This was my second game in the franchise and my first experience with Kiryu as a main character. I was worried about missing a gargantuan amount of context going into this having never known much about Kiryu, but this game actually served as a great introduction to his story. I was able to relate more to Ichiban and the other party members who were only newly acquainted with Kiryu and viewed him as this enigmatic and legendary figure from the yakuza.

Seems like a third of my hundred hours with this game I spent unlocking Kiryu's memories, totally enthralled by the history of the franchise and its colorful characters. Infinite Wealth has made me super excited to play the rest of the games in order while I wait for the next chapter in Ichiban's story. Speaking of which, my only draw against this game is Ichiban taking kind of a backseat halfway through.

Once I got so swept up in the life of Kiryu, I found it hard to care as much about Kasuga (which is really saying something considering I loved the absolute underpants off Like a Dragon and I adore Ichiban as a character; he's one of my favorite protags ever). His story didn't feel super consequential this time around. HOWEVER, they make up for that with this hard-hitting ending cutscene that reminded me exactly why he's such an awesome character and got me incredibly hyped for whatever the next game brings.

Also I really love the juxtaposition between Kiryu/Kasuga's final chapter experiences. Kiryu gets a largely emotional last stand climbing to the top of a skyscraper fighting off a gunship with the help of his old friends(?) and engaging in hand-to-hand combat against a traditional dresspants-shirtless-tattoo guy. Meanwhile Ichiban goes to a volcanic island and fights multiple aquatic behemoths then beats the shit out of a crazy immortal old white man with dual SMGs.