This video contains spoilers for many of the mainline games, with the games in question being listed before the associated character reveal. But if you want to be extra cautious, here are the titles that are discussed with the associated timestamps, sorted in release order: Yakuza 1/Kiwami and 2/Kiwami 2 - 1:07 - 5:22 Yakuza 2 and 3 - 9:00 - 11:06 Yakuza 3 - 5:22 - 6:57 Yakuza 4 - 6:57 - 9:00 , 15:12 - 17:32 Kurohyou - 12:52 - 15:12 , 20:38 - 23:54 Yakuza 5 - 11:06 - 12:52 , 17:32 - 20:38
Akiyama actually does have a folder in the character model files of Yakuza 7, there’s an unfinished model of him in the folder. I 100% believe that Nick Ogata was originally planned to be Akiyama.
As much as I love Shinada and believe he was the greatest thing to come out of RGG Studios since karaoke, I'm content with him not re-appearing, and being relegated to mere references. Even in Yakuza 5, his story was, by design, very self-contained and he achieved exactly what he wanted to by the time the credits rolled. Compared to someone like Tanimura who had a satisfying ending but could still be developed on more, Shinada is just a civilian who doesn't even live in Kamurocho, so it makes sense to keep him as a one-off yet beloved character.
I'm a firm believer that some big characters are coming back in Gaiden. Some top secret paramilitary faction that could be harboring loads of written off characters. Plus they've been bringing back some characters that had clear on screen deaths previously. Anything is possible
i honestly would love to see Aizawa come back and have something done with him. I've seen other comments bring up the idea of him being Ichiban's Ryuji and I think that'd be cool.
Kaoru's profiles do get filled up on their own in Yakuza 3 Remastered. It's just that they are chapter dependent, meaning that at certain points of the story they will say stuff like "gaining weight because of her new american diet" but then in the next the line might disappear or get filled with something like "rejected advances from handsome american cop." Either way, Kaoru was done dirty by the writer in Yakuza 3. She and Kiryu both deserved a happy ending, or at least more of an exploration of their relationship and story. As for the rest of the list, I'd love to see Tanimura and Shinada back, or even Tatsuya being acknowledged in the main RGG Studio games in any way. People have said there should be Kurohyou Kiwamis and while I believe those would help raise awareness of those games, I also want the originals (as well as the PS2 games) to be released on modern platforms.
After 6, I assumed Kiryu moved to America and reconnected with Kaoru, now that he was finally free from everything, would've been a good hiding place for him too. I was kind of disappointed to find out that wasn't case when 7 came out and that the upcoming Gaiden game is basically confirming that Kiryu was still in Japan. My hope is though that Kaoru returns in 8 and that maybe that the Gaiden is hiting her return and the reason to why he came back from hiding in 7.
One character that is probably the most forgotten character, one that even you seemingly forgot is Junichi Sudo. A character who Im still to this day am unsure what the story behind was. He appears in four games, but only three appearances are relevant, one of which is just for one scene. Ive never really sensed anything special about this character, but similarly to Hayashi, he was used a few times in the first two games, but he did return in the future entries, but unlike Hayashi, Sudo's relevancy was always extemely minimal serving as Date's friend/rival figure, but their relationship was never properly explored and faded into obscurity very quickly. Kiryu didn't even have a face to face with Sudo in any of the games, despite him being seemingly important to the events going on, being an important investigator.
One thing that a lot of people misinterpret is that the controversy around Narimiya (Tanimura's original face model) happened in December 2016, some months after Yakuza 6's release, which meant that there was no excuse (leaving the whole actor hiring shtick aside) not to include his story in Yakuza 5 of 6, especially the latter.
@@gokudoni It seems like the grappler role is a cursed one because Shinada was completely absent from the beginning of Y6 when they showed all the Y5 characters. Here's hoping they show up in 8, along with our boy Tatsuya.
I really want Ukyo Tatsuya back into the Yakuza series considering the stuff he did in his series. Pretty sure Kiryu would like him honestly. But then again, he might be sick and tired of the amount of strong fighters with a dragon tattoo on their backs.
I'd take Takasugi over Aizawa any day. I'd even argue that if they decided to bring Shinada back, it would be a big shame to not include Takasugi alongside him, their dynamic was amazing
Imagine Tatsuya in his absolute prime as an Amon like optional boss in RGG 8. I mean he was already a beast back when he was 19 ( 2012), one could only imagine how powerful he would be by the time of RGG 8 (2022/2023)
I love Yakuza but I hate that every game feels like a reset. One of the reasons I appreciate Yakuza 2 is because it picks up and builds on 1. They drop so many characters for no reason and just introduce new ones. I think one reason I love Akiyama so much is because he was in 4 but also played a big part in 5 and 6. Wish they did that with more characters. Even if it's in substories or side activities.
I believe Shinada is living happily in Nagoya despite his enclunter with his neighbour. Even then, at that point he still believed that they weren't capable of evil, which was correct and thanks to his kind nature survived the encounter. I just wish we got a mention of him doing well in Nagoya, out of poverty, etc.
I also wonder what's up with Katsuya from Y5. If they had no intention of bringing him back, why not let him die from his near-fatal bullet wound? Nobody even mentions him later, even though he was pretty close with Watase. They also never specify who the Omi chairman is during the dissolution. Can't be the old guy since he betrayed everyone and was also dying. Hayashi-wise, I like to think Dead Souls did happen, the people of Kamurocho just collectively decided "we shall never mention the Zombie Incident again". Which would also mean Ryuji is alive and well, making takoyaki somewhere.
Agreed on entire list, I'd also like to add Nakahara/Kiryu second kyodai to the list You should do a list on 'characters that should return from the dead' just for fun lol
Oh wow you STARTED with the one who I would put at the top of this list. Just a reminder about my long-running fanon: Yayoi Dojima and Kaoru Sayama have been traveling America in a van for the last several years solving mysteries in small towns. I'm talking to the streaming people about a series. And I'm of the personal opinion that Shinada's story is complete as is.
yeah, I love the bittersweet ambiguity of shinada's ending. also think he would just be a hard guy to write into another huge-scale conspiracy plot without making it feel forced or weakening his ending in lad 5 since he doesn't really lead that kind of life. but I also think he and ichiban would be a fun duo! he'd probably work best in a substory.
A character I barely see any people talk about is Naoki Katsuya , he could’ve easily been brought back in 7 but wasn’t, the point about kido could easily be said about him as well but I haven’t seen any controversies with his actor or anything, and he was a pretty important character in 5 and in the omi which is why I question why wasn’t he brought back in 7 which was mostly about the omi?
Amazing character, amazing actor. Genuinely wish he reappeared like Watase did. Wanted to include him here as well, but there were already two prominent Y5 characters on the list, sadly.
@@gokudoni understandable, they easily could’ve included him next to watase with a minor role like him, say a few lines and have him off, kinda sad he’s most likely never gonna return.
I was really waiting for Nakahara/Mikio, especially in Yakuza 5 lol if even just a passing reference. Something like Kiryu saying "I have Mikio helping watch the kids back at the Orphanage". I always liked those two, but hated how they completely disappear after 3. Even just mentioning them in 4 or 5 would've been good enough lol.
I rly hope characters like Nioka or Ryusho come back to the series, I find it really intresting to see just how many families are in the Tojo and how many of them butt heads with each other based on their personalities
Tatsuya is an amazing character and DESERVES to come back. At least a third entry to finish the tale of the Mad Dragon. He HAS potential, he STILL needs a ending to hos story and we NEED the games officially ported here to the West. I'm serious, if not a third entry, if we could ger a KIWAMI remake of them, it would be awesome ^^ Kurohyou is my favorite RGG franchise and Tatsuya is my favorite protag. This dude and the the cast from both the games need to return (Principally Saki and Tenma. Tenma is a ride or die friend and Saki feels left out from Kuro 2, she deserves to comeback on a third entry Also, it's kinda funny when we think Tatsuya gave up on pro boxing because of "philosophy", but he explained further that it didn't felt he deserved it. That those people sponsoring him were just looking to make cash of him and treated him as a golden goose, if I remember correctly. If he would turn pro, he wanted to achieve with his own fists. In MY little headcanon, I think Kuki continues Dragon Head but now as organization that sponsor fighters and stuff, having Dragon Heat as another business on the side. Hell, I feel Kuki WOULD help Tatsuya become a pro boxer and let him achieve it the way he wants. I feel like Kuki and Tatsuya's trust on one another could lead to that. As a ending for Tatsuya, I could see him owning a gym and aiding and training other fighter, even helping them figure it out their own philosophies. Of course, still fighting on Dragon Heat once of twice to keep in shape and maintain contact with a place that is very important to him. Would seem fitting for him, in my eyes
Shinada my beloved. Favorite protagonist, not just from RGG but all gaming. There's something mildly interesting about Kido and Arai. As we know RGG loves to reuse assets, yet their movesets weren't reused even a single time since release of 4. I'd like to see Kido as a playable protagonist, I think he have potential. I'd like to point out 2 amazing characters that I think deserves a honorable mentions. Junji Sugiuchi, the 'TRUE' final boss of Tanimura, personally favorite and very fun fight in 4. Also a man who entered the franchise with a Gigachad energy; Masaru Watase, I sincerely hope he will become final boss of RGG Gaiden to get a fight as good as he deserves, since he was ridiculously weak in 5.
