Things weren’t look particularly good for fans of SEGA of Japan and Atlus games at the upcoming Gamescom 2016, as games like Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X, 7th Dragon III Code: VFD, Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse and Persona 5 (!) aren’t included in the lineup of games that SEGA Europe and Deep Silver will be bringing to the event. Gamescom is one of the world’s largest gaming events, held at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany. Last year, it had around 345,000 visitors from 96 countries.
SEGA of America and Europe have issued a new press release announcing the release date for Yakuza 0! The game will be released on January 24, 2017 in both physical and digital form (so Europe will get physical copies as well this time around). For preorder links, you can visit the official website here. It appears it will also be possible to preorder the digital edition, although it’s not available yet at the time of writing.
In an earlier article, we speculated that Deep Silver could be a potential candidate to bring Atlus and SEGA games to Europe, following the news that they would be publishing The King of Fighters XIV. Today that became a reality as Atlus, SEGA of America and Deep Silver have announced that they have entered a publishing deal for Europe. As part of the deal, 7th Dragon III Code: VFD, Persona 5 and SMT IV: Apocalypse will be releasing in Europe with both physical and digital versions! And the deal includes other, as of yet unannounced, games as well.
SEGA Europe have uploaded the latest SEGA Central episode to their Youtube channel, which almost entirely consists of an interview with SEGA’s Toshihiro Nagoshi, the man behind the Yakuza series, but also other SEGA games such as Daytona USA, Scud Race and the Super Monkey Ball series. Among other questions, SEGA Central asked Nagoshi about his most memorable moments of the Yakuza series, and also of his entire career in the gaming industry. They also ask if he has a message for the Yakuza fans. You can view the video below!
Haven’t had enough Yakuza 0 Media? Sega of America have uploaded a promotional trailer to their YouTube account for Yakuza 0, to celebrate its appearance at E3 2016. It’s relatively short, and it’s nothing new, but it’s one of those things that are helpful to watch when there’s downtime. Especially if it’s being shown around the convention itself, competing with the dozens of games vying for attention on the floor.
Today was a momentous day for the Yakuza franchise. Yakuza 0 made its presence known at E3 2016, and we can hope to see more of the franchise in gaming conventions across the West in the future.
The YakuzaFan tumblr account was able to capture today’s segment of the PlayStation LiveCast that featured an interview with Yakuza series producer and SEGA’s Chief Creative Officer Toshihiro Nagoshi, and Atlus Producer Sam Mullen. It’s nice that Nagoshi could be involved with the interview via Sam’s prompting.
SEGA and Atlus have issued a new press release announcing their lineup of the games for this year’s E3. For the first time at this event, SEGA and ATLUS will be sharing a stand on the shown floor, located at West Hall Booth #4810. The only actual SEGA Europe title being shown at the stand is Yakuza 0, which will be playable. While Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice is also playable, the title will be published by Nintendo in Europe. SEGA of America on the other hand will also be showing 7th Dragon III Code: VFD, which sadly hasn’t been confirmed for a European release yet. SEGA’s upcoming Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X will apparently not be shown.
UPDATE: Sam Mullen pointed out on Twitter that Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X will be present at E3, despite not being mentioned in the press release below! He also confirmed that the game will be playable, as a three song demo of the PS4 version will be present at the stage.
In a recent interview with MVC, Sega Europe’s SVP of commercial publishing John Clarck talked about SEGA’s PC business and how it shaped the company’s future. Interestingly, he also commented on their desire to deliver Japanese content from the entire group within SEGA.
Towards the end of February, it had been noticed that two different branches of SEGA would be representing the company at E3 2016 – Atlus USA and SEGA Europe. While at first this may have raised questions about the whereabouts of SEGA of America in particular and what plans there would be for any upcoming English-localized SEGA titles from Japan, we now have our answer courtesy of an update to the Atlus USA profile on the official E3 2016 website. Quoted below:
ATLUS U.S.A., Inc. is known for high-quality, deeply immersive, uniquely Japanese and indie video game experiences. Our award-winning catalog continues to grow across a variety of genres and platforms. Visit our booth featuring highly anticipated titles from ATLUS and SEGA, including Persona 5, Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse, and Yakuza 0.
