuff being added? It's disgusting. 

Doesn't surprise me that Kamiya would be outspoken about this situation.  He left Platinum Games for this exact reason; he doesn't want to work on GAAS games that are focused on carving themselves up and being sold piecemeal.

Anyway, this move doesn't surprise me in the slightest.  SEGA/Atlus have been doing this sort of thing with most of their games for quite some time now (I mean, this is the publisher that is so desperate that they actually took out menu animations in Sonic Origins to sell seperately).

Edited January 21 by Dcubed

[Julius]

Game has reviewed insanely well: currently at a 90 on MC and a 90 over on OC, too. This marks the first time an RGG title has scored over 85 on Metacritic, making it the best-reviewing game in their history. 

So, which of you crazies are jumping in this week? 

[Hero-of-Time]

14 hours ago, Julius said:

So, which of you crazies are jumping in this week? 

Not gonna lie, I'm very tempted, especially as many are saying the narrative is the best in the series. Gotta stay strong...

[drahkon]

14 hours ago, Julius said:

So, which of you crazies are jumping in this week? 

I'll stand by this:

On 1/20/2024 at 4:33 PM, drahkon said:

Second-hand purchase in 2 years or I'll wait for it to be on PS+

 

[RedShell]

16 hours ago, Julius said:

So, which of you crazies are jumping in this week? 

[martinist]

I completely forgot this came out yesterday untill i turned on my PS5 around 9pm.

Didn't get very far at all, still in Yokohama. I'll work through it a little more today.

[Julius]

1 million units shipped in the first week:

Dang. Remember that the latest update towards the end of last year was that LAD was at 1.8 million units in its lifetime. 

AND there's probably many (like me) who have skipped the launch for one reason or another, but will absolutely be picking it up at some point this year. 

[martinist]

I have been living on Dondoko Island for days and I refuse to leave untill I can break this game's ecconomy... almost at 3 stars. Once you build the bridge to the island just start catching golden sharks.

[Hero-of-Time]

Currently on Sale for £34.99 over at Amazon

LINK

 

[Julius]

On 3/22/2024 at 7:17 AM, Hero-of-Time said:

Currently on Sale for £34.99 over at Amazon

LINK

I've just checked that link and it's down to £29.99 now...

Yeah, that's too good to not bite. Sorry, best laid plans of delaying game purchases, but I doubt we'll get a better deal than that for a while 

Thanks for the heads-up on the offer H-o-T! 

Edited March 23 by Julius

[Hero-of-Time]

On 23/03/2024 at 2:19 PM, Julius said:

I've just checked that link and it's down to £29.99 now...

Yeah, that's too good to not bite. Sorry, best laid plans of delaying game purchases, but I doubt we'll get a better deal than that for a while 

Thanks for the heads-up on the offer H-o-T! 

I ended up getting it as well.

All the games I held off on got reduced to a price I was willing to pay (£35 or under). Persona is going back though. Amazon have clearly sent me an opened and resealed copy. Ain't putting up with that.

Just now waiting for Tekken 8 and Granblue to reach that sweet price spot.

[Ike]

52 minutes ago, Hero-of-Time said:

Amazon have clearly sent me an opened and resealed copy. Ain't putting up with that.

I picked up Persona as well, how can you tell it's resealed?

[Hero-of-Time]

16 minutes ago, Ike said:

I picked up Persona as well, how can you tell it's resealed?

There's not a PlayStation seal going around it. It's just standard cellophane. Plus, the box looks a bit bashed.

[Happenstance]

1 hour ago, Hero-of-Time said:

There's not a PlayStation seal going around it. It's just standard cellophane. Plus, the box looks a bit bashed.

Just checked an unboxing video and it looks like it just doesn't have the Playstation seal.

[Hero-of-Time]

3 minutes ago, Happenstance said:

Just checked an unboxing video and it looks like it just doesn't have the Playstation seal.

Really? Weird. Still going back though due to the bashed box.