to update on kaoru, she is brought back in infinite wealth as a substory to kiryu's awakening, called by date to just meet up and chat while kiryu continues to cover up his name
Aizawa is probably the main one I want to return, imagine how cool it would be if, after the requisite Amon fight, you get a message challenging you to the *true* final battle, returning to the decrepit Tojo Clan HQ to reveal him shrouded by the moon, and he hops down for a final battle where he has gotten much stronger. Would be pretty dope.
Tanimura didn't return in 5 or 0 though even the voice actor controversy didn't happen until 2016. So It might have been sega not wanting to pay for his VA since his appearance was based on him
@hoodironyyy He's 29 in yakuza 4 and yakuza 4 is 2009 so 21 years earlier in yakuza 0 he's 8 and you go to little Asia so it would have been possible for kiryu to run into him when he was young
I think a Shinada substory would be the best option, since although he's my favorite character in the series it's hard for RGG to write him into games with how much of a nobody he is in the context of the rest of the series.
Great video Gokudoni! I really hope to see Ichiban meet Shinada, there’s so much character potential with 8 on the horizon. Maybe we'll see Sayama again one day 😫😫
ALSO, thank you so much for shining that light on Hayashi. Having played through the whole series now, spin-offs included, he has become my favorite minor character by far because of his convictions, his tenacity, and his completely pure respect for Kiryu's strength. He's the kind of villain that may not be a good person at heart, but can at least recognize when someone is stronger than him and not hate them for it. Had I the choice to bring any minor character back, it would be either Hayashi, Hasabe from Yakuza 3, or Minami from Yakuza 4. Minami especially had such strong characterization and an absolute banger boss theme, to simply throw those away is an absolute shame. Plus, with Majima getting older and seemingly aware of that, having Minami take up the reigns in the Majima family and providing the series another boss with an actually good capoeira fighting style would be a complete win on all fronts.
In my personal opinion, I think Akiyama will return in Like A Dragon 8 or we could just get a spinoff game centered around him during the events of Lost Judgment. As for Tanimura and Shinada, They are likely to appear in a substory of Gaiden where they meet up & Reunite with each other[I mean Kiryu, Tanimura and Shinada will reconcile with each other]. Speaking of Sayama and Aizawa, Sayama is likely to appear in a side quest where she comes back to Japan, exploring the streets of Yokohama. She suddenly notices Kiryu passing through and she was like ''Is that KIRYU!?'' ''WHY IS HE HERE!? ''Whatever, I've gotta meet up with him. After all, It's been more than a decade since we've seen each other'' Then, Sayama and Kiryu finally meet each other. Same goes with Aizawa, too. Well, I think we'd more or less likely see him in a Sub Story of Gaiden, Where he suddenly comes to Yokohama for some business and then, Aizawa and Kiryu Interact with each other, With Aizawa talking about the incidents he's been through after the events of Yakuza 5. And then Aizawa asks Kiryu a Question. Aizawa: Kiryu, It's been 6 years we've fought each other! When we're gonna fight again? Kiryu: Uh.... Ummm..... Aizawa: Didn't you say that You'd fight me again? Kiryu: Yes, I did said that but I'm not fighting you unless I've got any good reason, Aizawa. Aizawa: Wait, WHAT!? You know what, Kiryu? I've been always ready for the fight I'd have to fight you and you're saying that you won't fight ME!? You're just holding back. C'mon, stop holding back and FIGHT ME LIKE A MAN! Kiryu: Heh, Are you sure about it, Aizawa? Aizawa: Yeah, I'm DAMN SURE ABOUT IT! In fact, I'm not crying like a baby if I lost! So, you ready? Kiryu: Okay, Fine by me, then. I'm ready anytime! IF YOU WANNA DIE, COME AT ME! They both end up roundhouse kicking each other in the face and FIGHT STARTS! Music name: The battle for the dream 2.0 Conclusion: This is what I Imagine, folks! Akiyama Returns in Like A Dragon 8 or just in a spinoff game featuring Him as a Protagonist. Tanimura, Shinada, Sayama and Aizawa. Four of them will be returning in some side quests of Gaiden, with Tanimura, Sayama and Shinada reuniting with Kiryu and Kiryu giving Aizawa the rematch he said he'd give him. That is all I've got to say, My dear folks! See you guys later! HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH!
I was hoping to see Hana in the video since when it comes to the main games she was only 4 and 5 it was just her voice and she is also in more spinoffs with her being her canon self in dead souls, having a ishin counterpart, and being in the first panther game
She is easily one of my favourite characters as well! The main reason she isn't on here is that there were already two characters that originated from Y4 on the list. Plus, Akiyama and her are kind of a package deal, so if his seiyuu is available for LAD 8, Hana will probably return as well.
@@gokudoni If Hana does return I hope Akiyama and her finally get together because despite being so different they are made for eachother and their ishin counterparts are married so it can happen in the canon
i had an idea some time ago for a "yakuza stories" game, basically short little microcosms of yakuza games like the majima storyline in kiwami 2, or the ones from 4, 5, etc., but completely self-contained. would mainly exist to flesh out and give some insight to some lesser-explored characters and empty patches in the timeline.
Surprised no one is mentioning baba here. Dude was supposed swear an oath with saejima as brothers but doesn't show up again? Imo it would've been really cool to have him in that big omi alliance battle in 7
Tatsuya character arc was basically like Musashi Miyamoto from Vagabond. In "Kurohyou: Ryu ga Gotoku Shinsho", Tatsuya Ukyo starts as a rebellious street punk. He gets involved in the world of the yakuza when he accidentally kills a member of the Tojo Clan in a fight. Tatsuya is then forced to participate in an underground fight club to pay off his debt and gradually gets dragged deeper into the yakuza's conflicts. Despite his rough exterior, Tatsuya is inherently good-hearted and fiercely loyal to his friends. His character arc in this game revolves around him struggling to navigate the dangerous yakuza world while trying to protect those he cares about. In the sequel, "Kurohyou 2: Ryu ga Gotoku Ashura-hen", Tatsuya is trying to lead a normal life and stay out of trouble. However, circumstances pull him back into the underworld. This time, he gets involved in a power struggle between various yakuza factions. Tatsuya's character arc in this game is about dealing with his past actions, accepting responsibility, and deciding what kind of person he wants to be in the future. Throughout both games, Tatsuya grows from a reckless street punk into a more responsible and mature individual who understands the consequences of his actions.
7:00 uhm, you forgot that they made THE KIDO FILES smh... he was balls out with Saejima and now balls deep in Mikiko smh Anyway I miss Tonny Moore and Shinada too :(
I'm still puzzled how the florist wasn't even mntioned in 6. Kiryu wanting to know where Haruka is, decides to go after Akiyama because he was with her 3 years prior instead of going after the city's biggest information broker with cameras everywhere. If they wanted to write him off, just have someone say he left or something.
I find it interesting with one of these he might actually of returned, though with a different name and everything though won't get into it too much though it is believed and heavily hinted at at that Kiryu handler is Aizawa after the events of Y5 that he got picked up and trained by the daidoji much like the two main villians of Gaiden were at the end of the game. Since the handler knows of Kiryu fake name he used as a taxi driver, which is also now Kiryu legal name
I wonder what happened to Katsuya after Y5. I like to think Katsuya ended up becoming the 8th chairman for the Omi Alliance. The dissolution as far as we know was planned by Daigo and Watase. Yet the unknown 8th chairman seemed to agree 100% with it. I know Katsuya himself said Watase should be the 8th chairman but he also took a bullet for Watase so in gratitude Katsuya could have become the 8th chairman. I guess it makes since the dissolution would have required close collaboration between the Tojo and Omi chairmen, Watase and Arakawa. The best man for that imo is Katsuya since they all worked together in Y5.