Interestingly, there’s a wide swath of genres listed in this Atlus profile page, including Fighting/Wrestling, Indie, Music/Dance, Role-Playing, Strategy, Action, Adventure, and Localization. These cover virtually all modern active gaming platforms. So we can probably expect more than what’s listed at the description, at the very least. With yet-to-be-released titles such as Valkyria Chronicles Remastered (releasing later this month!) and Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA X, this is to be expected. Nevertheless it must be said that this doesn’t guarantee that these two titles in particular will be present, though we would hope to see a generous offering of titles on display.
Sega today confirmed several important release details for Yakuza 0 in the West.
First – the release window. Leading up to today, we’ve seen a couple of suggestions that the “Early 2017” release window that is now officially confirmed was likely to be realized, including an apparent interview with Toshihiro Nagoshi from a past issue of Weekly Famitsu, and an informational page on Sony’s US website. At the least, this probably comes as little surprise to many fans following news of Yakuza in the West.
Second – platforms and distribution type. Yakuza 0 released for Playstation 4 and Playstation 3 in Japan, but the Western release will see the distribution of the Playstation 4 version. This is a detail we’ve known since the North American version’s announcement, but is receiving reconfirmation. Starting with Yakuza 6, Yakuza releases in Japan seem to have finally settled on releasing on Playstation 4 rather than a cross-generational PS4-PS3 release. While there has also been some speculation about releasing Yakuza games (or other Japanese Sega titles) on PC, we don’t have confirmation on this at the moment. It’s possible that Yakuza 0 may be “Console Exclusive” to the PS4 and a PC release may happen in the future.
That aside, Yakuza 0 is also confirmed for a physical and digital release. If you don’t like having to deal with long downloading times and having precious hard drive space taken up, rejoice for a physical release! It’s coming to both North America and Europe.
…wait. Europe?
Indeed! While at first there were no confirmed plans for a European release of Yakuza 0, Sega today confirmed that European fans will be able to purchase Yakuza 0 along with North American fans. Everything for them is the same – early 2017, physical or digital, Playstation 4. Complete parity so far as we know!
A new promotional English trailer has been produced in conjunction with the release of the new Western Yakuza 0 announcement details. We’ve attached the European trailer below. Looks like Yakuza 0 earned itself a PEGI 18 rating.
![Yakuza 0 | Legends Trailer [UK]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/c_k3u7mdMds/0.jpg)
A press statement accompanies the YouTube page for these English trailers. We’ve reproduced the statement below.
The 1980s in Japan were defined by unprecedented amounts of decadent overindulgence – and nothing was out of greed’s reach, especially in Kamurocho.
A chilly but electric Tokyo in December 1988 is the backdrop for Kazuma Kiryu’s ascension into the ranks of the Yakuza – the name given to members of notorious crime organizations.
And with Yakuza 0, newcomers to SEGA’s Yakuza series will be able to get in on the ground floor, with the game’s standalone, story-driven action that focuses on navigating the seedy underworld of Japan with series protagonist Kazuma Kiryu, and for the first time in a numbered title, players will be able to play as long-time NPC, Goro Majima – the Mad Dog of Shimano. Available on the PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, the game will be localised and released as physical and digital versions early 2017.
Yakuza 0 Features:
– The Dragon’s Origins: What lies in a man’s past defines his future, and in this case, we learn a lot about what inspires Kiryu down the paths he takes in the rest of the Yakuza series. Plus, you don’t get to be called “Dragon” without being able to knock a few heads. Combat styles can be hot-swapped during fights for some of the most intense battles in the Yakuza series to date.
– Embrace the Mad Dog: For the first time in a numbered game, long-time NPC Goro Majima is now playable. With his own fighting style, abilities, and his penchant for turning sleaze into profit, stepping into the role of Yakuza’s most eccentric character will provide some eye-opening insight.
– The Decadence of the 1980s in Japan: Cash rules everything in the world of Yakuza 0, and in the game, there are a million ways to spend, make, or take money. From cash spilling out of the pockets of gang members you fight to Telephone Clubs, Disco Halls, or even Pocket Circuit car races, there are tons of ways to be a well-to-do gangster.