Love them both! Generally, it felt like their narrative was more conclusive than that of the other characters on the list, so I didn't include them in the end. Though, they were part of an earlier script for the video along with Hana, Minami and Nishida.
they couldve easily brought back tanimura for yakuza 6, he couldve helped instead of date, its literally all about little asia, wouldnt he be FURIOUS about the saio triad taking over what he considered his own family? also justice for shinada, bsebllplyrs4lyfe
Although i dont think shinada would have fit into the plot of yakuza 6, he still should have been there in the opening, and should have had a cameo appearance in the baseball side story so we could see how his rebooted baseball career worked out
My one entry that I'd include as not so much a 'I wish they'd found a spot for her somewhere' but a 'I wish they'd included her very specifically in one spot' is Kaoru Sayama. Because as much as I love Akiyama, it did always feel weird to me that he was in Yakuza 5. When did he meet Haruka? What connection does he have to Osaka? I get why they brought him in - the story needed a detective and despite allegedly being a money lender he's a pure film noir detective character - so unless there was a pre-existing character who had clear ties to Haruka and Osaka, I guess he was the best choice. ;) I just can't but help feel like Kaoru would have made more sense as Haruka's offsider in that chapter. Plus, it would have meant we'd have gotten the hilarity of Kiryu's awkward reintroduction to his ex.
For me the biggest issue with the series is that so much of the senior Tojo leadership gets wiped out each game (particularly in 2, and we see how few direct patriarchs are left sitting in Yakuza 3 as a result), and yet we have new senior Tojo guys like Shibata spring up in 4 and flashbacks show that he's been around since before Saejima even first went to prison. Or Arakawa in Yakuza 7 being a trusted advisor to Daigo, and flashbacks in that game showing he's been around since before Yakuza 1. It works up to Yakuza 3 where we see the effective drain in Tojo leadership to the point where we're dealing with a small handful of families with guys like Kanda inheriting the Nishikiyama family and backstory that he'd been in prison for the previous games, newcomers like Mine and small-fry like Hamazaki able to earn a seat at the table because of how depleted the clan is of top officers. But after that game we start conjuring families and Tojo veterans out of thin air, as if they'd always been there. I think they missed a trick with some of the remakes not threading more characters through or at least retconning their absence a little. 0 gave us fanservice with Ryuji, Daigo and Shinji but for Daigo specifically that became a huge boon for painting the mentor/father type relationship Kiryu had with him from a young age, something they made a big deal of in 6. It would benefit the series a lot (and they had the freedom to do so with the Kiwamis) if antagonists and allies didnt just spring up for a single game and then disappear.
Also a bit late but at the end when kiryu gets to the tojo headquarters to stop aizawa a ton of tojo leadership is dead from aizawas sword so I guess it's just implied they have a ton of street families or something
Shinada Tatsuo is the ONLY Reason Why Yakuza 5 is able to Rival Yakuza 0. Without him Yakuza 5 would just be another Yakuza Game. I absolutely Love his Story and Backstory and i think his Fighting Style inspired Majima s Baseball Bat Style in Zero.
hard disagree. I like Shinada's story but placing his arc after Haruka/Akiyama's part really hurt the pacing a lot. Also his fighting style is a lot worse than others. He can easily be changed to Daigo and nothing in the overall plot / Kurosawa's conspiracy will be any different.
@@samuel.jpg.1080p Akiyama is my 2 nd Favorite Yakuza Character i WISH they gave him his own Like 20 hours Long Game that Explains the Events between Yakuza 5 and 6 or Even a Game that Takes Place 1 Year before Yakuza 4. He s So Cool and I LOVE his Fighting Style and the Relationship with his Secretary.
@@sheldoncooper8199 yeah Akiyama is really great but the problem with Akiyama is his voice actor is really popular. He's supposedly should have appeared in Yakuza 7 but due to schedule conflict, Akiyama got replaced
I personally don't think that Tatsuo should return, but I definetely love chemistry between Shinada and Takasugi. It was very touching and the scene when Takasugi found case with money in Shinada's apartment literally broke me into tears (despite I've NEVER ever cried about any scene in videogames)
I hate that RGG created such a great character in Shinada and then wrote him off completely. My favorite character in the whole of Yakuza 5 has to be Shinada.
It is implied in a scene in Judgment that Tanimura was "suicided" (=found hanged, officially seen as suicide but believed to be a murder). See Judgment ch.12 dialogue between Ayabe and Yagami, needless to say need to have seen the ending of Y4 to catch the reference ("Tojo clan go-between" = Y4 final boss; "snitch" = Tanimura). They don't name any names though so, I guess RGG could easily return him if they wanted to. Edit: Don't look for that scene if you haven't finished Judgment though 'cause...some heavy spoilers in there.
So... SPOILERS BELOW. The police chief guy was Kuroiwa's mentor and after the events of the game Kuroiwa murdered Tanimura?... I'm not sure. Since dates are also important since we need to know if Kuroiwa could be the right age to be considered a trainee. Still, I don't think is possible since in Yakuza 5 when you are about to face the Amon Clan, they mentioned Tanimura, and since Akabe mentioned the later found the snitch hanged, I believe it was shortly after the Corrupt cop committed suicide. Plus, I think Akabe would give more info about how the corrupt cop was snitched, since it WAS an event the day the corrupt cop was exposed with all that money flying and news papers everywhere. Akabe would surely mention something about it instead of just saying some dude snitched him.
@@MaskOfLimbo In Yakuza 5 he doesn't pick up the phone and others assume he "must be playing mahjong or sth" so I don't think that's contradictory at all. Judgment SPOILERS below Age-wise haven't been able to verify but Kuroiwa looks somewhere between 30-40 so, no deal breaker if that's the case. I mean, how many corrupt police chiefs were collaborating with the Tojo clan and have jumped from a roof after getting snitched on by one from the force? There could be more than one, I know - it's RGG we're dealing with here 😂
Gonna be putting down thoughts for what I understood. 10: so she could return but mostly as a side character, maybe as Tojo Clan Advisor? How about some side quests throughout the games? 9: I'm excited from your ideas already, in 4 he could be a late boss for the multi gang side story, in 5 he has a voice acted side quest just to give examples. 8: good points all around, not sure if I can add anything other than how happy the idea makes me 7: to still be in the story onwards he could be a patriarch of the family since his aniki's in jail and his boss is dead so the reigns are his, and as told by Akiyama (paraphrasing) 'Someone needs to keep the beast that is Kamurocho under control' so to fulfill that need as a pseudo promise to Akiyama, Kanemura Enterprises could finally sort of tame Kamurocho. 6: why not have her go with Kiryu to Morning Glory? You've already stated her character growth, and don't forget the promotion was a bribe to silence the Officers & Detective's involved, and she finally got her answers for better or for worse so she has no reason (as far as I'm aware) to be in the force anymore since it was a sort of means to an end (or at least it turned out like that.) Slight tinge "has left for the United States to pursue her dream." Her dream was to find out about her past whaddya mean??? 5: fair enough, hope to see him as a leader eventually. I don't really have anything else. 4: again fair point, she absolutely should've been a part of Kurohyo 2 at least for the Dragon Heat's medical healer 3: this might be ambitious but why not a character downfall? Being angry at the Little Asia and who knows how many died or survived but got deported, he lost everything the minute the Saio Triad took over and maybe for better or for worse he could be the new killer cop and eventual boss fight in 6 &/or 7 2: slight conflict since when Takasugi relayed what Milky said with the pretext of wanting things back normal, he cried at the news and I don't think it was out of frustration. From there it'll devolve into opinionated arguments so I'll leave it here for provoking thoughts since other than that i agree he amd Ichiban would absolutely hit it off. 1: He should absolutely return, 100% agree. Though you also bring up good questions that I can't think of answers to yet. All in all, I agree. Fantastic list with excellent points and factors to back it up with only slight grievances, still nice job 👍🏼
Kido's the one that blows the mind the most on him not appearing again. They especially missed the window in 5 imo, the last game where Saejima was a major character and thus would have been pretty cool seeing his relationship grow with his own "final boss" from 4. Of course the actor thing is an obvious wrench so I totally get it. Still, its my own #1 on reflection. A lot of people gripe that of 4's final bosses, Kido feels a bit rushed. Its one of those rare cases where I think fleshing him out as a sort of sidekick or what have you to Saejima would actually add a lot retroactively to his fight, the same way that Nishiki's post Y1 appearances did for his character. Enough time has passed that we'll proooobably never see this but who knows... I mean look at the Y5 call-backs we just got in Gaiden!
Shinadas story was resolved, yes. BUT WHY didn't he have at least a place in the Baseball substory in Y6? Like, come on. Even if it would've just been a phone call from Kiryu asking for advice with Shinada now being a successful baseball coach or something.
It's not even that these characters aren't in the newer games, it's that they just vanished from existence. No mentions of any of them, no substory to have them cameo, nothing. I know Like A Dragon games have a budget of a hoagie sandwich, but this is just disrespectful to the fans.
My boy Tatsuya number one! Hell yeah! RGG got no plans for him or the series and they milked it for a manga and two live-action dramas, so I feel like they just have no idea what else to do with Kurohyou and its characters in terms of business decisions. Since fans are doing the translation, I figure they have no reason to spend money on it at the moment. They even said something along the lines of not needing to go to the past or looking to the past when it came to Kurohyou. Plus, it seems like it might've been a Nagoshi pet project too, so I figure they have no real reason to split the money with Syn Sophia over it especially with Nagoshi gone. Here's hoping, though. I'd even settle for him running a gym that we build stats at, but seeing him at all in the new games would be great, especially with how many characters from the main game he's interacted with, like Akiyama, Hana, and the Florist of Sai. My dream is Tatsuya, Tanimura, Shinada, and Sayama as party members in 8 though. Maybe Mine, because if Kashiwagi can survive a goddamn attack chopper, Mine can survive suplexing a man off a building.
Part of me wishes we’d see Kido again, to know that he at least is doing well. Maybe he jumped into the Saejima family after Yakuza 4 🤷♂️ sadly we’ll never know
So this is a great video but I think Nakahara and Mitsuo deserved spots with how much time Kiryu's been away from the orphanage since Yakuza 4, we can only assume they stepped up to take care of the kids in his absence, and yet we've gotten no mention of them after Y3 which is a huge shame.
@@seunglee6990 Nakahara was supposedly 62 in Yakuza 3 which took place in 2009. Meaning he would only be around 72 during the events of 7. For comparison Hirose was 85 in 6. What’s weird is that this means Heizo Ieami would be over 100 as Heizo was already an adult when he met Hirose as a teenager
@@seunglee6990 Since when has a Yakuza character ever died of old age? Nakahara isn't even the oldest character in the series and he was in pretty good shape in Y3, what with him being able to supplex a charging bull and whatnot. Granted I'd be willing to accept it if they actually explicitly say that's what happened to him (though I'd still be pretty disappointed) since at least it'd mean they're acknowledging his existence.
Personally, I've never had too much of a problem with the way that Yakuza builds characters up and leaves them with a complete arc in one game, specifically because they have proven several times that they are absolutely terrible at writing consistent characters game-to-game when their name isn't Kazuma Kiryu. He is the only one who feels like his incarnation could become and act the way he does in the next game (arguably until 7, but even then obviously the brunt of the writing was directed toward fleshing out Ichiban, so that makes sense). Akiyama in Yakuza 5 feels almost nothing like he did in 4 because he only exists to spout the themes of the game and act silly, when in 4 I feel like he was capable of being one of the more grounded characters, or at least a no-nonsense one when the situation called for it. Saejima too feels completely different in 5, but in that case I have to assume that hard drugs contributed to the massacre of his character and relationship with Majima, and then both of them are nothing at all in 7. The best example of this is in Lost Judgment. Higashi, the whole Genda Law Firm, and even Sugiura to an extent all feel like their characters took a firm halt and stopped developing as soon as the first game ended. They're either acting the same way and contributing nothing unless it's convenient to the story, acting stupider for no reason at all, or just straight up in one or two scenes only. How many people even remember Mafuyu's name by the end of Lost Judgment? Sugiura is an especially weird case to me, because I couldn't tell how he felt about going by a fake name and basically living a completely different life despite coming out to all of his closest friends by the end of Judgment. Maybe I missed the part where he said he doesn't want to go by his real name anymore in the absolute mess that was Judgment's climax and conclusion (remember the part where there were suddenly actual, real ghosts out of nowhere that were never brought up again?), but considering the story clearly only cares about Yagami, Kaito, and the brand new cast added to Lost Judgment, I wouldn't be surprised if Sugiura's backstory will never come up again. All of this said, I don't want them to try bringing back Tanimura, Shinada, Kido, or anybody else from the older games specifically because they probably won't resemble their original incarnation whatsoever. RGG has brought back so many side and main characters characters, some irrelevant, some literally dead, and for the most part, none of them felt like they should have been there because their priorities clearly lie with Kiryu and whoever the new cast is.
This video contains spoilers for many of the mainline games, with the games in question being listed before the associated character reveal. But if you want to be extra cautious, here are the titles that are discussed with the associated timestamps, sorted in release order:
Yakuza 1/Kiwami and 2/Kiwami 2 - 1:07 - 5:22
Yakuza 2 and 3 - 9:00 - 11:06
Yakuza 3 - 5:22 - 6:57
Yakuza 4 - 6:57 - 9:00 , 15:12 - 17:32
Kurohyou - 12:52 - 15:12 , 20:38 - 23:54
Yakuza 5 - 11:06 - 12:52 , 17:32 - 20:38
Shinada would be very angry if he saw Ichiban hitting people with his golden baseball bat
Akiyama actually does have a folder in the character model files of Yakuza 7, there’s an unfinished model of him in the folder.
I 100% believe that Nick Ogata was originally planned to be Akiyama.
Yup, due to Akiyama VA being busy with Kingdom Hearts 3.
Akiyama's VA is really busy with other gigs. Dude's a really popular voice actor
@@samuel.jpg.1080p Man have that Donald Duck bag.
@@Jack75188 yeah, I mean even as far back in the 90s, he was in Cowboy Bebop and Evangelion too, I think. Really popular shows
@@samuel.jpg.1080p yeah, the dude is absolute VA legend.
As much as I love Shinada and believe he was the greatest thing to come out of RGG Studios since karaoke, I'm content with him not re-appearing, and being relegated to mere references. Even in Yakuza 5, his story was, by design, very self-contained and he achieved exactly what he wanted to by the time the credits rolled. Compared to someone like Tanimura who had a satisfying ending but could still be developed on more, Shinada is just a civilian who doesn't even live in Kamurocho, so it makes sense to keep him as a one-off yet beloved character.
If someone says a Yakuza character is the greatest thing since karaoke in Yakuza, you know they not bullshitting
agreed
The fact that Watase came back in 7 I wouldn’t be surprised to see some of these characters return one day.
And I'm happy because he deserved it.
Completely deserved
It was a good call on RGG's part to not use an actor's likeness for him in 5
Never forgive RGG Studios for completely writing off Ryudo Family
Who?
@@naminatorsalamandernakahara from yakuza 3's family
@@BakaMitaiGuyi wish we could see that family again, i deeply know mikio is the new patriarch of the clan 😢
Joji
Their existence would make Gaiden's whole plot not make sense
Here’s hoping characters like Hayashi and Aizawa return in either Gaiden or LAD 8.
I'm a firm believer that some big characters are coming back in Gaiden. Some top secret paramilitary faction that could be harboring loads of written off characters. Plus they've been bringing back some characters that had clear on screen deaths previously. Anything is possible
It would be cool if one of them are now good and even guide kiryu to don a new look
i honestly would love to see Aizawa come back and have something done with him. I've seen other comments bring up the idea of him being Ichiban's Ryuji and I think that'd be cool.
kiryu will fight aizawa again just like he promised
If protagonist sent to prison, he will be out someday.
If antagonist sent to prison, he will stay there until he dies.
Hayashi waiting for kiryu to pick up the phone before fighting him ie one of my favorite moments in the series
Kaoru's profiles do get filled up on their own in Yakuza 3 Remastered. It's just that they are chapter dependent, meaning that at certain points of the story they will say stuff like "gaining weight because of her new american diet" but then in the next the line might disappear or get filled with something like "rejected advances from handsome american cop."
Either way, Kaoru was done dirty by the writer in Yakuza 3. She and Kiryu both deserved a happy ending, or at least more of an exploration of their relationship and story.
As for the rest of the list, I'd love to see Tanimura and Shinada back, or even Tatsuya being acknowledged in the main RGG Studio games in any way. People have said there should be Kurohyou Kiwamis and while I believe those would help raise awareness of those games, I also want the originals (as well as the PS2 games) to be released on modern platforms.
Fat Kaoru Fat Kaoru
After 6, I assumed Kiryu moved to America and reconnected with Kaoru, now that he was finally free from everything, would've been a good hiding place for him too. I was kind of disappointed to find out that wasn't case when 7 came out and that the upcoming Gaiden game is basically confirming that Kiryu was still in Japan. My hope is though that Kaoru returns in 8 and that maybe that the Gaiden is hiting her return and the reason to why he came back from hiding in 7.
@@backtoklondike I hope that Kaoru never returns. That character sucks.
One character that is probably the most forgotten character, one that even you seemingly forgot is Junichi Sudo. A character who Im still to this day am unsure what the story behind was. He appears in four games, but only three appearances are relevant, one of which is just for one scene. Ive never really sensed anything special about this character, but similarly to Hayashi, he was used a few times in the first two games, but he did return in the future entries, but unlike Hayashi, Sudo's relevancy was always extemely minimal serving as Date's friend/rival figure, but their relationship was never properly explored and faded into obscurity very quickly. Kiryu didn't even have a face to face with Sudo in any of the games, despite him being seemingly important to the events going on, being an important investigator.
One thing that a lot of people misinterpret is that the controversy around Narimiya (Tanimura's original face model) happened in December 2016, some months after Yakuza 6's release, which meant that there was no excuse (leaving the whole actor hiring shtick aside) not to include his story in Yakuza 5 of 6, especially the latter.
Ah, so he was another casualty of the narrative reset between 4 and 5 then... Shame. Thank you for the info!
@@gokudoni It seems like the grappler role is a cursed one because Shinada was completely absent from the beginning of Y6 when they showed all the Y5 characters.
Here's hoping they show up in 8, along with our boy Tatsuya.
@@LeoJohnGalt there's not a chance in hell of Tatsuya appearing, let alone Tanimura or Shinada.
@@hoodironyyy Just because you're right doesn't mean I ain't hoping tho.
@@LeoJohnGalt dont hope like a idiot
That Whole Dating Chapter with Kaoru Sayama in Kiwami 2 was soo cute and amazing they would ve been a great Couple in another Universe.
I really want Ukyo Tatsuya back into the Yakuza series considering the stuff he did in his series. Pretty sure Kiryu would like him honestly. But then again, he might be sick and tired of the amount of strong fighters with a dragon tattoo on their backs.
I don't remember Ukyo having tattoo
@@RC-ky4lf Thought he did. My mistake but thanks for the correction.
@General Silver He doesn't have a tattoo, but he was nicknamed "The Mad Dragon of Kamurocho." So you're not off the mark.
My boy gonna be in his thirties married with two kids in Infinite Wealth (please give him some kind of cameo PLS)
I'd take Takasugi over Aizawa any day. I'd even argue that if they decided to bring Shinada back, it would be a big shame to not include Takasugi alongside him, their dynamic was amazing
Ngl I think the two of them could carry an entire game on their own
The two of them was definetly the inspiration for the Majima/Sagawa combo in Yakuza 0
Imagine Tatsuya in his absolute prime as an Amon like optional boss in RGG 8. I mean he was already a beast back when he was 19 ( 2012), one could only imagine how powerful he would be by the time of RGG 8 (2022/2023)
I love Yakuza but I hate that every game feels like a reset. One of the reasons I appreciate Yakuza 2 is because it picks up and builds on 1.
They drop so many characters for no reason and just introduce new ones. I think one reason I love Akiyama so much is because he was in 4 but also played a big part in 5 and 6. Wish they did that with more characters. Even if it's in substories or side activities.
It suck that both Shinataro Kazama VA have passed away. That probably explain why Kazama never return.
He had such gravitas. I've seen him in multiple historical dramas and he always stole the show.
I believe Shinada is living happily in Nagoya despite his enclunter with his neighbour. Even then, at that point he still believed that they weren't capable of evil, which was correct and thanks to his kind nature survived the encounter. I just wish we got a mention of him doing well in Nagoya, out of poverty, etc.
I also wonder what's up with Katsuya from Y5. If they had no intention of bringing him back, why not let him die from his near-fatal bullet wound? Nobody even mentions him later, even though he was pretty close with Watase. They also never specify who the Omi chairman is during the dissolution. Can't be the old guy since he betrayed everyone and was also dying.
Hayashi-wise, I like to think Dead Souls did happen, the people of Kamurocho just collectively decided "we shall never mention the Zombie Incident again". Which would also mean Ryuji is alive and well, making takoyaki somewhere.
Agreed on entire list, I'd also like to add Nakahara/Kiryu second kyodai to the list
You should do a list on 'characters that should return from the dead' just for fun lol
YOU ACTUALLY JINXED YUYA, KAZUKI AND AKIYAMA COMING BACK IN INFINITE WEALTH LOL
And I couldn't be happier about it!
Oh wow you STARTED with the one who I would put at the top of this list.
Just a reminder about my long-running fanon: Yayoi Dojima and Kaoru Sayama have been traveling America in a van for the last several years solving mysteries in small towns. I'm talking to the streaming people about a series.
And I'm of the personal opinion that Shinada's story is complete as is.
yeah, I love the bittersweet ambiguity of shinada's ending. also think he would just be a hard guy to write into another huge-scale conspiracy plot without making it feel forced or weakening his ending in lad 5 since he doesn't really lead that kind of life. but I also think he and ichiban would be a fun duo! he'd probably work best in a substory.
Honestly, I'd love to see a full campaign with that premise! Appreciate your thoughts on the topic, as always
A character I barely see any people talk about is Naoki Katsuya , he could’ve easily been brought back in 7 but wasn’t, the point about kido could easily be said about him as well but I haven’t seen any controversies with his actor or anything, and he was a pretty important character in 5 and in the omi which is why I question why wasn’t he brought back in 7 which was mostly about the omi?
Amazing character, amazing actor. Genuinely wish he reappeared like Watase did. Wanted to include him here as well, but there were already two prominent Y5 characters on the list, sadly.
@@gokudoni understandable, they easily could’ve included him next to watase with a minor role like him, say a few lines and have him off, kinda sad he’s most likely never gonna return.
Katsuya is a likeness character, so he is pretty much never return for that reason.
He is favourite charecter of my mother too so I tottaly agree with you
I just want Shinada back hdhshjxjsjajmzmsms he's literally me fr fr
I was really waiting for Nakahara/Mikio, especially in Yakuza 5 lol if even just a passing reference. Something like Kiryu saying "I have Mikio helping watch the kids back at the Orphanage". I always liked those two, but hated how they completely disappear after 3. Even just mentioning them in 4 or 5 would've been good enough lol.
This made me imagine a timeline where Kido and Baba joined up with the Saejima Family...
I rly hope characters like Nioka or Ryusho come back to the series, I find it really intresting to see just how many families are in the Tojo and how many of them butt heads with each other based on their personalities
Tatsuya is an amazing character and DESERVES to come back. At least a third entry to finish the tale of the Mad Dragon. He HAS potential, he STILL needs a ending to hos story and we NEED the games officially ported here to the West. I'm serious, if not a third entry, if we could ger a KIWAMI remake of them, it would be awesome ^^
Kurohyou is my favorite RGG franchise and Tatsuya is my favorite protag. This dude and the the cast from both the games need to return (Principally Saki and Tenma. Tenma is a ride or die friend and Saki feels left out from Kuro 2, she deserves to comeback on a third entry
Also, it's kinda funny when we think Tatsuya gave up on pro boxing because of "philosophy", but he explained further that it didn't felt he deserved it. That those people sponsoring him were just looking to make cash of him and treated him as a golden goose, if I remember correctly. If he would turn pro, he wanted to achieve with his own fists. In MY little headcanon, I think Kuki continues Dragon Head but now as organization that sponsor fighters and stuff, having Dragon Heat as another business on the side. Hell, I feel Kuki WOULD help Tatsuya become a pro boxer and let him achieve it the way he wants. I feel like Kuki and Tatsuya's trust on one another could lead to that. As a ending for Tatsuya, I could see him owning a gym and aiding and training other fighter, even helping them figure it out their own philosophies. Of course, still fighting on Dragon Heat once of twice to keep in shape and maintain contact with a place that is very important to him. Would seem fitting for him, in my eyes
I love Yayoi so much
The mother-figure everyone needs in their life!
Shinada my beloved. Favorite protagonist, not just from RGG but all gaming.
There's something mildly interesting about Kido and Arai. As we know RGG loves to reuse assets, yet their movesets weren't reused even a single time since release of 4. I'd like to see Kido as a playable protagonist, I think he have potential.
I'd like to point out 2 amazing characters that I think deserves a honorable mentions. Junji Sugiuchi, the 'TRUE' final boss of Tanimura, personally favorite and very fun fight in 4. Also a man who entered the franchise with a Gigachad energy; Masaru Watase, I sincerely hope he will become final boss of RGG Gaiden to get a fight as good as he deserves, since he was ridiculously weak in 5.
to update on kaoru, she is brought back in infinite wealth as a substory to kiryu's awakening, called by date to just meet up and chat while kiryu continues to cover up his name
Aizawa is probably the main one I want to return, imagine how cool it would be if, after the requisite Amon fight, you get a message challenging you to the *true* final battle, returning to the decrepit Tojo Clan HQ to reveal him shrouded by the moon, and he hops down for a final battle where he has gotten much stronger. Would be pretty dope.
You forgot BABACHAN
Oy, Baba-Chan.
Tatsuya having the most content made with him and not having a sequel after Kurohyou 2 is kinda sad.
Tanimura didn't return in 5 or 0 though even the voice actor controversy didn't happen until 2016. So It might have been sega not wanting to pay for his VA since his appearance was based on him
how could tanimura be in 0 lol
@hoodironyyy He's 29 in yakuza 4 and yakuza 4 is 2009 so 21 years earlier in yakuza 0 he's 8 and you go to little Asia so it would have been possible for kiryu to run into him when he was young
I think a Shinada substory would be the best option, since although he's my favorite character in the series it's hard for RGG to write him into games with how much of a nobody he is in the context of the rest of the series.
There is a mention of Tanimura in Yakuza 7 in the Police Handbook item possibly being his revelation item.
KUROHYOU ON TOP FRFR 🗣💨💨
Great video Gokudoni! I really hope to see Ichiban meet Shinada, there’s so much character potential with 8 on the horizon. Maybe we'll see Sayama again one day 😫😫
ALSO, thank you so much for shining that light on Hayashi. Having played through the whole series now, spin-offs included, he has become my favorite minor character by far because of his convictions, his tenacity, and his completely pure respect for Kiryu's strength. He's the kind of villain that may not be a good person at heart, but can at least recognize when someone is stronger than him and not hate them for it. Had I the choice to bring any minor character back, it would be either Hayashi, Hasabe from Yakuza 3, or Minami from Yakuza 4. Minami especially had such strong characterization and an absolute banger boss theme, to simply throw those away is an absolute shame. Plus, with Majima getting older and seemingly aware of that, having Minami take up the reigns in the Majima family and providing the series another boss with an actually good capoeira fighting style would be a complete win on all fronts.
They brought back Sayama as a poundmate in LaD 8
I feel like Shinada and Ichiban would first fight because of Ichiban's use of baseball bats, then get talking after the fight and become best buds.
He won't use bats himself, but he doesn't care if the other chars use it in the long battle he is with the others.
In my personal opinion, I think Akiyama will return in Like A Dragon 8 or we could just get a spinoff game centered around him during the events of Lost Judgment. As for Tanimura and Shinada, They are likely to appear in a substory of Gaiden where they meet up & Reunite with each other[I mean Kiryu, Tanimura and Shinada will reconcile with each other]. Speaking of Sayama and Aizawa, Sayama is likely to appear in a side quest where she comes back to Japan, exploring the streets of Yokohama. She suddenly notices Kiryu passing through and she was like ''Is that KIRYU!?'' ''WHY IS HE HERE!? ''Whatever, I've gotta meet up with him. After all, It's been more than a decade since we've seen each other'' Then, Sayama and Kiryu finally meet each other. Same goes with Aizawa, too. Well, I think we'd more or less likely see him in a Sub Story of Gaiden, Where he suddenly comes to Yokohama for some business and then, Aizawa and Kiryu Interact with each other, With Aizawa talking about the incidents he's been through after the events of Yakuza 5. And then Aizawa asks Kiryu a Question.
Aizawa: Kiryu, It's been 6 years we've fought each other! When we're gonna fight again?
Kiryu: Uh.... Ummm.....
Aizawa: Didn't you say that You'd fight me again?
Kiryu: Yes, I did said that but I'm not fighting you unless I've got any good reason, Aizawa.
Aizawa: Wait, WHAT!? You know what, Kiryu? I've been always ready for the fight I'd have to fight you and you're saying that you won't fight ME!? You're just holding back. C'mon, stop holding back and FIGHT ME LIKE A MAN!
Kiryu: Heh, Are you sure about it, Aizawa?
Aizawa: Yeah, I'm DAMN SURE ABOUT IT! In fact, I'm not crying like a baby if I lost! So, you ready?
Kiryu: Okay, Fine by me, then. I'm ready anytime! IF YOU WANNA DIE, COME AT ME!
They both end up roundhouse kicking each other in the face and FIGHT STARTS!
Music name: The battle for the dream 2.0
Conclusion: This is what I Imagine, folks! Akiyama Returns in Like A Dragon 8 or just in a spinoff game featuring Him as a Protagonist. Tanimura, Shinada, Sayama and Aizawa. Four of them will be returning in some side quests of Gaiden, with Tanimura, Sayama and Shinada reuniting with Kiryu and Kiryu giving Aizawa the rematch he said he'd give him. That is all I've got to say, My dear folks! See you guys later! HEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEH!
I was hoping to see Hana in the video since when it comes to the main games she was only 4 and 5 it was just her voice and she is also in more spinoffs with her being her canon self in dead souls, having a ishin counterpart, and being in the first panther game
She is easily one of my favourite characters as well! The main reason she isn't on here is that there were already two characters that originated from Y4 on the list. Plus, Akiyama and her are kind of a package deal, so if his seiyuu is available for LAD 8, Hana will probably return as well.
@@gokudoni If Hana does return I hope Akiyama and her finally get together because despite being so different they are made for eachother and their ishin counterparts are married so it can happen in the canon
“Shindo, get back in your casket.” Is a funny arse line.
i had an idea some time ago for a "yakuza stories" game, basically short little microcosms of yakuza games like the majima storyline in kiwami 2, or the ones from 4, 5, etc., but completely self-contained. would mainly exist to flesh out and give some insight to some lesser-explored characters and empty patches in the timeline.
Maybe Gaiden becomes a series and we have more side stories with different characters.
Surprised no one is mentioning baba here. Dude was supposed swear an oath with saejima as brothers but doesn't show up again? Imo it would've been really cool to have him in that big omi alliance battle in 7
i totally agree with your opinions on hayashi and aizawa i really want those guys back as they are some of my fave RGG characters
Tatsuya character arc was basically like Musashi Miyamoto from Vagabond.
In "Kurohyou: Ryu ga Gotoku Shinsho", Tatsuya Ukyo starts as a rebellious street punk. He gets involved in the world of the yakuza when he accidentally kills a member of the Tojo Clan in a fight. Tatsuya is then forced to participate in an underground fight club to pay off his debt and gradually gets dragged deeper into the yakuza's conflicts. Despite his rough exterior, Tatsuya is inherently good-hearted and fiercely loyal to his friends. His character arc in this game revolves around him struggling to navigate the dangerous yakuza world while trying to protect those he cares about.
In the sequel, "Kurohyou 2: Ryu ga Gotoku Ashura-hen", Tatsuya is trying to lead a normal life and stay out of trouble. However, circumstances pull him back into the underworld. This time, he gets involved in a power struggle between various yakuza factions. Tatsuya's character arc in this game is about dealing with his past actions, accepting responsibility, and deciding what kind of person he wants to be in the future.
Throughout both games, Tatsuya grows from a reckless street punk into a more responsible and mature individual who understands the consequences of his actions.
Shintaro is just can‘t come back because his/Joji’s va was dead
7:00 uhm, you forgot that they made THE KIDO FILES smh... he was balls out with Saejima and now balls deep in Mikiko smh
Anyway I miss Tonny Moore and Shinada too :(
Kurohyou 3 PLEASE AAAAAAAAA
I'm still puzzled how the florist wasn't even mntioned in 6.
Kiryu wanting to know where Haruka is, decides to go after Akiyama because he was with her 3 years prior instead of going after the city's biggest information broker with cameras everywhere.
If they wanted to write him off, just have someone say he left or something.
And isn't it simple? He would ruin the story if he was present lol
I miss the Florist. He was always fun to meet.
I find it interesting with one of these he might actually of returned, though with a different name and everything though won't get into it too much though it is believed and heavily hinted at at that
Kiryu handler is Aizawa after the events of Y5 that he got picked up and trained by the daidoji much like the two main villians of Gaiden were at the end of the game. Since the handler knows of Kiryu fake name he used as a taxi driver, which is also now Kiryu legal name
I wonder what happened to Katsuya after Y5. I like to think Katsuya ended up becoming the 8th chairman for the Omi Alliance. The dissolution as far as we know was planned by Daigo and Watase. Yet the unknown 8th chairman seemed to agree 100% with it. I know Katsuya himself said Watase should be the 8th chairman but he also took a bullet for Watase so in gratitude Katsuya could have become the 8th chairman. I guess it makes since the dissolution would have required close collaboration between the Tojo and Omi chairmen, Watase and Arakawa. The best man for that imo is Katsuya since they all worked together in Y5.
Really sad Shinada didn't come back in 6 as Baseball game cameo and be Diamond card like Yuki
Can't believe you didn't mention Nakahara or Mikio :(
Love them both! Generally, it felt like their narrative was more conclusive than that of the other characters on the list, so I didn't include them in the end. Though, they were part of an earlier script for the video along with Hana, Minami and Nishida.
@@gokudoni Fair 'nuff! Glad to know you at least didn't forget them like RGG LOL
@@sonikkun5756 This comment honestly killed me hahahah. Thank you for that!
they couldve easily brought back tanimura for yakuza 6, he couldve helped instead of date, its literally all about little asia, wouldnt he be FURIOUS about the saio triad taking over what he considered his own family?
also justice for shinada, bsebllplyrs4lyfe
Shinada should have shown up to help out the team. Would have been great
In RGGO, he did try to stop them
Although i dont think shinada would have fit into the plot of yakuza 6, he still should have been there in the opening, and should have had a cameo appearance in the baseball side story so we could see how his rebooted baseball career worked out
Tatsuya really needs to return. He'd be in his prime now and I'd love to see how he'd measure up to Kiryu and everyone else.
My one entry that I'd include as not so much a 'I wish they'd found a spot for her somewhere' but a 'I wish they'd included her very specifically in one spot' is Kaoru Sayama. Because as much as I love Akiyama, it did always feel weird to me that he was in Yakuza 5. When did he meet Haruka? What connection does he have to Osaka? I get why they brought him in - the story needed a detective and despite allegedly being a money lender he's a pure film noir detective character - so unless there was a pre-existing character who had clear ties to Haruka and Osaka, I guess he was the best choice. ;) I just can't but help feel like Kaoru would have made more sense as Haruka's offsider in that chapter. Plus, it would have meant we'd have gotten the hilarity of Kiryu's awkward reintroduction to his ex.
It sucks that kazama’s va is dead I feel like that’s why we haven’t seen kazama since
an akiyama spin-off is what i need
If i remember correctly Shinada became trainer for baseball team with Daigo help.
RGG adding new characters and making you relate and care to them: 💪
RGG when when there's fan favorite old characters:
Given the teaser for Infinite Wealth, maaaaaaaybe we'll see Joji again? We appear to maybe be in America...
I love when they just ignore Kiryu’s literal oath brother but bring back the man who says roof funny in y8
3:29 he was in dead souls
He mentions that
tatsuya and tanimura return to the rgg series in the new yakuza 14
can't wait for the substory in like a dragon 15 where ichiban takes aizawa to see kiryu in the retirement home
I think Shinada can join to bodyguard business witch was another anonced by Daigo in Yakuza 7
For me the biggest issue with the series is that so much of the senior Tojo leadership gets wiped out each game (particularly in 2, and we see how few direct patriarchs are left sitting in Yakuza 3 as a result), and yet we have new senior Tojo guys like Shibata spring up in 4 and flashbacks show that he's been around since before Saejima even first went to prison. Or Arakawa in Yakuza 7 being a trusted advisor to Daigo, and flashbacks in that game showing he's been around since before Yakuza 1. It works up to Yakuza 3 where we see the effective drain in Tojo leadership to the point where we're dealing with a small handful of families with guys like Kanda inheriting the Nishikiyama family and backstory that he'd been in prison for the previous games, newcomers like Mine and small-fry like Hamazaki able to earn a seat at the table because of how depleted the clan is of top officers. But after that game we start conjuring families and Tojo veterans out of thin air, as if they'd always been there.
I think they missed a trick with some of the remakes not threading more characters through or at least retconning their absence a little. 0 gave us fanservice with Ryuji, Daigo and Shinji but for Daigo specifically that became a huge boon for painting the mentor/father type relationship Kiryu had with him from a young age, something they made a big deal of in 6. It would benefit the series a lot (and they had the freedom to do so with the Kiwamis) if antagonists and allies didnt just spring up for a single game and then disappear.
Also a bit late but at the end when kiryu gets to the tojo headquarters to stop aizawa a ton of tojo leadership is dead from aizawas sword so I guess it's just implied they have a ton of street families or something
Shinada Tatsuo is the ONLY Reason Why Yakuza 5 is able to Rival Yakuza 0. Without him Yakuza 5 would just be another Yakuza Game.
I absolutely Love his Story and Backstory and i think his Fighting Style inspired Majima s Baseball Bat Style in Zero.
hard disagree. I like Shinada's story but placing his arc after Haruka/Akiyama's part really hurt the pacing a lot. Also his fighting style is a lot worse than others. He can easily be changed to Daigo and nothing in the overall plot / Kurosawa's conspiracy will be any different.
@@samuel.jpg.1080p
Akiyama is my 2 nd Favorite Yakuza Character i WISH they gave him his own Like 20 hours Long Game that Explains the Events between Yakuza 5 and 6 or Even a Game that Takes Place 1 Year before Yakuza 4. He s So Cool and I LOVE his Fighting Style and the Relationship with his Secretary.
@@sheldoncooper8199 yeah Akiyama is really great but the problem with Akiyama is his voice actor is really popular. He's supposedly should have appeared in Yakuza 7 but due to schedule conflict, Akiyama got replaced
@@samuel.jpg.1080p
Oh Wow Yeah now that You mention it i really Like his Voice Actor. Maybe in Yakuza 8.
Tatsuo shinada i loved that character.
It seems that going to the US is slang for being sent to the shadow realm in the Yakuza universe, lol
Pd: Bring Kaoru back
If they don’t do any story stuff with Aizawa, I think he could work as a great secret boss in Gaiden
I personally don't think that Tatsuo should return, but I definetely love chemistry between Shinada and Takasugi. It was very touching and the scene when Takasugi found case with money in Shinada's apartment literally broke me into tears (despite I've NEVER ever cried about any scene in videogames)
i think shinada could be an amazing pqrty member in yakuza 8 being one of the broke jobless main characters
I hate that RGG created such a great character in Shinada and then wrote him off completely. My favorite character in the whole of Yakuza 5 has to be Shinada.
It is implied in a scene in Judgment that Tanimura was "suicided" (=found hanged, officially seen as suicide but believed to be a murder). See Judgment ch.12 dialogue between Ayabe and Yagami, needless to say need to have seen the ending of Y4 to catch the reference ("Tojo clan go-between" = Y4 final boss; "snitch" = Tanimura). They don't name any names though so, I guess RGG could easily return him if they wanted to.
Edit: Don't look for that scene if you haven't finished Judgment though 'cause...some heavy spoilers in there.
The first protagonist to die, wow
So... SPOILERS BELOW.
The police chief guy was Kuroiwa's mentor and after the events of the game Kuroiwa murdered Tanimura?... I'm not sure. Since dates are also important since we need to know if Kuroiwa could be the right age to be considered a trainee. Still, I don't think is possible since in Yakuza 5 when you are about to face the Amon Clan, they mentioned Tanimura, and since Akabe mentioned the later found the snitch hanged, I believe it was shortly after the Corrupt cop committed suicide.
Plus, I think Akabe would give more info about how the corrupt cop was snitched, since it WAS an event the day the corrupt cop was exposed with all that money flying and news papers everywhere. Akabe would surely mention something about it instead of just saying some dude snitched him.
@@MaskOfLimbo In Yakuza 5 he doesn't pick up the phone and others assume he "must be playing mahjong or sth" so I don't think that's contradictory at all. Judgment SPOILERS below
Age-wise haven't been able to verify but Kuroiwa looks somewhere between 30-40 so, no deal breaker if that's the case. I mean, how many corrupt police chiefs were collaborating with the Tojo clan and have jumped from a roof after getting snitched on by one from the force? There could be more than one, I know - it's RGG we're dealing with here 😂
Gonna be putting down thoughts for what I understood.
10: so she could return but mostly as a side character, maybe as Tojo Clan Advisor? How about some side quests throughout the games?
9: I'm excited from your ideas already, in 4 he could be a late boss for the multi gang side story, in 5 he has a voice acted side quest just to give examples.
8: good points all around, not sure if I can add anything other than how happy the idea makes me
7: to still be in the story onwards he could be a patriarch of the family since his aniki's in jail and his boss is dead so the reigns are his, and as told by Akiyama (paraphrasing) 'Someone needs to keep the beast that is Kamurocho under control' so to fulfill that need as a pseudo promise to Akiyama, Kanemura Enterprises could finally sort of tame Kamurocho.
6: why not have her go with Kiryu to Morning Glory? You've already stated her character growth, and don't forget the promotion was a bribe to silence the Officers & Detective's involved, and she finally got her answers for better or for worse so she has no reason (as far as I'm aware) to be in the force anymore since it was a sort of means to an end (or at least it turned out like that.) Slight tinge "has left for the United States to pursue her dream." Her dream was to find out about her past whaddya mean???
5: fair enough, hope to see him as a leader eventually. I don't really have anything else.
4: again fair point, she absolutely should've been a part of Kurohyo 2 at least for the Dragon Heat's medical healer
3: this might be ambitious but why not a character downfall? Being angry at the Little Asia and who knows how many died or survived but got deported, he lost everything the minute the Saio Triad took over and maybe for better or for worse he could be the new killer cop and eventual boss fight in 6 &/or 7
2: slight conflict since when Takasugi relayed what Milky said with the pretext of wanting things back normal, he cried at the news and I don't think it was out of frustration. From there it'll devolve into opinionated arguments so I'll leave it here for provoking thoughts since other than that i agree he amd Ichiban would absolutely hit it off.
1: He should absolutely return, 100% agree. Though you also bring up good questions that I can't think of answers to yet.
All in all, I agree. Fantastic list with excellent points and factors to back it up with only slight grievances, still nice job 👍🏼
you know shinada would be perfect to come back. him and ichiban would get along so well. even tho shinada would criticize ichibans use of a weapon
*tatsuya-kun*
Kido's the one that blows the mind the most on him not appearing again. They especially missed the window in 5 imo, the last game where Saejima was a major character and thus would have been pretty cool seeing his relationship grow with his own "final boss" from 4. Of course the actor thing is an obvious wrench so I totally get it.
Still, its my own #1 on reflection. A lot of people gripe that of 4's final bosses, Kido feels a bit rushed. Its one of those rare cases where I think fleshing him out as a sort of sidekick or what have you to Saejima would actually add a lot retroactively to his fight, the same way that Nishiki's post Y1 appearances did for his character.
Enough time has passed that we'll proooobably never see this but who knows... I mean look at the Y5 call-backs we just got in Gaiden!
Forgotten by RGG Studio, but I hope we all don't forget them
get my boy tatsuya back
Seeing Aizawa in Ishin was insane as hell.
Goddamn i am Still blow away by the graphical difference between Yakuza 4 and Yakuza 5.
I would have LOVED to see Kiryu and Tatsuya throw down with each other.
Shinadas story was resolved, yes. BUT WHY didn't he have at least a place in the Baseball substory in Y6?
Like, come on. Even if it would've just been a phone call from Kiryu asking for advice with Shinada now being a successful baseball coach or something.
It's not even that these characters aren't in the newer games, it's that they just vanished from existence. No mentions of any of them, no substory to have them cameo, nothing. I know Like A Dragon games have a budget of a hoagie sandwich, but this is just disrespectful to the fans.
My boy Tatsuya number one! Hell yeah!
RGG got no plans for him or the series and they milked it for a manga and two live-action dramas, so I feel like they just have no idea what else to do with Kurohyou and its characters in terms of business decisions.
Since fans are doing the translation, I figure they have no reason to spend money on it at the moment. They even said something along the lines of not needing to go to the past or looking to the past when it came to Kurohyou. Plus, it seems like it might've been a Nagoshi pet project too, so I figure they have no real reason to split the money with Syn Sophia over it especially with Nagoshi gone.
Here's hoping, though. I'd even settle for him running a gym that we build stats at, but seeing him at all in the new games would be great, especially with how many characters from the main game he's interacted with, like Akiyama, Hana, and the Florist of Sai.
My dream is Tatsuya, Tanimura, Shinada, and Sayama as party members in 8 though. Maybe Mine, because if Kashiwagi can survive a goddamn attack chopper, Mine can survive suplexing a man off a building.
Number 1 is so true, common gokudoni W, also one i want to see come back is minami
Part of me wishes we’d see Kido again, to know that he at least is doing well. Maybe he jumped into the Saejima family after Yakuza 4 🤷♂️ sadly we’ll never know
Sayama too? They wrote her out and she was a boss lady.
So this is a great video but I think Nakahara and Mitsuo deserved spots with how much time Kiryu's been away from the orphanage since Yakuza 4, we can only assume they stepped up to take care of the kids in his absence, and yet we've gotten no mention of them after Y3 which is a huge shame.
I can only assume Nakahara is dead because he seemed pretty old in yakuza 3 and it’s been 7 years since then for yakuza 6
@@seunglee6990 Nakahara was supposedly 62 in Yakuza 3 which took place in 2009.
Meaning he would only be around 72 during the events of 7.
For comparison Hirose was 85 in 6. What’s weird is that this means Heizo Ieami would be over 100 as Heizo was already an adult when he met Hirose as a teenager
@@seunglee6990 Since when has a Yakuza character ever died of old age? Nakahara isn't even the oldest character in the series and he was in pretty good shape in Y3, what with him being able to supplex a charging bull and whatnot.
Granted I'd be willing to accept it if they actually explicitly say that's what happened to him (though I'd still be pretty disappointed) since at least it'd mean they're acknowledging his existence.
I was wondering about whatever happened to Hannah Chan. Akiyama is in the background but you don't hear anything about her
Personally, I've never had too much of a problem with the way that Yakuza builds characters up and leaves them with a complete arc in one game, specifically because they have proven several times that they are absolutely terrible at writing consistent characters game-to-game when their name isn't Kazuma Kiryu. He is the only one who feels like his incarnation could become and act the way he does in the next game (arguably until 7, but even then obviously the brunt of the writing was directed toward fleshing out Ichiban, so that makes sense). Akiyama in Yakuza 5 feels almost nothing like he did in 4 because he only exists to spout the themes of the game and act silly, when in 4 I feel like he was capable of being one of the more grounded characters, or at least a no-nonsense one when the situation called for it. Saejima too feels completely different in 5, but in that case I have to assume that hard drugs contributed to the massacre of his character and relationship with Majima, and then both of them are nothing at all in 7. The best example of this is in Lost Judgment. Higashi, the whole Genda Law Firm, and even Sugiura to an extent all feel like their characters took a firm halt and stopped developing as soon as the first game ended. They're either acting the same way and contributing nothing unless it's convenient to the story, acting stupider for no reason at all, or just straight up in one or two scenes only. How many people even remember Mafuyu's name by the end of Lost Judgment? Sugiura is an especially weird case to me, because I couldn't tell how he felt about going by a fake name and basically living a completely different life despite coming out to all of his closest friends by the end of Judgment. Maybe I missed the part where he said he doesn't want to go by his real name anymore in the absolute mess that was Judgment's climax and conclusion (remember the part where there were suddenly actual, real ghosts out of nowhere that were never brought up again?), but considering the story clearly only cares about Yagami, Kaito, and the brand new cast added to Lost Judgment, I wouldn't be surprised if Sugiura's backstory will never come up again. All of this said, I don't want them to try bringing back Tanimura, Shinada, Kido, or anybody else from the older games specifically because they probably won't resemble their original incarnation whatsoever. RGG has brought back so many side and main characters characters, some irrelevant, some literally dead, and for the most part, none of them felt like they should have been there because their priorities clearly lie with Kiryu and whoever the new cast is.
Both of my favourite characters (Kaoru and Tanimura) getting left behind as the series progresses makes me so sad, I miss em :(
Kaoru is back LOL
LETS GOOOOOOOOO
Shinada actually appears in Ichibans story of RGG online.